PICTURE BOOK ART The art in picture books is one of the most important reasons to share picture books

with children. Many children do not have the opportunity to visit fine art galleries, and yet, with picture books, they are exposed to some of the finest art in the world.

EXTENDING PICTURE BOOKS THROUGH ART Young childrens art is a wonderful, often messy, fun process! It involves use of motor skills and creativity as well as experimentation, and it leads to language development of words

Feathers for Lunch Lois Ehlert o http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ihR1YK4u1nY o Language Arts: Rhyming Words Talk to your child about words that sound the same at the end book/look, sit/hit, Tell him that these words are rhyming words and there are some rhyming words in Feathers for Lunch. Read the book Feathers for Lunch having your child listen for words that sound the same at the end. Depending on your child, some at this early stage may be able to recognize the pairs and with other children they will need them pointed out o Sorting: Discuss the part of Feathers for Lunch that says about the cat, Hes looking for lunch, something new, a spicy treat for todays menu. His food in a can is tame and mild, so hes gone out for something wild. Brainstorm a list of food that cats eat with your child. Discuss which foods are bought at a store and which foods a cat can catch in the wild. Complete the cat diet mini-book. o In Feathers for Lunch a cat is on the prowl for a bird to catch for lunch. Have a discussion about cats with your child. What does he know about cats? Does he have a cat or has he had any experiences with cats? Talk about what the cat was doing in the story. Make the Cats Layer book to learn additional facts about cats. You could also read about cats and look at different types of cats on the internet. Discuss the concept of predator/prey. Talk about the type of food a cat would hunt and relate that to the predator/prey concept. Complete the Prey Slider and add it to your lapbook. o Compare and contrast the difference between cats and birds using the Whos Who? lapbook component. Instead of teaching the difference between mammals and birds, present your child with the tabs from the lapbook component and allow them to tell you which describe a bird and which describe a cat. Use this activity to provide a beginning discussion of the differences between mammals and birds. o Read and enjoy the poems and songs. Repeated readings will help your child learn the poems and songs and will promote phonemic awareness. It Looked Like Spilt Milk Charles Shaw o http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RVy7DLMlqh8 o Brainstorm descriptive words that start with c etc. Transfer your poem to a large sheet of butcher paper - cut out two pieces of paper to look like a cloud and stuff with tissue hang your cloud poem from the ceiling. o Read "Little Cloud" by Eric Carle Go outside and lie down on the grass - watch the clouds go by and discuss what they look

like. Take cotton balls apart and glue onto blue paper . Write It looked like_______. Jubals Wish Audrey Wood o http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dL5U5sSIv1M o Children can learn two great lessons from this book: patience and selflessness. Even if they never experience the opportunity to get a wish granted, they can still work and help others to have a better day. Have the kids brainstorm what they would wish for if they were given one wish. Talk about patience and how sometimes it is important to be proactive and work hard to achieve your goals. Olivia Saves the Circus Ian Falconer o http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I_Ru3d3ht3s o http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5-IvrmS_XEY o Imagination Chair In the story Olivia used her imagination to make up an interesting story for the class. Turn a chair into an Imagination Chair. You may want to use an adult sized chair, paint a chair, put a nice cushion on it, dress it up with ribbons and bows etc... Invite the children to sit on the Imagination Chair to share a creative story with the class. Record the childrens stories and let them illustrate them. Display them or collate them in a book. Rainbow Fish Marcus Pfister o http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r9mryuEKkKc o http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h6S4IPMs5ZY o To make their own fish with scales, have children lay bubble wrap on a flat surface and coat it with blue or green background paint. Next, they may put a blob of a bright color on top of their background color. Help them press the construction paper on top, rubbing the entire surface of the paper firmly to transfer the paint. When they pull off the construction paper, notice the scale effect as shown in figure 2.4. When the paint is dry, have children cut the paper into a fish shape o Talk about the fishs attitude at the beginning of the book. He could be described as snobbish. Later, his attitude changed, and he became more understanding of what true friendship means. Did he need to give away his pretty scales to make friends, or was it because his attitude changed? Talk with children about the characteristics of a good friend and why good friends are important. What are some qualities that are not appreciated by others?

Extending Picture Books through Drama Drama is one of the oldest forms of art in which humans have engaged. From prehistoric times, drama has been an important part of human life. It is also one of the earliest art forms humans perform from birth. An infant imitating sounds and movements is actually acting or dramatizing. Even children playing makebelieve, a very natural kind of play, are involved in a form of creative dramatics. Special talent is not necessaryeveryone can participate in drama

BENEFITS OF USING DRAMA WITH CHILDREN Children respond well to dramatic activities for many reasons. The following are just some of the benefits of using drama with children. Children have the opportunity to think creatively and develop their imagination. They learn to think independently, for example, How will I act out my role? Drama helps children develop selfesteem. It teaches children about social cooperation and group interaction. Children learn about group planning and how to have a productive group experience (e.g., the group decides how to perform a scene together). Children develop new vocabulary and learn more about written language through acting. Acting is a positive way to learn speech patterns and oral expression. Drama helps children understand others different from themselves and allows them to put themselves in anothers shoes. Children have the opportunity to release their emotions and use their creative energy. Children can become more familiar with good literature. Drama is fun for children!

Bark, George by Jules Feiffer o https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FfXRnJqOWiY Cinderellas Rat Susan Meddaugh o https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2PnsPOy-8lQ o Before presenting a twisted tale, make sure the children are very familiar with the original version. Prior to sharing Cinderellas Rat, have children retell the folktale Cinderella by acting out the parts without a script. This is an example of improvising a known tale. First, ask children to name the characters; then, assign parts to volunteers. Extra children can be attendees at the ball. After this performance, share the twisted version, Cinderellas Rat. Talk with children about how elements of the original tale are sustained in this newer rendition. Hattie and the Fox Mem Fox o https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EkuT55OCagI o Hattie sees first a nose, then eyes, then ears, then a body, then legs, and finally a tail in the bushes and finally figures out it is a fox. In addition to being an excellent story to use as a choral reading, this can also be acted out as a puppet play, because the lines would be easy to memorize Not a box Antoinette Portis o www.youtube.com/watch?v=3KXuBcdmktY

When is a box not a box? When it is a plane, a train, a bus, a car, a space rocket, a bed or a boat. In fact it can be anything you like, as long as you have a rich imagination, and especially if you are a child. I have long been fascinate d by the way children play with large cardboard boxes. For some children it is enough to give them a box, and by the force of sheer imagination, they turn into whatever they want it to be at that moment. This sophisticated role-play can also generate rich language and social interaction between children. But it is not enough to put a box out and sit back and observe the amazing role-play and language that emerges. The role of the adult is crucial.