After reading Chapter 2, I realized that we are extremely blessed to have come this far in the technology of literature. At one point they could only copy a book by hand. Then, Johannes Gutenberg invented movable metal type. This allowed more copies of books to circulate and made it easier to educate children. Along with the printing of the book, the illustrations have come a long way. It started out that artists had to carve wood to create a picture. Once illustrators could draw their depiction on paper, the cost of producing fantastically colorful drawings was extremely high. Now, it has become tremendously cheaper to mass produce colorful books, artists have practically no limits as to their illustrations. I am so excited to see all of the new children’s books, since I was in elementary school! The books produced during the time I have been out of elementary school and in the future are going to have such bright, vivid illustrations!
I feel that often times we forgot how important oral stories are. The telling of stories is such an important past time for the history of books. So many great stories have come from listening to other people. Without this old past time, who knows where we would be in the world of literature. I never before realize how deep of a history that children literature has. I found the section on the future of children literature very interesting. It is interesting to see the some children books are just about getting you investment back and more. It is no longer becoming about the strength of the story of the book, or the illustrations that go along with these. I wonder how long this idea will continue to go on?
Literature has been around for decades and there have been so many notable authors that have brought so much adventure and learning into our world. However, after reading chapter 2, I was amaze to learn that at first, literature was not specifically written for children. It was only until children were viewed as part of the “human life cycle,” that children’s literature became important. This of course took place around the 14th century and has changed significantly since then. Also, in early times, children’s literature did not consist of the wide variety of books and stories like today. Instead, children’s literature included writings about society, its changes, family and social expectations. So serious!
I am so happy authors like Charles Perrault, Daniel Defoe and John Newberry began writing adventurous and fairy tales for children because I believe, as part of development, children should be able to dream and fantasize a little.
Over the years, children literature has changed, especially in formats, styles, illustrations and genres. Today, there are many more brilliant authors of children’s literature like Richard Peck, J.K. Rowling and Eric Carle, who have written wonderful stories for children, some with great valuable lessons that would remain with them throughout a lifetime.
I am so thankful that our generation, today, have so much choices. It demonstrates just how important literature is to children’s academic and social well beings.
I learned quite a bit about the history of children's literature. It was interesting that children's literature as we know it is not that old. The earliest was through story telling that came down through generations.
With my own children, we have read many kids books and it was interesting to see how the Caldecot/Newberry Awards began. Many of the selections mentioned I have read to my children:Ugly Duckling, Red Shoes and Cinderella.
We were given many information but I have no questions at this time.
For someone into history this was the chapter for them to receive many different information. This chapter provides an excellent review and overview of the history of children's literature.
TO LACY E. You mention the illustration of Gutenbery, but I too were impressed with the illustration by Kate Greenaway with one of her early drawing. I loved how she incorporated the woman in the moon for the two little girls to see. Even if kids cannot read, they can look at the picture and predict what the story is about.
I had known that children, at certain points in history, were viewed as little adults, with no consideration to childhood. However, chapter 2 amazed me in seeing that, although there was no literature directed to children, they 'adopted' books as their own, using them to their advantage as an escape. Growing up, I absolutely loved Aesop's fables, but I had never known their origin from the oral tradition. It's amazing to try to think back that far and realize these same stories that entertained you as a child also entertained children hundreds of years ago! Another aspect of chapter 2 that I enjoyed was learning the origins of all the awards we will be reading in our reading logs. I didn't expect to learn about that (I'm not sure why), but it is a great surprise to know where the Newberry, Caldecott, Orbis Pictus....awards originated. I was a little surprised by the text that it did not mention the more recent movement of sensitivity toward children. The more studies that are published, and the more we learn about the development of children, adults are more sensitive than ever to children. People today watch vigilantly over children, making sure there is no physical, emotional, or mental abuse, not to mention the stringent PC overtones in which our country believes. Literature for children has changed dramatically over the centuries, especially the past 200 years. Amazingly, though, "Huckleberry Finn" is still a 'problem' for some groups. Considering the development of kids and them learning inappropriate things younger and younger, unloved content in such an amazing book from the 1800's seems to be a small issue, especially when you can turn this around as a lesson in the classroom. (I guess I've just noted that the book did mention recent sensitivity toward children without addressing it specifically.)
