Where Learning Is Fun, No Matter What Your Age!
1
Literature
By Rhonda Crabbs
Shade Tree Learning
Where learning is fun, no matter what your age!
301 Linda Dr.
Burleson, TX 76028
682-478-7417
Literature
As a result of this training the participant will be able to:
1. Explain the advantages of storytelling.
2. Define the nine different genres of literature for children.
3. Outline the steps to follow when reading aloud to children.
As important area of a classroom is the library area. Books, flannel boards, tapes and other storytelling equipment are located in this area. The books should be arranged in an appealing manner. The book covers should be visible to attract the children’s interest. Books should be arranged so they will not fall after one is removed. The library area should be located away from traffic. The books for the library area should be carefully chosen. Each child’s developmental needs should be considered. You may wish to include books on topics children in the group are facing such as divorce, illness, and death. Some books, such as the children’s favorites, can remain in the area continually. Other books can be rotated frequently. Fun books should always be available. Add new books often to stimulate children’s interest and enthusiasm. You may want to borrow books from the public library, friends and parents.
Nine Genres of Children's and Adolescent Literature
When we think of children’s literature, we typically think of books that we enjoyed as a child or we enjoy reading to children now. We often do not think about the different genres, or categories, of books. This class will help you to understand a little more about the different genres of children’s literature and how to use them in your classroom. Children’s literature content can be as board as our hopes, dreams and imagination. Children’s books of today typically reflect our ever changing and diverse world and those books help children make sense of what is going on in their life.
The first category of literature is that of Poetry and Verse. Poetry and verse is a way for an author to express their imaginative thoughts, perceptions and ideas in a very condensed language. The condensed language is typically written in rhythm and other devises of sounds, imagery, and figurative language. I think that creating a definition for poetry is one of the hardest things to do. Poetry does not have to rhyme and does not have a set pattern. Poetry is also sometimes hard to understand but with a little practice, anyone can gain knowledge and wisdom from poetry. My favorite poet is Robert Frost and I often read his poems to the children in my program. I have to change some of the words because they do not understand the concept, but I love to watch their eyes light up when we talk about each line of the poem.
The second category of literature is the Folklore. Folklore is stories that have been handed down from one generation to another. It is the use of traditional stories, myths, legends, nursery rhymes and songs from the past. They are often pasted down orally and without a known author. My father is ½ Cherokee American Indian and he raised me with many of stories that he had heard as a young child. Some of the stories go against everything I have ever learned in a science class, but I listen to them and I believe. My father telling me a folklore story is a memory of him that I will never forget. It is also the way that I learned about my grandparents, who had passed before I was born. Often times folklore stories do not have books where children can concentrate on the pictures. When you tell a folklore, you need to use all of the emotions you can to help them see the picture in their mind.
The third category of literature is Fantasy. Fantasy stories are set in places that do not exist in reality. The story line is often about creatures, peoples or events that could not take place in our reality.Fantasy books are great for younger children, because fantasy involves imagination and suspension of beliefs about reality -- a feat that children have a natural aptitude for. Fantasy literature is appealing to children and can introduce them to the joys of reading from a young age. Children's fantasy novels can help develop positive reading habits in children that they will keep for life.
The fourth category of literature is Science Fiction. The science fiction stories are typically based on unrealistic extending physical laws of science. These stories are typically set in a futuristic time and often on different planets or in space.As with fantasy, some science fiction is lighthearted: it relies on technological advances such as space travel to create the story. Many children are introduced to science fiction through some of these lighter stories. As our world and society changes, our science fiction will change too. Think about to the Back to the Futuremovies. Marty McFly (played by Michael J. Fox) goes to the year 2015 and rides their version of a skateboard, but it is flies. We still have a couple of years before 2015, but the reality of it is that we do not have flying skateboards. Our society has changed and therefore, science fiction in the future will change.
The fifth category of literature is the Contemporary Realistic Fiction. These stories have a possibility of being in the real world, with real characters and a current trend setting. Many children love this category of literature because they can relate to it. They are able to see themselves in the story and understand how the story is developing. As educators I am sure you have seen young children and the way they ‘play’ to work through their emotions and feelings. In Contemporary Realistic Fiction the children are able to work through their personal issues or stress in the story. For example, if a child’s parents are going through a divorce, he would be able to relate and connect to a book regarding divorce.
