Henry's Freedom Box- Henry's Freedom Box tells the true story of a young man's escape from slavery. When reading this book for the first time my initial reaction was, "Wow! What a powerful, touching and extremely emotional book." I immediately connected with Henry although could not even begin to imagine what he was going through and the true pain he was feeling. The illustrations captured the bond Henry had with his family and the complete sorrow he showed when they were separated. I found this book to be an interesting approach to teaching about the Underground Railroad and slavery. I had never heard about this type of escape from the Underground Railroad, which I feel shows the true bravery and desperation Henry had to discover freedom. This book really captures the events and emotions of people who struggled with slavery. At the start of the story, the author writes, “Henry Brown wasn’t sure how old he was. Henry was a slave. And slaves weren’t allowed to know their birthdays” (Levine). The illustration that matches up with those words sets the reader up with facts, feelings and emotions the slaves had during this time. I feel this story is a remarkable piece of literature not only for the language used to tell the story but also because of the detailed illustrations that engulf you with emotion. Henry’s Freedom Box meets most of the multicultural considerations for its genre. Henry, the main character in the book is able to problem solve his own extremely challenging situation. He is illustrated to portray a man who would represent someone in his culture. Researching his actual appearance further, Henry Brown looks similar in real life as he did in the book. Henry’s Freedom Box is rich with cultural details from the illustrations to the text. He is able to work with others to show cooperation in order to fulfill his needs. Of course being a slave his socioeconomic status is displayed to represent this. Jen, are there other reasons that you found that ties this book to multicultural considerations? I know that I touch on slavery around Martin Luther King Day. I think after reading several books on that topic I would introduce this to my first graders as another man’s escape from slavery. I would emphasize the illustrations in a lesson to teach my students how the pictures help develop that connection to the main character. How and when would you use it in your first grade room?
Rosa, is the story of a famous American named Rosa Parks who refused to give up her seat to a white man on a city bus after work. Due to her courage, Rosa started a battle for civil rights and changed the American society. Rosa is another true story that highlights the amazing revelation in history. What an amazing historical fiction, multicultural story that uses the text along with the illustrations to teach the reader about this important event. The author, Nikki Giovanni captures the story in such an incredible way that allows you to immediately develop a deep connection with Rosa. She works beautifully with Bryan Collier whose illustrations capture the true horror, fear, bravery and leadership Rosa felt on the bus. The illustrations draw you into each characters facial expressions and gestures where they are giving Rosa looks of shame and disappointment. This book does a beautiful job of teaching students the importance of Rosa Parks stance on our world today. This book seems to keep the multicultural considerations in mind. For example, Rosa is illustrated to look similar to her the true Rosa Parks. The other secondary characters also have a similar appearance to what they would have looked like during this time period. Rosa takes on the role of being a leader by standing up for what she knows and believes in. In the story Giovanni, captures Rosa’s true feelings for showing leadership by saying, “Rosa was tired of separate and definitely tired of not equal. She thought about her mother and her grandmother and knew they would want her to be strong” Giovanni.) The story clearly depicts the injustice between the blacks and whites and therefore portrays their socio economic status. One of my favorite illustrations is when the bus drive is in Rosa’s face telling her to move from her seat. Collier captures the bravery Rosa showed and the determination the bus driver had to move her from that spot. Collier showed the bus driver looking down at Rosa implying that she was not the same as him and should be punished for her actions. Another illustration that caught my eye is the page that opens up into a spread of four consecutive pages. These illustrations are so powerful because they portray the men and women all over the United States that are following this movement. I just think this is such an amazing accomplishment- words cannot begin to describe it. Jen, What did you think about the vivid illustrations? Which one helped connect you to the main character?
