As my
class was doing historical research in the library, I pointed out to my
students that they should study the pictures in the books to help them
understand their topics. I was met with some blank stares, and one boy raised
his hand and said, "But, I thought we were too old to look at pictures in
books. I didn't think we should."
Many other students murmured their
agreement. It was sad that they were denying themselves an important aspect of
their research and more particularly of their reading. As I looked at the ones
who felt this way about picture books, I realized they were also poor readers.
Knowing some of their backgrounds, I believed they probably had never been read
to as children. It was sad that they were still denying themselves the pleasure
of enjoying picture books.
Picture
books are a great asset to reading and a useful tool for teachers. An important
trend in publishing and marketing is picture books for young adult readers.
"Dramatic changes in children's and YA publishing over the last decade
have blurred the lines between children's and adult books. The fact that a book
has 32 pages, full-color illustrations, and a 9-by-13 inch trim size no longer
automatically means it's "for children only" . . . Although it is difficult to
define an exact age limit for picture books, some criteria for picture books
for older readers are that they use:
·
Mature
themes
·
More
complex illustrations than those that would be easily appreciated or understood
by younger readers
·
More text
or difficult text than would be appropriate for the short attention spans of
younger readers
·
Subtle
meanings beyond the understanding of younger readers
·
Two
levels of meaning - one for younger readers and one for older readers
·
Fiction
or non-fiction
Picture
books for young adults have mature themes that would be neither understood by
nor appropriate for younger readers. For example, I Never Knew Your Name is told by a boy who is troubled
because he didn't reach out to another teen who committed suicide. Just One
Flick of a Finger is the story of a boy who brings
a gun to school, and of the disaster that results. The theme of drugs is
illustrated in The House That Crack Built. These are all topics of concern to
young adults, but inappropriate for most younger readers.
Today's
picture books contain beautiful artwork. However, the tastes of many young
children are not developed enough to fully appreciate the meaning or effect of
some more sophisticated picture books.
"Although young children can enjoy
the pictures in Ammo's USA, the visual references in the book are subtle and
beyond their grasp. Readers must have a solid background in American history,
literature and folklore to truly appreciate the breadth of Anno's celebration
of America" .
The contemporary paintings of
Wayne Theibaud, in O Beautiful for Spacious Skies, are beyond the understanding of most
children. Some of the potential to make meaning when encountering a picture
book would be lost if the reader did not understand the complexity of the
illustrations. "A picture book uses both text and illustration to create
meaning; one is not as powerful alone as it is with the other".
Picture
books for young adults are often boring to younger readers because of the
longer, more complex texts. However, older readers would find these texts and
pictures entertaining and engaging.
Younger
children are unlikely to grasp the subtleties in young adult picture books.
Although much of the humor, allusions, and situations would have little meaning
for them, young adults pick up on these elements and find enjoyment in them.
For example, Snow White in New York has the wicked step-mother looking
in the newspaper the New York Mirror to get her information instead of in a
looking-glass mirror. This is appreciated by older readers not children. In the
book A Little Pigeon Toad the humor is based on puns that are
delightful to older readers but might be meaningless to children.
Many
picture books can be enjoyed by both older and younger readers. My Great Aunt
Arizona , The Rag Coat , and Dandelions are examples of stories that have
strong themes and enjoyable stories for young and old alike.
Young
adult picture books are written in fiction as well as non-fiction formats.
Enjoyable stories in all genres and information texts on all subjects abound.
Young adult readers would have no trouble finding picture books to match their
tastes in literature of any kind. Picture books increase their understanding
and pleasure no matter what mode they select to read.
Implications for Teachers of Young Adults
Young
adult picture books are valuable tools for teachers. These books lend
themselves to all content areas. Picture books help students be more strategic
readers. Readers use many of the same skills to interpret pictures as they do
to interpret print, such as determining their purpose for reading; drawing upon
their background knowledge, experience, and attitudes; asking and answering
questions; inferring; and visualizing. Putting these skills together through
both illustrations and text enhances comprehension and the creation of meaning.
There are
several types of pictures books that a teacher may consider:
·
Wordless
books: The story is told completely through pictures. No text is included.
·
Picture
books with minimal text: There is a small amount of text, but the illustrations
reveal most of the story.
·
Picture
storybooks: Pictures and text have about the same presence and interact to tell
the story.
