Chapter 3

Child Development and Children’s Literature

To get a clear idea of what information to list for this section, I spoke with Mrs. Cigler and she suggested that we can review pages 65-69 of the textbook and pages 1-14 in the copy co packet.  We do not need to know titles of books.  I just put together a few bulleted notes from the textbook (pgs 66-69).  

Cognitive Development

(Ages 5-6)

• Begins to understand relationships
• Retells short stories

(Ages 6-8)

• Likes story time and can listen longer
• Begins to understand difference between fantasy and reality

(Ages 8-10)

• Starts to become an independent reader
• Starts to connect idea and concepts

 (Ages 10-12)

• Concept of chronological order of past or historical events starts to develop
• Starts to apply reasoning and formal operations to abstract ideas

Language Development

(Ages 5-6)

• Rapid vocabulary growth & speech development
• Understands there is a connection between language and print

(Ages 6-8)

• Words are added to their vocabulary
• Complex sentences are used more

(Ages 8-10)

• Vocabulary continues to grow
• Now using connectors such as: meanwhile, unless and although

(Ages 10-12)

• Vocabulary still continues to develop
• Complex sentence and sentence connectors development continues

Social & Emotional/Personality Development

(Ages 5-6)

• Begins building relationships with other children
• Likes group activities & games using their imagination

(Ages 6-8)

• Sense of humor begins to develop
• Ideas of  right and wrong are nonflexible

(Ages 8-10)

• Starts to become influenced by social situations and peers
• Empathy for others develop as concepts for right and wrong become more flexible

(Ages 10-12)

• Influenced more by peers, pressure to conform appears
• While seeking independence, parent’s authority may be challenged and other role models such as sports and TV& movie personalities are adopted

Expectations for Literacy

• NCLB attempted to ensure that all children could read fluently by third grade to close the literacy gap
• Gave federal funding to schools to comply with specific requirements
• Considered to be based on “scientifically based” research
• The result has been federal push for “one-size-fits-all” instructional materials and methods – unrealistic

Accountability and National Standards

• Government mandated a single test-based accountability system for all states

-to remain accredited, schools must have adequate yearly progress

-caused a restriction of materials and curriculum in schools in order to emphasize subjects on test

-urban schools actually appear to be doing worse

-no significant gains in reading

Good Teachers

• Having necessary knowledge and skills to perform a task does not ensure that the task will be performed successfully

-Effective reading instruction also dependent on teachers’ beliefs

• The way teachers think about, understand, and value instruction is important in their practice

-Need to consider own experiences

• Positivity, and a love for reading, is very important in motivating classroom

-Must share the passion for reading, writing, and imagining

Involving Children in Reading

• Have a positive attitude, engage and encourage students 

A Positive Attitude

• Attitude determines how much effort, motivation, and engagement  the student will invest in reading
• Typically, those who “hate reading,” don’t have a lot of access to books

Engagement

• Not just about decoding words, but also being engaged and involved with the text

-Reading engagement integrates the cognitive, motivational, and social dimensions of reading

• Promote an engaging instructional environment throughout classroom for reading
• Make connections between what they read with their personal lives

-more likely to be involved, interested, and constantly learning from books

Motivation

• Product of reading process and of engagement
• Extend opportunities for literacy
• Self-selections of books, access to variety of fiction and nonfiction, books that are personally interesting, access to a lot of books, being read to by teachers and family members and when peers shared what they were reading with them

Self-Selecting Literature

• Children seek and select experiences that are consistent with their developmental level

-Enjoyment must come naturally

-Children will choose books that reflect their interests and preferences

• Also allows students to make choices and have control

Helping Children Become Good Readers

Using Standards as Guidelines

• ELA national standards serve as guidelines for state and local school districts in developing specific standards or benchmarks at each grade level
• Standards can provide as a tool in designing instruction

Integrating the Language Arts

• Speaking, listening, reading, writing, viewing, and visually representing should be taught together, not in separate lessons

-Each supports one another

Creating a Supportive Environment

• Create an environment to cater active reading
• Integrating text frequently throughout the classroom
• Receptive language process

-taking in what is learned

-cognitively engaged with written text

-listening and receiving oral language of others

-viewing and interpreting was we see

• Expressing language process

-all ways to express what is learned

-writing and producing language

-speaking and producing language

-visually representing

• Characteristics of a Good Reader

-clear goals in mind when reading

-look over text before reading

-make predictions

-read selectively, continually making decisions about how they read

-construct, revise, and question meaning

-try to determine unfamiliar words

-evaluate value of text

-read differently with different kinds of texts

-experience comprehension as satisfying and productive

• Creating nurturing environments for supporting development of good readers:

1. Time for reading – allowing a surplus of time for reading to allow students to develop and practice skills
2. Authenticity of texts – hardcover or paperback books, magazines, or newspapers
3. Range of genre – relate to the different interests of students
4. Rich vocabulary and concept development – assist in building concept and vocabulary knowledge, incorporating activities and experiences with new vocabulary
5. Accurate and automatic decoding – ability to quickly and accurately decode words helps facilitate comprehension
6. Writing – helps student interpret and express, chance to induce own creativity
7. Talk about texts – collaborative learning, community, access to others’ thinking processes achieved

Comprehension Strategies

• Comprehension: the process of simultaneously extracting and constructing meaning through interaction and involvement with written language

-reflects who people are, how they relate to others, their accumulated store of knowledge, and the social environment in which they are reading

• Research has found that…

-using various strategies to promote comprehension is beneficial

-explicitness with which teachers teach comprehension strategies makes a difference in learner outcomes

-providing comprehension strategy instruction that is deeply connected with the context of subject matter learning, such as history, science, etc helps foster comprehension

-using various genres of text enhances students’ knowledge of text structures which is an important factor in fostering comprehension

-teachers who give students choices and challenging tasks increase students’ motivation

• Six Comprehension Strategies:

1. Making connections – between books, own lives, and the world
2. Monitoring Reading – make sure they understand story
3. Determining Importance – distinguish main ideas and details
4. Visualizing – see story in mind’s eye
5. Making Inferences – read between the lines for deeper meaning of text
6. Synthesizing – combine new knowledge to prior knowledge

Children’s Literature Across the Curriculum

Discovering Genres

• Explore different genres
• Compare and contrasts the genres
• Find out what students like, or do not like

