To go beyond just stating the problem and solution in the book, I make sure to pose questions that will get students thinking about their effects. For some students, the conflict and resolution in The Proudest Blue will be harder to identify. But it’s also important for students to practice this skill with stories where it’s not as evident. We typically choose stories with obvious problems and solutions when we teach conflict and resolution. This is definitely something to share with students! As a member of the United States fencing team, she made history as the first Muslim American woman to wear a hijab while competing for the U.S. The author, Ibtihaj Muhammad, wrote this based on her own experiences as a young girl wearing hijab to school for the first time – and unfortunately, the bullying she endured. Identity, courage, and family are important themes in this book. The girls head home at the end of the day, with Faizah fantasizing about the day she can wear her own blue hijab. Faizah recalls her mother telling them to “drop” the hurtful words of others, and she too walks away. She watches Asiya with concern, but Asiya simply turns and walks away. Faizah doesn’t understand how they see it so differently. However, other students react to Asiya’s hijab with questions and unkind actions. Asiya is proudly wearing a beautiful, new blue hijab, which represents beauty and strength to the girls. Sisters Asiya and Faizah are off to their first day of school.

The Proudest Blue: A Story of Hijab and Family is a beautifully written and illustrated book by Ibtihaj Muhammad and S.K.

When I teach this skill, I like to do a deep dive with students to analyze how the story’s conflict impacts the plot, the characters, and the theme. After all, the conflict is at the heart of the plot, and the character’s actions, feelings, and behaviors are often tied to it. Identifying a story’s conflict and resolution is an important reading skill we want our students to develop.

The proudest blue book