The World That We Want (2005)

      Kim Michelle Toft’s The World That We Want is a sparkling visual reference book. It sure looks like she used gold leaf to outline the delicate features of the 45 plants, birds, animals, and aquatic life that literally fill every page of this beautiful book. A glossary identifies and describes the inhabitants of nine different environments: air, rain forest, river, mangrove, beach, tide pool, reef, atoll, and ocean.  The text is a familiar narrative structure. For example, after visiting air, rainforest, river, and mangrove we read “…This is the beach that meets the mangrove that follows the river that weaves through the forest that filters the air that circles the world that we want.” It’s a clever formula for teaching the unity of life in a succinct and effective way.

     This book is read aloud online by Laura Shaver.

     My Picture Book Talk for this story is here. 

Weaving the Rainbow (2004)

 

Weaving the Rainbow, by George Ella Lyon, is poetry dressed up as narrative nonfiction. Stephanie Anderson’s gorgeous watercolors illuminate the intimate transformation of raw fleece into a tapestry. Students of all ages will gain a new appreciation for the art and craft of handmade fiber art after reading this beautiful book.  

On the first page, we meet a woman—"the weaver”. It’s spring, and she’s standing by a fenced-in field; “the weaver sees rainbow sheep grazing in her pasture.” What we see are sheep cloaked in woolly white. Last summer, the weaver’s lambs won blue ribbons at the state fair.  When leaves of gold, brown, and red fell in autumn, they were sheared. They grew a second coat to warm them through the winter.

            Anderson’s vivid illustrations show us how this white wool becomes multicolored yarn. And we begin to comprehend the title, Weaving the Rainbow.  The weaver is planning to weave “a picture, doing with wool what a painter does with paint.” Weavers of all ages will love the detailed two-page spreads that show this short, instructional story.

            This story is read online by School Gardens.

            My Picture Book Talk for this story is here. 

 

Skippyjon Jones (2003)

Skippyjon Jones by Judy Schachner is a piñata full of teaching moments. Skippyjon Jones is an energetic kitten with an imagination that causes him to break conventional rules of feline behavior. He is not mischievous. He is fun-loving and creative. At the end of the story, his mother acknowledges this.

            This Picture Book Talk focuses on the form and function of language in the text. Judy Schachner plays with words; she draws attention to phonology by having fun with English. Mama Junebug Jones calls her kitten a variety of hilarious names. Skippyjon Jones recites rhymes that listeners will love to imitate. Spanish words appear with context clues to facilitate comprehension. Words in huge fonts pop from the text. Within this story hides language lessons in plain sight.

This story is read aloud online by Read Along.

A Sick Day for Amos McGee (2010)

     In A Sick Day for Amos McGee, by Philip C. Stead and Erin E. Stead, we discover the quiet joy between those who share a gentle temperament. Amos' animal  companions take a city bus to visit him at home to learn why he did not show up for work at the zoo.  They miss him.  When Amos exclaims, "Hooray! My good friends are here!", this uncharacteristic outburst shows us how precious friendship is.  We feel the camaraderie depicted in Erin Stead's illustrations. The elephant, rhinoceros, tortoise, penguin, and owl have learned empathy from Amos. They know that the finest cure for the flu includes the comfort of friends. 

     The sentences in this story feature examples of alliteration and assonance. In my opinion, the listener has a good chance of hearing Philip Stead's melodic word choices at Read to My Children

     My Picture Book Talk for this story is here. 

How Full Is Your Bucket? For Kids (2009)

         How Full Is Your Bucket For Kids by Tom Rath and Mary Reckmeyer celebrates emotional intelligence. It’s a heavy lift made possible with metaphor. Emotional well-being is represented by a full bucket of  water floating above a person’s head. An empty bucket characterizes bad feelings.  Of course, this bucket is invisible to everyone except the main character, Felix, and the reader. Felix is delighted with this insight. When Felix suddenly “sees”  buckets hovering above the heads of everyone at recess, he’s elated. It’s a gift to become more emotionally intelligent. When he chooses to help fill a few empty buckets—help a few people feel better—his own bucket fills too.  With his new knowledge, Felix chooses to be kind to his classmates, his sister, and even his dog. The visually effective illustrations by Maurie J. Manning clearly communicate the story’s message.

Locomotive (2013)

   Locomotive by Brian Floca is a stunning narrative nonfiction about the building of the transcontinental railroad. Mr. Floca illustrates and describes the mechanics of the steam engine, the people who built the rails and who rode the trains, and the countryside the locomotive conquered. The pictures capture a variety of perspectives. The language is lovely and reads like poetry. Strategically placed super-sized fonts bring the story to life. Backmatter includes historical context, a lengthy list of sources, and a visual description of how a steam engine operates. There’s so much content in this masterpiece that it required a large size (nearly 9 x 6 inches in the hardcover) and 64-pages. Be sure to watch Brian Floca talk about Locomotive at the 2013 National Book Festival.

A must-see are photographs  at the  Central Pacific Railroad Photographic History Museum cprr.org/Museum/Exhibits.html. 

This book is read aloud by Madison Tully.

My Picture Book Talk lesson for this story is here.