Moving Beyond Textbooks

• Textbooks sometimes limited in depth and perception
• Important to show multiple perspectives, rather than just one
• More interesting to see the various ways of perceiving things, then assessing one’s own beliefs of matters

The Classroom Library

• Plays important role in children’s lives
• High correlation between how much children read and reading achievement
• Must have access to large number of books
• Teacher to encourage use of library
• Five Major Functions of Classroom Library

1. Support literacy instruction
2. Help students learn about books
3. Provide a central location of resources
4. Provide opportunities for independent reading and curricular extensions
5. Serve as place for students to talk and interact with books

Morgan Anderson (I did this section too take what you want from this)

Child Development and Children’s Literature

• Preschool-Kindergarten (Ages 5-6)
  • Cognitive Development
    • Begins to understand spatial, perceptual, and attributional relationships
    • Can retell a story; has a vague concept of time; can count to ten and knows primary colors
  • Language Development
    • Rapid vocab growth and speech development; use of correct verb and pronoun tense; use of language to explore the environment; enjoys playing with sound and rhythm in language
    • Enjoys dramatic/role/creative play
    • Understands that there is a connection between language and print
  • Social and Emotional Development
    • Begins to develop relationships with other children and enjoys participating in group activities and games that use imagination
    • Understands that others have feelings too, and express those feelings with facial expressions
    • Wants to help around the house with younger siblings, exhibits fears, plays with favorite toys
• First and Second Grade (Ages 6-8)
  • Cognitive Development
    • Enjoys listening to stories read aloud and can listen to longer stories due to an increased attention span; still needs concrete experiences to learn
    • Understands relationships among categories
    • Vague understanding of time
    • Begin to understand the difference between fantasy and reality
  • Language Development
    • Continues to add words to their vocabularies and use increasingly complex-sentences
  • Social and Emotional Development
    • Develop sense of humor
    • Know right and wrong
    • Challenge parents, argue with siblings
    • Take pride in accomplishments
    • Seeks teachers praise
    • Curious about gender differences
• Third and Fourth Grade (Ages 8-10)
  • Cognitive Development
    • Exhibit independence in reading
    • Have concept of time and space
    • Memory improves with increased attention span
    • Connects ideas and concepts
  • Language Development
    • Increased vocab-use of connectors
  • Social and Emotional Development
    • Influenced by peers
    • Sports and hobbies become important
    • Influenced by models other than family
    • Develop empathy
• Fifth and Sixth Grade (Ages 10-12)
  • Cognitive Development
    • Concepts of chronological order of past and present
    • Ability to apply reasoning and formal operations to abstract ideas
  • Language Development         
    • Increased vocab
    • Use of complex sentences and sentence connectors
  • Social and Emotional Development
    • Peer pressure increases
    • Parents authority challenged-seek independence
    • Some children develop racial prejudice
    • Develop sense of justice and interest in world problems
    • Interest in future occupations
    • Develop sense of gender expectations

Caldecott Award

-Awarded Annually by Association for Library Service to Children, a division of the American Library Association

-Awarded to the artist of the most distinguished American picture book for children

Newberry Award

-Awarded Annually by the Association for Library Service to Children, a division of the American Library Association

-Awarded to the author of the most distinguished contribution to American literature for children

Coretta Scott King Award

-Given to African American authors and illustrators for outstanding inspirational and educational contributions

-given to titles that promote understanding and appreciation of the culture of all peoples and their contribution to the realization of the American Dream

Hans Christian Andersen Award

-Biannual Award given internationally

-given to a living author and illustrator whose complete works have made a lasting contribution to children’s literature

Yay book awards!

Love, Buckley

Reading aloud (Abby Fritts)

• Single most important activity for building knowledge required for future success is by reading aloud to children
• Should be continued throughout grades
• Number of stories children have heard read aloud to them is single greatest predictor of later success in reading
• Reading out loud daily from books that interest students encourages literacy growth for ESL students
• Reading aloud helps:
• Increase motivation and positive attitude toward reading
• Language and literacy development in the understandings of story structure
• Conventions of print
• Vocabulary development and listening comprehension
• Decoding and reading comprehension
• Literary understanding
• Reading aloud does the following
• Provides a context for teachers to demonstrate the nature, purpose, and act of reading and to model their own love of reading
• Creates an environment where all listeners have equal access to information
• Builds interest in language and provides models of language use
• Allows development of new insights and understandings and for building on existing knowledge
• Allows teachers to model fluent reading and how readers think in the process of reading
• Builds interest and develops tastes in a range of genres available in the written language
• Improves listening skills and develops the use of imagery
• Offers multiple perspectives and broadens a listeners’ worldview
• Benefits do not happen automatically
• Negative effects of reading aloud
• Often not quality to fully engage students and maximize literacy growth
• Methods, environmental influences, attitudes, and interactive behaviors enhance potential of read-aloud event  for promoting literacy development
• Reading aloud must be an intentional act where the teacher considers their goals based on student assessment and curriculum standards
• Effectiveness of a read aloud depends on the amount of consideration given to how often to read aloud, what to read aloud, and how to read aloud

When to read aloud

• Depends on student’s strengths and curricular goals
• Need to make curricular connections
• Need to be based on teacher’s knowledge of the students
• Amount of time spent depends on how often the read aloud can serve as the most meaningful for meeting students’ needs and objectives across the curriculum
• Should be a time everyday where a book is read aloud just for fun
• Start and end the day with a read aloud
• Start with a book to build community, bond with students, bond with authors and illustrators, bond with characters
• Close with a book that will have a lasting impression and leave students longing for more

What to read aloud

• Range of quality literature
• Attend to developmental levels and interests of students
• Fits standards and curriculum goals, classroom environment, and instructional needs of students and cultural needs of students
• Can be overwhelming- doesn’t have to all fit into one book
• At the beginning of the year, use books with great language and that their teacher loves to read
• Get them excited for books that the class will read in the future
• After a few weeks you will have a better idea of what your students need and are interested in
• Mostly avoid series books
• Don’t stick to only chapter books and picture books, read magazine articles, newspaper articles, short stories, brochures, or any kind of “real world” literature

