Picture Books 1/26/09

Picture Books:

Author: Ann Turner
Title: Katie’s Trunk
Publisher: Macmillan Publishing Company
Date: 1992
Age Level: Elementary (3-4)

Summary:
This is a book about a girl named Katie, whose family sympathizes with the English in the Revolutionary War. It shows what it is like to be a child during that time period, and Katie’s family has to hide in the woods when the ‘rebels’ come to raid their house. Katie is so angry that these people, who used to be family friends, are invading their house, simple because they are ‘Tories’. She runs back to her house and hides in a trunk, where she is almost found, but spared by a man whom she used to know. Katie realizes, at the end of this book, that there are still good people out there, even though a war is going on.
Strengths:
· The book is written in such a way that you feel you really get to know what it would be like to live in the time of the Revolutionary War.
· Although the subject matter, of the war, is difficult to approach, the author makes it appropriate for younger children, and does not even use the word war in the book.
· Uses terms such as ‘rebel’ and ‘Tory’, which could be incorporated into a history lesson to teach students more about the Revolutionary War.
· Ends on a positive note, giving the students the impression that there is good in everyone.

Concerns:
· The book talks about Katie praying to God. Would this be a problem for reading the book in school?
· The story line seemed a little bit hard to follow, such as the reason for Katie’s anger, and why she ran from her parents the way that she did. I wonder if young students may not catch some of the finer details of the story.

Classroom use/Other comments:
· This book could be used in the classroom in a history class. It is a well-written story, and thus could be read aloud to the students, but likely would be closely paired with history, because of its context in relation to the Revolutionary War.
· Although this book is a picture book, and the format seems like it could be used in a first or second grade classroom, I would recommend it for a third or fourth grade class, based on the subject matter.


Author: Gloria Houston
Title: My Great-Aunt Arizona
Publisher: Harper Collins Publishers Date: 1992

Age Level: Elementary (3-4)
Summary: An Appalachian girl, Arizona, grows up to become a teacher who influences generations of schoolchildren.

Strengths:
· Repetition, which is helpful for students who are beginning to learn to read.
· Set close to home, in the Blue Ridge Mountains, which may be of interest to students.
· Tells of all the things there were to do in the Blue Ridge Mountains at the time Arizona was growing up – dancing to fiddle music, making maple syrup, etc.
· Gives a great description of what school used to be like, when it was in a one room schoolhouse. This could be fun to discuss with the children, as they compare and contrast their schooling with Arizona’s.
· Wonderful illustrations.
Concerns:
· There is some vocabulary that students might not know, that would need to be clarified. For example, many elementary school students these days won’t know the term ‘petticoats’.
· This book is more of a timeline of Arizona’s life. I wonder if students would have the patience to sit through it, when it is more history based, and less fun. This is why I recommend it for the slightly older grades.

Classroom use/Other comments:
· This book could be used to depict what it was like living in a different time period.
· This book could be used to show students how important teachers are, and what an impact they can have on students’ lives.


Author: Dave Pilkey
Title: The Paperboy
Publisher: Orchard Books
Date: 1996

Age Level: Primary (K-2)

Summary: A paperboy and his dog enjoy the quiet of the early morning as they go about their rounds.

Strengths:
· This book shows the responsibility and importance of having a job, and how you can make it a fun experience.
· This book has paintings for illustrations, which really draws the eye to look at them closely.

Concerns:
· This book does not have much practical application to school, it is more of a ‘just for fun’ book.
· This book shows a young boy out on a paper route, with only his dog for a companion. I wonder how many students’ parents would allow them to go around their neighborhood alone in the dark, as times have changed some since the book was written. This may not be as believable as it might once have been for children.

Classroom use/Other comments
· This book could be read aloud to the class as a fun book, or could be used in the classroom library as a book students could read on their own.


Author: Maurice Sendak
Title: Where the Wild Things Are
Publisher: Harper Collins Publishers
Date: 1963

Age Level: Primary (K-2)

Summary: This is a book about a boy, Max, who is sent to bed without supper, and travels from his bedroom to a place 'where the wild things are'. He creates mischief for a time, but realizes he wants to go home, where he smells good things to eat. When he returns home, he finds his mother has left his supper in his room for him to eat.

Strengths:
· This book emphasizes the importance of having a vivid imagination.
· This book introduces fun new vocabulary words such as gnashed and rumpus.
· The illustrations are captivating, and there are even some double-page spreads of just pictures without words. These pages are just as exciting as the ones with words, and really draw the reader in.
· This book has an exciting storyline, and would be very fun for children to read or have read to them.
· Although this book discusses monsters, the pictures portray them in ways that they are not scary for young children to look at.
· This book shows that if you are naughty, you will have to serve a punishment for it, such as being sent to your room without supper. If you change your behavior, however, you may be rewarded, as Max was when he was given his supper at the end of the book.

Concerns:
· This book has quite a bit of fantasy in it. I wonder if children would be able to separate what is real from what is made up, and if they would begin to believe that monsters are real by reading this book.

Classroom use/Other comments
· This would be a great book to read aloud to students while they look at the pictures, in the primary grades.
· This is also a book that students could use in upper elementary school to practice reading with proper intonation and giving voices to characters.



Author: Mo Willems
Title: Knuffle Bunny Too
Publisher: Hyperion Books for Children
Date: 2007

Age Level: PreK or Primary (K-2)

Summary:
This is a book of a preschool child who goes to her first day of school, bringing along her beloved one of a kind Knuffle Bunny, only to find one of her friends has the same one. When the bunnies get switched, the girls and their fathers must meet in the middle of the night to switch them back, before the girls are able to sleep.

Strengths:
· The pictures in this book are fantastic. They are a combination of photographs and drawings. The backgrounds of the pictures are black and white photos, with color drawings of the characters on top. It really draws the reader in, and makes the book seem more realistic.
· I like that some of the things that are said in the book are shown in text bubbles, while the rest of the text is written straight out. It adds personality to the book.
· I like that the text size varies for some words.
· The print size is large, so that young children can follow along with it as the teacher is reading to them.
· The pictures follow the story very well, but also expand on the text.

Concerns:
· I did not have any concerns about this book, I thought it was fun, well written, with great pictures.

Classroom use/Other comments:
· This would be a fun book to read on the first day of school, either for preK or kindergarteners, since it is set on the first day of school.