The sixth category of literature is the Historical Fiction. These stories are set in the past and typically regarding realistic characters, events and settings. These stories may or may not be true, based on facts or of imagination. The key to historical fiction is the setting and timeline. Historical fiction is a specific genre, set in the past and pertaining to historical events or people. The work must walk a fine line between fact and fiction: presenting historical details accurately, but taking artistic license to insert fictitious characters and events as a means of illuminating the chosen subject.
The seventh category of literature is the Biography/Memoir. These types of books use actual facts regarding a particular person’s real life. A biography is simply the history of a lifetime. It narrates the most important facts of someone’s life, his or her childhood, adolescence, military service, wars he or she lived through, educational background, professional life, marriage, children, and most outstanding achievements. Also it tells anecdotes, memories, trips and dearly cherished moments. It is our most precious legacy to the world and mainly to our family. A biography involves a whole life, building a bridge between generations, bringing us close to our grandchildren, great grandchildren and future generations, planting in their hearts the pride of belonging
The eighth category of literature is Nonfiction. When we speak of nonfiction, we are talking about books that are informative and explain a subject of concept, which uses real facts of the real world. Nonfiction books are true books, about real life, and about aspects of life that are real. As time goes on, some books that are categorized as nonfiction turn out to not be real life. The important aspect of a nonfiction book is that at the time of the writing, it was thought to be true.
The ninth category of literature is Picture Books. A picture book is a format in which the art and text (if there is any text) are interdependent of each other. All of the first eight genres can appear in a picture book. There's nothing like a picture book to stir a child's imagination and spur the process of learning to read.A picture book combines visual and verbal narratives in a book format, most often aimed at young children. The images in picture books use a range of media such as oil paints, acrylics, watercolor, and pencil, among others. You can make your own picture books at places like shutterfly.com or snapfish.com. These picture books can be about the children in your program, you and the center. Picture books are a great way to get children interested in books.
Personal Favorites
I would have to say that the genre that I feel clearly distinct from the other eight is that of folklore. Generation after generation telling stories to their young is the folklore foundation (Galda & Cullinan, 2006). Most genres have one or two authors, and the storyline always stays the same. Folklore is different in that it does not have a specific author but rather each generation that tells the story adds and takes from it what they like. This gives the story the culture values in which to grow and develop. Folklore is shaped by individuals and their culture but encompasses universal experiences and viewpoints. When I think of folklore I think of my ancestors. My father was born on an Indian Reservation in Oklahoma and was raised with many of the Indian folklore. I never meet my grandmother, but I can remember being a little girl and being at my aunt’s house. She would gather all the children up in her bed before bedtime. She told us the most vivid stories I have ever heard. They were stories that her mother and grandmother had told her as a child. They are like no stories I had ever before or since and nothing can ever compare to them for me.
There are many characteristics that can overlap in the nine genres. For example, poetry and verse can be seen in any other type of genres. I have seen books in the science fiction, picture books, and even historical fact genres written with a poetry and verse rhythm. Poetry is able to say very important facts and ideas in a simple but memorable way (Galda & Cullinan, 2006). It is the rhythmic and rhymed words that children find appealing and want to hear more. When important information is put into a poetry and verse format, children are able to remember the information and even can repeat it often. Every year there are more and more books of poetry that are published. (p. 15). There is research that shows that when a child learns poetry by heart that it will stay with them for a lifetime. I remember learning Robert Frost’s “The Road Not Taken” in the fifth grade and to this very day I can recite it word for word. I love that poem and it gave me a love for Robert Frost and other poets. Teachers can put any information into poetry and verse rhyme and it will help children to remember the facts.