How to read aloud

• Before the read aloud
• Find the book’s voice
• Read through silently and listen for the voice
• Voice is in the mood, rhythm, tone, and pacing from signals such as punctuation, line breaks, etc.
• Understand characters, settings, and author’s use of language
• Practice using tone, inflection, and voice variation
• Practice voice changes so that you can hear changes in pitch, tone, inflection, and voice variation
• Read with clarity
• Find an appropriate pace
• Keep the rhythm
• Don’t go too fast
• Think through intentional connections
• Find where the best places are to make curricular connections
• During the read aloud
• Make sure all students can hear
• When using a picture book, pan to entire area
• Hold up the book while you are reading
• Picture book- hold up book with one hand so children can see illustrations
• Illustrations are critical in understanding story
• More time children can look at the pictures, more they will understand the story
• Observe students reactions to story and illustrations
• Think aloud and make connections from text to picture during reading
• Share the name of author/illustrator
• If they are familiar, make text connections and ask predictions
• Give children a preview
• Be sure students understand reason for reading the book
• Give children a chance to respond before, during, and after the reading
• Allow children to activate prior knowledge, ask questions, make predictions, and discuss
• Young children may not be able to hold responses until end of story so ask throughout
• Model rather than question
• Model joy of reading
• Ask a few well placed questions to encourage curiosity
• After the read aloud
• Share any information at the end of the book, such as an author’s note or source information
• Give children the opportunity to respond to the book
• Allow discussion
• Make connections to world or other texts
• Don’t assign activities after a book that are superficial
• Connect the book to other books, authors, genres, and content
• Build on previous classroom experiences that will lead to future experiences

Awards

• Caldecott- best picture book illustration
• Newbery- given to author of most distinguished contribution to American literature for children
• Coretta Scott King- recognizes outstanding African American authors and illustrators
• Hans Christian Andersen- international award given every other year to recognize a lasting contribution to children’s literature

*It isn’t keeping it organized exactly like I had it on my word document but you get the idea

Christine Laskowski…

Reading Aloud!

To Learners: Demonstration

With Learners: Shared demonstration & Guided practice

By Learners: Independent practice

Suggested Daily Reading Schedules:

Reading Activity- Read aloud (20-30) (20-30), Shared reading (30-40) (15-20), Guided reading (50-60) (20-30), Independent reading (20-30) (30-40) (First parenthesis are for Grades 1-2, second parenthesis are for Grades 3-6)

Benefits of Reading Aloud:

*research supports reading aloud at all levels of education

*the number of stories children heard read to them was the single greatest predictor of later success in reading

*offers multiple perspectives and broadens a listener’s worldview

BUT reading aloud may not be enough to fully engage students and maximize literacy growth

*teacher must have (and state) objectives when reading out loud

When to Read Aloud:

*tie to other curriculum

*there should be a time every day when a book is read aloud just for fun (start the day with a book to build community and end the day with children longing for more)

What to Read Aloud:

*range of quality literature

*attend to developmental levels  and interests of students

*keep in mind standards and curriculum

*read about different cultural worlds

*IT IS BEST TO AVOID SERIES BOOKS- do not lend enough thought-provoking literary analysis or in depth response

*read chapter books, picture books, newspaper articles, magazine articles, Internet sites, short stories, brochures and other “real world literature”

*age appropriate and sustain readers emotionally and intellectually

*have memorable language, believable characters, engaging plots and universal themes

The Read Aloud Process:

Before- find the book’s voice, practice using tone, inflection and voice variation, find an appropriate pace, think through intentional connections

During- make sure all students can see and hear, hold up the book while you are reading, share the name of the author/illustrator, give the children a preview, give children a chance to respond before, during and after the reading, use questions to have students wonder, infer or consider

After- share any information at the end of the book, give children the opportunity to respond to the book, connect the book to other books, authors, genres, and content

Think Alouds:

*can make the invisible processes of reading visible

*the teacher models his thinking by voicing all the things he notices, sees, feels, or questions while processing the text

*can be used with a variety of genres and texts

*teachers can record think alouds on chart paper or overheads

Read Alouds for Writers:

*reading aloud provides the chance for students to hear well-written texts

Writing Aloud:

*writing is thinking

*this is messy work that goes on in our mind

*reading can help us with writing

*when and what to write aloud will depend on the students’ strengths and needs and curricular goals

*the teacher is the primary scribe and discussant

Shared Reading:

*provides opportunity to support children at various levels of reading development

*text is enlarged so students can see words and illustrations

*during the first reading, the teacher reads the text with fluency and expression, then students are invited to read along, read and reread over several days

*shared reading of nonfiction texts can serve as a way to learn about other curricula areas

* “Big Book”

Shared Writing:

*the teacher and students compose collaboratively

*what to write- retellings from read alouds and big books, original stories, journal entries in response to reading, field trips, science experiments, class rules, contend area writing

Guided Reading:

*teachers meet with small groups of students who are similar in their reading behavior, their text-processing needs, and their reading strengths

*ability grouping… some negative outcomes pg 422

*texts need to be within a readers’ zone of proximal development or instructional level (accessible) can be read with 90% accuracy

*books need to provide a few challenges so his reading process is moved forward

* “leveled books” books that have been categorized according to certain characteristics

*ongoing observation and assessment by the teacher is needed

*teacher selects text, student reads text individually, as students read, teacher observes and monitors their reading behaviors and provides support as necessary, then teacher engages students in talking about the story

*during first few weeks, model how students are to behave (all the time assessing students)

*write expectations for students

*activities in learning centers must be meaningful, engaging and worthwhile

Morgan

Elements of Poetry

-          Rhythm

-          Rhyme

-          Repetition

-          Imagery

-          Shape

-          Language

• Simile: using like or as
• Metaphor: Comparing not using like or as
• Alliteration: repetition of beginning letters
• Onomatopoeia: Is a word that imitates or suggests the source of the sound that it describes. Ex: Boom, Splat
• Assonance: Is refraining of vowel sounds to create internal rhyming within phrases or sentences .
• Consonance: Is the repetition of consonant sounds, but not vowels, as in assonance. Ex: lady lounges lazily; dark deep dread crept in.

Common Forms of Poetry

-          Limerick: humorous, one stanza, five line verse with 8, 8, 5, 5, 8 syllables, first, second, and 5 line rhyme and third and fourth lines rhyme; narrative.