After reading Henry's Freedom Box for the first time last night in class, I found it moving and, had it not been documented as a true story, amazingly unbelievable! As our initial introduction to the book required us to contrive meaning based solely on the illustrations (without reading the text), I feel we were afforded the opportunity to observe the more subtle artistic elements. For example, the cover alone is rather striking. Young Henry's face portrays sorrow and hopelessness; emotions that should never be experienced by such a young, innocent boy. The words merely enhance the powerful illustrations. For example, I particularly enjoyed the following words: "Do you see those leaves blowing? They are torn from the trees like slave children are torn from their families." This was a harsh yet powerful metaphor. Levine goes on to write, "the leaves swirled around in the wind" describing the scene when young Henry is being separated from his beloved mother. The illustrations of Henry's mother clutching her son greatly enhance the somber tone.
I definitely agree with the notion that this book contains sound multicultural elements. It certainly provides an in depth treatment of cultural issues. The fact that Henry was assisted by Dr. Smith, a "white man who thought slavery was wrong" celebrates diversity and, more importantly, the common bonds of humanity.
I will deinitely read this story to my first grade students next year. Although I too read books about slavery during Black History Month and/or Martin Luther King Day, I am thinking that I want to expand my library of multicultural books and read more throughout the year. I think it is so important for students, even young students, to be aware that these events really happened (to a developmentally appropriate degree). I do agree with you that this book probably should not be the introduction to the topic of slavery, but it is a powerful story that merely emphasizes the severity of the issue.
After reading Rosa, I couldn't help but feel moved. The author and illustrator do such a nice job of complementing one another so as to add the impact necessary to accurately portray such a crucial piece of history. I was touched by both the words and illustrations. One picture that particularly stood out to me was the one of Rosa with a halo-looking figure behind her and children's hands reaching out to her. The words on the opposite page state, "The integrity, the dignity, the quiet strength of Rosa Parks turned her no into a YES for change." I feel that the image of Rosa embodies hope, security and respect where as the children's hands represent a hopeful future.
Upon looking through the Illustrator's Note, I learned that Bryan Collier, the illustrator, made a site visit to Montgomery and Selma. The intense heat was one of the first things he noticed. I thought it was interesting that he went on to explain that the paintings in this book have a "yellow, sometimes dark hue." He wanted to portray foreshadowing with his pictures; "an uneasy quiet before the storm."
I agree with you that this book definitely supports appropriate multicultural considerations. The story is rich in details and provides a comprehensive treatment of cultural issues. The characters in this story certainly interact in an authentic fashion. Additionally, Rosa is portrayed as a leader with definite problem solving capabilities.
In terms of my use of this novel in the classroom, I would definitely incorporate it into my read aloud selections. This is another (true) story of which students must be made aware. I have several nonfiction resources in my classroom library about Rosa Parks, so I think reading them prior to this story would be a great way to build and enhance background knowledge and promote meaningful connections. Kim, how might you use this book in your classroom?
Henry's Freedom Box- When researching information on the author, Ellen Levine, I found information that showed her true dedication to the topic. Levine states, "Writing nonfiction lets me in behind the scenes of the story. I enjoy learning new things and meeting new people, even if they lived 200 years ago." As I was reading Henry's Freedom box for the second and third time I was interested in the author's research on the topic prior to the publication. I found this to be interesting where Ellen states, "I first read about Henry ‘Box' Brown in William Still's 1872 book, The Underground Railroad. An 800-page volume, it contained the stories of all the runaway slaves who came through Still's Anti-slavery society office in Philadelphia." It goes on to describe Ellen's investigation on the topic so she clearly did her homework to make this book an authentic piece. The illustrations clearly enhanced the story although I had a difficult time describing a few that moved me because they are all so meaningful. I choose the picture of Henry in the box where there is a close up shot of his face and hand print. Henry’s entire body is scrunched tight inside a small box. You can clearly see the fear, sorrow and painful emotions Henry is facing as he is being thrown upside down, side to side and around.
Jen, I will have to get some of those other great picture book titles on Rosa Parks. I agree that this book could be used to enhance the learning of who Rosa Parks is and what she did to change our society. I might even use this read aloud first before I provide additional non-fiction resources on Rosa Parks. I feel this story paints a clear picture in a kid-friendly way that my first graders would understand. I could even use this book as a way to discuss how the illustrations play such an important role in telling the story. Like we did in class, I would have my students take a picture walk and try to imagine what was happening in the story. After reading the story to them, I would ask my students to tell me if they could imagine the story without the picture support. We could turn this book into a mini-lesson on illustration support.
