Children's Book Selection Reflections (Assignment #1 a. - LLED 441 96A)

Image courtesy of westoahu.hawaii.edu

If I were to select a book for each of a child's first ten years of life, my selections would be based on the joy books have brought to both of my children and to me when I was a child.  There are a host of secondary reasons for my suggestions - that the stories help children develop language,  strengthen relationships, discover a variety of book forms and genres, teach lessons, spark imagination, and build empathy, but the first reason for each of my selections would be purely for the fun or joy of story.  As I share each of the selections I have made, I will connect my thoughts to several of the module readings. Overall my list represents stories which celebrate childhood and work to create a sense of awe and wonder.  I recognize the degree to which my choices are influenced by my own time period and culture which have shaped my perceptions of childhood as a time for imaginative play, learning, and for finding a place in the world with others. These perceptions have their roots in an idea of the child as both "socially constructed" and as a "psychologically and intellectually developing human" (Module 1: Perceptions of Childhood).  In reviewing these selections I am aware they are also a product of my own white privilege as they do not represent much racial or ethnic diversity.     


Age 0-1: It's never too early to begin reading to children, and board books by Sandra Boynton were some of my own children's favorites.  Moo, Baa, La La La is a raucous story about the sounds animals make.  The book is thick, sturdy, and glossy, making it strand up to handling by drooling children who might like to put it in their mouths.  This story uses simply words and phrases full of rhythm and rhyme.  It is perfect for reading aloud, as are other Sandra Boynton books such as Barnyard Dance. I thought of these books as I ready through the introductory articles in our class.  In the article "What Next in the Read Aloud Battle?" Mem Fox writes, "Listening to an adult read aloud cultivates the essential enchanting engagement with books, stories, rhymes, and songs that every child has experience the formal teaching of reading can begin."(4), while Perry Klass's article references a study by Dr. Mendelson which links reading to young children to positive behavior and better attention spans in years to come.  According to Mendelson in "Reading Aloud to Young Children Has Benefits for Bahavior and Attendion" reading aloud is a form of play which results in social-emotional development (1 Klass).

In an effort to convince her husband that their child was not too young to have stories read to him, my sister video taped herself reading to their four month old son.  I have included the video here.  She is reading the book in my selection, "Moo, Baa, La La La" and as you can see in the video, by nephew is enthralled. I believe he is responding not only to the fun sounds of the words, but to my sister's voice - her intonation, expression, and the pauses between sentences.  He is looking at the pages of the book and his eyes are wide and alert.  His smile shows his enjoyment.  He feels safe with his mother and this story is strengthening his bond with his mother, one of his primary caregivers.   In the article "The Language and Learning Theories of Halliday and Vygotsky and their Contributions to Educational Practice" Zhao Xia points out that both theorists and their schools of thought "hold that language learning takes place in a social context and each considers language to be a product of human construction." My nephew is learning language in the social context of interaction with his mother. Incidentally, after watching this video my brother-in-law needed no further convincing and since then spends time reading to his son every evening before bed.

Age 1-2:  My second book choice for ages 1-2 is Mr. Brown Can Moo, Can You, by Dr. Seuss.  Again, I selected this book because it was one which my own children loved and my husband found it very interactive and fun to read.  This book is representative of many Dr. Seuss books with its eccentric character(s),  imaginative drawings, and fun words and phrases with strong rhyme and meter.  I might have selected any number of Dr. Seuss books for young readers.  Similar to my previous selection, this book makes use of animal (and other) sounds and uses simple wording with strong rhythm and rhyme.   

When my daughter was between the ages of one and two we lived in Colombia, and she had a caregiver who spoke with her in Spanish while I was at work.  She was learning to speak both English and Spanish.  My husband filmed the himself with my daughter reading Mr. Brown Can Moo, Can You?, as a way to share what she was doing with our families back at home.  I have included the video here to share how interactive and fun this story can be and to show how much my daughter liked this book.  In the video she can be seen mixing in a few Spanish words with English ones.  The Zhao Xia article I mentioned earlier states that Vytotsky's theory of language development "promotes learning contexts in which students play an active role in learning" (4).  The book Mr. Brown Can Moo, Can You? is one which lends itself to interactive play.  

Age 2-3: The Very Hungry Caterpillar by Eric Carle is another classic children's story.  I agree with Michelle H. Martin, a professor at the University of Washington who studies children's literature, when he points out the educational value of the story: "[It] helps little kids grasp concepts like numbers and the days of the week." (Fetters). 

