Recycle!

Gail Gibbons’ Recycle: A Handbook For Kids is a colorful non-fiction picture book about what and why to recycle.  Gibbons begins the story by asking children where all the trash goes? Then, she provides details about the landfills created to collect garbage. Concerned that there is too much trash for landfills to hold, she suggests that the solution is recycling.  As the text introduces recycling, the accompanying illustrations depict canisters labeled paper, glass, plastic, cans, and polystyrene. On the following pages, the text and illustrations work together to introduce reason to recycle each of the materials listed above.  The way that each product is made is discussed as well as the manufacturing processes’ impact on the environment. Cartoon-like illustrations expand on the text by showing the processes described. Reasons to recycle each product such as preventing harm to animals or the destruction of forests are discussed. The ways in which each product can be re-purposed are also identified.

Gibbon’s illustrations and text are consistently framed throughout the text. Sometimes multiple illustrations are framed individually to present multiple scenes on one page. In Keeping with Gibbons’ style, many of the illustrations include labels or captions that define key terms. Meanwhile, the main text is consistently placed in a frame across the bottom of each page. Gibbon’s word choice and sentence structure remains simple and straightforward throughout the text. Often, the word RECYLE! is highlighted in red to signify the importance of this civic responsibility. 

The design of this non-fiction picture book is an excellent precursor to the science textbooks that await upper elementary-aged children.  Gibbon’s objective language familiarizes children with the nature of non-fiction text. Likewise, facts and labels in the illustrations resemble simpler versions of those in textbooks. Older children will enjoy studying the facts displayed in the illustrations, but the placement of text in the illustrations may confuse younger children. For younger children, Recycle: A Handbook For Kids would be an excellent read-aloud with which teachers and parents can model how to approach the elements of non-fiction texts. Simply, reading aloud a story about caring for the earth will send a powerful message to young children about their roles in the world around them.  For more kid-friendly information about recycling, check out Kids Recycle!

Go ahead, Break the Rules!

            In Knots in My Yo-yo String, Jerry Spinelli answers a question that came from the lips of a child.

“Do you think that being a kid helped you to become a writer?”

His answer is indirect. It winds and turns and spins through the threads of his life as a child. His memories flood back, naturally ignoring chronology.  It is as though he has invited us, the readers, to journey with him as he seeks the answer. It begins without direction, just a sunny day in the life of a sixteen year old boy.  Like the Ghost of Christmas past, he immediately whisks us back to his first memory of his first house where he stands in his yard. There he begins to weave together bits and pieces of pictures in his mind. Baseball with his father, the beginning of the love affair with sports that would give birth to much more.  His move to the West End in the house on George Street. His life as a cowboy. Life on George street where his mother’s cake bowl went missing. Wishing to swap Spit for Spider. Stolen memories from a younger brother who had a habit of putting puppies in lunch pails. His reign as King. Then, the fall from the top. The death of a beloved pet. And the rush of words that ended the game, only to start a new one in the hand of young man holding a pen.

            This is the story he tells. It is of moments. Of what he calls Knots in My Yo-yo String. Sometimes he tells the story as though he were still reliving those moments, as though we were right there with him. His habit of reliving moments as a child has developed into the gift of being able to pull us into words. Other times he gives himself distance as he looks back to reflect. For he begins to speak of things as though they were, rather than are. Perhaps he pushes us back to help us see that he is telling us of what he has learned. Of meaningless names we give to colors. Of the death that is sure to follow captivity. Of the strong but silent bond between brothers. His lessons learned are powerful messages for both children and adults.  His autobiography dares to tackles some of life’s biggest knots: death, racism, war, and more. The very themes that older elementary-aged children must wrestle with today.

Much like this blog entry, he breaks the rules of conventional writing, but he brings glory to the author’s craft. His fragmented sentence structure, free use of punctuation, shifting verb tense and more give shape to the strong voice that calls out in this story. His well-chosen words create vivid images for us. Sometimes his story becomes more about other people than his own life. In these places, he dabbles with perspective which reminds both children and adults to consider life from multiple view points.

