The third Caldecott book I read was Kitten's First Full Moon, by Kevin Henkes. This book won the Caldecott medal in 2005.
Kitten's First Full Moon is about a kitten who sees a full moon for the first time and thinks it is a bowl of milk in the sky. We read about her attempts to reach the bowl of milk in the sky. This book would be great for early primary students with its one character and simplistic plot.
What I really liked about this book was the illustrations. I thought they brought the story to life. I really liked how different these illustrations were from other books, and even other Caldecott winners. In this book, the illustrations are very simplistic. They are black and white drawings with thick, bold black lines. The uncluttered pictures match the uncluttered storyline.
My reaction to this book is based on my love of children's literature. I don't know how do describe my reaction other than that I loved kitten's sense of adventure and how inquisitive she was. I choose books such as this one to read in my classroom because I want my students to be curious and adventurous. That is how you learn!
My favorite book by Kevin Henkes is Chrysanthemum. I absolutely love Chrysanthemum, and I read it to my class every year. Kitten's First Full Moon probably has more differences than similarities with Chrysanthemum. I think Kittens First Full Moon is geared towards a younger audience. While both books are great stories for young students, I feel that Chrysanthemum delivers a great message. Students learn that all names are special and you should tease someone about their name.
The new insight I gained from this book was that illustrations can really make or break a book. I feel that the black and white, simplistic illustrations really match well with the storyline. Elaborate, colorful illustrations would have really taken away from the story.
Thursday, July 30, 2009
Caldecott Book 2
The second book I read was Flotsam by David Wiesner. This book won the Caldecott Medal in 2007.
Flotsam is something that floats, and in this case it is anything that floats in the ocean. This book is about a little boy who spends his day at the beach. While looking at a crab, a big wave comes ashore and knocks him down. When the wave pulls back, he can see that an old camera had washed up on the beach. He took the film and had it developed. The pictures turn out to be real treasures!
I really liked Flotsam for several reasons. First, the illustrations tell the story. When I first realized that there were no words, I thought that the book really couldn't be that great. However, I didn't even miss the words. The story was so complete through the illustrations. I forgot there wasn't even any text. It is a nice change to look at a book with a series of beautiful illustrations and to be able to feel like you completely understand the story. Another reason I really liked Flotsam was because I immediately thought of several lessons I could do with my students. I thought it would be really interesting to have my students be the authors by coming up with the text to go along with the illustrations.
My reaction to this book is mainly based on my love for children's literature. I particularly loved the main character in the story. He had so many great qualities that I would love for my students to see. I loved that the boy was so curious! He came to the beach with a microscope!!! Instead of building sandcastles and playing in the water, this boy was looking closely at the wildlife and his new discovery: the old camera. He developed the film from the old camera and carefully examined each picture. One picture was of a girl holding a picture of a boy, who was holding a picture of another boy, who was holding a picture of another girl, and so on. The boy in the story first looked at the picture with a magnifying glass, and then with his microscope. He finally found the first boy, who was dressed in early 1900's clothing. I absolutely loved that the boy in the story continued the trend and took a picture of himself holding the picture. The boy also showed that he was selfless. Instead of keeping this rare, old, treasure of a camera, he threw it back into the ocean for someone new to discover!
Another book of David Wiesner's that I have read is Tuesday. I absolutely loved this book when I was a child, and with good reason. Both of these books are silent stories that allow the reader's imagination to run wild. Flotsam and Tuesday compare and contrast in several ways. They are similar in that they are silent stories, and both contain some science fiction / fantasy elements. However, their differences are what I love the most. Tuesday is so different because it is so random and unexpected! The lillypads levitate out of a pond on a random Tuesday, and the events unfold. I love the expression on the face of the man eating a sandwich. I would have had the exact same expression!
A new insight that I gained from this book is that great children's literature can be wordless! A series of illustrations can still tell a beautiful story. I guess the saying, "A picture's worth a thousand words," is really true.
Flotsam is something that floats, and in this case it is anything that floats in the ocean. This book is about a little boy who spends his day at the beach. While looking at a crab, a big wave comes ashore and knocks him down. When the wave pulls back, he can see that an old camera had washed up on the beach. He took the film and had it developed. The pictures turn out to be real treasures!
I really liked Flotsam for several reasons. First, the illustrations tell the story. When I first realized that there were no words, I thought that the book really couldn't be that great. However, I didn't even miss the words. The story was so complete through the illustrations. I forgot there wasn't even any text. It is a nice change to look at a book with a series of beautiful illustrations and to be able to feel like you completely understand the story. Another reason I really liked Flotsam was because I immediately thought of several lessons I could do with my students. I thought it would be really interesting to have my students be the authors by coming up with the text to go along with the illustrations.