Lacy E-- You make a great point about the cost of books today. Movable type and the printing press are possibly the most notable inventions to make our society more and more civilized as we are able to learn an incredible amount, due to books' inexpensive nature today. It's amazing to think or how much money people gave to have chapbooks hundreds of years ago, and today you can borrow books for free at the library, not to mention the amount of texts and books available today. I'm starting to feel a little lucky and spoiled...
I agree with you in the statement you made about how you were amazed that literature was not first written for children. It seems that children are so thirsty for knowledge, which I am sure is not any different than when books first began being published. Who better else is there to write books for? I do not understand how adults in history did not find it important to write books for children. The children are the world's future.
After reading Chapter 2 I know a lot more about the history of literature. I liked that the author linked oral traditions with literature. I feel we have,sadly, grown away from the traditions of storytelling. I think books are a wonderful thing and I treasure mine, but there is just something about a good storyteller. I now know the award winning books that we are to read and have began to look at children's books in a different light. I had no idea how many influences were behind children's literature. I have always loved to read for as long as I can remember. After reading this chapter I know what the history is to many of the books I read as a child. I think the most useful tool in the chapter is the evaluation criteria for choosing literature for young adults.
Betty, It did give us an enormous amount of information on books for different subjects. I think it helps to know what is influencing the books our kids are reading
Chapter 2 makes us realize how strong a book and its history really are. How many of our favorite stories traveled to us from the old campfire tales to a book. We went from the book teaching a child morals and lessons. To today the books help our children deal with divorce, death, and life. As the times change so do the stories we come to love and read. Yet the long ago fairy tales and magical stories still come out on top. Every kids loves to hear the tales of Mark Twain, Huckleberry Fin, Cinderalla,and Treasure Island to just name a few. The thing that changed the most seem to be the price of books. They use to pay a cent today we pay anywhere from ten to fifteen dollars. But as we learned in chapter 2 no matter what happens we will always long for books. Life just wouldn't be the same without books.
Robin, I agree with you when you say that it's sad that we have ventured away from good old storytelling. My kids love to hear my mom, aunt, or grandma tell stories of their childhood. They seem so interested in what happened to them as they were growing up. A book is a book, but a story hold so much more.
Robin, I agree that is sad that we have gone away from story telling. I think that is why I like the read alouds in our assignments. I think reading to children has become a form of story telling, so children are still being able to experience it, at least a little bit
From reading chapter 2 the one thing that I am impressed with is how far literature in terms of technology. When it first started it was all an oral tradition, now we can listen to stories read by actors on the internet. I thought that it was pretty amazing because I just listened to "Thank You, Mr. Falker" today. Also from reading the chapter it was interesting to see how the characteristics of books changed (The Child and the Family). In the early times (1856-1903) the books respected adult authoirity and had religous emphasis. Now a days in books adults are becoming less authoritarian. I think that you can see this not only in books but in the way some children act at school. Just from the time I was in elementary school to now, kids are doing and saying things that I would never have thought about doing or saying.
I thought that two of the points you made in your post were good. The first one is about how we have gotten away from storytelling. The other point was about the evaluation criteria for chosing literature for young adults. I think this group is a group that needs something this this so it can help them to choose a genre or author to stick with and essentially enjoy reading more.
Chapter 2 There has been a dramatic changed in history as far as our literature is concern. In this chapeter it teaches you about the history and where stories were orginated from. It is amazing that children still today like some of the same stories. Lots of kids today are much different than back in the earlier times. The generations has truly changed in our world today.
Luke I do understand. You are exactly right. With me working in an elementary school I get my feelings hurt all the time. I think we need to stick more to story telling. I personally like the read aloud. The students seem like they are more into listening instead of story telling.
Elizabeth The past stories of history are important. People tend to not want to tell the stories oral anymore. Why I don't know. These could be stories that of history that kids will be able to cherish.
