"This Old Man" Makes for a Great Picture Book

This Old Man
Illustrated by Pam Adams
ISBN #9780859530262

       Perhaps the biggest difference between children's books and adult's books are the wonderful illustrations we see in children's literature.  Ask any random kid what their favorite part of a book is, and chances are he will tell you something to do with an illustration.  When children are young, illustrations are their key to unlocking the words.  A good author will match important words on each page to a corresponding picture.  So now, if the child sees a picture of a dog, she can better sound out d-o-g.  The even better authors use the "Three R's," (rhyming, rhythm, and repetition) in their work as well.  This allows the children to follow the same pattern throughout the book, and use the pictures to just match up the words that are changing.
     For the majority of my teaching career, albeit short-lived, I have worked with mostly children in grades 1-5.  That is approximately ages 6-11, for those of you that have forgotten.  This past summer, however, I had the pleasure of teaching in a pre-school.  The children in my class were between 2 and 4 years old.  Is 2 to 7 years a big age difference in the adult world? Not at all.  My boyfriend and I are 5 years apart (and guess who is more mature... yeah).  Collegiate classmates may be decades apart, yet still do the same work.  But in the wonderful world of children, a few precious years can make all the difference.  On my very first day, I read through the alphabet chart with my kids and asked them to write the letters of their name.  All I got were a bunch of blank stares and a few dirty diapers.  Being the typical teacher that I am, I knew I had to come up with activities that these kids not only could understand, but would be educational as well.  I found my answer in big picture books.
     I would read the class the same few books each day, but our favorite was This Old Man.  You probably remember this as a song.. "This old man, he played one.  He played knick knack on my drum, with a knick-knack patty whack - give a dog a bone - This old man came rolling home."  Pam Adams, who is the book's illustrator, really did an amazing job.  What makes this book so special are, in fact, the illustrations.  The words are simply the same song that we all sang at some point in our childhood.  "This old man" knick-knacks his way up to playing "ten on my hen."  Cute, yes, but nothing out of the ordinary.  What Adams created is called a "book with holes."  That means that each page has a cut out through which you can see a portion of the next page (in this case, you can see the next old man). 
     Each page spread (2 pages that are next to each other, like pages 2 and 3) describes the man playing one number.  The numbers are on the left side and are printed big and bold; very appealing to the eye.  There is a scene drawn on the right side of each spread, that not only depicts what the old man is doing on the current number, but shows what he has already done as well.  The children would love to look at the picture to find what the man is up to now.  In addition to being so engaged, my kids would participate as well.  Sometimes they would all sing along with me, other times I would point to one child and have him say that part, then another child, and so on.  You would be surprised how many different ways there are to read the same book!
     Pam Adams did a remarkable job illustrating the classic This Old Man.  Every element that a good children's picture book should have is incorporated into this book.  I found it to be extremely motivating and enjoyable with young toddlers, however I imagine that children of all ages would love it.  Not only will the children love the bright, colorful pictures, but they will feel so much happiness and importance when they can sing along with you, an adult that they look up to.  I strongly suggest adding this book to your library!

"Old Lady" Gets the Honor that she Deserves



There Was an Old Lady Who Swallowed a Fly
Written By Simms Taback
Illustrated by Pam Adams
ISBN #0859537277

     For our first "official" blog, my professor instructed us to write on any "Award [meaning Caldecott or Newbery Medals/Honors] Winning Children's Book."  At first I thought, "Oh, ok no big deal. All the books I love have won awards, so I can basically write about anything I want, right?" WRONG!  When I downloaded a list of all the books that have been chosen for these honors, I couldn't help but notice that some of my favs were MIA.  Of course the lovable Winn Dixie made the cut, as did Trixie and her beloved Knuffle Bunny (twice, in '05 and '08).  But I couldn't help but wonder why some of my favorite characters fell through the cracks!  Where-oh-where is my little Chrysanthemum?  And what about my favorite spunky gal, Pinkalicious?  Tsk, tsk to whatever committee left you ladies out.  Anyway, I was very pleased, however, to find that a very silly, and hungry old lady did, in fact make the cut.
     I truly feel that Simms Taback's There Was an Old Lady Who Swallowed a Fly (which was a Caldecott Honor winner in 1998) is one of the best children's books ever written.  The book follows the story of a little old lady who swallows a fly, and then proceeds to swallow a spider in order to catch the fly.  She continues to swallow bigger animals to catch the one before it.  Each page follows the same rhyming pattern.  For example, one part reads: There was an old lady who swallowed a bird.  How absurd to swallow a bird!  She swallowed the bird to catch the spider.  She swallowed the spider to catch the fly - I don't know why she swallowed a fly!  Perhaps she'll die!
     I mean c'mon... what can't you teach with this book?  There's the obvious rhyming and patterns.  The kids absolutely love to follow along with this book.  When I read it, I always have my audience join in and help me read each page.  The pictures are helpful to those who cannot follow along with the words; those kids can still feel a part of the group.  That brings me to another great lesson, using pictures to help you figure out words!  This book can certainly be used to teach main idea (what is the whole book about?), facts and details (why is she swallowing each animal?), and word meaning (notice the sentence after it names what she swallowed;  there is always a fancy word in it).
     In my opinion, however, this book is best utilized with a sequencing lesson.  After the read aloud, I usually give my kids a picture of each animal she swallowed.  Then, they write out a paragraph in their notebooks listing each thing she swallowed in order, and placing the picture where appropriate.  They can use any of the sequencing words from the mini-lesson that make sense to them.  Here is an example of this activity, done by a 2nd grader with the book There Was an Old Lady Who Swallowed a Bat.

