Creating a picture book with an environmental theme Year level: 3–4
L8740 Wonderful words: creative stories: pets. Copyright Education Services Australia Ltd. About the unit
Unit description This unit of work is designed to help students create a well-written story with an environmental theme and then to self-publish it as a picture book. It focuses on:
the symbiosis and synergy between creatures and their habitat the research required to write a story that has a strong basis in fact the elements of a picture book the need for and construction of quality writing the production of the picture book.
Knowledge, understandings, skills, values Picture books are a specific genre with particular features. Quality stories based on fact require research so that their settings, plot and characters are convincing. Quality stories require quality writing. Quality writing requires consistent structure, syntax and spelling so that its meaning can be easily understood. All living things in the environment are interconnected and interdependent, and the balance can be delicate.
© Education Services Australia Ltd, 2010, except where indicated otherwise Creating an environmental picturebook 1 All living things depend on the environment around them for the essential things they need for survival.
Focus questions What is a picture book? Why do I need to know about the setting and characters before I can write about them? What do I need to know about the setting and characters before I can write about them? How can I make my stories more interesting and engaging?
Resources Digital curriculum resources L24 Who lives here? L65 Surviving in a habitat Food chains series: L1147 what is a food chain?, L1146: the forest, L1143 the desert, L1144 the wetlands, L1145 the farm, L894 the town Super stories: The Abandoned House series: L6184 nouns and adjectives, L6185 verbs and adverbs Super stories: The Sea Cave series: L6186 nouns and adjectives, L6187 verbs and adverbs Picture story series: L8199 outdoor adventure, L8200 situations, L8201 in the crowd, L8202 history Digital story series: L6178 Where’s Gladys: images, L6180 A Kennel for Sophie: images, L6182 Tony’s Adventure: images Wonderful words, creative stories series: L8741 beach, L8742 food, L8740 pets, L8739 space Wonderful words: assessment series: L9679 pets, L9680 beach, L9681 space, L9682 food Wonderful words: assessment: teacher guides: L10162 pets, L10164 space, L10165 food R4701 Lighthouse book, 1900–10
Pictures of habitats: R7021 Condobolin plains, 2005, R4213 River red gums at Mildura, 1910–30, R6032 ‘Desert Tracks’, 1991, R8378 Lake dries due to drought, 2006, R4817 Dragonfly habitat, Tidbinbilla River, R9616 Record low water levels in Hume Reservoir, 2007, R4662 Inspecting foliage for insects, R4131 Summit of Mt Gingera, bogong moth habitat, R6043 Outback lake from ‘Our Country Our Future’, 1989, R3396 Murray River at Echuca, 1970, R4683 Damselfly habitat at Alexander Billabong, Victoria, R4664 Examining bush debris for insects R2153 Snow-bound Guthega power station, 1953 Internet sites National Library of Australia website: http://www.nla.gov.au
Software Publishing tools such as:
© Education Services Australia Ltd, 2010, except where indicated otherwise Creating an environmental picturebook 2 Microsoft PowerPoint Microsoft PhotoStory3 Apple Keynote Pencil: http://www.pencil-animation.org/ Scratch: http://scratch.mit.edu/ Toondoo: http://www.toondoo.com/ Storybird: http://storybird.com/ MS Word MS Publisher OpenOffice applications Visual thinking and learning tools such as: Inspiration: http://www.inspiration.com/
Print Books A collection of early Australian picture books such as:
Snugglepot and Cuddlepie, May Gibbs, Angus & Robertson, 1992 The magic pudding, Norman Lindsay, Angus & Robertson, 1995 The adventures of the muddle-headed wombat, Ruth Park, Collins/Angus & Robertson, 1990 Blinky Bill, Dorothy Wall, Collins/Angus & Robertson, 1991 Dot and the kangaroo, Ethel C Pedley, Angus & Robertson, 1991 A collection of contemporary Australian picture books such as:
Fox, Margaret Wild and Ron Brooks, Allen & Unwin, 2000 ‘Let’s get a pup’ said Kate, Bob Graham, Walker, 2001 Baby bilby, where do you sleep? Narelle Oliver, Lothian, 2001 In my backyard, Nette Hilton and Anna Spudvilas, Lothian, 2001 A year on our farm, Penny Matthews and Andrew McLean, An Omnibus Book from Scholastic Australia, 2002 Belonging, Jeannie Baker, Walker Books, 2004 Refugees, David Miller, Lothian, 2003
Other resources Aesop’s fable: ‘The lion and the mouse’
Attached printable resources The following teacher-created learning resources referred to in the Unit of work are available for you to modify, print and use in your own teaching and learning context:
BookLook assessment sheet – page 12 Storyboard template – page 13
© Education Services Australia Ltd, 2010, except where indicated otherwise Creating an environmental picturebook 3 Teaching the unit
Setting the scene Resources R4701 Lighthouse book, 1900–10 Collection of early Australian picture books (if actual copies of the early books are not available, digitised versions of some are available through the National Library of Australia website: http://www.nla.gov.au) Collection of contemporary Australian picture books BookLook assessment sheet (page 12)
Teaching and learning activities What is a picture book? Share the collection of early picture books, including R4701 Lighthouse book, 1900–10.
