From the 2020 Notable Children’s Books in the Language Arts Using Poetic Picturebooks as Mentor Texts

BY ELIZABETH M. BEMISS

Each year, the Notable Children’s Books in Language Arts Committee (NCBLA) reads and discusses works of fiction, non-fiction, and poetry written for K-8 readers. Committee members, seven dedicated children’s literature enthusiasts, with experience ranging from elementary school teaching, to school librarians, and finally, university faculty with expertise in children’s and young adult literature, consider the requisite qualities for narrowing down the winners to a list of 30 titles.  

In this post, I will feature two poetic picture books included in the 2020 Notables list, Lion of the Sky: Haiku for All Seasons (2019), and Room on Our Rock (2019). ​

Lion of the Sky: Haiku for All Seasons 
Written by Laura Purdie Salas  
Illustrated by Mercé López
Millbrook, 2019, unpaged, ISBN 978-1-5124-9809-7

In this unique collection of poetry, Laura Purdie Salas intrigues readers with “riddle-ku” poems. The 24 three-line poems, centered around the four seasons, are narrated by something nonhuman, making it a mask poem for readers to guess each narrator. Coupled with Mercé López’s  stunning rendered acrylic illustrations that capture the nature of each object being described, the poetic words and artwork render objects associated with the seasons: 

A kite flying in spring 

“I am a wind bird,
sky skipper, diamond dipper,
DANCING on your string” 

Dandelions of summer 

“my fluffy seeds DRIFT
tiny puffs lift in the breeze
and land...who knows where?” 

Falling snow in the winter
 
“I’m cold confetti
falling from a crystal sky,
blanketing the town”  

Room on Our Rock 
Written by Kate and Jol Temple
Illustrated by Terri Rose Baynton
Kane Miller, 2019, unpaged, ISBN 978-1-61067-902-2

This clever book presents readers with a story that reads forward and backward, revealing narratives about sharing and compassion. Upon the first reading, a trio of seals announce “There’s no room on our rock” to a seal and pup approaching their rock from the sea. As the seals shoo away the approaching pair, readers are told “No room on this rock? Can it be true? Read back to front for another point of view.” Readers then find a seal and pup escaping dangerous seas who are welcomed by the seals: “You’re welcome here / You’ll never hear us say / Shoo! Go away!” Gray and blue watercolor illustrations of a landscape in the sea compliment this story sure to warm hearts and encourage compassion among readers. 

Teaching Tips for Using the Books as Mentor Texts

Utilized as mentor texts, these poetic picture books provide readers with delightful opportunities to craft their own written responses inspired from the texts.

The whimsical collection of “riddle-ku” poems in Lion of the Sky invites readers to enjoy a play on language and is an inspiring way to help young writers craft unique poetry of their own. Students can create their own “riddle-ku” poems and invite peers and family members to guess the answer to their “riddle-kus.” To scaffold young writers, teachers can draw from this brainstorming resource from Millbrook Press where students can craft a “Zoo-ku,” or a “riddle-ku” about an animal. Additionally, students can publish their “riddle-ku” on a Padlet Page created by the author, Laura Purdie Salas. Another way students can craft their poems is through Read Write Think’s Interactive Haiku Generator, which guides students through brainstorming, drafting, and publishing, where individual background images can be added to the published “riddle-ku.”  

The poetic forward and backward reading of Room on Our Rock can foster rich conversations between readers about the varying messages from the book when read forward versus backward as well as discussions surrounding point of view. Teachers can guide students to reflect on the kind of tone and voice needed to read the book forward and how it changed to read the book backward. Teachers could also have students think about how the artwork on each page was used to create the tone of the book from two perspectives. After engaging in deep conversation around the book, students can partner up to write a review of the book and then share their reviews via free audio or video sharing applications. Students can post links to the reviews on a class page such as note.ly or Padlet.

Elizabeth M. Bemiss, an Assistant Professor at the University of West Florida, teaches courses in children’s and young adult literature and literacy methods. Elizabeth is a member of the 2019-2021 Notables Committee.