Introduction to Children's Literature explains how to present literature to children in grades K-4 in ways that enhance both children's understanding and enjoyment of it.
Features:
- Focuses on using activities to enhance the literature.
- Contains sample lessons with student responses.
- Infuses discussion of multicultural books throughout.
- Contains illustrations that show the importance of art in books for children.
- Provides examples of how adequate lessons could be improved through a thoughtful analysis.
- Features a strong chapter on literary analysis and criticism that sets expectations for selecting only quality literature.
- Lists outstanding children's books that students can use as examples, or touchstones, of quality literature.
- Contains chapter introductions, vignettes, exercises, boxed material, margin notes, and chapter summaries.
- Focuses on grades K-4.
- Presents teaching methods before specific genres.
- Gives more emphasis to the response to literature, but maintains a critical base.
Contents
Literature and Children: Making Choices
- Use Your Imagination
- Defining Literature for Children
- Children's Reading Interests
- How Children Grow and Learn
- Children's Concept of Story
- An Approach to Selecting Literature for Children
Literature for Children: Learning About Literature
- Classification by Format
- Classification by Genre
- Evaluating the Elements of Literature
- Approaches to Literary Criticism
- Response to Literature
The Classroom or Center: Creating a Community of Readers
- Structuring the Classroom Environment
- Selecting Books
- Sharing Literature
- Encouraging Response
- Book Discussions
- Dramatic and Oral Expression: The Classroom as Private Theatre
- Written Expression: Beyond the Book Report
- Artistic Expression: Perspective Beyond Words
- Evaluating Commercial Materials
Planning a Curriculum: Literature at the Center
- Literature Units
- A Literature Curriculum
- Literature in Thematic Units
- Integrating Literature and Other Curricular Areas
- Assessing the Literature Program
Books for the Early Years: Helping Children Become Literate
- Toy and Board Books
- Mother Goose
- Concept Books
- Books for Emergent Readers and Writers
- Big Books
- Beginning Books
- Evaluating Predictable Books, Big Books, and Beginning-to-Read Books
Picture Books: A Balance Between Text and Illustrations
- Variety in Modern Picture Books
- Illustrations in Picture Books
- The Legacy of Cruikshank, Crane, Greenaway, and Caldecott
- Evaluating Picture Books
- Selecting Picture Books
Poetry: Bringing Poems for Children to Life
- Elements of Poetry
- Forms of Poetry
- Evaluating Poetry
- Poetry Collections
- Poem Picture Books
- Selecting Poetry for Children
- Presenting Poetry
- Involving Children with Poetry
Traditional Literature: Familiar Tales, Different Voices
- Literature with Many Voices
- Folktales
- Types of Folktales
- Folktales of Different Cultures
- Why Children Like Folktales
- The Value of Folktales
- Fables
- Myths
- Legends and Tall Tales
- Epics
- Evaluating Traditional Literature
Modern Fantasy: A Small Step From Reality
- How Fantasy Begins
- Categorizing Fantasy
- Science Fiction
- Modern Mythmakers
- The Value of Fantasy
- Evaluating Fantasy
Realism: Fiction Out of Fact
- Realism Begins with Reflection
- Issues in Realistic Fiction
- Common Themes in Realistic Fiction
- Fiction about Different Times and Places
- Special Categories of Realism
- Evaluating Realism
- The Value of Realism
Biography and Informational Books: Factual Portraits and Explorations
- Informational Books: Diverse Explorations
- Biography: Factual Portraits
Changes Over Time: Society's View of the Child
- What Should a Child Read?
- Society's View of the Child
- The Constants in a Changing World
Index
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