Before After

Discovery, Nature, Originality, Picture Books, wordless, , ,

“Before After”

Before After, a wordless book of opposites, elevates opposite storytelling to another level. This book gives readers pause to think as they digest the cause and effect relationship between the before and after pictures.

This nice thick book offers lots of pairings to explore.

This book promotes creative components of nature, cause and effect, and originality.

WHY I LIKE THIS BOOK: I like this book because it is not your typical opposite book and makes readers think about what happened that caused the after picture. This book would provide great discussions between child and caregiver as they read the pictures together.

TITLE: Before After

ILLUSTRATORS: Anne-Margot Ramstein and Matthias Arégui 

PUBLISHER: Candlewick Press, 2014

AGE GROUP: 4-6

TOPIC(S): cause and effect

CREATIVE COMPONENTS: original, nature

LEARNING EXTENSIONS:

1) Draw a picture of one of your favorite things in nature. This will be your before picture. Think about what different things can happen to your nature item. Pick one and draw your after picture. Share with a friend.

2) Let’s work backwards or do the reverse by first drawing the after picture and then drawing the before picture of another favorite nature item.

3) Pick a plant, animal, or tree. Next draw its life cycle in stages.

EXTENDING CONNECTIONS:

To learn more about author Anne-Margot Ramstein, visit:

https://cargocollective.com/anne-margot

To learn more about illustrator Matthias Arégui, visit: 

https://www.matthiasaregui.com

A Web

Nature, Perspective, Picture Books,

“A Web”

Follow a black spider

as she observes her environment

and collects seeds,

and insects,

and flowers

and leaves

to weave a masterpiece of her landscape view (at the end of the book).

This book promotes creative components of nature and perspective.

WHY I LIKE THIS BOOK: I like this creative nonfiction book because it informs the reader of various insects, seeds, leaves, and flowers in great detail while showing items from the spider’s perspective.

TITLE: A Web

AUTHOR: Isabelle Simler

ILLUSTRATOR: Isabelle Simler

PUBLISHER: Peter Pauper Press, Inc., 2018

Originally published in France, 2013

AGE GROUP: 4-7

TOPIC(S): spider, habitat, insects

CREATIVE COMPONENTS: nature, perspective

LEARNING EXTENSIONS:

1) Take a nature walk around your backyard or front yard. Observe from a bird’s eye view and an ant’s eye view. Which things pique your curiosity? Pick one to learn more about and go to your library to check out books on your subject.

2) Create a masterpiece of you. Sit on your bedroom floor and observe all around you. Which things would you choose to create a masterpiece of your face? Take pictures of these or sketch them. On a larger sheet of paper, lightly outline (sketch) your face shape. Using the sketches of your room items, arrange them to create a masterpiece of your face.

EXTENDING CONNECTIONS:

To learn more about author/illustrator Isabelle Simler, visit:

http://www.letstalkpicturebooks.com/2018/12/lets-talk-illustrators-92-isabelle.html

Sweet Dreamers

Imagination, Nature, Picture Books, ,

“Sweet Dreamers”

Ever wonder what animals dream about? In Sweet Dreamers, a creative nonfiction picture book, author/illustrator Isabelle Simler transports readers into different animals’ realms, while departing natural facts about each creature through her lyrical description of how they dream. 

The ant “gathers and collects hundreds of quick naps” while the seahorse “as if on a carousel, the seahorse dreams at a gallop” and the spider “dreams on a tightrope – the lacework pattern of his sleep hanging by a thread.”

As a longer picture book, Simler uses two-page landscape spreads to introduce a new environment of animals. Each animal receives a close-up and a full-body illustration.

A perfect read aloud bedtime story.

This book promotes creativity and imagination.

WHY I LIKE THIS BOOK: I like this book because the lyrical words and beautiful illustrations speak to the reader and immediately take the reader into each animal’s dreamtime. Strong word choices seamlessly blend each animal’s natural characteristics into evocative poetry.

TITLE: Sweet Dreamers

AUTHOR: Isabelle Simler

ILLUSTRATOR: Isabelle Simler

PUBLISHER: Eerdmans Books for Young Readers, 2019

Originally published in France 2017

English language translation by Sarah Ardizzone, 2019

AGE GROUP: 4-7

TOPICS: bedtime, nature-based poetry

CREATIVE COMPONENTS: creativity, imagination, nature

LEARNING EXTENSIONS:

1) Watch your pet or a video that shows a sleeping animal. Make a list of words or phrases that describe that animal. Make another list that describes how you think you look when you sleep. Using words from both lists, write a poem about your sleeping animal and you.

2) Although Isabelle Simler crafted her illustrations digitally, it reminds me of scratch art. Make your own scratch art. Visit this blogpost for DIY easy scratch art:

DIY Scratch Art the Easy Way

EXTENDING CONNECTIONS:

To learn more about author/illustrator Isabelle Simler, visit:

http://www.letstalkpicturebooks.com/2018/12/lets-talk-illustrators-92-isabelle.html