Robin, Your post is so true and hits home for me. My parents use to read to me every night as a child, and then we would make up our own stories that went along with the books. I can remember just waiting and waiting for evening to come, so we could learn what would happen next in the book. The two books I can remember the most are The Yearling and Wild Folk. As an adult now, I have both of those books. I have found with many of my students they don't know the art of storytelling and why it can be so rewarding. I think it is important as an teacher to try and incorporate this into our classrooms.
After reading Chapter 2, I was amazed that books weren't initially made for children. It just amazes me that reading for children wasn't important back then. If they did have books, they were used just as textbooks. Also, I learned that one reason books weren't so accessible is because of the price of making them. I am glad times have changed and books are geared more toward children. Also, the prices have gone down. You can get some pretty good deals on books through Scholastic and other companies like them. I learned about some of the early illustrators. I think illustrators are sometimes not given enough credit. Their pictures either add or take away from the storyline. It is vital to have a great illustrator to go with a great author. This chapter was very informative, and I enjoyed learning about the history of children literature.
Chapter 2: I was amazed to learn that children haven’t had books written specifically for them, outside of textbooks, for very many years. It is neat to see that some of the original books published for children are still popular today. I didn’t realize how old some of the books that I love are, in terms of publishing date. It was very interesting to see how far we have progressed in this area in such a short span of history. This chapter really made me appreciate how large the variety of children’s books that I grew up with was. I strongly believe there is a large connection between the amount of reading done when you are young and your abilities in later school years. I can’t imagine how differently I would have developed if I had not found a love of reading early in life. The lists in this chapter were helpful for researching books to use in the classroom that would help teach children that even one hundred years ago, children faced many of the same problems that they do today. A lot of the historical information given in this chapter does not have direct classroom application, but is necessary for any teacher choosing literature to offer to young children.
L. Marie- Good point about illustrators not being given enough credit. I agree that for children's book, the illustrations can make or break a story. They are important in helping children learn to love reading and to use their imaginations later in life when the books have no pictures.
That's intersting that way back then that books were not written for children. Children learn so much from reading books. It's interesting also that some of the books from the early 1900's are still read today, like The tale of Peter Rabbit, The Wind in the Willows, and Dr. Seuss, And to think that I saw it on Mulberry Street. It would be neat to read one from back then and read one today and compare them. My daughter loves the book from E.B. White-Charlotte's Web and it's on the chart of notable authors in 1952. She thought that was cool! It's very interesting reading the history of censorship.
LaceyE, I agree with you about the illustrations. When you read to a child, they love at the pictures and some even try to imagine they are in the story. My daughters favorite book is the Very Hungry Catepillar by Eric Carle. We've read it over and over and now she is reading it to me (first grader). The pictures are beautiful!!
It was very interesting to learn about the history of children's literature. I thought it was very interesting to learn about how illustrations in book came about and how back in the day books were not written for children. It was also interesting to learn about poems and, adventure stories and fantasies and how they got started. My nieces and nephew love fantasy stories and they love pictures, they learn so much when i read to them or look at picture books with them. I couldn't imagine back in the day when they didn't have book for children. I though it was also pretty cool to learn about how the families would just sit around and tell stories to children, just make them up or tell storied that the parents were told growing up. My father did that when I was little and it was always fun to make the pictures to the story in your mind.
Chapter two was full of information. It is amazing how far literature has come. I cannot imagine what life would be like if stories were still just told. It was nice to learn more about the history of literature. I didn't know much about Newbery, Locke or the Brothers Grimm. (I thought the Brothers Grimm was just a movie.) I remember talking about Hans Christian Anderson in elementary school. Even more incredible, my grandmother used to have a hornbook in her basement. I feel like learning the history of literature will make me more confident in my own classroom.
RE: Jessica, I was also amazed by the history. I really get into history. I think it's interesting that I know now that there was a Victorian Era in both literature and architecture. My parents also used to tell us stories during dinner. They told personal stories of what it was like when they were growing up. My family is very large. My dad was one of nine children and I am one of eleven. There were many stories about family member and lesson we needed to learn.