Another characteristic that overlaps between two genres is that of historical ideas. The genres Historical Fiction tells stories that are set in the past. The events that occur in the book may or may not be true historical facts, but the idea and concept is from the past(Galda & Cullinan, 2006). Just like in many Biographies, the important facts give us historical meaning to our world, our cultural, and our idea of our community. Biographies are stories about a person’s real life. They are not always about someone from the past, but often they are. I remember being in school and having to do biography book reports. Both historical fiction and biography give us a sense of our past in many different avenues. Both can be written in regard to sports figures, national leaders, and even everyday people. My husband went to 12 years of public school with twins Ronde and Tiki Barber, who both went on to be famous football players. Brian has pictures of the three of them playing softball, flag football, and just hanging out in each other’s basements as kids. He has memories of his two friends that the majority of Americans will never know about. Ronde and Tiki have books written about them both from official biography and some that are more of a person’s viewpoint of the twin’s childhood. Brian reads these books on his famous friends and remembers many of the stories that are being told. For me, it is a brand new look into the childhood of two famous sports figures that I would have never gotten to see if not for the books. Both the official historical fiction and biography have been written in regard to the brothers, and many of the facts of their childhood are in both genres.
Challenges in using Appropriate Literature
I use literature multiple times a day in my classroom. I read to the kids at least 4 times each day. During our large group time I read a story that goes along with the activities we are doing in group. I read another time to the older children and do an activity with the story. I read at least one book before naptime to help everyone calm down some. Lastly I read different books in the afternoon that the children have requested. I believe that a literacy rich program is what the children in my classroom deserve. Literature can be so much more than just a story. By being actively involved with the children before, during and after the story, their mind will expand and grow. A literature rich classroom isn’t all about just reading a story. It is about making sure that you expand into science, math, social studies and other concepts while reading.
Because I am a private preschool I only answer to myself, parents and the children in my care instead of having to answer to a school board or state. I do not have the normal challenges like finding time in the day to read to the kids, or being worried about standards and test (Galda, Cullinan, & Sipe 2010). I do however still have other challenges. I need to make sure that I select book that are multidimensional for all the children in my classroom. I have a variety of different backgrounds in the children that attend my preschool program. Each child in my classroom is different, comes from a different background and will interrupted literature in a different way. Since children’s literature is very diverse and culturally rich today each individual reader will have a different experience with it. I never want to censor the children’s literature as long as it is age and ability appropriate, but I also want to make sure and give a variety of diverse literature. Diversity is a large concept that can be about gender, age, geographic locations, marital status, parental statues, educational status, physical characteristics, minority and majority groups, and other facts that can influence individual personality and behavior (Koppelman, 2008). It is important for me to make sure and include all appropriate diverse concepts into the literature that makes up my classroom. That is very time consuming to try and be equal between all of the different diverse concepts.
My hardest challenge is that of providing diversity of content. Since diversity is not an easy concept and many people don’t understand exactly what it is. Our community is woven from many different cultural and we overlap in areas. I live in a small town, and this last weekend found out exactly how hard it was to find books that qualify for cultural diversity in my town. It is important for children to be exposed to culturally diverse literature for many reasons. As our world changes to become more culturally diverse, so will literature to reflect the changing world. As our society changes, so does the award winning books that we want our children to hear. I can go to the Fort Worth Texas Library, which is about 30 miles away but my life is busy. I also can have the Fort Worth Library send me books to my library, but I like to flip through a book before I borrow it. The foundation that I give the children in my classroom should include the interest and concerns of the larger community. I have over 250 children’s books in my own private collection, many that are culturally diverse, but I wanted something new for the children and I couldn’t get it. Not only was I disappointed in my local library, but I also couldn’t find what I wanted at my local Borders or Half Price Books.
How to Pick a Quality Book
Stories should reflect the children’s developmental level, backgrounds and experience. When choosing books for children, consider the content, illustrations, vocabulary, durability, and length of the book. Familiar objects, people and situations make stories more interesting to children. Stories about children with backgrounds and activities similar to their own are special. I have two brothers in my daycare right now who are football obsessed. They think about football all the time and that is all they want to play. Their favorite book is By My Brother's Side by two NFL Football players, Ronde and Tiki Barber. My husband went to school with Ronde and Tiki, so sometimes he will get his old yearbooks out and show the children in my care their pictures as a child. Most preschool children cannot separate fact from fiction; therefore it is important to look for realistic stories. Until children are about five years old, they are often not ready for fantasy. Books in which animals or inanimate objects such as trees and flowers behave as humans should be avoided for the very young child.