This is a story of a hungry kitten in search of a delicious bowl of milk. The kitten confuses the shape, color and size of the moon as the milk bowl and spends all night desperately trying to reach it. Kevin Henkes is one of my favorite authors so prior to reading this book I thought it would be a fabulous picture book to use in the classroom. This book won The Caldecott Medal, which also enticed my thinking to help understand why. It is fascinating when an author is both the writer and illustrator. I can tell by looking at the development of the illustrations that Kevin Henkes had to illustrate this book. He was the only one who knew exactly how to add that extra touch to the illustrations. This picture book is kid friendly and has terrific illustrations that help teach the story. The first thing that struck me is how the illustrations are in a gray scale which I thought might be boring, yet this choice of color helped paint the picture of the late night scene. During some parts of the story, the illustrations tell a story of their own or are there to add meaning to the text. My favorite illustration is on the page where the kitten is chasing the moon and the text states, “down the sidewalk, through the garden, past the field, and by the pond.” For each location kitten visits, the page is split into five sections. After reading the words, I was able to go back and study the development of the story through the illustrations. I now understand why Kevin Henkes won the Caldecott Medal for this book. I would use this text in a variety of ways in my first grade classroom. I would teach a mini-lesson on how important the illustrations are to the overall meaning of the story. My students would understand through this book that they need to stop and study the pictures closely to gather clues and information before reading on. I may also use this book for predicting or envisioning. Jen, I always like to hear new ideas for classroom use- How would you apply this to your first grade class?
I am an avid fan of Kevin Henkes and have integrated many of his works into classroom lessons and read alouds. I am truly amazed at how Henkes consistently reinvents himself, experimenting across the genres. I categorized this book as realistic fiction. Upon my initial investigation of its cover, I had predicted that it might have included a fantasy fiction element (if the kitten was to be personified). However, after having read the text, it is clear that “Kitten’s” qualities were comparable to that of a typical, “real-life” kitten.
Kim, I definitely agree with you in that I had my reservations about the grayscale illustrations. Normally, a black and white picture book would include some “pop” of color so as to emphasize the significance of a specific person and/or object. In reading this story, however, I realized that the object Henkes wanted to accentuate was the “white” moon. The endpapers (something that I now take greater notice of) initially could be construed as a bold geometric pattern. I found these visually stimulating and, after reading the book, particularly relevant to the story. I can definitely see why this book was awarded a Caldecott Medal. Aesthetically speaking, I also enjoyed the boldness of the font. It conveys almost a childlike innocence, mirroring the Kitten’s earnest efforts. The thick lines in the font also correspond nicely to the thick lines of the actual illustrations. I wonder if this effect would have been achieved had the author and illustrator been different people!
Upon conducting some research and reading other reviews, I found it interesting that the circular “moonlike” shape is repeated throughout the illustrations. This is something I had to see for myself as I had not previously noticed this. However, it is unmistakable upon closer inspection. The soft curves of the cat’s back, the flowers by the front steps of the house, the circular rings in the water when poor Kitten falls in all suggest a rounded shape. I also enjoyed the placement of the pictures. Some pages boast a full scale image, whereas other pages contain a fair amount of white space, thus drawing the reader’s attention to the smaller images. I also enjoyed how Henkes conveyed a wide array of emotions on Kitten’s face despite the artistic simplicity of the character.
In terms of the text, I believe the essential question of “Will this poor Kitten get his bowl of milk?” was definitely answered. I would use this book in my classroom as a way to promote questioning and predicting. As first graders can be quite literal, I may ask them to tell me what the “little bowl of milk in the sky” actually was. I would encourage them to think about the title and the illustrations to provide evidence for their thinking.