When I began reading Chapter 2 in our textbook, honestly I thought I would be bored with the reading, but it turned out to be the complete opposite. It is so amazing to me how so many of the books we read today began so many years ago as a story told orally around a fire or a story passed down from generation to generation, maybe changing a little bit each time or not changing at all. It was hard for me to imagine living in a time where reading a book was not something that was encouraged for everyone. I don’t think I could live such an enjoyable life without the books I love so much to read. I guess I never really thought about books not being allowed in a society or not being made available to all children and adults. Another thing that I enjoyed reading about in Chapter 2, was learning about how early books were made, not the stories, but for instance, the “chapbooks” were impressive to me. What a wonderful idea it was to create the “chapbooks” since other books were too expensive for common people. This is the reason I believe the creation of public libraries is so wonderful, providing books for free to anyone, no matter what their financial status. I also found the chapter really interesting when it brought up the book Little Women by Louisa May Alcott. I believe that her book is one of my very favorites. I appreciate that this book was brought up in the chapter, because it is such a great book when referencing that particular era. The only question about the chapter I might have would be about the censorship. I would love to learn more about censorship of books and why some of them have been censored. Otherwise, I do not have any questions and thoroughly enjoyed this chapter.
Re: JodyB Isn't it amazing how there are so many books out there today and yet, we still read the fairytales and folktales of so long ago. It really shows the lasting effect that books have on children and society in general. I loved how the chapter referenced so many titles that were written so long ago, yet they were books that I have read many times in the last couple years. Isn't it amazing?
Re: Alison M. I agree with you when you said you believe children should be able to fantasize. It is vitally important in a child's development for them to be able to pretend and play out their dreams. I love watching children pretend and enjoy to learn how so much of their pretend play references stories that were read to them throughout their life.
Ch. 2 really opened my eyes and helped me to appreciate my European heritage. I am the third 3rd generation born in America, on my father’s side. My father still remembers the old German attitudes regarding children by the Grandparents on his father side, children are to be seen and not heard, and there should be respect for authority (1856-1903). His mother’s parents were ahead of their time. They were more tolerant and encouraging towards children, but still they maintained some of the old German views about the importance of accepting responsibility, females ran the household and the men took care of the farms, and a deep concern for Christian goodness. These old-fashioned values are still alive today. I can see many of the good values have been passed down to my nephews and niece. I believe they poses a sense of the importance of being responsible, of family loyalty, and sacrifice. Since the importance of moral values has not changed, why have so many people changed their views? Since the old ways were not broken, why did the generations in the 20th century need embrace so much irresponsibility? I am so happy to see that contemporary authors are coming out with books that help children to relate to others as they try to survive emotional problems. Since there seems to be a decline in the traditional values for the masses, hopefully children can learn from books strong positive character traits. As a society, we are challenged to respond to the plights of our civilization. As an educator, I am challenged to find modern books that will reach every child who is suffering in their own way. Children today have a different kind of suffering then the children had in the 17th century. Perhaps, a combination of the older books and the contemporary books would provide a greater range and present a balance that can help the sufferings of modern children.
Re: L.Marie I agree with what you said. I too am so glad the costs for making books is more affordable today. It is amazing to see how far they have come with illustrations over our lives even. I too learned a lot in this chapter and found it very informative.
In chapter 2 I was interested in the section on oral tradition. I grew up in an extended family that told stories at family gatherings. The same stories were repeated until another generation had them memorized. There were stories of relatives back in Swedon, covered wagons and building houses and making it through the depression and World War II and getting first jobs. My parents took the time in recent years to write down some of their stories for us. As well as family sotries, my parents recited and sang nursery rhymes. Recently, as part of a reading lesson I was supposed to lead a discussion of nursery rhymes. The only one the first graders knew was "Mary Had a Little Lamb." With busy parents I wonder if we are getting away from passing down the oral tradition of family stories and the nursery rhymes for preschoolers.
I didn't realize that there is such a short history of books written especially for children. I feel lucky to have had a childhood at a time when there were lots of children's books both at hme and at the library. I was surprised to learn that Heidi was published in 1880. I had a cute paperback of it in grade school so I though it was a new book!
