In Pictures and In Words Book Study - Chapter 8

So it seems I'm joining the party a lil' late...but, you'll forgive me, right? Join our host, Kathleen at Growing Kinders for the link up. Onto Chapter 8: Precision and Detail...kinda sounds like surgery, huh? I promise my post won't be painful...

In Pictures and In Words by Katie Wood Ray

This chapter continues with descriptions of illustration techniques with a strong emphasis on details, details, DETAILS...that we can use in our writing demonstrations and also during writing conferences with our students. I am going to discuss only a few of my favorites...

How does Mo Willems NOT come to mind when thinking about Technique 13: Crafting Details of Expression and Gesture AND Technique 20...Creating the Illusion of Motion with Detail...I mean, just LOOK at these illustrations...and that face...these are from The Pigeon Finds a Hot Dog! but you could use any of his titles...the kids just love 'em!!

use your different voices HERE

and HERE

L-O-V-E that look...

As a reader, you get so much from the simple, expressive, yet vibrant illustrations...there's much more meaning beyond what you see. My kiddos can relate to loving eating hot dogs, someone asking them to share (when they really don't want to), and someone bothering them with their mere presence (brothers and sisters). The books are fun to read, and you get to use voices...ok, well, maybe that's just ME...

How about Amazing Christmas Extravaganza by David Shannon?! His books just scream with Technique 19: Using Authentic, Object-Specific Details...if you've read this book, then you know the pages are FILLED from top-to-bottom and side-to-side with illustrations...it's almost sensory overload, I tell ya! Look at the string of ornaments circling the text, the red and green colors of the quilt, the huddled faces (and bright red noses) of the family under the bed...

The last technique I will share with you is Technique 22: Using Details as an Element of Surprise which brought to mind First Day Jitters by Julie Danneberg. It's one of those if-you-played-close-attention-to-the-illustrations...you would have figured that it was about...SPOILER ALERT...a teacher's first day of school (or you may have had a new kid that blurted out said, "I read this at my old school, and it's about the teacher) and not a student's first day of school...

If you thought about it, how many of your kiddos actually have robes? Exactly...plus there's the part where it refers to Mr. Hartwell instead of dad...and there's a lil' bit of Technique 21: Creating the Illusion of Sound with Details (man, I'm getting good at this)...the spilled water and cat screeching...the dog barking...the alarm going off...

This book study is making me fall in love with my books all over again...but you can read more about that here :)

I'd love to hear from you! What will you do differently when introducing the techniques of describing details in illustrations with your kiddos?