My reaction to this book is mainly based on my love for children's literature. I particularly loved the main character in the story. He had so many great qualities that I would love for my students to see. I loved that the boy was so curious! He came to the beach with a microscope!!! Instead of building sandcastles and playing in the water, this boy was looking closely at the wildlife and his new discovery: the old camera. He developed the film from the old camera and carefully examined each picture. One picture was of a girl holding a picture of a boy, who was holding a picture of another boy, who was holding a picture of another girl, and so on. The boy in the story first looked at the picture with a magnifying glass, and then with his microscope. He finally found the first boy, who was dressed in early 1900's clothing. I absolutely loved that the boy in the story continued the trend and took a picture of himself holding the picture. The boy also showed that he was selfless. Instead of keeping this rare, old, treasure of a camera, he threw it back into the ocean for someone new to discover!
Another book of David Wiesner's that I have read is Tuesday. I absolutely loved this book when I was a child, and with good reason. Both of these books are silent stories that allow the reader's imagination to run wild. Flotsam and Tuesday compare and contrast in several ways. They are similar in that they are silent stories, and both contain some science fiction / fantasy elements. However, their differences are what I love the most. Tuesday is so different because it is so random and unexpected! The lillypads levitate out of a pond on a random Tuesday, and the events unfold. I love the expression on the face of the man eating a sandwich. I would have had the exact same expression!
A new insight that I gained from this book is that great children's literature can be wordless! A series of illustrations can still tell a beautiful story. I guess the saying, "A picture's worth a thousand words," is really true.
Monday, July 27, 2009
Caldecott Book 1
The first book I read is called Snowflake Bentley by Jacqueline briggs Martin and illustrated by Mary Azarian. Snowflake Bentley won the Caldecott Medal in 1999.
I loved Snowflake Bentley for several reasons. I feel it is only appropriate to mention the beautiful illustrations first since it is a Caldecott winner. I thought the pictures were not only clear and crisp like snowflakes, but they also succeeded in bringing the story to life.
From a teaching standpoint, I felt the book had many good messages for students. Willie can teach us all about following dreams, being persistent, working hard, and never giving up even when others put you down. He shows us that money isn't always the most important thing. He continued to follow his dream even though he knew he would never make great money.
I loved the fact that this story is about a real person. So many times, we read fictional stories to our students about these same things, but in the end, it is still fiction. It is always nice to be able to show my students examples of real people who followed their dreams and did something with their life that they were passionate about.
My reaction to this book is influenced by my own life. I admire Willie for chasing his dream even when some people didn't support him. While teaching is my passion, it is not my only passion or dream I had for my life. Many times, I find myself regretting the decision to give up on other dreams that I had.
When reading this book, I found myself comparing it to other books about people who pursued and achieved dreams. While Willie's persistence was very similar to that of others, I really liked the fact that his goal was so different: photographing a snowflake. Many other aspects of Willie's journey were very similar to those in these other books. I think it is important for these books to include the struggles that were faced in order to reach a goal. Willie couldn't draw the snowflake, he had trouble photographing them before they melted, and he had to do hours of work on each photo, to name a few struggles. Many times our students expect instantaneous results. It is important for students to see the years of dedication put into a single goal.
When I first think about great children's literature, biographies did not come to mind. I know part of this is because I still have A LOT of literature to be exposed to. However, this book is a great example of how a biography can be a great piece of literature. Overall, Snowflake Bentley is a great piece of children's literature.
I loved Snowflake Bentley for several reasons. I feel it is only appropriate to mention the beautiful illustrations first since it is a Caldecott winner. I thought the pictures were not only clear and crisp like snowflakes, but they also succeeded in bringing the story to life.
From a teaching standpoint, I felt the book had many good messages for students. Willie can teach us all about following dreams, being persistent, working hard, and never giving up even when others put you down. He shows us that money isn't always the most important thing. He continued to follow his dream even though he knew he would never make great money.
I loved the fact that this story is about a real person. So many times, we read fictional stories to our students about these same things, but in the end, it is still fiction. It is always nice to be able to show my students examples of real people who followed their dreams and did something with their life that they were passionate about.
My reaction to this book is influenced by my own life. I admire Willie for chasing his dream even when some people didn't support him. While teaching is my passion, it is not my only passion or dream I had for my life. Many times, I find myself regretting the decision to give up on other dreams that I had.
When reading this book, I found myself comparing it to other books about people who pursued and achieved dreams. While Willie's persistence was very similar to that of others, I really liked the fact that his goal was so different: photographing a snowflake. Many other aspects of Willie's journey were very similar to those in these other books. I think it is important for these books to include the struggles that were faced in order to reach a goal. Willie couldn't draw the snowflake, he had trouble photographing them before they melted, and he had to do hours of work on each photo, to name a few struggles. Many times our students expect instantaneous results. It is important for students to see the years of dedication put into a single goal.
When I first think about great children's literature, biographies did not come to mind. I know part of this is because I still have A LOT of literature to be exposed to. However, this book is a great example of how a biography can be a great piece of literature. Overall, Snowflake Bentley is a great piece of children's literature.
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