Jen, I am glad you pointed out the end papers because I too think they add to the overall meaning of the story. They almost set the reader up for the adventure the kitten will set forth on in discovery of the delicious bowl of white milk. When searching for book reviews I found a reviewer state, "I love the grey-scale illustrations - reflecting what you would actually see at night. You often see word or phrase repetition within a picture book but I've never seen repetition of shapes within the illustrations - it works fantastically well.” Jen, you mentioned this detail and after reading your comments plus the review I had to go back and look at all the circular shapes used throughout the story. I found it to be a unique way to focus the reader on a particular shape. The circular curves are included on every page and in my eyes almost remind the reader of the delicious bowl of milk the kitten is desperately searching for. I found not only the flowers, moon and bowl of milk but also the light the fireflies gave off to match this pattern. Another review states, "In black and white with muted grays, the pictures are reminiscent of a classic 1940s film. This nostalgic atmosphere, combined with the simplicity and subtle emotional power of the story, make for a charming and memorable tale." I found this to be an interesting review because at first glance the story did remind me of an old film or book from years ago. I agree that using the gray scale with the focus on the “white” moon really draws your attention to that one object the entire time you are reading. After all this discussion on Henkes’ color choice, in the classroom, I may even do a lesson on the gray scale that he chose, along with an emphasis on circular shapes. I think this will really get my students thinking about the main question of “What will happen if the kitten catches that bowl of milk?”
Very nice discussions. I like how you found reviews. Sometimes they open up our eyes to new elements- such as focusing on the repetition in illustrations not just in text. I also like that you researched the authors of the MC books. This is key. In one instance (Henkes) you mentioned other books by the illustrator- nicely done. It is also a good thing to make text to text connections- text to world etc. For whom are the books intended? For whom are these books appropriate? What are the genres represented? How do they measure up along the criteria for the genre?
Henry's Freedom Box-
ReplyDeleteHenry's Freedom Box tells the true story of a young man's escape from slavery. When reading this book for the first time my initial reaction was, "Wow! What a powerful, touching and extremely emotional book." I immediately connected with Henry although could not even begin to imagine what he was going through and the true pain he was feeling. The illustrations captured the bond Henry had with his family and the complete sorrow he showed when they were separated. I found this book to be an interesting approach to teaching about the Underground Railroad and slavery. I had never heard about this type of escape from the Underground Railroad, which I feel shows the true bravery and desperation Henry had to discover freedom. This book really captures the events and emotions of people who struggled with slavery. At the start of the story, the author writes, “Henry Brown wasn’t sure how old he was. Henry was a slave. And slaves weren’t allowed to know their birthdays” (Levine). The illustration that matches up with those words sets the reader up with facts, feelings and emotions the slaves had during this time. I feel this story is a remarkable piece of literature not only for the language used to tell the story but also because of the detailed illustrations that engulf you with emotion.
Henry’s Freedom Box meets most of the multicultural considerations for its genre. Henry, the main character in the book is able to problem solve his own extremely challenging situation. He is illustrated to portray a man who would represent someone in his culture. Researching his actual appearance further, Henry Brown looks similar in real life as he did in the book. Henry’s Freedom Box is rich with cultural details from the illustrations to the text. He is able to work with others to show cooperation in order to fulfill his needs. Of course being a slave his socioeconomic status is displayed to represent this.
Jen, are there other reasons that you found that ties this book to multicultural considerations?
I know that I touch on slavery around Martin Luther King Day. I think after reading several books on that topic I would introduce this to my first graders as another man’s escape from slavery. I would emphasize the illustrations in a lesson to teach my students how the pictures help develop that connection to the main character. How and when would you use it in your first grade room?