The book guides children towards language development by introducing them to unfamiliar words. The repetitive language makes it easy and fun for children, and the story serves as a metaphor for children getting ready for kindergarten.  Just as the caterpillar leaves the safety of the cocoon, children will leave the comfort, warmth, and safety of their homes for school in an act of transformation.    

Module 4 lead me to think about the multimodal form of all written text: "A book, even one that is almost entirely print (such as a novel) is multimodal because it is language printed onto a physical item or viewed on a physical item." The Very Hungry Caterpillar expresses this multimodality in a few ways. Another board book, this story also illustrates multi-modality in that the illustrations were made using collages of painted tissue which provide a textured look.  Further texture is added with the use of punched out holes through images of food where the caterpillar has taken bites. Finally, this story, like several of my selections, also appears in digital forms and formats such as video and slides.  

Age 3-4: Alligator Pie by Dennis Lee is the first poem I remember hearing other than Mother Goose nursery rhymes (which should also be shared through childhood).  I heard this poem just before I began attending school and I remember I was captivated. I wanted to read it over and over again and relive the rhythm and rhyme. It was the beginning of a long love for poetry. Similar to the selections I have listed above, this poem makes use of repetition of words, phrases, and various consonant and vowel sounds. I wanted to include poetry in my selection because I think it is important to expose children to a number of different literary forms.  This poem could be appreciated from birth to adulthood, and I placed it here only because I remembered being exposed to it at about this age.  




Age 5-6: Marie-Louise Gay's Stella: A Treasury, is a collection of five short stories staring Stella, an adventurous and imaginative red-headed heroine who plays with her little brother, Sam, who is less adventurous but just as lovable.  Using gentle humor and whimsy conveyed through dialog and lovely watercolors, Gay's collection is the story of siblings discovering the world together. I selected this book because it was popular with my own children and because it reminded me of the relationship I had with my brother who was very close to me in age.  I like that the female protagonist has the more daring personality while her brother is more cautious.  I also like that the story places no negative judgement in being daring or cautious. Both ways of being are celebrated.  I love the whimsical illustrations which are bursting with color. I also appreciate the strong characterizations and the dominate use of dialog.     

Age 5-6: As children move from learning to sound out letters in kindergarten to beginning to read in grade one, the Mercy Watson collection of six stories by Kate DiCamillo is a perfect choice to get readers started on their first chapter books.  DiCamillo won the Newbery Medal for one of the six lighthearted stories in this collection, about a "porcine wonder" - that is, a pig, named Mercy Watson.  The stories are comical misadventures which show the unconditional love of Mercy's caregivers.  The colorful illustrations, large text, and use of a lot of white space on the page make it ideal for new readers.  Similar to the selection above, the strong characterization and funny plots keep readers in peels of laughter. My own children loved these stories and read them over and over again.  Once, in an attempt to compliment me, my five year old told me at bed time he thought I was a "porcine wonder."  His comment made me laugh so hard I had tears streaming down my face.  He was experimenting with the more complex language he was hearing in the story but did not yet have a full understanding of the word "porcine."  When I explained to him what was so funny he said he had thought it meant "extra special" or "wonderful."  This reminds of Susan Frey's article.  She writes, "Rich language in a picture book is not unusual, and reading those stories aloud will introduce children to an extensive vocabulary." (1).

Age 6-7: I can still remember my grade two teacher reading Charlotte's Web  by E.B. White to our class.  This is the story of Wilbur the pig (yes, another story about a pig!) who forms an unlikely friendship with a spider who later saves him from an untimely death.  My rational for this selection is that the story has strong characterization, great dialog, and sends the reader through a variety of emotions.  It is both humorous and sad.  It contains themes of friendship and the power of love.  The book also introduces the reader to the concept of death and the cycle of life as a main characters dies, but her children come to occupy her place at the barn.  I read it to my own children at this age and they loved it as much as I had.  We all dressed as characters from this story for a family themed Halloween.  






Age 7-8: I felt this list would be incomplete without a book by Roald Dalh, so I have selected Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. Like many stories by Roald Dalh, the story is a wildly imaginative one with amusing characters and fun illustrations.  It's the story of five children who win a chance to tour Willy Wonka's chocolate factory.  The vivid description and comical characters will keep children laughing.  Dalh has a distinctive wit with a dark side.  In this story  bad behavior on the part of four children results in punishments which perfectly suit each crime. The protagonist lives a life of bleak poverty before winning a chance to tour the factory, but love for his parents and grandparents make his daily struggles more manageable. The book has been twice made into a film and has been released as an audio-book. While one might argue that the story teaches children to be well behaved and not to be greedy,  my reason for selecting this title is its fantastical and witty story-line.  The lesson has nothing to do with my choice. 