Most of all, he lets us watch the shaping of a writer as he realizes the power of words. He finds them in comics and on cereal boxes. In jokes that still make him laugh. In the sports section of a newspaper. In the words he never said, but wished he had. In love letters. In the passion of a high school football game. They begin to play over and over in his mind until he spits them out onto paper. Perhaps his nickname fits him well after all. Well done, Spit, because of you, many more children might also discover-

Words.

George Washington Carver

            George Washington Carver: The Peanut Wizard is an entertaining children’s biography written by Laura Driscoll and illustrated by Jill Weber. The story begins with a letter from a fictional teacher named Mrs. Brandt. In the letter, she tells students that she is excited to read their reports about famous scientists. The remainder of the book is written as though it were a student report about Dr. George Washington Carver. Each spread is a unique scrapbook page of writing, drawings and photographs collected by a student named Annie. In her writing, the student provides specific facts about George Washington Carver including his birth, childhood, and early adult life. Facts about his childhood describe his early interest in plants and eagerness to learn. Facts about plants are weaved into the story though child-like drawings and diagrams.  Many of the drawings include comic-like thought bubbles. The story continues to describe Dr. Carver’s college experiences and his work at Tuskegee Institute. Dr. Carver’s commitment to education of local farmers about producing healthy crops is highlighted.

            While this book is informative and interesting, the text design is complicated and sometimes confusing. Older elementary-aged children familiar with a variety of texts will be able to navigate the unique scrapbook layout, but might need prompting. Specifically, the placement of a science activity and peanut recipe interrupt the flow of the story about Dr. Carver’s life. Still, these interesting activities for children help students connect Dr. Carver’s work with their own lives. The scrapbook layout also makes it difficult to discern the order in which to read the text. The scattered layout of text would make this book difficult to read aloud also.

            While the complex nature of the text design limits its use, the unique scrapbook layout will definitely engage mature readers. This would be an excellent book for the classroom library in an upper elementary classroom. It would also be an informative book for children to read when they have time to study each page for understanding. While the complex layout is challenging, this picture book presents detailed facts about George Washington Carver’s life in a way that will encourage many children to reach for this book as though it were a comic.

Pumpkins!

Written by Jill Esbaum, Seed, Sprout, Pumpkin Pie is one of the crisp nonfiction picture books in the National Geographic Kids Picture the Seasons series. The first few pages depict the life cycle of a pumpkin from seed to fruit, the pumpkin itself, in full bleed photographs or collages. Poetic text accompanying each photograph describes the growth of the pumpkin plant. Then, the text describes different types of pumpkins in the photographs on each page. At times, it is difficult to discern whether the text extends the photographs or vice versa because they seem to work in unison throughout the book.  

Pictures of children with pumpkins are paired with bold text about how people use pumpkins in the fall. Several examples lead up to the awaited glowing jack’- o- lanterns with which many young readers associate pumpkins. Poetic verses describe the rotting of a pumpkin plant and the coming of winter as the life cycle continues.  The final photograph captures a large tree over bright orange pumpkins lying on a barren ground sprinkled with snow. Though appropriate text drifts across the page, the photograph clearly speaks the hush of winter and the hope of new life.

While children of all ages will enjoy studying the photographs, the layout of the text makes this book a difficult read for young children. This would be an appropriate fall read-aloud for the home or classroom. Teachers might consider using Seed, Sprout, Pumpkin Pie to introduce a science unit on pumpkin plants. This book easily lends itself to a discussion about the pumpkin plant life cycle, how people use plants, or the season of fall. Another great picture book with which this book might be paired is called Pumpkin Circle: The Story of a Garden.

Poetic Penguins

                Penguins, Penguins, Everywhere!  is an absolutely beautiful non-fiction picture book for the world’s young readers.  Author and illustrator Bob Barner crafted this short picture book to sing the life of penguins in poetic verse. On each page, a simple line of text dances across the gutter of a full bleed spread in bold colors.  The bold colored text contrasts beautifully with the vivid purple and blue backgrounds that fill each page of Barner’s collages made of cut and torn paper. Orange stars of the sky and sea (star fish) dazzle the eye as penguins skid across the pages on their bellies. Swirling sound waves echo through the water and a hot sun blazes as a penguin fluffs his feathers in the heat. These are just some of the images that the illustrations bring to life. For a tour of how Barner creates his illustrations, check out his website.

