A Sick Day For Amos McGee Written by Philip Stead and Illustrated by Erin Stead

A Sick Day For Amos McGee Written by Philip Stead and Illustrated by Erin Stead

 

2011 Caldecott Winner: “A Sick Day for Amos McGee” Illustrated by Erin Stead and written by Philip Stead

            Beginning in 1937, the Caldecott Medal, named after illustrator Randolph Caldecott, is awarded annually to an American based illustrator for distinguished work within a children’s picture book[1]. In 2011, the Caldecott Medal was awarded to Erin Stead for her illustration of the 32-page “A Sick Day for Amos McGee”, authored by her husband Philip Stead in 2010.  

“A Sick Day foe Amos McGee” is a simple story about a zoo keeper who faithfully spends times with his animal friends until one day he is too ill to make it to work. The animals decide to take the bus to Amos’s house where they repay his consistent kindness by helping him feel better.

            It really is Erin Stead’s meticulous patience and attention to detail throughout her illustration that reveals the caliber of her talents and vitally enriches the some-what sparse plot of “A Sick Day for Amos McGee”[2]. Classically trained as a painter, Stead employed a combination of woodblock prints overlaid with pencil to create the enduring older gentleman named Amos and the motley assortment of animal characters[3]. Each color splash within the pages (such as the striped yellow walls, the beige of the elephant, the greens and oranges of the trees) is a painted imprint of her hand-carved woodblocks; after these dried, she steadfastly penciled in details and facial features to her creations. She focused on using quiet minimalistic palettes to evoke a type of intimate feeling for the reader. The illustration process was laborious, but evidently a loving one, and took her over a year to execute[4]. Not bad for a first time illustrator!

Her husband Philip authored the book specifically with Erin’s talents in mind; he wrote about animals and settings that he intuitively felt she would be able to embody richly with her illustrations. Their close collaboration and Philip’s sense of his wife’s capabilities produce an friendly world that is inviting to young readers and adults alike. As one review said of Erin Stead’s crafts: “the effect is a sense of being enveloped, or better yet, being hugged.”[5]

            I really adore Erin Stead’s work. I recently used “A Sick Day For Amos McGee” with my 3-and-4 year olds art class. We looked at Stead’s pencil use, particularly how she drew her trees and her use of shading. From Stead’s work, we were able to discuss why some places looked darker than others and how we could mimic those shadings with our own pencils (by pressing harder or softer). This is a simple activity that really just touches the surface of illustration techniques but I found having Stead’s illustrations accessible for these young kids really gave them a chance to connect with the book in a new way. I also really do appreciate the amount of consideration that went into Stead’s effort; she had to plan and execute her creative decisions in well in advance. I feel that if I ever worked with older children in an artistic setting, this would be a good book to show them about how art can be viewed as a series of layers. Often times I think young children can’t really conceptualize how an artist tackles a very big piece with a lot of elements. I think Stead’s use of woodblock print and pencil could be really good springboard to explain the small steps that go into the bigger piece.

Websites:

Caldecott Winner Erin E. Stead on ‘A Sick Day for Amos McGee’ By Alexandra Cheney

http://blogs.wsj.com/speakeasy/2011/01/14/caldecott-winner-erin-e-stead-on-a-sick-day-for-amos-mcgee/

A Sick Day for Amos McGee Posted on July 25, 2010 by Kiera Parrott

http://libraryvoice.org/2010/07/25/book-review-a-sick-day-for-amos-mcgee/

Short Video of Erin Stead Explaining her illustration technique:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3TuHyU-onkc

Did ‘A Sick Day for Amos McGee’ Deserve the 2011 Caldecott Medal? By Janice Harayda

http://oneminutebookreviews.wordpress.com/2011/03/27/did-%E2%80%98a-sick-day-for-amos-mcgee%E2%80%99-deserve-the-2011-caldecott-medal/

Very Detailed interview with Erin Stead about her illustration process for “A Sick Day for Amos McGee”

http://blaine.org/sevenimpossiblethings/?p=1723

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[1] http://www.ala.org/alsc/awardsgrants/bookmedia/caldecottmedal/caldecottterms/caldecottterms

[2] http://oneminutebookreviews.wordpress.com/2011/03/27/did-%E2%80%98a-sick-day-for-amos-mcgee%E2%80%99-deserve-the-2011-caldecott-medal/ This review in particular points to Philip Stead’s somewhat bland story-telling, and while I do not think his writing is truly awful, I think I have to agree that Erin Stead’s illustrations are far superior than the craft of the writing.

[3] http://blaine.org/sevenimpossiblethings/?p=1723

[4] http://blogs.wsj.com/speakeasy/2011/01/14/caldecott-winner-erin-e-stead-on-a-sick-day-for-amos-mcgee/

[5] http://libraryvoice.org/2010/07/25/book-review-a-sick-day-for-amos-mcgee/

Why The Sun and the Moon Live In the Sky

Why The Sun and the Moon Live In the Sky; a folktale told with a spin

Why the Sun and the Moon Live in the Sky is a Nigerian Folktale that is an clever creation story about why the Sun and Moon chose to live in the sky. Long ago they both lived on earth but after inviting their good friend Water to visit their new, huge home, the house flooded and the two had to escape up into the sky.

