CHARACTERS OF SICK AND/OR NEGLECTED CHILDREN IN SCHOOLAND HOME READING FOR ELEMENTARY SCHOOL

Abstract

The subject of research in this paper are literary works for elementary school in which sick and neglected children appear as main or secondary characters. The paper examines how the selection of literary texts (such as the fairy tales by Hans Christian Andersen, “The Moonflower” by G. Olujić, the short story representative excerpts from the novels The Secret of the Yellow Balloon by Nicole Lesueur, Agi and Emma, The Twelfth Sea by I. Kolarov, The Mowed Field by B. Ćosić) and the methodical apparatus in school textbooks contribute to preparing students to interpret dominant literary problems (illness, neglect, loneliness, social distance, social marginalization, abuse). Analyzing the significance of the presence of these literary works in school programs and textbooks contributes to appropriate teaching interpretation in modern education and encourages empathy, tolerance, and altruism among elementary school students.