It's A Book!

Smith, L.  (2011).  It's a book.  NY:  Roaring Brook.

This clever book has a mouse, a donkey, and a monkey exploring the difference between electronics and a book.  The donkey finds it amazing that a book does not need a password, a mouse, or to be plugged in.  After hours with the book, donkey does not want to give the book back to monkey and monkey needs to go to the library to get another book.

Lane Smith uses shape in his book titled It’s A Book.  The shapes he uses includes squares, circles, rectangles, and ovals.  The main subject of the story is a book so the rectangular shape of a book is repeated over and over to carry the topic of the story.  The monkey and the donkey sit in the rectangular chair as they read so it moves the reader’s eye across the page.  The monkey has a repetitive pattern of circles by having a polka dot shirt, a round hat, an oval face, and oval nose.  Even the little mouse, is drawn with shapes.  

My Teacher Is A Monster

Brown, P.  (2014).  My teacher is a monster.  NY:  Little, Brown Books for Young Readers.

At first, Bobby thinks his teacher, Ms. Kirby, is a monster.  Then, one day, Bobby runs into his teacher at the park.  He saves her hat from blowing away.  Bobby shows Ms. Kirby his favorite place at the park.  He flies a paper airplane with her.  Bobby starts thinking that his teacher is not a monster after all.  What happens to his opinion of his teacher when he flies a paper airplane in class and she yells his name, "ROBERT!"?

In My Teacher Is A Monster, the setting is an important part of the story.  Bobby thinks his teacher is a mean monster until he sees Ms. Kirby at the park.  Peter Brown’s illustrations of the park show Bobby and Ms. Kirby quacking with the ducks and flying a paper airplane.  The setting is a key element in changing their relationship.

Lesson Plans:
http://www.peterbrownstudio.com/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2012/08/TeacherMonster_kit.pdf

This Is Not My Hat

Klassen, J.  (2012).  This is not my hat.  Boston, MA:  Candlewick.

In the great big ocean, there is a fearless little fish who knows right from wrong, but steals a hat from a big, sleeping fish anyway.  The little fish takes the stolen hat and thinks that he can hide in the seaweed.  The big fish wakes up and goes looking for his stolen hat. The illustrations make this a must read!

In This Is Not My Hat, Jon Klassen’s use of line conveys movement.  The little fish knows right from wrong, but steals a hat from a sleeping, big fish.  The story line is the big fish going after the fish that stole his hat.  The fish swimming in the middle of the page creates a line of movement for the reader going from left to right.  The seaweed, lines going up and down, show the end of the story and the end of the little fish.

The Three Pigs

Wiesner, D.  (2001).  The three pigs.  NY:  Clarion.

This is not the typical Three Little Pigs story that we have all heard many times over.  Once the wolf tries to blow the first little pig away, he actually blows him out of the story.  The illustrations become
three-dimensional and the pigs are flown into an imagination land.  The pigs see the cat from Hey Diddle, Diddle and a dragon.  Finally, they go back to their brick house to end the story from their point of view.

David Wiesner did not write the typical Three Little Pigs story.  As soon as the wolf blows the first house, Wiesner’s 3-D illustrations take the reader into an imaginative new storyline.  The pigs see other fairytale characters until they luckily make it back to their brick home. 

Lesson Plans:

http://www.vickiblackwell.com/lit/threepigs.html

Mirror Mirror

Singer, M.  (2010). Mirror, Mirror.  NY: Dutton.

This fairy tale book is a unique book of reversible poems, which means you can read the poems up and down.  The poems show that there is a different point of view to every classic fairy tale.  The poetry collection includes Jack In The Beanstalk, Red Riding Hood, Rapunzel, Sleeping Beauty, and many more of your favorites!

This book of reversible poetry has colorful illustrations.  The bright blues, greens, and golds jump off the page.  There is a color difference as well to show the difference between the two sides of the poems.

Where The Wild Things Are

Sendak, M. (1963).  Where the wild things are. NY: HarperCollins.

Max goes downstairs wearing a wolf suit and is making a lot of trouble for his mother.  His mother sends him to his room without any dinner.  This imaginative boy turns his room into a forest and takes a boat across the see to where the wild things are.  After a night of playing with the wild things, he goes back home, where his hot dinner is waiting for him.

Maurice Sendak makes the Wild Things and the forest cone alive in Where the Wild Things Are by using texture.  The hair on the Wild Things, the water in the ocean, the leaves on the trees all look real because of texture.  This helps create this wonderful story about an imaginative boy taking a trip to a magical place and returning back home before his dinner gets cold.

Lesson plans including video:

http://literature-in-the-curriculum.wikispaces.com/Where+the+Wild+Thing+Are

Legend Of The Bluebonnet

dePaola, T. (1983). The legend of the bluebonnet.  NY: Putnam.

A Comanche girl named She-Who-Is-Alone is an orphan girl and her people are dying because of a drought.  One night she decides to give her most precious belonging, a doll made by her mother, to the Great Spirits.  Her generosity ends the famine and gives Texas the beautiful state flower called the bluebonnet.

Tomie dePaola  shows wonderful composition in the classic story The Legend of The Bluebonnet.  Line is shown through the use of the hills, land, and horizon.  The color of the story is exquisite as it shows sunset, the colors of Native American Comanche people, and the bluebonnet.  Texture is shown through the clothes, doll, and countryside.  Shape is illustrated through the triangular tipis.

Lesson plans:
http://www.scholastic.com/teachers/lesson-plan/legend-bluebonnet-discussion-guide