Rosa-
ReplyDeleteRosa, is the story of a famous American named Rosa Parks who refused to give up her seat to a white man on a city bus after work. Due to her courage, Rosa started a battle for civil rights and changed the American society. Rosa is another true story that highlights the amazing revelation in history. What an amazing historical fiction, multicultural story that uses the text along with the illustrations to teach the reader about this important event. The author, Nikki Giovanni captures the story in such an incredible way that allows you to immediately develop a deep connection with Rosa. She works beautifully with Bryan Collier whose illustrations capture the true horror, fear, bravery and leadership Rosa felt on the bus. The illustrations draw you into each characters facial expressions and gestures where they are giving Rosa looks of shame and disappointment. This book does a beautiful job of teaching students the importance of Rosa Parks stance on our world today. This book seems to keep the multicultural considerations in mind. For example, Rosa is illustrated to look similar to her the true Rosa Parks. The other secondary characters also have a similar appearance to what they would have looked like during this time period. Rosa takes on the role of being a leader by standing up for what she knows and believes in. In the story Giovanni, captures Rosa’s true feelings for showing leadership by saying, “Rosa was tired of separate and definitely tired of not equal. She thought about her mother and her grandmother and knew they would want her to be strong” Giovanni.) The story clearly depicts the injustice between the blacks and whites and therefore portrays their socio economic status. One of my favorite illustrations is when the bus drive is in Rosa’s face telling her to move from her seat. Collier captures the bravery Rosa showed and the determination the bus driver had to move her from that spot. Collier showed the bus driver looking down at Rosa implying that she was not the same as him and should be punished for her actions. Another illustration that caught my eye is the page that opens up into a spread of four consecutive pages. These illustrations are so powerful because they portray the men and women all over the United States that are following this movement. I just think this is such an amazing accomplishment- words cannot begin to describe it. Jen, What did you think about the vivid illustrations? Which one helped connect you to the main character?
After reading Henry's Freedom Box for the first time last night in class, I found it moving and, had it not been documented as a true story, amazingly unbelievable! As our initial introduction to the book required us to contrive meaning based solely on the illustrations (without reading the text), I feel we were afforded the opportunity to observe the more subtle artistic elements. For example, the cover alone is rather striking. Young Henry's face portrays sorrow and hopelessness; emotions that should never be experienced by such a young, innocent boy. The words merely enhance the powerful illustrations. For example, I particularly enjoyed the following words: "Do you see those leaves blowing? They are torn from the trees like slave children are torn from their families." This was a harsh yet powerful metaphor. Levine goes on to write, "the leaves swirled around in the wind" describing the scene when young Henry is being separated from his beloved mother. The illustrations of Henry's mother clutching her son greatly enhance the somber tone.
ReplyDeleteI definitely agree with the notion that this book contains sound multicultural elements. It certainly provides an in depth treatment of cultural issues. The fact that Henry was assisted by Dr. Smith, a "white man who thought slavery was wrong" celebrates diversity and, more importantly, the common bonds of humanity.
I will deinitely read this story to my first grade students next year. Although I too read books about slavery during Black History Month and/or Martin Luther King Day, I am thinking that I want to expand my library of multicultural books and read more throughout the year. I think it is so important for students, even young students, to be aware that these events really happened (to a developmentally appropriate degree). I do agree with you that this book probably should not be the introduction to the topic of slavery, but it is a powerful story that merely emphasizes the severity of the issue.
Rosa-
ReplyDeleteAfter reading Rosa, I couldn't help but feel moved. The author and illustrator do such a nice job of complementing one another so as to add the impact necessary to accurately portray such a crucial piece of history. I was touched by both the words and illustrations. One picture that particularly stood out to me was the one of Rosa with a halo-looking figure behind her and children's hands reaching out to her. The words on the opposite page state, "The integrity, the dignity, the quiet strength of Rosa Parks turned her no into a YES for change." I feel that the image of Rosa embodies hope, security and respect where as the children's hands represent a hopeful future.
Upon looking through the Illustrator's Note, I learned that Bryan Collier, the illustrator, made a site visit to Montgomery and Selma. The intense heat was one of the first things he noticed. I thought it was interesting that he went on to explain that the paintings in this book have a "yellow, sometimes dark hue." He wanted to portray foreshadowing with his pictures; "an uneasy quiet before the storm."
