The International Children’s Literature Workshop is a virtual professional development workshop series for K-12 educators, librarians, and children’s literature enthusiasts in the wider community. This year’s theme — Teaching Global Visual Storytelling — celebrates the contributions of genres including graphic novels, manga, and comic books to the richness of literature from around the world, and provides recommendations on how such genres can support K-12 students of all reading levels and abilities on their path to becoming global citizens. Please note that each of the workshops will be offered virtually. Registrants will receive Zoom links for each webinar the week before each session.
During week one of our series, hear from Dr. Kate Van Haren, a social studies educator from Pittsville, Wisconsin, who will put the workshop series into context including her own experiences utilizing global visual storytelling in the classroom.
We will also be joined by representatives from the Madison Reading Project who will briefly share about the resources they can provide educators.
And finally, hear from staff from several members of the Wisconsin International Resource Consortium (WIRC) who have participated in the organization of this workshop. They will provide a brief overview about the speakers they have invited to participate in the series.
About Kate Van Haren: Dr. Kate Van Haren is a social studies educator in Pittsville, Wisconsin, where she teaches fourth-grade English Language Arts and Social Studies in the Pittsville Public School District. She recently completed her doctorate at Penn State University, where her research interests centered on social studies education, civic engagement, critical literacy, and anti-oppression education.
Van Haren has spent more than fifteen years in education, beginning her career through service as an AmeriCorps tutor and a Peace Corps volunteer in North Macedonia. She is recognized for her commitment to inquiry-based learning and for helping young learners develop historical understanding, empathy, and civic awareness.
A published scholar and curriculum developer, she has written on topics including Indigenous history, environmental stewardship, and civic education. Her work has appeared in the Bank Street College Occasional Paper Series, and she contributes to professional learning initiatives focused on Holocaust, genocide, and human rights education.
In 2024, Van Haren received the National Council for the Social Studies (NCSS) FASSE Elementary Social Studies Teacher of the Year Award, recognizing her leadership and excellence in elementary social studies education. She was a member of the first Teaching Forward Fellowship cohort in 2025-26.