     Now even if I stopped here, I'm sure you would agree that I proved my point; There Was an Old Lady Who Swallowed a Fly is a great book to have in your classroom.  But guess what?  I'm STILL not done.  The best thing about this book is... there's more.  Literally.  There are more books that follow the same exact format.  Lucille Colandro has written an "Old Lady" book for just about every holiday and season.  Halloween is right around the corner; why not try There Was an Old Lady Who Swallowed a Bat?  Thanksgiving already?  There Was an Old Lady Who Swallowed a Pie (although this one is by Alison Jackson) would be a great read.  You can actually buy the whole set, in which the old lady swallows a shell (for summer time), some leaves (autumn), a chick (Easter/springtime), snow (winter), and a bell (Christmas).  I know what you're thinking now... this could be a killer compare/contrast lesson, right?  Not to mention how many connections can be made, too.
     The Caldecott Honor is awarded to the illustrator of a distinguished American picture book for children.  Simms Taback served as both author and illustrator to this classic.  Although I have praised this book for its story and how it can be incorporated into the classroom, I have neglected to point out why Taback received the Caldecott Honor.  His pictures are bold and bright, and surely catch the eye of children and adults alike.  They make following along with the words easy and enjoyable.  As I said already, pictures are very important to those youngsters who cannot read yet.
    I hope that I have been able to give this piece of literature it's proper due.  It is definitely a book every teacher should have in her classroom, and every parent should have on his bookshelf.  I would love to hear from anyone who falls in love with this book as I did!

My Very First Blog

          I must admit that this is my first attempt at blogging.  This blog will serve as a semester-long assignment for my Children's Literature class.  The idea of this blog is to share our thoughts, feelings, and connections to children's books as we read them.  For those of you who are unfamiliar with this term, there are three different types of "connections" one can make to a piece of literature.  A "text-to-text connection" is just that; when you make a connection between one piece of text and another.  In a "text-to-self connection," the reader makes connections between herself and the book.  Perhaps the book reminds you of something that has happened to you.  A "text-to-world connection" is when the reader connects the book to the world around her.  I imagine I will often refer to these terms throughout my blog.
          I have always been a huge fan of children's literature.  As a kid, I remember reading under my covers with a flashlight so my mother would think I was asleep (although now that I think about it, I suppose a flashlight wasn't the best idea).  Back then, all I knew was that I was reading books that interested me.  As an adult, I realize that I was reading award winning pieces of literature that I can now share with my students.  I love the fact that the classics I read in the early 90s are still being enjoyed today; there's brave little Madeline, silly Amelia Bedelia, the troublesome Cat in the Hat, the great Ramona Quimby, and the responsible members of The Babysitter's Club.  In fact, most of the books I came to love were around for many years already!  These characters have secured their place in the hearts of children from generation to generation.  Through the years we have met many new characters for children to love as well, such as the "wimpy" Greg Heffley, the magical Harry Potter, and a friendly dog named Winn-Dixie.
          I will try to blog about books that are new to me, but I can't promise that I won't incorporate some of my all-time favs as well.  However, what I can promise is to follow the advice I give my students when they read something for the second (or third, etc.) time, and that is to "read through a different pair of lenses."  Each time we read a book, we are even smarter than we were the last time; we now have more experiences under our belts; the world around us has changed.  I am looking forward to sharing my love for children's literature :)