I was surprised to learn in Chapter 2 that childhood has not always been considered a stage in life. I personally struggle to find history interesting, but with age have found the it can be interesting. I knew that children of lower class familys had to work but I never dreamed that childhood wasn't important. I was amazed to find that the verbal tales told around the campfire or village square where not create to teach and instruct the children of the village. This chapter made me appricate the progress that has been made in childrens literature. It was also interesting to me to learn about the progress of childrens literature and the attitudes towards children as it changed.
I have to agree with you TriciaS. There seem to be a lack in todays society when it come to values and morals. It is good to know that todays author have seen that and have tried to complensate for this lack. It just enforces the need to know the literture out there and avaliable for you and the students.
Luke, I was intereted in you talking about helping young adults select books. I run into middle school students who are required to read, but aren't finding books that interest them. I always feel bad when I don't have something to recommend that would match their interests. That needs to be my side project this semester. Chapter 3 talks about matching interests of the readers with the subjects of the books.
I am fascinated by the progression of childrens books. I thought that they were always around. I liked the idea of the hornbook (no ripped pages to tape). Now my girls have (card)Board books. I believe having them around is a good way to start children in reading. My kindergartner is now in an SFA reading program and brings home a book to read every night. She reads the words and sounds out the ones she can. I am proud of her.
Tricia- agree to what you said about finding books to reach our youth. I am greatful for the many types and topics of books that are available to help us teach our children.
Elizabeth, I agree that sometimes we seem to take for granted the oral storytelling tradition. I remember that as a young child I would sit for hours with my grandfather who would tell me all kinds of stories. Now as a kid it was for entertainment. But now that I am an adult I can think back and pull out the meaning behind the stories.
This was an interesting chapter to read. I guess I never really thought about the progression of children’s books. I love the idea of the horn book because it could be passed down from child to child and it would still be readable after several children. I thought that it was also interesting to see how many different people were so influential on early children’s literature.
Personally, I can not imagine living in a time when there were not the creative and stimulating books of today. I grew up with a love of literature and had my mind "sparked" by books of science fiction, adventure and fantasy. It was not only the words but also the illustrations that led to my love of drawing and creative expression as a child. It is very strange to think of a time when books like this did not exist and when children were without their own literature. Especially, since we now know so much about the importance of such literature in conveying ideas, attitudes, and cultures, as well as aiding in mental development. One piece of literature discussed in this Chapter was Louise May Alcott's Little Women. This book is special to me because when I was a little girl my dad would read a chapter of this book to me and my sister each night before we went to sleep. I remember idolizing the character “Jo” when hearing the novel, because she was so strong and sure of herself. She was not confined to the roles of women of her time. She had dreams and she was prepared to follow them despite adversity. I also greatly admired the loyalty and love between all of the family members in the book. It is interesting to think of how differently young women of the time may have viewed such a book. It is also interesting to think how children of the future will view books of the past as well as today. What will the children's literature of our time convey about our society and how we view and treat children?
Response to Lacy E.: I completely agree. I am also very excited to be reading all these fantastic children's books. It is interesting to think of how much children's literature has changed just in the past twenty some years, since I was a child. I like that the characters in books now are reflecting many of the issues that, I, myself experienced. Today when children are feeling alone all they have to do is pick up a book and I bet someone has written a story about how they experienced the same thing. That is so wonderful to me!
This chapter was so interesting. I have never really thought much about the history of literature. It is crazy to think that books used to be nonexistent. To me, children grow up way to fast these days, so I can't imagine how it was back in the beginning when they were pushed to grow up. Literature is so important to children, and it was so interesting to learn how the literature has progressed to today. The part of the chapter that really hit home was the beginning of literature, the oral tradition. My great grandmother had a very interesting life. She grew up on a farm and worked very hard just for food and shelter. I remember her sitting all of us great grandchildren down and telling stories. It was so much fun and I wanted to make sure that I never forgot them. My mom and I sat down and wrote down every story my grandma told us and gave copies to everyone in my family. It meant so much to everyone and they were very excited. This chapter was full of information about how literature has become what it is today. Literature started out geared towards adults and today, books teach so many lessons for children to grow up with. I love history and this way a new subject to learn about.
