Chalk

Chalk by Bill Thomson was the only one of the four wordless books that I read with my daughters, and they absolutely loved it. At first I started by talking about the pictures, but slowly it shifted into telling a story. When I was finished my five-year-old asked me to read it again. The second time I read it more like a story and with more expression for individual characters since I had a better understanding of the big picture. Then, my eight-year-old wanted a turn reading it, followed by my five-year-old, who especially loves to play with different voices.

In the book three kids are walking in the rain. They spot a gift bag hanging from a t-rex at the park (as shown on the cover) and discover that the bag contains chalk. It does not take them long to realize that it is not just ordinary chalk as they discover that whatever they draw on the concrete becomes reality. Their wonder quickly turns to horror as one of the drawings leads to a dangerous scenario, making readers want to flip the page to see just what will happen.

As we sat on the couch after school, flipping through the pages and delighting in the illustrations four different times, I thought more about the value of wordless books. My youngest is still emerging as a reader. Though she knows some sight words and is able to "read" familiar books or books with a lot of patterns, at times I can tell that she doesn't quite feel a part of the reading club yet. She absolutely loves books and enjoys "reading the pictures" but at times I can tell that she can't wait to be able to read the words by herself just like her sister. With a wordless book, the three of us were on equal terms. My youngest was not worrying about not being able to read the words yet, as she was able to focus on the value of creating a story based on the pictures.

An additional benefit is the value in oral rehearsing for writing development. By allowing for multiple variations of the story and developing details about different characters and events, wordless books can support creativity with storytelling. For primary students in a writer's workshop setting, having wordless books in the classroom can help them to foster a higher value for telling a story solely through pictures, especially when that is their stage of development. I am also thinking about the possibilities for collaborations between older students and primary students. For example students from older grades who are able to write stories, could study wordless books as a genre study, create their own books with the younger students as their target audience and then share them with kindergarten or first graders.So many possibilities for wordless books...

Flotsam

Prior to reading the jacket of David Wiesner's Flotsam, I was not aware of the meaning of the word. The wordless book highlights different materials that could be floating in the sea, washing up on shore for people to explore.

When I saw the title page with various objects, including shells and a feather, I thought about how my girls would probably love this book. Then the first page zooms in on a crustacean with a large eye closely examining it in the background. Something about the way it is presented, made me want to laugh, instantly hooking my attention and making me want to see more.

The next page zooms out to show more of the background scene, including the boy looking at the creature through a magnifying glass. Shortly after, the curios boy notices a mysterious camera that has washed up on the beach. That is when the book shifts from realistic to imaginative. He rushes to develop the film inside and sees glimpses into life under the sea. Amazed at what he is seeing, he zooms in to examine the little details of photos using his microscope.

Similar to the other two wordless books that I have reviewed in the series this week, there are many details in the pictures that spark the imagination. Kids would be able to talk about where fact and fiction blend, considering which aspects occur in real life. They can also consider the possibilities of what else might wash up on the shores of beaches and make them excited for a trip to the coast.

*Caldecott Medal Book

The Red Book

Barbara Lehman's The Red Book tells the story of many adventures surrounding a red book. Walking toward school on a snowy day, a girl finds a red book in a snow bank. While in class, she opens it up to find a picture of a boy on a beach who finds a red book in the sand. The next couple of pages reveal a surprising twist - sparking curiosity for both the readers and the kids experiencing the magic of the red book.

Opening up a world of imagination for kids, this wordless book prompts readers to look closely at the details and consider the relationships between the characters, as well as wonder about possibilities in this introduction into the fantasy genre.

Readers can enjoy this book for different reasons each time as they discover new details that add additional layers to the magic of the story. As a result, it is a perfect book to enjoy as a community of readers being able to share different thoughts and ideas.

Targeted to emergent readers, this book can also foster a sense of appreciation for pictures. With writing development, I am used to the concept of valuing pictures as writing prior to kids being able to write words. This book is perfect, reaffirming the worth of wordless stories.


*Caldecott Honor Book

Looking Down

I don't remember ever buying a wordless book (or checking out any from the library). I decided to order four from Amazon in order to explore a new genre. This week I will be posting a series of posts on the wordless books I bought.

Using cut-paper illustrations, Steve Jenkins' book Looking Down starts out in outer space and then zooms in increasingly more with each flip of the page. I always think that it is fascinating to watch scenes below from airplane windows, and this book reminded me of that sensation. 

In addition, I enjoyed analyzing the type of paper and textures that Jenkins selected for each aspect of the illustrations. It made me think of the ideal paper to create other scenes around the globe.

I was always guessing which aspect of the current picture would be featured as an enlarged version on the following pages. Once I reached the end, I loved the detail that ended up being the focal point. Inspiring wonder and awe with both the zooming in details and the artwork, this wordless book has a lot to offer in order to prompt discussions.