In Pictures and In Words Book Study - Chapter 10

Hi, friends...we are almost finished with our In Pictures and In Words book study...my thoughts today are on Chapter 10 - Tone. Thank you to Deanna from Mrs. Jump's Class for hosting!

by Katie Wood Ray

The main idea of this chapter is to ponder the reader's emotional response to pictures through the use of tone...yes, that would be the same tone that got me in trouble more than once with my momma...

But, in the context of the classroom, it means helping your students understand that tone can be "crafted" through the use of color, background, size, space and further through the use of shape, texture, exaggerated features, and whimsical details. I will detail a few.

Author / Illustrator extraordinaire, Steve Jenkins, showcases his strength for making powerful illustrations in his books. (Can you tell I'm a huge fan?!) One of my favorite is Actual Size.

Look how he takes images across pages to draw in the reader.

It is a wonderful
example of Technique 35: Crafting Tone with Size.


Your students would not get the enormity of just how large a giant squid's eye was if it was not drawn to scale. Although you would think the life-like size might scare some of your kiddos, he also keeps in mind Technique 37: Crafting Tone with Shape and Texture. The lines are soft and curvy, the background is textured and not in stark contrast from the eye, which lessons the intensity.

Another one of my favorite authors, Judy Schachner, of the Skippyjon Jones series, uses Technique 39: Using Whimsical Detail to Lighten the Tone when Skippyjon Jones sets off on his adventure in Skippyjon Jones, Lost in Spice.

Not only does Skippyjon Jones have a mask, cape, mirror, and marble...but he has his precious sock monkey as well. His trinkets are what help make Skippyjon Jones intriguing for children.

And later, when he meets a Martian, you can tell immediately, by their proximity, that they're going to be fast friends. This is an example of Technique 36: Crafting Tone with Physical Space. They are both the same size, in the same physical space, and almost touching...visual imagery for friendship.

What are your thoughts? What kind of literature will you use to explain the use of tone in your students' illustrative work? I'd love to hear from you!

In Pictures and In Words Book Study - Chapter 9

Welcome back to In Pictures and In Words: Teaching the Qualities of Good Writing Through Illustration Study! Thank you for joining us on our literary journey. This week's musings are over Chapter 9: Wholeness of Text, the main idea being "how illustrators make connections between and among illustrations" (p. 168). A big thanks to Cheryl at Primary Graffiti for hosting!

by Katie Wood Ray

I don't know about y'all, but this chapter was a lil' tough for me. I mean, I understood Technique 26: Crafting an Ending That Returns to the Lead (circle story, right?) and Technique 31: Using Details of Weather to Show the Passage of Time (as in a plant life cycle), but some of the talk about static details and insignificant details started to just all sound the same. Anyone else agree? But, then again, that's why I'm here...to learn from you and your interpretations of the text. I want clarity, otherwise how will I explain these techniques to my kiddos?

If your students are anything like mine, they love Laura Numeroff's books! Her books are fun, have excellent examples of ADD, and are classic examples of Technique 26: Crafting an Ending That Returns to the Lead. They are great picks for the beginning of the year due to their familiarity and engaging use of silly animals. Here's a cute craftivity to go along with If You Give a Pig a Pancake.

get Melissa's work here

This craftivity includes a writing activity with the sentence starter, "If I gave a pig a _________ it might want __________." Plus, there are easy templates for your students to use to make their own piglet to hold the writing illustration / prompt.


I think Technique 31: Using Details of Weather to Show the Passage of Time can be exemplified by this book by Gail Gibbons, The Seasons of Arnold's Apple Tree. This illustration technique is probably one that our students can easily identify and, with guidance, use in their own writing...especially with so many of us doing apple studies early in the school year.

Here's a seasons reproducible book I found that would be great for the important writing connections. This 18-page book includes fact pages, acrostic poems for each season, and places for illustrations.

get Amy's book here

Another favorite book of students in my class is Chalk by Bill Thomson. This wordless picture book is an example of Technique 25: Building Meaning from One Idea to the Next since it is the illustrations alone that move the story. As you "write" the story with your students, it helps them with building vocabulary, connecting ideas to meaning, and drawing details from the story to build the "wholeness" of the story.

Have you had your students make wordless books for other students to "tell" the story? I think this would also help my students to understand how important the illustrations are to the story. If the pictures do not connect to take the story forward then meaning is lost.

Do you think it's best to use as many different books as you can for the illustration examples or would it be best to use a smaller number of trade books for showing examples of many illustration techniques? I'd love to hear your thoughts!

In Pictures and In Words Book Study - Chapter 7

Well, friends, I feel a little like the kiddo who is bringing her homework late...but better late than never, right? Pretty, please :)

I usually try to work ahead since I am working on two book studies this summer. But, last week I attended a 2 1/2 day Literacy Conference with a view like this from the 37th floor:

Since we had mostly air-conditioned chartered buses (that drove us to and from the hotel) and Starbucks coffee and snacks at our breaks, it was a nice change of scenery from the usual district building (one story, no views, no snacks).

