Children’s Literature (H-810F) Kindergarten–4th Grade

1. Children’s Literature (H-810F)Kindergarten–4th Grade Instructor Lolly Robinson (Charlotte Robinson) robinslo@gse.harvard.edu Larsen 613 Teaching Fellow Christina Dobbs dobbsch@gse.harvard.edu Larsen G10

2. Children’s Literature (H-810F)Kindergarten–4th Grade • Evaluate books • Find books • Learn about book creators • (Use books)

3. Children’s Literature (H-810F) Tuesdays September 18–October 23 5–8 p.m. Longfellow 308?

4. Children’s Literature (H-810F) Guest speaker Molly Bang Author-illustrator of The Gray Lady and the Strawberry Snatcher, etc. October 25

5. Children’s Literature (H-810F) Enrollment • Limited to 30 enrollees • Submit a statement via e-mail by 7 p.m. tonight (9/12) • Language & Literacy students have priority • Will notify via e-mail late tonight and post list tomorrow morning • Auditing option

6. Reading assignments • Required books • 17 assigned children’s books (picture books, easy readers, chapter books, poetry, traditional literature, information books) • From Cover to Cover by K. T. Horning • Recommended books • The Pleasures of Children’s Literature by Perry Nodelman • Using Multiethnic Books in the K–8 Classroom edited by Violet Harris • The Essential Guide to Children’s Books and Their Creators edited by Anita Silvey • All books in JCRL, on reserve at Gutman, and available at Coop (and Amazon, etc.)

7. Written assignments and grading • Annotated bibliography (40%) • Picture Book paper (20%) • Group presentation (20%) • In-class and online book discussion (20%)

8. Annotated bibliography (40%) Come to first class having chosen a specific focus for your bibliography. Examples might be: • Books about the environment for 1st grade • Books for 2nd and 3rd graders dealing with cultural identity and understanding • Books about dance and music, K–4 visit http://www.doe.mass.edu/frameworks/current.html for ideas

9. Annotated bibliography (40%) • Picture books and chapter books in a range of reading levels (up to Grade 4) • Introductory paragraph • 25 books with short annotations • 20 in your focus topic • 5 on other related topics • Bibliography shared with class on website • Exemplar available on website At least twenty of the titles must be books you had not read before this course.

10. Picture book paper (20%) • Three pages • Analyze and evaluate a picture book • Exemplar available on class website

11. Group presentation (20%) • Sign up for author/illustrator at first class • Groups of three students • 5–7 minute oral presentation • Share sample of his/her work • Biographical information, career highlights • Resources • Christina will demonstrate at first class

12. Class and online discussions (20%) • Discussion board on class website • In lieu of book journal • Password protected • Submit a posting about one book or add to an existing string every week (by 5 p.m. Monday) • Respond to reading, recommend other books, continue topics from previous classes • In-class discussion • Small groups first • General discussion

13. Background • Studio Art, English Literature • M.A. in children’s literature • Worked in publishing since 1985 • Freelance writing, reviewing, research, graphic design, illustration • Horn Book Magazine, Horn Book Guide • Taught at Lesley University • 2005 Caldecott Committee • Exhibits at Eric Carle Museum

14. Horn Book • Receives 4000+ new books/year • Horn Book Magazine • 6 times a year (bimonthly) • articles about children’s books • in-depth reviews of top 10% • Horn Book Guide • 2 times a year • Short reviews of all trade books • Rated 1 to 6 • Websites www.hbook.com and www.hornbookguide.com

15. Horn Book: incoming books

16. Horn Book Guide: spring 2007 books

17. Horn Book office

18. Horn Book editors

19. Recent covers