What Exactly Can Picture Books Teach Our Children? Essay -- Learning T

What Exactly Can Picture Books Teach Our Children? I chose to read and comment on Barbara Kiefers Envisioning Experience The latent of Picture Books. Kiefers main pull down in writing this essay was to get the message across that children make whoopie picture books that allow them to identify and make connections with the characters or the plots, and that while reading and analyzing the pictures, they gain a better sense of aesthetics and how to interpret them. I contain whole-heartedly with the conclusions that she drew from her observations. It is very hard to get the whole picture from a childrens storybook that has no pictures. The children find it harder to identify with the characters and often find these books boring. Being open to see the pictures helps them to make connections with either the characters or with their personal experiences. For example, all small children can identify with the little monkey, George, in Reys Curious George. On scalawag 27 of the book, we see George smoking a pipe because he saw the man in the yellow hat smoking it. At some render in every childs life, he has seen an adult doing something unfamiliar and wanted to try it, just like George did. This would be a good point at which the child could articulate one of his experiences to a class or friend, helping him to become more comfortable with speaking ab start and sharing his thoughts. Kiefer points out in her essay that when children vocalize what they think about a story and the pictures, it helps them to become more cognitive thinkers. She also stated that the children I observed seemed to be intent on making meaning regarding the picture books (Kiefer 66). I, too, can see this when I am ... ...s and classrooms should have a wide variety of books uncommitted with change styles of writing and art work. In addition to the books, the children should be given a variety of ways in which to express their thoughts and feeli ngs about these books, either through discussion, writing, or their own art work. I agree because this could only allow children to enjoy reading more and lets them feel like their opinions matter and are appreciated. Having books readily available only increases a childs desire to read and creates in him or her a love for books that, hopefully, never goes away.Works CitedKiefer, Barbara. Envisioning Experience The Potential of Picture Books. Publishing Research Quarterly 7.2 (1991) 63-75.Rey, H. A. Curious George. Twentieth Century Childrens Book Treasury. Selected by Janet Schulman. New York Knopf, 1998. 88-95.