What are your first impressions of these books?
Are you attracted to them as must-read stories?
What attracts you or turns you off? Why?
What are the implications of these observations for our own storybooks?
Share the collection of contemporary picture books.
What are your first impressions of these books?
Are you attracted to them as must-read stories?
What attracts you or turns you off? Why?
What are the implications of these observations for our own storybooks?
Compare and contrast the books of the different eras and begin developing a class database of the essential design elements of a picture book including layout, colour, and text font, shape and size.
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Have each student select a contemporary picture book and examine it to investigate:
the setting Is it portrayed through words or pictures?
the characters Are they real or imaginary?
What can we learn about them from the text?
© Education Services Australia Ltd, 2010, except where indicated otherwise Creating an environmental picturebook 4 What can we learn about them from the pictures?
the plot Is it simple or complex?
If you were to map it, what would it look like?
the relationship between the text and the illustrations. How do they work together?
Could one stand alone without the other?
How is the author’s message enriched and enhanced by the artist’s illustrations?
Discuss the implications of these observations for the students’ own storybooks and complete the database of essential elements to be included when they write their own.
Assessment Assess the students’ knowledge of the language of books by having them create a glossary, using the BookLook assessment sheet (page 12).
Investigating Resources Collection of pictures of habitats such as those listed on page 2. L24 Who lives here? L65 Surviving in a habitat Food chains series: L1147 what is a food chain?, L1146: the forest, L1143 the desert, L1144 the wetlands, L1145 the farm, L894 the town Wonderful words, creative stories series: L8741 beach, L8742 food, L8740 pets, L8739 space Wonderful words: assessment series: L9679 pets, L9680 beach, L9681 space, L9682 food Wonderful words: assessment: teacher guides: L10162 pets, L10164 space, L10165 food. Super stories series: L6184 The Abandoned House: nouns and adjectives, L6185 The Abandoned House: verbs and adverbs, L6186 The Sea Cave: nouns and adjectives, L6187 The Sea Cave: verbs and adverbs Aesop’s fable ‘The lion and the mouse’
Teaching and learning activities Who lives here? Examine pictures of a variety of habitats, including those listed in the resources, and have each student select one to serve as a setting for their story.
What sort of creatures would live in this habitat?
How are they dependent on the landscape?
© Education Services Australia Ltd, 2010, except where indicated otherwise Creating an environmental picturebook 5 How are they dependent on each other?
How could these relationships be used as the basis for a story?
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Work through the learning objects L65 Surviving in a habitat and L24 Who lives here? looking for some ideas and information. Select two or three creatures that could become the characters in a story with a theme of ‘Living together’.
Reading to learn What do you need to know about your creatures and/or characters before you can write about them?
Use a variety of resources to answer the following questions and build up a database of information that you can draw on to give your story authenticity.
What does it look like? What colour is it?
Which group of the animal kingdom does it belong to? How big does it grow?
Where does it live? Is it unique to that place? What is its natural habitat? How has it adapted to survive in that habitat?
Where does it sleep? Is it nocturnal or diurnal? Does it hibernate? What does it eat?
How does it hunt? Does it rely most on its hearing, sight or sense of smell?
How does it move? How fast can it move? Is it agile or clumsy? Can it swim or climb?
How does it communicate?
Who are its enemies? Is it afraid of humans? Will it attack humans?
Is it friendly? What scares it? How does it protect itself? Does it have special survival skills?
Is it intelligent or shy or curious? Does it live in groups or families or is it solitary?
How long does it live? When does it mate? How does it look after its young? How did it get its name? Does its name have a special meaning?
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Explore the concept of a food chain using L1147 Food chains: what is a food chain?.
Choose and use the appropriate Food chain learning object to explore the relationships between the creatures of the chosen habitat.
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Develop a database of information about the habitat.
Where is it?
What are its key features?
How do the creatures find shelter within it?
How do they find food within it?
© Education Services Australia Ltd, 2010, except where indicated otherwise Creating an environmental picturebook 6 Is the habitat dependent on a regular cycle of rain, temperature, river flow and so forth in order to remain in balance?
What sorts of events might put it out of balance?
How would the absence of one of its key inhabitants affect the habitat?
Story starters Share Aesop’s fable of ‘The lion and the mouse’ as an example of how creatures might become dependent on each other. Brainstorm other relationships that might form the plot of a story.
Have students fold an A3 sheet of paper into four and label the segments ‘Setting’, ‘Characters’, ‘Plot’ and ‘Resolution’. Use this to jot down ideas they have for their story as they do the research and learn more about the creature and its relationship to its habitat and the other creatures within it. Use these ideas to create a draft of the story.
Working with words Have the students examine the texts of a variety of picture books.
How does the author tell such an engaging story in such a short space?
Discuss the need to make sentences interesting by carefully selecting the words that are used and ensuring that each one works hard. Have students work through some of the Wonderful words, creative stories and Super stories learning objects and then use what they have learned to begin their story-writing processes.
How can words make our sentences more interesting?
How can words engage the reader?
How can words build up a sense of anticipation and climax?