-          Ballad: long narrative poem, often heroic or romantic, usually adapted to music.

-          Haiku: lyric, unrhymed, 3 lines, 17 syllables, lines of 5, 7, 5 syllables.

-          Number of lines of poetry in a stanza

• Couplets:2
• Tercets:3
• Quatrains:4

-          Tanka: extension of haiku pattern with 2 additional lines with 7 syllables in each.

-          Concrete: written and printed in a shape that signifies subject of poem.

-          Cinquain:

• Line 1: one word subject or idea
• Line 2: two adjectives describing the subject
• Line 3: three verbs showing action
• Line 4: four words giving personal reaction
• Line 5: one word synonym of the subject

-          Dialogue Poem

-          Alphabet Poem

-          Free Verse

-          Poems for multiple voices

Benefits of Poetry

-          Children are at just discovering the many uses of language. Rhymes and patterns are very obvious and exciting to them, and can be used by parents and teachers to begin a love for poetry.

-          Poetry celebrates the individual word, the sound of language, and the rhythm of language in a way that narrative does not.

-          It is a fun, short, tasty morsel to share with children. Poetry builds the foundation for learning to read by being exposed to the sounds and rhythms of language.

-          For older children, poetry is a great vehicle for learning how complex thoughts, humorous ideas, deep emotions, or entire narratives can be expressed with a few carefully chosen words.

-          They learn different forms of poetry and decide which kinds of poetry they like best.

-          They are able to see and learn different literary elements when reading poetry.

-          A lot of poetry can relate to them and their lives.

-          If a child doesn’t like to read a lot, they may like poetry because they are short and easy to read.

Poetry Preferences

-          Narrative poetry is popular with readers of all ages.

-          Haiku and free verse are disliked among children.

-          They like poems that have visual imagery.

Poetry in Literacy Development

-          Poetry helps develop their language skills because they are able to see and practice what a simile is or a metaphor or alliteration.

-          When reading poetry it paints a picture in your head, so they to visually imagine what the poem is saying to them.

-          Poems are great to see rhyme and rhythm also.

-          When children are a little older they would be able to create their own poem to help build on their literacy development.

-          Poems are great for young children when learning the alphabet. This is a great way to build on literacy development and for them to be introduced into poetry.

Meg
Vocabulary:

Traditional Literature: also known as folk literature or oral literature; the tales, stories, and poems of a people passed down through generations

Fable: a brief, didactic story in which the moral is explicitly stated

Myth: explains aspects of culture or how something came to be in the natural world

Legend: traditional narrative based on historical truth

Religious stories: stories of important events and people of different religions; explains people’s origins and contains basis of beliefs

Epics: extended accounts of the exploits of national heroes, often intended to provide models to emulate and ideals to embrace

Ballads: narratives in songs, mostly built of four-line stanzas

Pourquoi Tales: stories that explain why or how certain animal traits, characteristics, or human customs came into existence

Tall Tale: exaggerated, often humorous, stories of characters that perform impossible acts; local heroes

Folktale: a fairy, human or animal tale passed down by word of mouth

Trickster Tales: characters try to get the better of others through cunning and guile (Brer Rabbit, Anansi the Spider, Coyote)

Cumulative Tales: tales with increasing repetition of details that build to a quick climax (“The Gingerbread Boy,” “There Was an Old Lady Who Swallowed a Fly”)

Fairy Tales: folktales that involve magical possibilities and/or the supernatural (“Cinderella,” “Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs”)

Beast Tales: stories in which animals talk and behave like people

Noodlehead/Jack Tales: humorous stories of characters who are good at heart but lack good judgment

Realistic Tales: tales could possibly be true or the tales began as true, but through retellings it takes place in the folklore of the culture

Apprentice Tales and Hero Tales: stories that explain how a character rises from a lowly estate to a high one, or from being ignored to being recognized and rewarded for certain qualities

Victim-Hero Tales: someone leaves home, hero warned against doing something, hero does it anyway, villain appears and tries to trick hero or related character, hero falls for trick, villain hurts someone in family, etc.

1. Folklore
   1. Folklore becomes folk literature when it is written down
   2. Folktale originated because:

 i.      People were trying to explain the natural world

 ii.      They articulate fears and dreams

 iii.      They impose order on the random nature of life

 iv.      They entertain

1. Folklore around the world is similar because they represent universal values that perpetuate societies
2. Benefits of Traditional Literature

 i.      Helps children understand standards of behavior for a culture

 ii.      Help us appreciate other people and understand the universality of common beliefs and values

 iii.      Provides children with a framework for the literature, drama and art they will later encounter

 iv.      Entertainment

v.      Repetition of patterns; tailored to children’s developing memory and imagination

1. Violence in folktale

 i.      Some see if at as a negative and edit tales for child friendliness (ex. Grimm Brothers who adapted authentic tales to match middle-class, Christian values)

 ii.      Some see editing as a destruction of traditional tales and blame media for reinforcing children’s false sense of security

1. Sexism in folktale

 i.      Typically, folktales portray women as either needed to be put in their place or who have their identity defined by males

1. Stereotyping in folktale

 i.      Important to introduce children to a variety of multicultural folktale in addition to current multicultural literature to avoid children thinking of groups of peoples as unlike the contemporary world

1. Evaluating folktale

 i.      Accuracy: accuracy of historical information; central treatment of important issues

 ii.      Authenticity: cultural credibility; not expressing only the exotic and superficial elements of a culture; issues compatible with human rights and values of culture represented

 iii.      Authority: is the author an insider or outsider to the culture?  What information is the story based on?

  iv.      Plot: Is the plot well structured or simple enough for children to follow?

 v.      Theme: is the theme appropriate and relevant to contemporary children?

vi.      Literary and illustrative accuracy

  vii.      Illustrations: evaluate illustrations according to i-vi.

1. Literacy development (More benefits of folklore)

 i.      Development of literary language in folktales

ii.      Development of abstract and inferential thinking

 iii.      Understanding story structure

iv.      Opportunities for reader response including oral response, written response, and students writing their own version of tales.

MOLLY’S VERSION——————————–

Definition of tradition literature:  Traditional literature, also known as folk literature or oral literature is the canon of tales, stories, and poems of a people that have been passed down by word of mouth through many generations.

