It's better than I thought! As I began reading Maybe a Bear Ate It!, (reviewed yesterday) a student commented it was wordless. They were looking for the print and knew to focus on the pictures to help tell the story. I was thrilled they used the word - wordless to describe the book format at the beginning. I struggled with deciding what the character actually was. Yesterday I refer to him/her as a fun looking creature but my students agreed and decided the character in the story is a cat. They could justify their opinion and I value their thinking, a cat it is. As I read the ending of the book, several students got very excited. They noticed each animal the cat visioned taking his book were actually stuffed animals in the cat's bed! When I read the book the night before and was planning, I wondered what made the cat think about each large creature but it was a passing thought. I didn't look close enough for evidence. When my students did, I learned something new. I was so excited to see my emergent readers in action. This was a joyful moment in our day, together.
Thanks to Tara at Two Writing Teachers for organizing Slice of Life each week.
I always learn so much from my students. They're much more observant than I am!
ReplyDeleteI love moments like this in a teaching day - after all, it's what our kids notice and respond to that enlightens and makes relevant the whole business of the day. Your kiddos are a thoughtful, observant bunch!
ReplyDeleteUh-oh! This looks like another book I need to own! Were you "at" Title Talk on Twitter on Sunday night? The whole thing was on Wordless Picture books.
ReplyDeleteNo, I wasn't at Title Talk, but did see the topic. I should look at the archives. Thanks for the reminder.
DeleteSuch a great example of students noticing and thinking beyond our expectations. Joyful moment indeed.
ReplyDeleteThat's a great lesson on collaborative discovery. A cat, it is.
ReplyDeleteKevin