Target Age: can be modified for use from preschool to 2^nd grade

For this lesson, I actively illustrated the three main sequences of this story while oral telling the story. I used water colors and 3 sheets of pre-washed water color papers. The first canvas depicts the Sun and Water talking on earth and agreeing if the Sun built a big enough home the Water would come visit. The second canvas shows the Sun discussing with his wife Moon that they need to build a big house, to which the Moon agrees. The last canvas shows the house flooded with Water and all her “people”, with the Sun and Moon rushing up to safety in the sky.

The purpose of this conducting the lesson this way was multifaceted:

1.    To emphasize that folktales are old stories that were told orally.

2.    To emphasize that there is a beginning, middle, and end to stories. The final product of my water color illustrations clearly depicts these sequences of events so that students can retell the story in their own works (also underscoring that oral tales can change slightly depending on who is the story teller)

3.    To expose young children to a potential new medium—water colors—by modeling how the materials are used.

Additionally, this story lends itself to creative thinking about other aspects of the life. Students can be asked such things like “Why do you think the stars only come out at night?” Discussion can be had about the difference between fantasy and reality and how we can use fantasy to describe very real things.

Why the Sun and Moon Live in the Sky

An African Folktale*

Many years ago, the sun and water were great friends, and they both lived on the earth together. The sun very often used to visit the water, but the water never returned the visits.

At last the sun asked the water why he never visited. The water replied that the sun's house was not big enough, and that if he came with all his people, he would drive the sun out of his home.

The water then said, "If you want me to visit you, you will have to build a very large house. But I warn you that it will have to be very large, as my people are numerous and take up a lot of room".

The sun promised to build a very large house, and soon afterwards, he returned home to his wife, the moon, who greeted him with a broad smile.

The sun told the moon what he had promised the water, and the next day, they began building a large house to entertain the water and all his people.

When it was completed, the sun asked the water to come and visit him.

When the water arrived, one of his people called out to the sun, and asked him whether it would be safe for the water to enter, and the sun answered, "Yes, tell my friend to come in."

The water began to flow in, followed by the fish and all the other water animals.

Very soon, the water was knee-deep in the house, so he asked the sun if it was still safe, and the sun again said, "Yes," so more of them came in.

When the water was at the level of a man's head, the water said to the sun, "Do you want more of my people to come?"

Not knowing any better, the sun and the moon both said, "Yes,". More and more of the water's people came in, until the sun and the moon had to sit on top of the roof.

The water once again asked the sun if it was still okay to keep coming in. The sun and moon answered yes, so more and more of the water's people came in.

The water soon overflowed the top of the roof, and the sun and the moon were forced to go up into the sky.

...and they have been there ever since.

*This story was retrieved from http://www.worldoftales.com/African_folktales/African_Folktale_10.html.

Why the Sun and the Moon Live in the Sky is available in book-format written Elphinstone Dayrell and Illustrated By Blair Lent; it is also a Caldecott Honors Book.

Caps for Sale: A Tale of a Peddler, Some Monkeys and Their Monkey Business Written and Illustrated by Esphyr Slobodkina

Caps for Sale: A Tale of a Peddler, Some Monkeys and Their Monkey Business

Esphyr Slobodkina

 

This is a story of a peddler who wears his wares on his head. After falling asleep under a tree, he wakes to find that his caps are all missing.

Target Age: kindergarten and 1^st grade

Springboards for lessons: Introducing the word "peddler" and explaining that it is a type of job. This could lead to a discussion about jobs within the neighborhood.

Have the students do a seuqnecing exerise that requires them to sequences the caps in the correct order.

This website contains many different ideas, including incorporating secondary stories that compliment Caps for Sale as well as tying in art, math, social studies, and other literacy ideas.

Mo Willems; an Author study

Primary Books used for this presentation: Knuffle Bunny, Don’t let the pigeon drive the bus!, Cat the Cat, who is that

Why?: These three books illustrations and story lines exemplify Willems’ minimalistic approach to storytelling which allows the reader to extract their own meaning. Willem’s is a proponent of the reader having ownership of what a story means, and in varying ways, these three books allow the reader to be engaged in a very personalized way. Additionally, the illustrations of his characters are central to his story telling; he uses these doodles as springboards to create stories. Each of these books personifies his style of drawing that lends itself to interesting story telling.

Mo Willems Bio

            Mo Willems is a prolific children’s author and illustrator with more than 30 books to his name. He has received three honor Caldecott Medals for his books Knuffle Bunny, Knuffle Bunny Too, and Don’t Let the Pigeon Drive the Bus! [1] He has also won 2 Geisel Medals, 3 Geisel Honors[2]. Before writing and drawing picture books, Willems worked in television. His biggest credits in television were as a writer for Sheep in the Big City and Sesame Street (where he won 6 Emmys for his creative efforts.)