Have them review and revise their draft using what they have learned.
Working with pictures Have each student choose a favourite picture book and, from that, their favourite illustration. Have them analyse the illustration using questions such as:
Does the picture enrich or enhance the author’s meaning, or does it tell a story of its own?
What is it telling you that the words don’t?
In order to convey the message of the picture, how has the artist used the design elements of colour, line, shape, scale, medium and composition (position, perspective, frames, repetition)?
How are the characters’ moods and emotions shown?
How does the medium influence or reinforce the message?
How does the illustration build up a sense of atmosphere or anticipation?
Where is the viewer in this picture? Why?
© Education Services Australia Ltd, 2010, except where indicated otherwise Creating an environmental picturebook 7 Discuss the implications of these observations for the illustrations in the students’ own stories.
© Education Services Australia Ltd, 2010, except where indicated otherwise Creating an environmental picturebook 8 Assessment Assess the students’ understanding of the parts of speech using the Wonderful words: assessment learning objects. The results of these can be interpreted by using the Wonderful words: assessment: teacher guides.
Bringing it all together Resources Inspiration: http://www.inspiration.com Storyboard template (page 13) Picture story series: L8199 outdoor adventure, L8200 situations, L8201 in the crowd, L8202 history Digital story series: L6178 Where’s Gladys: images, L6180 A Kennel for Sophie: images, L6182 Tony’s Adventure: images Publishing tools such as those listed on page 3.
Teaching and learning activities Be prepared Have the students prepare and plan the text of their stories using a graphic organiser such as Inspiration. They need to consider:
what they have learned about the nature and structure of a picture book the story structure, including an engaging beginning, a credible plot and a satisfying ending their target audience and how they will adjust their vocabulary and sentence structure to meet the needs of that audience the maximum number of words or pages what will be shown in the pictures that does not need to be included in the text.
Storyboards Use an enlarged version of the Storyboard template (page 13) to create a storyboard for each page of the final product, including:
text elements – font, size, colour, position, special effects images – rough sketch of content and position.
Image matters Have each student examine their story and determine the most appropriate medium to illustrate it. Consider:
drawing painting printing collage paper sculpture
© Education Services Australia Ltd, 2010, except where indicated otherwise Creating an environmental picturebook 9 photography computer-generated images.
Why is this the most suitable medium for this story?
What do I need to know, have and do to be able to create my illustrations in this medium?
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Discuss the ethical use of other people’s images, particularly those available through the internet, the need to attribute anything that is not of their own creation, and the format for doing this. Discuss and decide whether it will be permissible to use these sorts of images in their books.
Final formats Discuss the final format of the book.
Will it be print or digital?
If it is to be a digital publication, work through the appropriate Picture story and Digital story learning objects to explore the sorts of things that need to be considered for this format.
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Decide on the most appropriate application for digital publication
What do we need to know, understand and do to use these applications?
How will we insert the illustrations?
How will we publish and distribute our final products?
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Decide on the most appropriate software application to use if it is to be in print format.
What do we need to know, understand and do to use these applications?
How will we insert the illustrations?
How will we publish and distribute our final products?
Assessment Create a checklist or rubric of the essential elements each book should contain using the class database constructed earlier. Assess the final product against this.
© Education Services Australia Ltd, 2010, except where indicated otherwise Creating an environmental picturebook 10 Drawing conclusions Teaching and learning activities Making up my mind Discuss how the finished product was an amalgamation of a lot of parts, each providing something unique yet working together to build a whole. Have students reflect on the following:
What were the key influences on my choices?
How did I meet the needs of the task and my audience?
Have students consider what was left out as well as what was selected.
Assessment Have the students reflect on their learning journey throughout this process.
What do I know now that I didn’t know before?
Which parts of the process had the greatest influence on my final story?
Which parts did I do well?
Which parts did I enjoy most?
Which parts do I need more support with?
If I were to do it again, how would I change it?
What have I learned from this that I could use in other projects?
Communicating Teaching and learning activities Sharing our stories Share the final version of the story with the intended audience.
Did they enjoy it?
Did they understand it?
Was it received in the way you thought it would be? Why?
Which parts did they like best?
Which parts need to be changed?
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Offer the finished books to the school library as part of its resource collection for a short time so others can read them.
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Keep a photo record of the students at work and then create a presentation of the project, recording their comments and reflections of the various aspects and how these contributed to their knowledge and understanding.
© Education Services Australia Ltd, 2010, except where indicated otherwise Creating an environmental picturebook 11 Writer: Barbara Braxton
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© Education Services Australia Ltd, 2010, except where indicated otherwise Creating an environmental picturebook 12 Name Class Date BookLook
Demonstrate your knowledge of picture books by providing definitions for these key words. This is called a glossary.
author illustrator
character layout
conflict medium
date of plot publication
dedication publisher
endpapers resolution
fiction setting
font title
genre title page
verso or illustration imprint page
Education Services Australia Ltd, 2010, except where indicated otherwise Creating an environmental picture book 13 Name Class Date Storyboard template
Education Services Australia Ltd, 2010, except where indicated otherwise Creating an environmental picture book 14