Characteristics of Traditional Literature:  (Common Features)         

1. Short plots
2. Concentrated action
3. Characters have one understand quality
4. Unimportant settings (ex:  “In the Beginning”)
5. Language is sparse, but full of rhythm and melody 
6. Continues to inspire story tellers and writers
7. Passed down from generation to generation
8. Short and simple plot structures
9. Folk literature proliferated around the world because of the history of cultures, and can relate and make connections to it.

Benefits of Traditional Literature:

1. It helps children understand the personal dimension and stands of behavior of a culture, and at the same time reduce stereotypes.
2. It provides children with a framework for the literature, drama, and art they will later encounter.
3. It provides entertainment and pleasure:  children enjoy reading and hearing folktales.
4. It provides strong rhythm, rhyme, and repetition of patterns.  Traditional stories are adapted to children’s developing memory and imagination and to their unique way of viewing the world.                  
5. Side Note:  These benefits are why these tales are shared in homes and classrooms around the world.

Categories of Traditional Literature (MATCHING)

1. Fable- a brief story in which the moral is explicitly stated. Characters- animals talk as human beings/one dimensional.  Settings-anyplace, anytime.  Themes-universal lessons to be learned that reflect the values of the culture.  Ex:  “The Boy Who Cried Wolf”
2. Myth- explains aspects of culture or how something came to be in the natural world. Characters- People who have superpowers.  Setting- “In the beginning…”  Themes- Super-natural creators; origins of the world, natural phenomena, animals and people.
3. Legend- traditional narrative based on historical truth.  Characters- historical figures such as saints, heroes, and kings.  Setting- “When father was king…” Recent past.  Themes- founding a nation; courage/perseverance of heroes; unusual occurrences. 
4. Religious stories- stories of important events and people of different regions.  Characters- Prominent religious figures.  Setting- biblical time period.  Themes- Peace, hope, faith, forgiveness; salvation.
5. Tall tale- exaggerated humorous stories of characters that perform impossible acts.  Characters- historical figured given superhuman strengths, “larger than life”.  Setting- “In the early days of our county…”  Mostly North American.
6. Folktale- a fairy, human, or animal tale passed down by word of mouth.  Characters- human or animal characters/symbolic and flat.  Setting- “Long ago and far away”.  Far distant from past.  Theme- Universal truths that reflect that values of the times/societies.

                                                              i.      Pour quoi- Explains how certain animal traits, characteristics, or human customs came to be. (Why tales)                      

                                                            ii.      Beast Tales- stories in which animals talk and behavior as people. 

                                                          iii.      Cumulative Tales- increasing repetition of details that build to a quick climax.

                                                          iv.      Fairy tales- simple narratives dealing with magic and the supernatural; glorious fulfillment off human desires.

                                                            v.      Realistic tales- tale could possibly be true or the tales began as true, but through retellings it takes place in the folklore of its culture.

                                                          vi.      Noodlehead- humorous stories of characters who are good at heard by lack good judgment.

                                                        vii.      Trickster tales- the main character plays tricks to outsmart those in power.

Chapter Four Study Guide

Picturebooks: Beyond words and Illustrations

Format of Picturebooks

• Picture books have a unique format that is defined by words and illustrations rather than genre
• The cover, endpapers, typography, and pictures are crucial to understanding the book
  • Have to view a picturebook as a unified whole
• Come in many forms, shapes, and sizes such as board books, toy books, pop-up books, and storybooks
• No other type of literature works in the same way
• Each aspect of a picturebook serves as a visual cue or sign that affects the way readers construct meaning from the text
  • Signs help readers form a type of framework that informs their interpretation of the text and helps them shape their construction of the story
  • The front cover is an invitation to readers and are able to predict the story content
  • Illustrations show characters’ actions, expressions, and dispositions and create as well as capture emotions
  • Illustrations establish setting, convey story plots, and show whether a story is realism or fantasy
  • Illustrations show different points of view and interesting asides to the story
• Information after the story is sometimes included, such as biographical info or how to find more info about the subject of the book
• Illustrations in the color insert, book design elements can extend a book’s message or theme, therefore allowing more insight into its meaning

Categories of Picturebooks-matching

• Mother goose stories  
  • Teach a lesson or moral to young readers  
• Concept books  
  • Tell a story about a specific concept primarily through illustrations.  May also be called informational picture books.  Concept books help children think about ideas such as colors and numbers.   
  • Ex: The Reason for Seasons
• Alphabet books
  • Engage students in connecting letters with objects that begin with the letter and create stories using the letters of the alphabet in addition to teaching the alphabet.  There are books explicitly about the alphabet and books that use the alphabet as an organizational device for conveying concepts or content
• Counting books
  • Introduce the concept of numbers, the calendar, and the seasons through a story.  These books are usually simple in appearance, giving the reader an obvious opportunity to learn how to count
• Wordless picturebooks
  • Use illustrations to tell the story.  this provides children with an opportunity to explore how stories work.  Children may also discover their creativity by producing their own written stories based on the illustrations
• Toy books
  • Physically engage the reader in the story through the use of pop-ups, pull tabs, or flaps. These books may also include textured pages to allow the reader to sense what the story feels like
• Pop-up books
  • Contain one or more pages in which a three-dimensional structure rises up when a page is opened
• Easy-to-read books
  • Contain stories that have strong characterization, themes related to the reader, and engaging plots with simple sentences and direct dialogue
• Picture storybooks
  • Integrate words and illustration on each page to tell a story
• Postmodern picturebooks
  • Employ multiple perspectives and/or narrators within a nonlinear story structure.  These books use multiple colors with complex lines and images that move in and out of page space.  The tone may be sarcastic or cynical.  Postmodern picture books actively invite the reader to coauther the text

