For
the past two August 10th's, I have enjoyed the celebration of picture books, so I
thought it was about time for me to participate. A great big thank you to the
girls who started and continue the August 10 for 10 tradition. Cheers to bloggers Mandy from Enjoy and Embrace Learning and Cathy from Reflect & Refine: Building a Learning Community and all the book lovers who spread the picture book love.
Each
morning this week, I settled down with my morning coffee to peruse some picture
books that I had brought home for the summer. My initial plan was to ponder
their use as writing mentors and reading mini lessons. This stack was a fine
place for me to start my list of 10.
My
love affair with picture books is nothing new. It started during a children’s
literature course when I was working on a preschool associate’s degree in the
early 80’s and really exploded when I took my first little bookworm daughter to
the library. She’s now 27 and a book loving, book collecting teacher!
You
could very well be thinking…so what’s your point here? Well, this thinking led
me to think about my criteria for choosing books and realize that it is varied
, but definitely starts with
· A LOVE for the book
And continues with…
- · Beautiful language – words and phrases that invite us pause, linger, and often return to the book later
- · Strong characters, often spunky, brave, or inspirational
- · Characters or people that readers care about
- · Illustrations that complement the words, like that perfect accessory that pulls an outfit together
- · Stretches our thinking – elicits a reaction
- · Makes us want to be better people
- · Makes us wonder and often times sends us on a research mission
1 ~ Miss Rumphius story & pictures by
Barbara Cooney
This beautiful book tells a story of
Alice’s dedication to fulfill the commitment she made to her grandfather. Alice
travels to faraway places, lives by the sea, but needs to find a way to make
the word a beautiful place. I have used this book to get students thinking
about the seemingly little things each of us can do to make the world a better
place, starting with our classroom community. Last year, Miss Rumphius was the
book our class chose to focus on during “Kindness Week.” The door to the
classroom turned into a field of lupines, as we sprinkled the seeds of
kindness.
2 ~ The Purple Coat by Amy Hest pictures by
Amy Schwartz
I love Gabrielle, who goes by Gabby! This
simple, yet sweet story about a “new coat” tradition and trying new things is
definitely a tale we can relate to. I love the warm relationships between
Gabby, her mom, and her Grampa. Gabby has a lot of spunk. Like many children,
she knows what she wants. I have never thought of this before, but I could see
using this book anytime during the school year when students get stuck in a
rut. Perhaps students need a nudge to branch out to other genres in reading or
writing. It would also make a writing mentor when working on word choice. There
is strong description, vivid verbs, and dialog to study and emulate.
3 ~ Wilma Unlimited by Kathleen Krull
Illustrated by David Diaz
While
my list is far from a balanced, I definitely wanted to include at least a
couple non-fiction selections. I like to start the year with inspirational
characters, especially real people. In history, the men get so much of our
attention, it’s important to feature women who worked hard to overcome challenges
and make the world a better place. Wilma Rudolph was born in 1940, survived a
disease that often killed children, rose above discrimination, and went on be
an Olympic track star. This book is in my back to school stack!
4 ~ All the Places to Love by
Patricia MacLachlan, paintings by Mike Wimmer
This
beautiful book is one of my favorite writing mentors. Each family member shares
her love of a special place around the family farm. I love the outdoors and my
writing is often a reflection of that. The illustrations are breath taking in a
peaceful way. It’s not a showy book. It’s more like favorite broken-in quilt or
a home-cooked soup. It’s a feel-good book. Patricia MacLachlan sprinkles in
stunning similes at just the right place, like a chef who uses the perfect
balance of spices to season that soup.
5 ~ Thank You, Mr. Falker by Patricia Polacco
I
can’t think of a more inspirational story for the classroom and to learn
Trisha, the main character, who struggles for years to learn to read, is the true
story of Patricia Polacco. Like we’ve come to expect from Polacco’s books,
there are many opportunities for rich discussions, inferencing, and lingering
over interesting word choice.
6 ~ Let’s Go Home by Cynthia Rylant
illustrated by Wendy Anderson Halperin
This
is another writing mentor that my 4th grade writers and I return to
many times throughout the year. Like All
the Places to Love, it feels good to read this book. It’s a tour through
the cozy rooms of beloved home. I like reading it also because it reminds me
that it’s not all about the fancy, new improvements that we save for and fret
about. I appreciate the memories that our aging 23-year-old house holds. It’s
the little things that make a house a home. The book bursts with beautiful word
choice. Mentor sentences and paragraphs abound. And on a more practical level,
pages are organized with topic sentences, details, and satisfying closing
sentences.
7 ~ Butterfly Eyes andother Secrets of the Meadow by Joyce Sidman illustrated by Beth Krommes
I
choose this book primarily for two reasons: it’s fine, fine poetry and intriguing
non-fiction. Joyce Sidman does a beautiful job at writing about nature, often
times the lesser-known beauties. This collection of poems that explores the
meadow in a riddle-like format, but don’t let that fool you, they are quite
sophisticated. Each poem includes additional facts with a glossary of science
terms in the back of the book.
8 ~ Red Sings fromTreetops a year in colors by Joyce Sidman illustrated by Pamela Zagarenski
I
will never tire of reading this lovely book, lingering over the luring language
and the lovely illustrations. It’s one of those books where you can’t imagine
any other art adorning the pages. The word choice is amazing, sometimes
surprising, yet perfect. It’s poetic. No surprise that this book has helped me
teach writing, specifically word choice and personification. It has also
inspired seasonal color poems and been a text for modeling inferential
thinking.
9 ~ The Other Side by Jacqueline Woodson
illustrations by E.B. Lewis
I
chose this book because it demonstrates the power of kindness, accepting
others, and building bridges. The story is set in a segregated community, in a
neighborhood where children play on their side of the fence. Annie, a white
girl and Clover, a girl from the black side of the fence watch each other, but
don’t speak for quite some time. When they do, the fence becomes a meeting
place for the two of them. Eventually they play together and others join them
on the fence. While today, it’s hard to imagine this way of life, there are
lessons to be learned and many places in the world that have fences to be taken
down.
10 ~ Owl Moon by Jane Yolen illustrated
by John Schoenherr
This
beloved treasure was first published in 1987 and won the Caldecott Medal the
following year. I have loved this book for a long time. Jane Yolen’s stellar
similes and word choice create and sustain a magical feeling throughout the
book as a young girl and her dad venture out on a cold winter night to go
owling. From the beautiful beginning to the satisfying ending, this book is a
jewel in my basket of favorites. After enjoying a first reading, I have most
often returned to the text for a writing model.