I agree with you that this book definitely supports appropriate multicultural considerations. The story is rich in details and provides a comprehensive treatment of cultural issues. The characters in this story certainly interact in an authentic fashion. Additionally, Rosa is portrayed as a leader with definite problem solving capabilities.
In terms of my use of this novel in the classroom, I would definitely incorporate it into my read aloud selections. This is another (true) story of which students must be made aware. I have several nonfiction resources in my classroom library about Rosa Parks, so I think reading them prior to this story would be a great way to build and enhance background knowledge and promote meaningful connections. Kim, how might you use this book in your classroom?
Henry's Freedom Box-
ReplyDeleteWhen researching information on the author, Ellen Levine, I found information that showed her true dedication to the topic. Levine states, "Writing nonfiction lets me in behind the scenes of the story. I enjoy learning new things and meeting new people, even if they lived 200 years ago." As I was reading Henry's Freedom box for the second and third time I was interested in the author's research on the topic prior to the publication. I found this to be interesting where Ellen states, "I first read about Henry ‘Box' Brown in William Still's 1872 book, The Underground Railroad. An 800-page volume, it contained the stories of all the runaway slaves who came through Still's Anti-slavery society office in Philadelphia." It goes on to describe Ellen's investigation on the topic so she clearly did her homework to make this book an authentic piece.
The illustrations clearly enhanced the story although I had a difficult time describing a few that moved me because they are all so meaningful. I choose the picture of Henry in the box where there is a close up shot of his face and hand print. Henry’s entire body is scrunched tight inside a small box. You can clearly see the fear, sorrow and painful emotions Henry is facing as he is being thrown upside down, side to side and around.
Rosa-
ReplyDeleteJen, I will have to get some of those other great picture book titles on Rosa Parks. I agree that this book could be used to enhance the learning of who Rosa Parks is and what she did to change our society. I might even use this read aloud first before I provide additional non-fiction resources on Rosa Parks. I feel this story paints a clear picture in a kid-friendly way that my first graders would understand. I could even use this book as a way to discuss how the illustrations play such an important role in telling the story. Like we did in class, I would have my students take a picture walk and try to imagine what was happening in the story. After reading the story to them, I would ask my students to tell me if they could imagine the story without the picture support. We could turn this book into a mini-lesson on illustration support.
Kitten’s First Full Moon-
ReplyDeleteThis is a story of a hungry kitten in search of a delicious bowl of milk. The kitten confuses the shape, color and size of the moon as the milk bowl and spends all night desperately trying to reach it.
Kevin Henkes is one of my favorite authors so prior to reading this book I thought it would be a fabulous picture book to use in the classroom. This book won The Caldecott Medal, which also enticed my thinking to help understand why. It is fascinating when an author is both the writer and illustrator. I can tell by looking at the development of the illustrations that Kevin Henkes had to illustrate this book. He was the only one who knew exactly how to add that extra touch to the illustrations. This picture book is kid friendly and has terrific illustrations that help teach the story. The first thing that struck me is how the illustrations are in a gray scale which I thought might be boring, yet this choice of color helped paint the picture of the late night scene. During some parts of the story, the illustrations tell a story of their own or are there to add meaning to the text. My favorite illustration is on the page where the kitten is chasing the moon and the text states, “down the sidewalk, through the garden, past the field, and by the pond.” For each location kitten visits, the page is split into five sections. After reading the words, I was able to go back and study the development of the story through the illustrations. I now understand why Kevin Henkes won the Caldecott Medal for this book.
I would use this text in a variety of ways in my first grade classroom. I would teach a mini-lesson on how important the illustrations are to the overall meaning of the story. My students would understand through this book that they need to stop and study the pictures closely to gather clues and information before reading on. I may also use this book for predicting or envisioning. Jen, I always like to hear new ideas for classroom use- How would you apply this to your first grade class?
