VINCENT PAINTS HIS HOUSE

   What a difference a week makes. Last week's library trip didn't reveal any Perfect Picture Book candidates. This week, my problem is deciding which one to feature! And the winner is:

Title: Vincent Paints His House                                      

Author/Illustrator: Tedd Arnold
Publisher: Holiday House, 2015
Intended age: 3-8 
Themes: Colors (fiction that is a concept book)

First lines: "Time to paint the house!
                      "Hmm . . ." said Vincent.
                     Vincent could not decide what color to use."

Synopsis: A series of animals that live on and around Vincent's house advise him to use their favorite color when he paints the house.

Why I like this Book: Look at the gorgeous cover! The colorful title alone had me hooked.
     And as an adult, I was like "wow, Vincent Van Gogh!"--but there's no mention of Van Gogh in the book. None. Zilch. The fact that the book is based on a real artist is a gem-of-a-secret for adults to share with young readers.
     The book uses a repetitive format, easy for young readers to predict and decode. And colors are considered in bold fresh out of the tube rainbows of related shades. It made me want to find an easel of my own to experiment with.

Resources/Activities:

• The publisher has provided lesson plans on their website (don't you love that)
• Read the publisher's interview with the author, Tedd Arnold.
• Learn about Vincent Van Gogh. (Many kid-friendly websites!)
• Kids-n-fun and Enchanted Learning are just two of the websites that have printable Van Gogh coloring pages.
  
•  On a blank page, draw pictures using as many colors as you can. Crayons are okay!
• Visit Kinderart for a child-friendly Van Gogh style art lesson with paint

Let me know if this is on your reading list! I love to read your comments.

This review is part of PPBF (perfect picture book Friday) where bloggers share great picture books at Susanna Leonard Hill's site. Along with tons of writing wisdom, she keeps an ever-growing list of Perfect Picture Books. #PPBF

Open This Little Book - Perfect Picture Book Friday

This review is part of PPBF (perfect picture book Friday) where bloggers share great picture books at Susanna Leonard Hill's site. Along with tons of writing wisdom, she keeps an ever-growing list of Perfect Picture Books.

Title: Open This Little Book

Author: Jesse Klausmeier

Illustrator: Suzy Lee

Publisher: Chronicle Books, 2013

Audience: 3-8 (I would say 3-5)

Themes: Colors, friendship

Opening:  “Open this . . . Little Red Book”

Synopsis: Inviting the reader to be part of the story, the book asks them to open a book and read about another animal who is opening another book. And inside the covers are progressively smaller pages that represent book covers that the reader opens to meet all the characters, then progressively larger pages that represent the back covers as the books are closed in sequence.

Don't you love these colors!

     What I like about this book is its simplicity of language and repetition that encourages young readers to read it themselves. The unique design is whimsical and the interactive nature will be a treat for kids to discover. I laughed as the "readers" got bigger and the books got smaller! 
     Whether the page stock stands up to the repeated tugs remains to be seen. When the books got smaller, I had no problem with the page turns but when the books got larger, sometimes it was difficult to lift the edge. Perhaps the smaller hands of the intended readers would have no trouble! Also, because the tiniest book at the center is so-oo tiny, this is best read to one child at a time or I predict fighting to flip pages and see everything there is to see. . .

Activities/Resources: See the book "in action" in the Youtube video. Download teacher's resources from the Chronicle website here. (note: it took longer than I expected for the 7 page guide to download). Perhaps just ask a child what they think each character is reading about. (ex. What would a ladybug read about in a Little Green Book?) Use colored construction paper to make your own colored books. You can use a stapler or hole punch for an easy version or follow the directions here (this requires an adult's help to cut the pages).

Thanks for stopping by for another review!