DOCUMENT RESUME ED 398 530 CS 012 545 AUTHOR McClure, Amy A., Ed.; Kristo, Janice V., Ed. TITLE Books That Invite Talk, Wonder, and Play. INSTITUTION National Council of Teachers of English, Urbana, Ill. REPORT NO ISBN-0-8141-0370-7 PUB DATE 96 NOTE 340p. AVAILABLE FROMNational Council of Teachers of English, 1111 W. Kenyon Road, Urbana, IL 61801-1096 (Stock No. 03707: $14.95 members, $19.95 nonmembers). PUB TYPE Collected Works General(020) EDRS PRICE MF01/PC14 Plus Postage. DESCRIPTORS *Authors; *Childrens Literature; Elementary Education; *Language Arts; *Language Usage; Language Variation; Literary Genres; Nonfiction; Novels; Picture Books; Poetry; Recreational Reading; Thematic Approach; *Writing Processes IDENTIFIERS *Expressive Writing; Reading Speaking Relationship; Response to Literature; *Trade Books ABSTRACT Focusing on children's books identified as "notable" for their rich use of language, this book presentsessays that discuss literary genres and literary Language, responding to the language of Notable Books, and developing an, appreciation for language diversity. The book also presents brief essays by well-known children's authors regarding their writing.processes. The notable works of children's literature discussed in the bookwere identified over a 10-year period by the Notable Children's Trade Books in the Language Arts Committee of the Children's Literature Assembly,a special interest group of the National Council of Teachers of English. After an introductory essay ("Wordcrafting: What Makesa Book Notable in the Language Arts?" by Susan Lehr), chapters in the book are (1) "Picture Books: Language That Sparks the Mind and Fuels the Imagination" (Janice V. Kristo and Linda Leonard Lame); (2) "Poetic Texts and Poetic Language" (Amy A. McClure);(3) "The Language of Facts: Using Nonfiction Books to Support Language Growth" (Sylvia M. Vardell);(4) "Notable Novels in the Classroom: Helping Students to Increase Their Knowledge of Language and Literature" (Christine Doyle Francis);(5) "Language Use through Drama" (Anthony L. Manna);(6) "Language of the Storyteller" (Inga Kromann-Kelly); and (7) "Connecting Writing, Talk, and Literature" (Yvonne Siu-Runyan); (8) "How to Do Things with Words: TricksterStories, Multicultural Awareness, and Language Arts" (Jon C. Stott); (9) "Diversity in Language: Using Notable African American Children's Literature in the Classroom" (Deborah Thompson); (10) "International Books and the Language Arts" (Carl M. Tomlinson); and (11) "Linking Literature and Language Use through Thematic Units" (BarbaraChatton and Susan Hepler). The book concludes with essays written by 38 authors of Notable Books (including Avi, Eve Bunting, Paula Fox, Patricia Lauber, Gary Paulsen, and Jerry Spinelli) that reflecton their own processes of writing and the decisions they make aboutsuch matters as wording, style, and the use of dialect. A bibliography of approximately 300 Notable Books is attached. (RS) .USadrrAME,'" PERMISSION TO REPRODUCE AND qtr 'eat DISSEMINATE THIS MATERIAL HAS BEEN GRANTED BY 114 ;1). TO THE EDUCATIONAL RESOURCES f., Syrai INFORMATION CENTER (ERIC) ,,,W.;,DESPAFITZ,E4Te2Thri?dugLii.)r14., EDUCATIONAL RESOURCES INFORMATION CENTER (ERIC) iiThis document has been reproduced as received from the person or organization originating it. Minor changes have been made to improve reproduction quality. Points of view or opinions stated in this document do not necessarily represent official OERI position or policy. nfirc.rtiat' Books That Invite Talk, Wonder, and Play 3 NCTE Editorial Board: Colette Daiute, Hazel Davis, Bobbi Fisher, Keith Gilyard, Brenda Greene, Gail Hawisher, Ronald Jobe, Richard Luckert, Karen Smith, chair, ex officio, Mario Welshons, ex officio Books That Invite Talk, Wonder, and Play Edited by Amy A. McClure Ohio Wesleyan University Janice V. Kristo University of Maine National Council of Teachers of English 1111 W. Kenyon Road, Urbana, IL 61801-1096 5 Permissions acknowledgments appear on pages 333-35. Manuscript Editor: Jane M. Curran Production Editor: Rona S. Smith Cover Design: Victoria Martin Pohlmann Interior Design: Doug Burnett NCTE Stock Number: 03707-3050 © 1996 by the National Council of Teachers of English. All rights reserved. Printed in the United States of America. Copyrights to chapters by Ashley Bryan, Nancy White Carlstrom, James Howe, Shirley Hughes, Patricia Lauber, Katherine Paterson, Gary Paulsen, Marilyn Singer, and Jane Yolen remain with the authors thereof. Used by permission. It is the policy of NCTE in its journals and other publications to provide a forum for the open discussion of ideas concerning the content and the teaching of English and the language arts. Publicity accorded to any par- ticular point of view does not imply endorsement by the Executive Com- mittee, the Board of Directors, or the membership at large, except in an- nouncements of policy, where such endorsement is clearly specified. Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Books that invite talk, wonder, and play / edited by Amy A. McClure, Janice V. Kristo. p.cm. Includes bibliographical references. ISBN 0-8141-0370-7 (pbk.) 1. Children's literature, AmericanHistory and criticismTheory, etc.2. Children's literatureAuthorship.3. ChildrenBooks and reading.4. Language arts.I. McClure, Amy A.II. Kristo, Janice V. PS490.B66 1996 810.9'9287dc20 95-52945 CIP V Contents A Note to the Reader ix Wordcrafting: What Makes a Book Notable in the Language Arts? Susan Lehr 1 I. Literary Genres and Literary Language 1. Picture Books: Language That Sparks the Mind and Fuels the Imagination Janice V. Kristo and Linda Leonard Lamme 21 2. Poetic Texts and Poetic Language Amy A. McClure 44 3. The Language of Facts: Using Nonfiction Books to Support Language Growth Sylvia M. Vardell 59 4. Notable Novels in the Classroom: Helping Students to Increase Their Knowledge of Language and Literature Christine Doyle Francis 78 II. Responding to the Language of Notable Books 5. Language Use through Drama Anthony L. Manna 95 6. Language of the Storyteller Inga Kromann-Kelly 110 7. Connecting Writing, Talk, and Literature Yvonne Siu-Runyan 119 III. Developing an Appreciation for Language Diversity 8. How to Do Things with Words: Trickster Stories, Multicultural Awareness, and Language Arts Jon C. Stott 143 9. Diversity in Language: Using Notable African American Children's Literature in the Classroom Deborah Thompson 155 vi Contents 10. International Books and the Language Arts Carl M. Tomlinson 176 IV. Putting It All Together 11. Linking Literature and Language Use through Thematic Units Barbara Chatton and Susan Hepler 189 V. Authors' Voices: Perspectives of Notable Authors on Wordcrafting The Language of My Books Aliki 209 The Hardest Part of Writing Avi 213 Words That Make Music Natalie Babbitt 215 Words, Words, Words! Tom Birdseye 217 The Greatest Plaything in the World Bill Brittain 219 The Sound of the Voice in the Printed Word Ashley Bryan 222 The Power of Words Eve Bunting 224 Imagination and Language Ann Cameron 226 A Child Besotted with Words Eleanor Cameron 231 Of Memory and Language That Sings with Young Children Nancy White Caristrom 236 The Alchemy of Sound Deborah Chandra 239 The Magic of Language Eth Clifford 241 Finding Words That Ring True Paula Fox 244 vii Contents Setting the Story Free Mary Hoffman 245 Searching for the Voice William H. Hooks 249 Starting with Celery; or, How to Toss a Verbal Salad James Howe 252 Stories by Firelight Shirley Hughes 255 On Writing Whale Song Tony Johnston 257 The Surprises of Rime X. J. Kennedy 259 Ships Sailed the Seas Patricia Lauber 262 Voice, Form, Style, and Craft: An Afterword Myra Cohn Livingston 264 Words, Words, Words ...and Pictures Anita Lobel 268 The Wonderful World of Verbs Joan Lowery Nixon 272 Revising Lyddie Katherine Paterson 274 Dancing with Words Gary Paulsen 276 Easy to Read, But Hard to Write Peter and Connie Roop 277 Syllables and Songs: Making Words Sing Diane Siebert 280 To Bop or Not to Bop: Writing Turtle in July Marilyn Singer 282 The Way You Say a Thing Jan Slepian 286 Intriguing Language: A Personal Point of View Zilpha Keatley Snyder 288 The Simple Simile Jerry Spinelli 290 9 viii Contents Making Words Come Alive Ann Turner 291 How Possum Came a-Knockin' Nancy Van Laan 295 Voices and Choices; or, How Bosh's Wife and Three Angels Dropped By for a Visit and Decided to Stay Nancy Willard 297 Language in Books with a Multicultural and International Focus: In Praise of the Language Gods Karen Lynn Williams 299 Capturing Objects in Words Valerie Worth 303 Literary Karaoke; or, Falling out of Love Jane Yolen 306 Bibliography of Notable Books 309 Editors 325 Contributors 326 Credits 333 10 ix A Note to the Reader Books, books, and more books are found in abundance in many of today's classrooms all over the country. Children are learning how to select books for their own reading enjoyment and are responding to books in a multitude of memorable and exciting ways. Children are also reading to extend their understanding of themselves as writers and to find answers to their questions about the world around them. Professional growth and development never cease for teachers who love literature and who wish to sharpen their ability to select the best titles and to challenge children to respond to literature in thoughtful and creative ways. Teachers who select books that are rich in language find that these authors provide students with insights into the use of imaginative language through their word choice, their use of dialect and interesting metaphors, and their ability to describe the strange as familiar and the familiar as strange. As we encourage children to sample from the rich literary buffet of picture books, poetry, fantasy, historical fiction, nonfiction, folklore, multicultural literature, and contemporary realistic fiction, we need to explore how to select titles that are of the highest quality in their use of language. We also need to examine how tobring reader and text together in thought-provoking and enriching ways.