Course Objectives

Students will acquire a basic knowledge of:

• The structure of the contemporary children's literature field,
• Major contemporary authors and illustrators of children's books and their works,
• Current trends and issues in children's literature,
• Children's reading interests and abilities, and
• Library approaches to children's literature, including evaluation and selection issues.

Organization of the Course

Major Assignments

1. Reading Logs

Six reading logs are required. Each reading log is worth 80 points, for a total of 480 points. All reading logs must be turned in on or before the day they are due. Please do not submit them electronically.

Reading log 1. Due Week 3.

• 3 contemporary realistic novels
• 1 historical novel
• 1 fantasy novel

Reading log 2. Due Week 5.

• 2 picture books for preschoolers (two- to four-year-olds)
• 2 picture books for grades K-3, ages 5 to 8
• 1 picture book for children age 9 or older
• 2 controlled vocabulary "easy readers"
• Note: the picture books should be original fiction stories, not illustrated folktales or nonfiction.

Reading Log 3. Due Week 6.

• 2 illustrated picture book editions of single folktales
• 1 folktale collection or anthology
• 1 poetry anthology
• 1 book of poetry by a single author

Reading log 4. Due Week 7.

• 1 biography
• 1 science book
• 1 sports book
• 1 hobby book
• 1 sex education book

Reading log 5. Due Week9.

• 1 novel or short story collection about African-Americans
• 1 picture book about African-Americans
• 1 novel or short story collection about Latinos
• 1 picture book about Latinos
• 1 novel or short story collection about Asian-Americans
• 1 picture book about Asian-Americans
• 1 book, any genre, about Native Americans
• 1 nonfiction book that is relevant to cultural diversity

Reading log 6. Due Week10.

• 2 picture books for 5-graders and up
• 1 picture book for pre-schoolers to understand/cope with parents' divorce
• 1 picture book for 6-year-olds to understand/cope with loss/death of a family member

General directions for reading logs:

Unless otherwise specified, books chosen should be appropriate for children ages twelve and under. All books read must be from one of the following categories:

• Newbery or Caldecott medal or honor books from any year
• ALSC Notable Books for children since 1990
• Pura Belpre award winners from any year
• Coretta Scott king award winners from any year

If you are unable to locate a book from these four categories, use the eighteenth edition of Children's Catalog and its supplements and find a book published since 1990.

Format for reading log entries:

• Category ("picture book for preschooler", or "sex education book")
• Author, title, illustrator, publisher, date
• Source (i.e., ALSC Notable Book, 1994, or Caldecott Honor Book, 1988)
• Age range of intended reader
• Brief assessment of the book's quality (its literary and/or artistic merit)
• Brief (one-sentence) assessment of the book's potential use with children (storytime, homework, curriculum support, book talk, free voluntary reading, etc.)
• Brief (one-sentence) assessment of the book's child appeal

2. Writing assignments

There are two writing assignments.

<>Writing assignment 1. Due Week 4. 100 points.

• Select a children's book that you really like. Write a two-page essay review, a short (150 to 200 word) professional review, and a one-sentence annotation for the book.

Writing assignment 2. Due Week 12. 120 points.

• Make a bibliography of the ?top ten? children's books on a specific topic from the list provided by the instructor. Assume that the audience is either children or adults who will share the books with children. Select an appropriate bibliographic format. Write a one-sentence annotation for each book. Make enough copies to share with your classmates.

3. Author/illustrator presentations

Due Week 14, Week 15, and Week 16. 300 points.

• Each student will select an author or illustrator from the list provided by the instructor.
• Prepare a 10 minute presentation on the author or illustrator for the class, emphasizing his or her contributions to children's literature. (NOTE: This is not a booktalk, so do not simply introduce or recommend a list of books by the author/illustrator. Instead, focus on some of the most important or appealing works by the author/illustrator. Talk about at least 5 key characteristics of his or her writing or illustration and why they are important to children?s literature.)
• Prepare a handout for the class that can be used as a reference guide (or bibliography) or pathfinder to the author/illustrator's work.

Note: assignments turned in late will be subject to a reduction in points. No assignments will be accepted electronically.

• Reading logs 480 points
• Writing assignments 220 points
• Author/illustrator presentations 300 points
• Total 1000 points

• 925 to 1000 points A
• 800 to 924 points B
• 700 to 799 points C
• 699 and under F

Bibliography

Kathleen T. Horning. From Cover to Cover: Evaluating and Reviewing Children's Books. HarperCollins, 1997.

Children's books:

Molly Bang. When Sophie Gets Angry? really, Really Angry.

Helen Bannerman. The Story of Little Babaji.

Helen Bannerman. The Story of Little Black Sambo.

Susan Campbell Bartoletti. Black Potatoes: The Story of the Great Irish Famine, 1845-1850.

Ashley Bryan. Beautiful Blackbird.

Gennifer Choldenko. Al Capone Does My Shirts.

Tom Feelings. The Middle Passage: White Ships/Black Cargo.

Kevin Henkes. Owen.

Cynthia Kadohata. Kira Kira.

Julius Lester. Sam and the Tigers.

Arnold Lobel. Frog and Toad are Friends.

David Macaulay. Black and White.

Patricia C. McKissack. Goin' Someplace Special.

Helen Recorvits. My Name is Yoon.

J.K. rowling. Harry Potter and the Sorcerer?s Stone.

Pam Munoz Ryan. Esperanza Rising.

Gary Soto. Chato?s Kitchen.

Jerry Spinelli. Maniac Magee.

David Wiesner. The Three Pigs.

David Wisniewski, Golem.

Charlotte Zolotow. William?s Doll.

Note: It is not necessary to purchase any of these if you prefer to borrow them from a library. Please read them and bring them to class on the day they are scheduled for discussion.