Physical Characteristics of Picturebooks

• The contents of the book are contained in an exterior casing that may be covered by a dust jacket
• The interior pages are formed from large sheets of paper that are printed on both sides, cut, and folded to form sections called signatures
• The pages of each signature are sewn together down the folded side and the signatures are sewn or glued together
• The first page and the last page of the bound signatures, known as endpapers, are affixed to the casing
• The text is preceded by a title page and sometimes a half title page, which has a title in smaller print and/or a small illustration
• Extra pages, blank leaves, sometimes precede the title page and/or follow the last page of the text
• A carefully planned picturebook will effectively employ design elements to entice us into a book—from the front cover, endpages, title page, and dedication to a satisfying close
• Size and shape
  • First thing we notice about a book is its physical size and shape
    • Small intimate feeling
    • Size conveys the theme of the book
• Cover
  • Cover serves as a window into the content of the book
  • Gives us clues as to mood and subject matter of the book and is used to a great extent by children and adults when looking for a book to read
  • Trade book versions of most picturebooks have a dust jacket, a removable paper cover used to protect the cover of a book
    • Some dust jackets are the exact same as the cover, while others are not
• Endpapers
  • Endpapers are the pages affixed to the inside of the front and back cover
  • Serve as a transition between the exterior and interior of the book, setting the mood of the story
  • May be solid color or illustrated
• Frontmatter
  • The pages of a book that lie between the endpapers and the text are called frontmatter and consist of the blank leaves before the title page, dedication, and copyright info
  • Authors will occasionally reveal their humor, cleverness, or values in a dedication statement
• Paper
  • Our response to events in picturebooks is alos influence by the choice of paper on which they are printed
  • Glossy- is distancing which creates a sense of serenity or stillness
  • Rough- invite or touch and in that way supports an atmosphere of involvement and intimacy

Elements of illustrations in isolation and context

Isolation

• Color
  • Color or lack of color is used by artists to convey character, mood, and emotion
  • Artists can achieve these elements by manipulating the aspects of color
    • Hue- the color itself.  Ex: red.  Blue, green, and violet are known and cool colors.  Red, yellow, and orange are warm
    • Value/tone- the lightness or darkness of the color.  Ex: dark blue, light green.  Is achieved by adding black or white to the hue
    • Saturation- the brightness or dullness of a color.  Color can range over the full spectrum, or it can be limited to a defined range
  • When the tone changes, the mood changes
• Line
  • The most common and expressive element in picturebooks
  • Use line to direct our attention or to focus our eye
  • Can be straight or curved, thick or thin, smooth or rough, depending on the meaning the artist wishes to communicate
    • Horizontal lines suggest order and tranquility
    • Vertical lines create a sense of stability
    • Diagonal lines evoke a sense of motion or tension
  • Line can be the predominate form for illustrations
• Shape
  • Shape is the two-dimensional form representing an object
  • Horizontal shape give us a sense of stability and calm
  • Vertical shapes are more exciting and suggest energy
  • Diagonal shapes create a dynamic sense of motion
  • The placement of shape can also suggest meaning
    • The upper half of the picture implies freedom, happiness, triumph, or spirituality
    • Center is associated with greater importance
  • A character shown on the left page is likely to be in a more secure, and sometimes confined space than one shown on the right, who is likely to be moving into a situation of risk or adventure
• Texture
  • The illusion of texture is created by an artist to communicate the sensation of roughness, smoothness, hardness, softness, ect.
  • Artists use various techniques such as line, mixed media, or scratchboard
• Style
  • Style is not a separate element but the impact of all of the elements together
  • Illustrator’s artistic style is distinctive
  • Style refers to that which is distinct about a work of art- that which transcends the implications of its specific codes and makes it out as different from other works
  • It is a reflection of the artist’s personality and individuality because it encompasses the conscious and unconscious choices an artist makes
  • It influences meaning in subtle yet powerful ways
  • Artists can vary their style according to the content and mood of the text and by the intended audience
  • The style of illustration an artist chooses must be appropriate and supportive of the meaning in the text
  • Styles of illustration in picturebooks
    • Representational
      • Displays people, nature, and objects as they actually appear
    • Surrealistic
      • Creates a dreamlike state to attempt to represent the workings of the unconscious mind
    • Impressionistic
      • Emphasizes light, movement, and color over detail
    • Cartoon
      • Tells the story in the form of a series of illustrations followed by captions
    • Expressionistic
      • Give objective expression to inner experience; bright colors and figures are a bit disproportionate
    • Naïve/folk art
      • Gives the appearance of being childlike, at times lacking perspective or sense of proportion
• Point of view
  • Illustrators use a variety of perspectives to give readers different vantage points from which to view the events in a story
  • Ex: in the “Man who Walked Between the Towers” the artist shows a point of view to show how high the towers are
• Distance
  • Refers to how close or far the viewer is from the scene in the illustration
  • The closer we may seem, the more emotion we may feel.  Farther- more detached
• Media
  • Picturebook illustrators use a variety of media to create their artwork
  • Two categories: painterly and graphic
  • Most of the time it is on the copyright page
  • The choice of media must be appropriate to convey the meaning of the story
  • Media used
    • Painterly
      • Acrylic or oil, gouache (opaque watercolor paint), tempera, watercolor, crayon, pencil drawing, charcoal, pen and ink
    • Graphic
      • Scratchboard, woodcuts, linoleum cuts, collage, stone lithography, photography, mixed media, computer-generated graphics

Context

• Framing
  • Makes pictures neater
  • Gives the reader less energetic, unemotional, objective view of the story
  • Frames vary in shape and size according to the meaning of the story
• Arrangement
  • Page arrangement refers to the ways illustrators choose to manipulate words and pictures within the space on the page
  • Typically, words are on the left side of the page and the pictures are on the right, or the pictures are at the top of the page and the words are at the bottom
  • We tend to look at the pictures first when viewing a picturebook
  • The use of multiple frames, or montage, on a page is another way to create action, motion, or the passing of time
• Narrative sequence
  • The use of action, setting, perspective, and distance to create a meaningful, engaging experience for the viewer
  • Picturebook has gaps between images that the viewr must fill in
  • The beginning and ending of stories are important
    • “one way of critcally examining the narrative structure of a picturebook is to look at the first and last illustrations and try to understand how they are connected”
• page turns
  • because of the limited space to tell the story, illustrators must make careful choices about what pictures to include
  • illustrations that are included are only snapshots, leaving gaps in time and space
  • with each page turn a picturebook presents the illustrator with an opportunity to change perspective, redirect feelings or attention, create suspense and drama, and confirm or foil predictions

