 %20%7BSmile%20Play%20Learn%7D "Pin It") | "can we read it again?"READING | CREATIVE MINDS | FAMILY FUN | LEARNING I love hearing "can we read it again?" from my sons. To my absolute delight, it almost always happens when we delve into books by Mo Willems. The books are not only unequivocally humorous but also educational. Willems writes, in simple, digestible and very child-friendly manner, about human nature, and skillfully illustrates expressions of joy, happiness, sadness, frustration, anger and guilt. As as a result, Willems' books help young children identify and understand people's feelings, emotions, and desires. |
No wonder that his work in children’s books, animation, television, and theater have garnered 3 Caldecott Honors, 2 Geisel Medals, 2 Geisel Honors, and 2 Carnegie Medals. Mo Willems is also a five-time Emmy Award-winning writer and animator for Sesame Street and the creator of Cartoon Network's Sheep in the Big City.
Summer Virtual Book Club for Kids
I was very pleased to learn that Willems had been chosen as a featured author by members of the Summer Virtual Book Club, spearheaded by Toddler Approved. We have been reading Willems' books for months. In fact, we almost never leave our local library unless a Pigeon or Elephant & Piggie book is picked out. Recently, we have been also hooked on Knuffle Bunny. Dominik & Filip laugh hysterically at the main character Trixie blabbing and going boneless in the Knuffle Bunny: A Cautionary Tale (a Caldecott Honor Book). To learn more about Mo Willems, his books, characters and events, visit his website at MoWillems.com. And, of course, see below for the Book Club's Mo Willems Blog Hop!!!
 | Mo Willems CollectionsHere are links to Mo Willems collections on Amazon.com. |
Mo Willems Book StoreTrip & Picnic
To prepare for the Book Club assignment, I took Dominik & Filip to a children's bookstore B is for Books in Orchard Park, NY, where we were visiting the boys' grandparents. We easily found a bookshelf devoted to Mo Willems. After a very careful consideration, the boys picked out three best-selling books from three different series: Don't Let the Pigeon Drive the Bus! (Willems' first book for children and a 2004 Caldecott Honor winner), Knuffle Bunny Too: A Case of Mistaken Identity, and Elephant & Piggie Book: We Are in a Book!
It was a gorgeous day so after coming back home we sat under a tree and read all three books. As we were turning the pages, I was trying to decide which book or series to choose for the Book Club assignment. It really was not an easy choice!
I Spy... the Pigeon!
Ultimately, I settled on the classic Pigeon series. Author Mo Willems says the character of Pigeon first appeared in the margins of other projects, and demanded to be written about. Now he ends up somewhere in every book he writes. "And he just hates it when I'm not writing about him!" Willems concludes in an NPR interview captured in an article, A Rival For Pigeon In Willems' New 'Duckling'.
After reading the article, I was determined to find out if this was really true. Of course, I enlisted Dominik & Filip to help me out. I tasked them with finding the Pigeon in every book by Mo Willems we currently have in the house. Surely enough, they found the Pigeon in three Elephant & Piggie and two Knuffle Bunny books. They thought it was hilarious. "He is so sneaky!" Dominik said. Indeed, he is quite a quirky character, don't you think? It was a great exercise.
After reading the article, I was determined to find out if this was really true. Of course, I enlisted Dominik & Filip to help me out. I tasked them with finding the Pigeon in every book by Mo Willems we currently have in the house. Surely enough, they found the Pigeon in three Elephant & Piggie and two Knuffle Bunny books. They thought it was hilarious. "He is so sneaky!" Dominik said. Indeed, he is quite a quirky character, don't you think? It was a great exercise.
Image source: NPR
The Pigeon's Word Wall
My older son Dominik is an emergent reader, and we use every opportunity to practice early reading skills with him. Mo Willems' books are perfect for this stage of literacy development. The sentences are short, the text is predictable, and the simple, yet visually attractive illustrations constitute excellent contextual clues for young readers.
What's unique about Mo Willems' literature is the use of speech bubbles instead of plain text. "I never really understood the power of the speech bubble in early literacy, until I was introduced to Mo Willems," says Danielle, a blogger behind the Mommy and Me Book Club. "My son loves speech bubbles!," she continues. "They help him recognize which character is speaking." My boys surely feel the same way.
To build upon the concept of speech bubbles, I have created the Pigeon's Word Wall. The word wall can be adapted to any type of vocabulary you would like to introduce an emergent reader to. I chose the following subjects: "The Pigeon Says... {Action Words}," "The Pigeon Says... {Magic Words}," "The Pigeon Wants a...," and "Don't Let the Pigeon Drive the..." These mini posters are perfect for hanging on the refrigerator or in the child's room. You can also ask the child to cut the words out, put them in the Pigeon's Word Jar, and then draw and read them. Another idea is to say a word out loud and ask your child to find the corresponding word among the speech bubbles spread out on the table or on the floor. You can download and adjust the file by following the slideshare link.
What's unique about Mo Willems' literature is the use of speech bubbles instead of plain text. "I never really understood the power of the speech bubble in early literacy, until I was introduced to Mo Willems," says Danielle, a blogger behind the Mommy and Me Book Club. "My son loves speech bubbles!," she continues. "They help him recognize which character is speaking." My boys surely feel the same way.
To build upon the concept of speech bubbles, I have created the Pigeon's Word Wall. The word wall can be adapted to any type of vocabulary you would like to introduce an emergent reader to. I chose the following subjects: "The Pigeon Says... {Action Words}," "The Pigeon Says... {Magic Words}," "The Pigeon Wants a...," and "Don't Let the Pigeon Drive the..." These mini posters are perfect for hanging on the refrigerator or in the child's room. You can also ask the child to cut the words out, put them in the Pigeon's Word Jar, and then draw and read them. Another idea is to say a word out loud and ask your child to find the corresponding word among the speech bubbles spread out on the table or on the floor. You can download and adjust the file by following the slideshare link.
The Pigeon Finds a... Bowling Ball?
For the craft, we put a spin on the toilet paper tube Pigeon, which has been featured in This and That at the Library (great template) and in the Diary of a First Grade Teacher. Dominik & Filip made their pigeons using craft paper, glue, blue feathers, and googly eyes. My initial idea was to use the pigeons as puppets, but the boys found another use for them: they decided they were great as bowling pins! All we needed to finish this mini bowling set was a ball.
To honor the Pigeon's friend, we transformed a medium styrofoam craft ball into a duckling. To do so, we made yellow puffy paint, rolled the craft ball in it, and attached feathers while the pain was still wet. We microwaved it for about 7 seconds and voilà: the Pigeon Mini-Bowling Set was ready!
Enjoying it!
Pigeon, Pigeon Everywhere!
I just could not resist posting these pictures of Dominik & Filip from our trip to a local children's museum next to Mo Willems' photograph by Marty Umans! By the way, have you read There is a Bird on Your Head! with your child? It is a really cool Elephant & Piggie book.
Mo Willems Book Club Blog Hop
Comments
06/22/2012 14:33
I really enjoyed your post and I know my daughter and her friends will love your activities. Thank you so much for sharing. We had a lot of fun getting to know Mo Willems and the sites you included are great. We included some videos of him on our post too.
Paula
06/26/2012 10:19
Thank you for checking it out, Kim! We had a great time with Mo Willems too. In fact, my boys are still reading his books. I really enjoyed your post too!