Reply to Laura C: I agree with you Laura. I think it is so sad to think of young children having to grow up so fast. I personally don't have children of my own yet, but I see my little cousins growing so fast and they can't wait to grow up. I believe literature helps children enjoy their childhood and make the most of it!
Reply to Luke S: I completely agree with you. I think children are doing things that I could never have even thought about doing. I think not only through books, but all types of media, respect to elders has been lost. I hope that as a teacher, we can reintroduce that very important character.
OMG look how far we have come! Just to think about how the first books were put together makes my eyes and head hurt. Our children just don’t have a clue. Looking at how the oral tradition of stories were handed down makes me wonder just how much different are that stories from when they were first told. Like the story of The Three Little Pig. They have two different variations for this story. Which one is the true one? I guess it would just be based on your culture and what you believe is to be the true one. I love reading Fairy Tales. My mind just wonders to that place while I’m reading that book. I like to read these books aloud to my two girls’ right before they go to bed. I like to think that it helps them to have happy dreams. Looking at what Anderson said about his life in Italy has prompted me to take a trip to the Romeo and Juliet house in Verona Italy. Literature can open so many doors to the field of education with teaching on so many subjects. I never knew that there were so many areas that can be taught. WOW! Tamika Merkison
Reply to Jolene This was a very good chapter to read. As I stated I never knew that the first books were mad that way. When I was growing up no one ever read to me, everything was just handed down. My how some things have stayed the same and some have change for the better.
After reading Chapter 2, I was amazed that books weren't initially made for children. It just amazes me that reading for children wasn't important back then. If they did have books, they were used just as textbooks. Also, I learned that one reason books weren't so accessible is because of the price of making them. I am glad times have changed and books are geared more toward children. Also, the prices have gone down. You can get some pretty good deals on books through Scholastic and other companies like them. I learned about some of the early illustrators. I think illustrators are sometimes not given enough credit. Their pictures either add or take away from the storyline. It is vital to have a great illustrator to go with a great author. This chapter was very informative, and I enjoyed learning about the history of children literature.
Robin, Your post is so true and hits home for me. My parents use to read to me every night as a child, and then we would make up our own stories that went along with the books. I can remember just waiting and waiting for evening to come, so we could learn what would happen next in the book. The two books I can remember the most are The Yearling and Wild Folk. As an adult now, I have both of those books. I have found with many of my students they don't know the art of storytelling and why it can be so rewarding. I think it is important as an teacher to try and incorporate this into our classrooms.
After reading Chapter 2, I realized that we are extremely blessed to have come this far in the technology of literature. At one point they could only copy a book by hand. Then, Johannes Gutenberg invented movable metal type. This allowed more copies of books to circulate and made it easier to educate children. Along with the printing of the book, the illustrations have come a long way. It started out that artists had to carve wood to create a picture. Once illustrators could draw their depiction on paper, the cost of producing fantastically colorful drawings was extremely high. Now, it has become tremendously cheaper to mass produce colorful books, artists have practically no limits as to their illustrations. I am so excited to see all of the new children’s books, since I was in elementary school! The books produced during the time I have been out of elementary school and in the future are going to have such bright, vivid illustrations!
ReplyDeleteI feel that often times we forgot how important oral stories are. The telling of stories is such an important past time for the history of books. So many great stories have come from listening to other people. Without this old past time, who knows where we would be in the world of literature. I never before realize how deep of a history that children literature has. I found the section on the future of children literature very interesting. It is interesting to see the some children books are just about getting you investment back and more. It is no longer becoming about the strength of the story of the book, or the illustrations that go along with these. I wonder how long this idea will continue to go on?
ReplyDeleteChapter 2: The History of Children’s Literature
ReplyDeleteLiterature has been around for decades and there have been so many notable authors that have brought so much adventure and learning into our world. However, after reading chapter 2, I was amaze to learn that at first, literature was not specifically written for children. It was only until children were viewed as part of the “human life cycle,” that children’s literature became important. This of course took place around the 14th century and has changed significantly since then. Also, in early times, children’s literature did not consist of the wide variety of books and stories like today. Instead, children’s literature included writings about society, its changes, family and social expectations. So serious!