·
Books
with illustrations: There are more words than illustrations, but the
illustrations give enlightenment and clarification to the story or
informational text.
Each type
of picture book could be used by teachers to teach comprehension strategies as
well as to increase reading comprehension itself.
Janet
Allen, an expert in reading strategies, explains the importance of picture
books. "Creating images of scenes or events is an expression of a mental
model . I think that's one
reason children's picture books were such a hit in my classroom. The beautiful
illustrations gave my [secondary] students a mental model they were often
unable to create for themselves because they were struggling with the
words".
In You
Gotta Be the Book, Jeffrey D. Wilhelm tells how picture books helped his
struggling readers. "Once students were introduced to picture books and
encouraged to read them, they did so vigorously. I wrote in my journal that 'I
just have to wonder if school conveys a very limited view of literature that
does not include picture books and comics, and if this limited view of
literature contributes to how bummed out and distanced many of my student
readers become from literature and the literary experience,'".
Picture
books support readers by helping build schema. Letting students read books with
pictures and text can help them understand concepts and facts that would be
difficult without such support. Picture books are on students' independent
reading level, while literary "classics" and content textbooks are on
their instructional or often on their frustrational level. Picture books can bridge
the gap in students' understanding.
Picture
books are available in any content area. Some useful, educational and
interesting content area picture books are:
|
Math:
|
Sir
Cumference and the First Round Table
Math Curse
|
|
Science:
|
Dinosaurs
One Giant Leap Your Amazing Senses |
|
History:
|
Across
the Wide Dark Sea, The Mayflower Journey.
Children of the Dust Bowl: The True Story of the School at Weedpatch Camp
The Gettysburg Address. )
|
|
Biographies:
|
Charles
Dickens, The Man Who Had Great Expectations.
Emily.
A Picture Book of Helen Keller.
|
Picture
books may be used to awaken interest and tie new learning to old. For instance
the book, Postcards from Pluto would be an interesting way to begin
a unit on astronomy. The double meanings on the postcards are amusing as well
as informative. The Jolly Postman with its varied types of mail can
be used to introduce a unit on letter writing.
These
books provide springboards to discussions. For instance, the books The Wall and A Picture Book of Anne Frank would be good discussion starters on
war and prejudices. A Day's Work could evoke a discussion on
integrity. They may be used as models for literary development, as well. I Hate
to Read introduces the idea of reading and
literacy, what reading does for the reader, and what makes a good story.
Picture
books are also great for sparking ideas for writing. The Mysteries of Harris
Burdick (intro by is a sure way to inspire the
imagination, with its mysterious pictures, captions, but no text. To go along
with writing, there are picture books on the parts of speech by Ruth Heller -
definitely a more interesting way to introduce grammar to young adult readers. Picture Books, An Annotated
Bibliography for Use with the 6-Trait Analytic Model of Writing Assessment and
Instruction suggests picture books
that may be used to teach the six writing traits.
A plus
for using picture books in the classroom is their length. "An important
reason for reading a picture book aloud is that the story can be shared in one
class sitting, an ideal situation in secondary schools, where class periods are
often brief and reading and response to picture books is possible within a
single period. Of course, the book can be reread time and again, but the impact
will be lost if the story is carried out over several days."
Some of
the very best writing may be found in picture books and should not be missed by
young adults. Mem Fox, a picture book author, makes this point very well:
"In my experience, the best-loved picture books are so well written that
they leave a lasting impression on the reader . . . They have a passionate
quality. By passionate, I mean a constant undercurrent of tension combined with
compassion, which makes readers care desperately about the fate of the main
characters. It's not easy to achieve, but I am convinced that writing without
passion is writing for oblivion . . . If we don't laugh, gasp, block our ears,
sigh, vomit, giggle, curl our toes, empathize, sympathize, feel pain, weep or
shiver during the reading of a picture book, then surely the writer has wasted
our time, our money, and our precious, precious trees."
Young
adult picture books are useful and effective tools for teachers. The trend of
publishing and marketing young adult picture books is a positive one. It
provides enjoyment and education for the young adult reader. Pictures and text
together can leave a profound and lasting impression on this age group.
Author: Sunya Osborn
Sunya Osborn is the Chair of the English Department at Payson Junior High School, Payson, Utah.
Biographical references have not been shown here but may be found in the source article shown below.
Source: The Alan Review
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