 Each line of text delivers an interesting fact about penguin life that young children will understand. For example, they have to watch out for their enemy the shark and the daddies care for the young.  The last two spreads include a penguin puzzler and a penguin parade. The penguin puzzler displays interesting questions and answers in a collage that resembles a child’s puzzle. The puzzle includes facts about how penguins eat, speak, move, and look. It also depicts the many sea creatures that eat penguins. The penguin parade displays picture of different types of penguins in square frames that resembles the opening of The Brady Bunch TV show.  Within each square, the name of the specific type of penguin depicted is listed with its location, height and weight. Though the language is simple, the design of this text does not easily lend itself to an independent read for younger children because it lacks conventional text placement.  Parents and teachers can definitely look to this book for an excellent winter read aloud. Teachers might also consider that as a poetic introduction to a penguin unit. Meanwhile, children of all ages will enjoy studying the penguin parade!

Groundhog Day: science, social studies and literature.

             As an adult reader, Gail Gibbons’ non-fiction picture books never fail to fascinate me. They are always filled with fascinating facts about the scientific nature of the world in which we live. As a child-like reader, her colorful illustrations always seem to capture me and fill my life with a strong welcome sense of nostalgia. Put simply, Gail Gibbons’ illustrations are somehow the pictures of my childhood. Her nonfiction picture book Groundhog Day does not fail to meet what I expect to find inside a book with Gail Gibbons’ name on the cover.  Gibbons begins her story with the history of Groundhog Day. She explains several old customs and beliefs related to that special day in mid-winter on which many look to a small groundhog to predict the future coming of spring. While she doesn’t explicitly explain the origins of the holiday, she does create the sense of the strong oral traditions and beliefs passed down through many generations. Then, she both tells and shows readers the excitement with which a small town called Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania began to celebrate Groundhog Day annually on February 2^nd.  Details of the celebrations are included, but the story makes it clear that Phil, the famous groundhog, doesn’t actually talk.

            Then, Gibbons turns her story away from the history to the scientific views of the life of the famous rodent called the groundhog.  She includes detailed information in the text about the body, habitat, diet, and social life of the groundhog. A two page spread depicts the locations in which groundhogs live around the world and under the ground. While Gibbons’ illustrations are framed with text below, she always lets small illustrations creep in from the corners or edges of the page which makes the book feel lively, much like the holiday it celebrates. For teachers, Groundhog Day captures the very essence of integrating social studies and science through literature. For students, Groundhog Day is an adventure in which their creative minds mesh with reality.  For more information about Gail Gibbons and her books, check out her website.

George Washington in pictures....

Sometimes you can tell a book by its cover.  Such is the case with author David A. Adler’s A Picture Book of George Washington which is a picture book about America’s First President.  This story of George’s life begins with his birth in 1732 and ends with his death in 1799. The first few pages detailing his childhood are sure to capture the interest of Adler’s intended audience. Certainly, young children love learning about the lives of other young children. This book also accounts for his years as a surveyor and a soldier in the French-Indian war. His marriage to Martha Custis and their move to Mount Vernon are also included. Among many interesting details, Adler tells readers that Mount Vernon once belonged to George Washington’s brother. George Washington’s role as the leader of the continental army that won the American Revolution is also depicted. The book also weaves in information about America’s first years under President George Washington’s two terms as the First President of the United States.

 Adler softly touches on the hardships of war while sparing young children the graphics. Illustrators John and Alexandra Wallner create the colonial world in which George Washington lived through the use of carton-like illustrations. The cartoon-like illustrations seem to expand the text by creating a child’s view of the written story, but at times they lack the sense of the reality in which George Washington lived. As discussed above, Adler’s text is packed full of facts about Washington’s life. While the sentence structure is sometimes complex, Adler’s word choices make the text an easy independent read for an older elementary school student. The simple language also lends itself to an entertaining read-aloud for young students. Adler’s picture book offers an excellent introduction to the young life George Washington for young readers. Those interested in introducing young children to biography will be delighted to know that A Picture Book of George Washington is just one of several books in David A. Adler’s Picture Book Biographies series.