Willems was raised by Dutch immigrants in New Orleans and learned to tell stories that were humorous and concise (he claims “storytelling in N'awlins is unique because your audience is usually drunk, so you've got to be clear, funny, and succinct”[3]). Growing up, he wanted nothing more than to be able to work on the Peanuts comics. Despite this dream not coming true, he stuck to his primarily childhood goals, “to draw cartoons and to make people laugh”[4].

The brevity of his children’s stories seem to not only encapsulate what he wanted to achieve as a child but also his broader philosophy of the creative process. Willems is a proponent of letting the reader come up with the meaning behind a story. He has frequently said in interviews and on his own blog FAQ, that good writing and illustration happen when the creator is invisible. His goal as a writer is to make the reader connect with the characters, not with him. To do this, Willems employs what he calls “manipulation”,[5] he stealthily creates children’s literature with characters and plot lines that are concise while still being open to a bevy of interpretations. By allowing the reader to become engaged in this way, whether it’s yelling “No” at the pigeon or being engrossed in the craftily photo shopped pictures of Knuffle Bunny, Willems creates a world where the reader and his or her projections becomes an integral part of the plot. If the reader comes away thinking the writing is funny, then that’s all the better in Willems’ mind.

Willems’ uses his drawing doodles to help manifest his plots. His creative process tends to start with drawings and letting them “percolate” as he thinks about what kind of personalities his characters will have. It is this method of creative process, one that begins with illustration, that is useful for connecting the power of drawing with the power of literacy. Willems is a perfect example of how drawing becomes a tangible and spatial springboard for some seriously well-crafted stories. Such a message, and such a process, could be profoundly beneficial for young readers and writers who need help “finding their words” by grounding their ideas in drawing. By keeping his illustrations very simple, Willems’ accomplishes something wonderful:  “My goal is to have children take my characters and create new adventure for them”[6]

Ultimately, Willems’ books not only empower young readers to become engaged in participation, they empower young minds to create, in their drawing and in what they write. For an author and illustrator who might have tricked you into thinking “drawing cartoons and making people laugh” where simplistic goals, he manages to remind us as educators, that these goals can also be quite profound.

Fast Fun Facts about Mo and his books:

Elephant and Piggie are his two favorite characters to draw.

Pigeon “sneaks” into other Mo Willem books that are not about Pigeon because the Pigeon doesn’t like it when Mo write’s about other characters

Mo Willems first character was LazorBrain, about a superhero that loses his brain!

Growing up, Mo wanted to take over Charles Schultz job drawing Peanuts cartoon.

Mo’s birthday is February 11, 1968. He’s an Aquarius!

Mo has a daughter named Trixie. The little girl named Trixie in Knuffle Bunny is loosely based off of her.

He credits his 8^th grade teacher, Mrs. Laboisse, for expanding his world view profoundly because she would quiz her class on the Sunday Paper

Some ‘Mo Resources!

All things Mo Willems!

http://www.mowillems.com/

Mo’s personal blog:

http://mowillemsdoodles.blogspot.com/

Pigeon Presents (a website dedicated to the Pigeon!):

http://www.pigeonpresents.com/

A really thorough review of Mo’s writing and some short synopsis of his most popular books: http://www.childrenslit.com/childrenslit/mai_willems_mo.html:

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[1] http://www.ala.org/alsc/awardsgrants/bookmedia/caldecottmedal/caldecotthonors/caldecottmedal

[2] http://mowillemsdoodles.blogspot.com/

[3] http://www.childrenslit.com/childrenslit/mai_willems_mo_qa.html

[4] http://www.washingtonpost.com/lifestyle/style/mo-willems-is-the-go-to-author-for-children--and-their-parents/2012/01/06/gIQAFLztfP_story_1.html

[5] http://www.childrenslit.com/childrenslit/mai_willems_mo.html

[6] http://www.seattlepi.com/ae/article/Mo-Willems-childhood-ambition-to-draw-and-be-1249855.php

Knuffle Bunny: A Cautionary Tale By Mo Willems

http://www.amazon.com/Knuffle-Bunny-Cautionary-Mo-Willems/dp/0786818700

Knuffle Bunny is the story of Trixie and her favorite stuff animal Knuffle Bunny. This book is great because it tells a story that many young children can identify while being concise (something that is perfect for short attention spans!). It's also visually stunning; a collage of Park Slope photographs merged with Willems' original doodles. Knuffle Bunny received a 2005 Caldecott Honors Medal.

Target age: toddlers, preschoolers

Interactive activities while story-reading: asking the child to act out the blabber of words that Trixie says when trying to explaining that Knuffle Bunny is missing; asking the child to act out the word "boneless".

You can read more about Willems' creative writing and illustrative processes here