Reading Picture Books with Children 3: Endpapers
Hi friends!
Have you read Chapter 3 of Reading Picture Books with Children yet? It’s all about Endpapers as Visual Overtures. It’s only 5 pages long–you can read that in one evening!
My biggest take-away from this chapter was this question. Are we really listening to what children have to say about the books we read with them?
Or am I plowing ahead with my own lesson plans and pre-conceived ideas? I love the kids’ insights that Megan Dowd Lambert shares in Reading Picture Books with Children! I really need to provide time and space for those insights to happen in our library. (Does anyone else feel like they need to improve in this area?)
I’m going to try an experiment with this blog post. I’ll embed Google Documents so that you can add your responses and they will show up within the post. I know there are plenty of ways this could go wrong, but let’s give it a try!
Front Endpapers Establish a Visual Backstory
What picture books have you shared where the front endpapers begin the story before the text “officially” begins? I always feel like this is a little extra treat from the author and illustrator, and I tend to share that delight with my students. Have you seen books like this?
Click here to add your books to this Google document. The updated version should show up here, and we’ll all have a new resource list.
Single Color Endpapers Make a Color Connection
What picture books have you shared where the endpapers are a single color, cuing the reader’s eye to look for that color in the book’s illustrations? Let’s make a list of great examples that we can share with our students.
Click here to add your books to this Google document. Again, our collective list should show up here. (Are you noticing my skepticism by the way I keep italicizing the word “should?” I am hopeful that this will work for us!)
Your Thoughts?
What did you think about this chapter? What are you starting to notice about endpapers? How are your conversations with your students changing? Let us know with a comment!
No wise wonderful words after an awesome lesson inspiring tomorrow’s leaders. Just a suggestion that there’s a fun IG account devoted to endpapers. .
Great resource!
I have always had a fondness for sharing the end papers with my students and my own children! I love when they make the connections…. So many great books have a bit of the story before the story begins including Jez Alborough’s Duck series (Fit it Duck, etc.) then there is the blueprints for Robot Dog to the fabrics for He came with the Couch. The kids get it!