Oh, owl. He can't fall asleep because he hears a tiny noise in the house somewhere and he almost goes (literally) crazy trying to find it. Good Night Owl is our first book by Geisel Award winner Greg Pizzoli, and I’m loving the bright, modern and spare aesthetic of it. With its simple story line, this one is great for teaching little ones how to retell a story.
“Up and down lines pull me up, up, up with them, until I feel as tall as a steeple and as taut as a stretched rubber band. I think of lofty things—giant redwood trees, a lighthouse rising above the sea, a rocket soaring high into the sky, noble kings in flowing robes. “
Helen Borten was an illustrator who produced many picture books and illustrations for other authors such as Franklyn M. Branley in the 1960s. She was also an independent broadcast journalist who wrote and produced numerous radio documentaries.
In Do You See What I See?, she connects the abstract concepts of line, shape and color to real world experiences that allow children to wrap their heads around these elements of art. She helps children identify how line, shape and color make them feel, which is a big component of understanding art. Her rich figurative language, modern lines and clever use of color and layout are what make her work a collection of visual poetry.
Although this book was originally published in the 1960s, its sensibilities are fresh, relevant and design-forward, even today. Every preschool and early childhood classroom across the world needs a copy of this stunning work. Imagine the countless art experiences that could be launched with the ideas, content and inspiration in this book. Thank you to @flyingeyebooks for re-releasing this venerable classic. May there be many more.
Let's Go Home is like a warm hug--which definitely makes it a cozy bedtime read. It teaches kids what their home means to them. The beautiful old house featured in the book was inspired by illustrator Wendy Anderson Halperin’s own home in Interlochen, Michigan.
"There are many kinds of houses in the world, from little cottages to big mansions, from farmhouses to bungalows. But no matter the kind of house, it is the living inside that makes it wonderful, what happens in each room that makes it marvelous. It is what the house means to those who live there. "
"And when people are far away from home, feeling lonely and missing things, often it is their sweet, wonderful kitchens they miss most of all. And as soon as they come home, this is where they want to be, with a nice warm scone, and a cup of tea, and someone to kiss them kindly on the head. "
Reading that last paragraph reminded me of being away in college and missing the familiar smells of my own kitchen back home. I'm such a fan of Cynthia Rylant's work--her books speak so well to children and to those of us who were once children.
Happy weekend, all.
Coral Reefs is an unbelievable adventure as only author/illustrator Jason Chin could dream up. A girl starts to read a book about corals at a library. Immersed in the text, she's oblivious to a strange transformation of the room. Corals of all shapes and sizes start to sprout from the floor, seemingly out of nowhere. It's not until the ocean water starts to rush in through the window, knocking the bewildered girl off her feet, that she realizes there's something strange and magical about the book she's holding. And let's just say that she gets a first-hand lesson about the different species that inhabit coral reefs, some of the most complex ecosystems in the world. If this isn't experiential learning, I don't know what is. The book ends with information about coral reefs--facts about them and threats to their existence. For another incredible story and learning experience, check out Jason Chin’s book Redwoods.
Looks like the moon is waxing gibbous tonight. "As the nights go by you can see changes in the moon. After the moon is full you see less and less of it. There are three or four nights with no moon at all. Then you see more and more of it. The moon seems to change."
Currently reading The Moon Seems to Change by Franklyn M. Branley, author of almost 150 engaging science books for kids. Branley was also the co-founder of the Let’s-Read-and-Find-Out Science Book series, books that made scientific concepts accessible to young children. He was Astronomer Emeritus and former Chairman of the American Museum of Natural History-Hayden Planetarium. Husband and wife Ed and Barbara Emberley collaborated on the illustrations in The Moon Seems To Change.
Branley gives a simple and understandable explanation of how the phases of the moon work, but I would say that it is best read alongside a grown-up who might be able to clarify information when needed. Branley includes instructions about how kids can conduct their own experiment that shows the phases of the moon using a flashlight, an orange, a pencil, a marker and a friend.