Evaluating picture books

• picturebook illustrations will only provide meaningful learning and comprehension if they come from high-quality picturebooks
• one must pick books with illustrations that extend or expand the text
• it is essential that the content and illustrations of all picturebooks, fiction or nonfiction, be authentic, current, and accurate
• the content or information should be current; the author should have good credentials and provide source notes; the illustrations should depict the people of a culture as individuals and artifacts must be accurate; and the language, whether narrative or expository, should be engaging and should never be condescending
• criteria for selecting picturebooks
  • physical elements such as the size, shape, cover, endpapers, frontmatter, paper, and binding must add to the overall theme of the book
  • visual elements such as color, line, shape, texture, style, media, point of view, and distance must develop, reflect, and enhance the story and theme
  • compositional elements such as framing, arrangement on the page, narrative sequence, and page turns must develop, reflect, and enhance the story and theme
  • illustrations must allow the reader to go beyond the surface level into a deeper level of understanding
  • accuracy, currency, and authenticity must be present
  • writing style should be engaging and follow guidelines for literary quality

TALIA VERSION———————————————————————————————————————

Format of Picturebook

-          Unique format defined by words and illustrations rather than genre.

-          Come  in many shapes and sizes

-          Wide variety of genres ranging from fiction to biography to concepts

-          Every aspect of a picture book serves as a visual cue which helps readers interpret text

• Front cover- serves as invitation
• Illustrations- depict characters’ actions, expression and dispositions, create and capture emotions, establish setting, convey story plots and show whether a story is realism or fantasy, contribute to different points of view and intersesting asides to the story

-          Additional information about a book may be added at the end such as biographical information or hot to find more information about the subject or the book

Physical Characteristics of Picturebooks

-          Size & Shape: first thing readers notice

-          Cover: serves as a window into the content of the book and gives clues as to mood and subject matter

-          Endpapers: serve as transition between the exterior and interior of the book, setting the mood of the story. Can be solid or illustrated

-          Frontmatter: pages of a book that lie between the endpaper and where the text begins and consists of the blank leaves before the title page, dedication and copyright information

-          Paper: our response to events depicted in picturebooks is also influence by the chose of paper on which they are printed

-          Title page: Present the Title and Author in larger print usually

-          Table of Contents: Tells how the book is divided up ( not all picturebooks have)

-          Dust Jacket: covers the cover and presents the title

Categories of Picture books

-          Mother Goose Stories: teach a lesson or moral to young readers

-          Concept Books: tell a story about a specific concept primarily through illustrations (may be called informational picturebooks) These books help children think about ideas such as colors and numbers

-          Alphabet Books: engage student in connection letters with objects that begin with the letter and create stories using the letter of the alphabet in addition to teaching the alphabet.

-          Counting Book: introduce the concept of numbers, the calendar, and the season through a story.

-          Wordless picturebooks: use illustrations to tell the story. This provides children with an opportunity to explore how stories work. Kids may discover their creativity by producing their own written stories based on the illustrations.

-          Toy Books: physically engage the reader in the story through the use of pop-ups, pull tabs or flaps

-          Pop-up Books: contain one or more pages in which a three dimensional structure rises up when a page is opened

-          Easy-to-read Books: contain stories that have strong characterization, themes related to the reader and engaging plots with simple sentences and direct dialogue

-          Picture storybooks: integrate words and illustration on each page to tell a story\

-          Postmodern picturebooks: employ multiple perspectives and/or narrators within a nonlinear story structure. These books use multiple colors with complex lines and images that move in and out of a page space. The tone may be sarcastic or cynical. Postmodern picturebooks actively invited the reader to coauthor the text.

Elements of Illustrations in Isolation

-          Color: Is used by artists to convey character, mood and emotion

• Hue: is the color itself, such as red, blue, yellow (cool= blue/green/violet AND warm= red/yellow/orange)
• Value: shading of how dark or light
• Saturation: how bright the color is

-          Line: used to direct our attention or to focus our eye on something

• Horizontal: suggest order and tranquility
• Vertical: create a sense of stability
• Diagonal evoke a sense of motion or tension

-          Shape: the two dimensional form representing a an object

• Horizontal shapes give a sense of stability and calm
• Vertical shapes are more exciting and suggest energy
• Diagonal shapes create motion
• Shape at TOP of page implies freedom, happiness, triumph
• Shapes at CENTER of page is associated with greater importance
• Shape on the LEFT of the page are likely to be more secure
• Shape on the RIGHT of the page is likely to be moving into a situation or risk/adventure

-          Texture: creates the sensation of roughness, smoothness, hardness, softness

• Various techniques used such as line, mixed media or scratchboard

-          Style: the impact of all the elements together

• Representational: displays people, nature and objects as they actually appear
• Surrealistic: creates a dreamlike state to attempt to represent the works of the unconscious mind
• Impressionistic: emphasizes light, movement and color over detail
• Cartoon: Tells the story in the form of a series of illustrations followed by captions
• Expressionistic: give objective expression to inner experience; bright colors and figures are a bit disproportionate
• Naïve/Folk Art: gives the appearance of being childlike, at times lacking perspective or sense of proportion

-          Point of View: use a variety of perspectives to give readers different vatage points from which to view the events in a story

-          Distance: refers to how close or far the viewer is from the scene in the illustration

• i.e. bird’s eye view, etc.

-          Media: artist uses a variety of media to create their artwork- two categories painterly and graphic ( PAGE 96 and 97 have tables of all the different kinds of media)

Elements of Illustrations in Context

-          Framing: whether the illustrator surrounds his illustrations with a boarder or lets them bleed off the page

-          Arrangement: refers to the ways illustrators choose to manipulate words and picture within the space on the page (typical left side of page = word and right side = pictures)

-          Narrative Sequence: (page 100—wasn’t sure how to explain it clearly)

-          Page Turns: whether the illustration has the reader waiting in suspense to turn the next page

Evaluating Picture Books

-          Leads: the opening line or lines of a book intended to grab the read’s attention and make him or her way to read more

-          Figurative language: provides new ways of looking at the world by comparing things that are different in enough ways to that their similarities, when pointed out, are interesting, unique or surprising

-          Making a long story short: many time authors and illustrators must tell a long story in a short period of time. Writers must use effective crafting techniques to move the story along

-          Repetition of a sentence or phrase: Just as the repetition of a images in illustration ca emphasize the importance of themes or make connection, so can the repetition of sentences or phrases within a story

Understatement: gives power to writing because of what is not said ad shows that an author trusts reader to make important  personal connection with the story

Kinana’s section:

1. The Role of Picture books in reading development:
   1. Visual literacy: a picture book is a book that “essentially provides a child with a visual experience.  Children are able to use picture books to organize and sort their understanding of different graphics and images. Also, how these can contribute to their understanding of the text.
   2. Making meaning of picture books: Children understood books better if they understand its construction, and how to appreciate the both the visual and verbal information.