Which leads me to Technique 1: Crafting with Distance Perspective from Chapter 7: Ideas and Content of In Pictures and In Words: Teaching the Qualities of Good Writing Through Illustration Study by Katie Wood Ray.

link up with Mrs. Wills Kindergarten

Although I try to bring my personal photographs into the classroom to share with my students, I had not thought about using them as illustration examples until now. The photograph of the buildings is a great example how to show the range of far away and up close to illustrate perspective.

As I read through the other 11 illustration techniques throughout this chapter, I felt like I was transported back to my art classes from college with terminology like perspective, viewpoint, physical space, scenes, movement, action, etc. With a minor in art, you would think I would be more in tune with my students' illustrations, but with everything else I have to teach, I allowed our art teacher to do most of their instruction in this area.

Another technique that stood out to me was Technique 3: Crafting the Background. This is one that my students have difficulty illustrating. Katie explains that while illustrations can range from being busy to having little or no background, it is by careful consideration in regards to the text. Many of my students leave their backgrounds blank, but not on purpose. They do this because they have not been taught to illustrate the background. That's where I come in.

However, one technique that we see frequently in texts is Technique 6: Using Scenes to Capture the Passage of Time. I feel that this technique is one that my students will recognize in text and use frequently in their own illustrations. Non-fiction books contain illustrations that are "frozen in time," like those that are found in life cycles, ordered from left to right or top to bottom.

Other key ideas I want to remember from this chapter:

• include illustration techniques as teaching points during writing conferences
• discuss my thinking behind my illustration decisions during writing demos
• use books with different people as the author and illustrator as well as books that have the same person as both author and illustrator
• introduce illustrating as a narrator (sounds challenging for my firsties) Technique 12
• illustrations can be in contrast with the text for humor (hmmm...your thoughts?) Technique 11

Now, I am excited to put my art background to good use. I feel as if I'm going to be reading my books for the first time, with an illustrator's eye.

Please leave me your thoughts, comments, suggestions, and questions. What technique will you use first with your students?

In Pictures and In Words Book Study Ch.1-6

Hi, and welcome to the In Pictures and In Words book study hosted by Deedee from Mrs. Wills Kindergarten.

by Katie Wood Ray

I know what you're saying, another book study?! Well, I have to admit, after being out of grad school for a year, I miss it!! Well, maybe not the hours upon hours of graduate work, but the professional resources and children's literature that I had to read in order to complete my coursework. So, this is the next best thing (without driving my boyfriend completely craazzyyy).

This first part of the book (section 1) covered chapters 1-6, so I'll give you an overview of my thoughts (in part based on Deedee's guiding questions). I was surprised at the level of thought that the kindergarten students were able to put into their illustrations as depicted in the book. Wow! I feel like it was eye-opening for me. I know I did not give enough emphasis to my students' illustrations as I did their writing. But, that's all about to change :)

How might you explain to students that illustrating is composing?
What stood out for me was this quote from Chapter 1, "If teachers are willing to make a composing connection and show children how an illustrator's decisions about pictures are a lot like a writer's decisions about words, she forms a bridge of understanding that nurtures children as both illustrators and writers." I could end right there, but I won't...

My thoughts were to have my students start their writing workshop, then after about 5-10 minutes of planning, have them stop and share their illustrations (thus far). This will help them to tell their story before they even start writing. So, hopefully they'll take as much consideration in their word choice as do their pictures. Also, during reflection, I would have share time for good illustrations, not just great stories.

How might your attitude towards writing affect your students' willingness to write?
I think teacher attitude affects all content areas. Students feed off your excitement and consequently, lack of enthusiasm. Children need to see the purpose of their writing, not just as a task that needs to be done.

How might you help students build stamina in their writing?
We work hard on building our stamina due to our use of The Daily 5. So, this naturally carries over into our writing. I know I need to spend more time listening to my students tell me about their pictures and not make the illustrations just a means to get to an end (the story).

What language might you use with your students to talk about reading like a writer, both as a writer of words and pictures?
I will have to model the "habit of mind" for my students. We will discuss getting into the illustrator's head to notice why they think the author made a particular decision about a picture. And, to point out that when they are illustrating their own stories, what do they want their readers to "see"? Also, it is important to link the idea to a new topic, so they don't think the illustrator's decision to zoom in on something is only for nature, it could be for a trip to the store, too. I would emphasize that like their words, pictures make meaning.

Name several books you would gather for your classroom's units of study on illustration.
Here are my book suggestions:

by Steve Jenkins

by Istvan Banyai

by Alexandra Day

by Alan Zweibel

by Pat Lowery Collins

I welcome your comments, questions, and suggestions :)

Please join me again next week on the 29th at Mrs. Wills Kindergarten for Chapter 7: Ideas and Content.

Thanks for stopping by to visit!