Age 8-9: My next selection is Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone, by J.K. Rowling, the first of her seven book series.  I read this series as an adult (I was an adult when the books were published), but later I reread them to my children.  My son and daughter reread each of the books on their own and my nephews are currently reading the series (their dad is reading it to them).  The boys, like my own children, love reading the stories and then watching the movies.  As everyone knows, these are fantasy stories about the boarding school adventures of children with magical abilities as they train to become wizards.  Popular world-wide, these stories have captured the imaginations of several generations.  The books contain characters readers care about and a plot which keeps pages turning.  Similar to classic The Lord of the Rings series, the characters find themselves engaged in an epic battle of good against evil.  The characters mature with each book in the series and the plot becomes increasingly complex. The stories are humorous, scary, contain sport and romance, and present mysteries to be solved. There are ethnically diverse characters (although the three main characters are white) and the stories do as Elysia Liang's article, "Canonical Angst in Young Adult Literature" suggests young adult literature which is worthy of canonization should do - that is, "comprise texts that testify to the hardships and triumphs of being human ...[through] the most harrowing and insightful of all experiences, growing up" (11).  




Age 9-10: My final selection is the novel Wonder, by R. J. Palacio, a book my daughter brought home in grade five.  She insisted everyone in our family read it.  Her brother, who was largely into action stories told her he was unlikely to enjoy it.  He was proven wrong.  He devoured it and asked if there was a sequel.  I am selecting it for its finely drawn characters and for the empathy it builds as readers root for a young boy with a facial deformity.  It is a story with a protagonist who is not representative of the majority. This novel, like the selection before it, deals with coming to terms with identity and gaining acceptance within a wider community.  According to Micheal Cart, a former president of the Young Adult Library Services Association, "Young Adult fiction has the ability to acknowledge the challenges involved in growing up: a search for identity, the attempt to belong to a community, or a profound feeling of alienation" (Liang).  



Works Cited:

Delvecchio, Jennifer. LLED 441 96A. Introduction to Teaching Children's Literature. Canvas. Web. Accessed July 2019. 

Fetters, Ashley.  "How 'The Very Hungry Caterpillar' Became a Classic." The Atlantic, 30 March 2013. Web. Accessed July 2019.

Frey, S. "Study says reading aloud to children, more than talking, builds literacy." edsource.org, 8 July 2015. Web. Accessed July 2019.

Frijhoff, W.  "Historian's Discovery of Childhood." Paedagogica Historica, 2012. 48(1), 11-29. Accessed July 2019.

Germaine, Lianne. "Mom Reading to Baby." Online video clip. YouTube. YouTube. July 2015. Web. Accessed 20 July 2015. 

Hide, Jamie. "Dr. Brown Can Moo." Online video clip. YouTube. YouTube. November 2008. Web. Accessed July 2019.

Fox, M. "What next in the Read-Aloud battle?: Win or lose?" The Reading Teacher, 2013. 67(1), 3-8. Web. Accessed July 2019. 

 (Links to an external site.)

Klass, Perri. "Reading aloud to young children has benefits for behavior and attention." nytimes.com, 16 April 2018. Web. Accessed July 2019. 

Leland, C., Lewison, M., & Harste, J. "Multimodal Responses to Literature." Teaching Children's Literature: It's Crucial, 2012. p. 125-236. Web. Accessed July 2019. 

Liang, Elysia.  "Canonical angst in young adult literature." midwayreview.uchicago.edu, n.d. Web. Accessed July 2019. 

Mendelsohn et al. (April 2018) "Reading aloud, play and social-emotional development, Pediatrics." pediatrics.aappublications.org, 05 April 2018. Web. Accessed July 2019. 

Reynolds, K. "Perceptions of Childhood." Romantics and Victorians, n.d. Web. Accessed July 2019. 

Tunnell, M. O., & Jacobs, J. S. "The Origins and History of American Children's Literature." The Reading Teacher, 67(2), 80-86. Accessed 2019. 

Zhao, Xia.  "The language and learning theories of Halliday and Vygotsky and their contributions to educational practice." academia.edu. Web. Accessed July 2019.