                                                              i.      Referential meaning: visual representations of events, people, objects and the circumstances in which they occur.

                                                            ii.      Interpersonal or interactive meanings: relationship that is constructed between the reader and the illustrations/ visuals they are viewing in the picture book. This is influenced by the distance between characters and how the close the viewer feels to the characters in the illustrations.

                                                          iii.      Compositional meanings: layout of pictures, such as the closeness to the right to left of the page. Also, the type of borders use that place the focus on the illustrations and the attention given to the various elements.  

1. How to read picture books: children need to learn how to integrate visual and verbal into one “meaningful whole.”
   1. Orientation: the presentation of the picture book, begin with front cover and how the story can be incorporated/ comprehended into their experiences. Prior knowledge is important here, get them involved and ask about their observations.
   2. Looking at the WHOLE picture: relate prior knowledge and predictions to the first illustration. Ask each child what they notice, emphasize all pictures equally.
   3. Reading the text: After looking at pictures, read text. Helps with pointing out writing technique and explains the setting of the illustration further.
   4. Looking back at the picture: after reading text, go back to picture. Ask questions like “how does the picture show you what the words in the story are saying? What does the picture ADD to the words? What do the words add to the picture?
   5. Bringing new knowledge to next illustration: follow the above pattern: look at picture, read text, go back to picture and see how each extends to the information of the other (illustration/text).
   6. Classroom strategy for reading picture book: After following these steps, students will get used to looking for visual effects and creating a understanding between both the text and illustrations on their own.

2. Morgan Anderson

Children’s Literature- Chapter 3- Literacy: How Children Become Good Readers

Involving Children in Reading

-encouraging children to become engaged in reading is important

-children are more involved with reading when they choose their own material

A Positive Attitude

-          Some children come from a home where their parents have read to them- others do not

-          Attitude toward reading determines how much effort, motivation and engagement the child will have

Engagement-

-          Becoming involved, captivated and absorbed and immersed in a text

-          Integrates cognitive, motivational, and social dimensions of reading and reading instruction

-          Occurs @ all levels of development

Motivation

-          Part of process and product of engagement – Critical part of engagement

-          As it increases, students want to spend more time reading

-          Lack of motivation is @ the heart of problems in teaching

-          Books that are: self selected, variety of fiction & nonfiction, interesting, large access and read to by teachers and families <- encourage motivation

Self-Selecting Literature

-          Children will select the book, get motivated to read it & completely engage in the reading- without guidance

-          Books cannot be forced; they must want to read them

-          Allows children to make choices and give them control

Creating a Classroom Environment that Develops Good Readers

1. Time for Reading

a.       Choose their own books, reread texts & discuss with peers

b.      20/80 rule: 20% strategy instruction 80% applying instruction during actual reading

2. Authenticity of texts

a.       Hardcover or paperback, magazines or newspaper

b.      Not constructed materials or short workbook passages created with controlled vocab for purpose of teaching a vowel sound

c.       Increase the likelihood that students will transfer use of strategies to independent reading

3. Range of genre

a.       Helps them understand their structures or how different genres are organized

b.      Helps them anticipate what to expect and make inferences based on those expectations so reading is easier.

c.       Teachers much accommodate to their students different interests & reading abilities

4. Rich vocabulary & concept development

a.       Prior knowledge is important factor in comprehension

b.      Most vocabulary knowledge growth comes from reading

c. Allows the child to experience something they could not experience in reality

5. Accurate and Automatic Decoding

a.       Allows readers to focus on the texts meaning and their response

b.      Repeated readings allow children to discover many elements of decoding: letter sound relationship, sight-word recognition, and context clues

6. Writing

a.       Is thinking because it helps students interpret structure of genres that they are writing

b.      Reconstructed meaning from reading

c.       When children respond to reading through literature response activities such as journals, summaries, or email, they reconstruct their understanding of the story with their own words and express their own ideas and perspectives

7. Talk about texts

a.       During teacher-student dialogues about text- the teacher should allow for student input and control and accept multiple interpretations of text

b.      Teachers must resist approaches that stress the “real meaning” of the text

c.       Students should be given all opportunity to discuss with classmates and teachers the meaning of the text

Classroom Libraries

-          correlation between the amount of reading and reading achievement

-          1-2 books a week is not enough

-          Critical for teachers to have their own classroom library

Classroom Libraries…….

1.       Support Literacy Instructions

a.       Fiction & nonfiction @ different levels to accommodate interests, cultures and abilities of students

2.       Help Students Learn About Books

a.       Small size of library is ideal for teaching children how to select the right books & how to take care of books

3.       Provide a central location for classroom resources

a.       Can be used to store resources such as: CDs, tape players, computer games, etc.

4.       Provide opportunities for independent reading and curricular extensions

a.       Daily time for independent read

5.       Serve as a place for students to talk and interact with books

a.       Book discussions with peers & teacher

b.      Makes children excited to discuss their reactions to the books

As children encounter new experiences, already existing memory structures in the brain or schema are reshaped, impacting the child’s linguistic, cognitive, social, and emotional development.

Knowledge cannot be given it must be constructed by the learner and reconstructed as new information.

Influences on children’s responses to literature:

Louise Rosenblatt’s theory:  When we read we are connected to the text in a unique way, on that will not be experienced in exactly the same way as another reader.

Backgrounds and experiences influence how students interpret the text and what they take away from it.

A child’s background influences their choice in books:

                -interests, age, background experiences and culture are large influences.

Sociocognitive theory-social interaction is the primary means by which children arrive at new understanding.

Zone of proximal development-Vygotsky’s theory and it states that ZPD is the distance between the actual developmental level as determined through problem-solving under adult guidance or in collaboration.

Reading is also influenced by the child’s culture, cultural allusions in the text and the classroom’s culture.