Kitten’s First Full Moon
ReplyDeleteI am an avid fan of Kevin Henkes and have integrated many of his works into classroom lessons and read alouds. I am truly amazed at how Henkes consistently reinvents himself, experimenting across the genres. I categorized this book as realistic fiction. Upon my initial investigation of its cover, I had predicted that it might have included a fantasy fiction element (if the kitten was to be personified). However, after having read the text, it is clear that “Kitten’s” qualities were comparable to that of a typical, “real-life” kitten.
Kim, I definitely agree with you in that I had my reservations about the grayscale illustrations. Normally, a black and white picture book would include some “pop” of color so as to emphasize the significance of a specific person and/or object. In reading this story, however, I realized that the object Henkes wanted to accentuate was the “white” moon. The endpapers (something that I now take greater notice of) initially could be construed as a bold geometric pattern. I found these visually stimulating and, after reading the book, particularly relevant to the story. I can definitely see why this book was awarded a Caldecott Medal. Aesthetically speaking, I also enjoyed the boldness of the font. It conveys almost a childlike innocence, mirroring the Kitten’s earnest efforts. The thick lines in the font also correspond nicely to the thick lines of the actual illustrations. I wonder if this effect would have been achieved had the author and illustrator been different people!
Upon conducting some research and reading other reviews, I found it interesting that the circular “moonlike” shape is repeated throughout the illustrations. This is something I had to see for myself as I had not previously noticed this. However, it is unmistakable upon closer inspection. The soft curves of the cat’s back, the flowers by the front steps of the house, the circular rings in the water when poor Kitten falls in all suggest a rounded shape. I also enjoyed the placement of the pictures. Some pages boast a full scale image, whereas other pages contain a fair amount of white space, thus drawing the reader’s attention to the smaller images. I also enjoyed how Henkes conveyed a wide array of emotions on Kitten’s face despite the artistic simplicity of the character.
In terms of the text, I believe the essential question of “Will this poor Kitten get his bowl of milk?” was definitely answered. I would use this book in my classroom as a way to promote questioning and predicting. As first graders can be quite literal, I may ask them to tell me what the “little bowl of milk in the sky” actually was. I would encourage them to think about the title and the illustrations to provide evidence for their thinking.
Jen,
ReplyDeleteI am glad you pointed out the end papers because I too think they add to the overall meaning of the story. They almost set the reader up for the adventure the kitten will set forth on in discovery of the delicious bowl of white milk. When searching for book reviews I found a reviewer state, "I love the grey-scale illustrations - reflecting what you would actually see at night. You often see word or phrase repetition within a picture book but I've never seen repetition of shapes within the illustrations - it works fantastically well.” Jen, you mentioned this detail and after reading your comments plus the review I had to go back and look at all the circular shapes used throughout the story. I found it to be a unique way to focus the reader on a particular shape. The circular curves are included on every page and in my eyes almost remind the reader of the delicious bowl of milk the kitten is desperately searching for. I found not only the flowers, moon and bowl of milk but also the light the fireflies gave off to match this pattern.
Another review states, "In black and white with muted grays, the pictures are reminiscent of a classic 1940s film. This nostalgic atmosphere, combined with the simplicity and subtle emotional power of the story, make for a charming and memorable tale." I found this to be an interesting review because at first glance the story did remind me of an old film or book from years ago. I agree that using the gray scale with the focus on the “white” moon really draws your attention to that one object the entire time you are reading.
After all this discussion on Henkes’ color choice, in the classroom, I may even do a lesson on the gray scale that he chose, along with an emphasis on circular shapes. I think this will really get my students thinking about the main question of “What will happen if the kitten catches that bowl of milk?”
Very nice discussions. I like how you found reviews. Sometimes they open up our eyes to new elements- such as focusing on the repetition in illustrations not just in text. I also like that you researched the authors of the MC books. This is key.
ReplyDeleteIn one instance (Henkes) you mentioned other books by the illustrator- nicely done. It is also a good thing to make text to text connections- text to world etc.
For whom are the books intended? For whom are these books appropriate? What are the genres represented? How do they measure up along the criteria for the genre?