I am so happy authors like Charles Perrault, Daniel Defoe and John Newberry began writing adventurous and fairy tales for children because I believe, as part of development, children should be able to dream and fantasize a little.
Over the years, children literature has changed, especially in formats, styles, illustrations and genres. Today, there are many more brilliant authors of children’s literature like Richard Peck, J.K. Rowling and Eric Carle, who have written wonderful stories for children, some with great valuable lessons that would remain with them throughout a lifetime.
I am so thankful that our generation, today, have so much choices. It demonstrates just how important literature is to children’s academic and social well beings.
CHAPTER 2
ReplyDeleteannmarie(betty)p
THE HISTORY OF CHILDREN'S LITERATURE
I learned quite a bit about the history of children's literature. It was interesting that children's literature as we know it is not that old. The earliest was through story telling that came down through generations.
With my own children, we have read many kids books and it was interesting to see how the Caldecot/Newberry Awards began. Many of the selections mentioned I have read to my children:Ugly Duckling, Red Shoes and Cinderella.
We were given many information but I have no questions at this time.
For someone into history this was the chapter for them to receive many different information. This chapter provides an excellent review and overview of the history of children's literature.
TO LACY E.
ReplyDeleteYou mention the illustration of Gutenbery, but I too were impressed with the illustration by Kate Greenaway with one of her early drawing. I loved how she incorporated the woman in the moon for the two little girls to see. Even if kids cannot read, they can look at the picture and predict what the story is about.
I had known that children, at certain points in history, were viewed as little adults, with no consideration to childhood. However, chapter 2 amazed me in seeing that, although there was no literature directed to children, they 'adopted' books as their own, using them to their advantage as an escape.
ReplyDeleteGrowing up, I absolutely loved Aesop's fables, but I had never known their origin from the oral tradition. It's amazing to try to think back that far and realize these same stories that entertained you as a child also entertained children hundreds of years ago! Another aspect of chapter 2 that I enjoyed was learning the origins of all the awards we will be reading in our reading logs. I didn't expect to learn about that (I'm not sure why), but it is a great surprise to know where the Newberry, Caldecott, Orbis Pictus....awards originated.
I was a little surprised by the text that it did not mention the more recent movement of sensitivity toward children. The more studies that are published, and the more we learn about the development of children, adults are more sensitive than ever to children. People today watch vigilantly over children, making sure there is no physical, emotional, or mental abuse, not to mention the stringent PC overtones in which our country believes.
Literature for children has changed dramatically over the centuries, especially the past 200 years. Amazingly, though, "Huckleberry Finn" is still a 'problem' for some groups. Considering the development of kids and them learning inappropriate things younger and younger, unloved content in such an amazing book from the 1800's seems to be a small issue, especially when you can turn this around as a lesson in the classroom. (I guess I've just noted that the book did mention recent sensitivity toward children without addressing it specifically.)
Lacy E--
ReplyDeleteYou make a great point about the cost of books today. Movable type and the printing press are possibly the most notable inventions to make our society more and more civilized as we are able to learn an incredible amount, due to books' inexpensive nature today. It's amazing to think or how much money people gave to have chapbooks hundreds of years ago, and today you can borrow books for free at the library, not to mention the amount of texts and books available today. I'm starting to feel a little lucky and spoiled...
Alison M,
ReplyDeleteI agree with you in the statement you made about how you were amazed that literature was not first written for children. It seems that children are so thirsty for knowledge, which I am sure is not any different than when books first began being published. Who better else is there to write books for? I do not understand how adults in history did not find it important to write books for children. The children are the world's future.
After reading Chapter 2 I know a lot more about the history of literature. I liked that the author linked oral traditions with literature. I feel we have,sadly, grown away from the traditions of storytelling. I think books are a wonderful thing and I treasure mine, but there is just something about a good storyteller. I now know the award winning books that we are to read and have began to look at children's books in a different light. I had no idea how many influences were behind children's literature. I have always loved to read for as long as I can remember. After reading this chapter I know what the history is to many of the books I read as a child. I think the most useful tool in the chapter is the evaluation criteria for choosing literature for young adults.
ReplyDeleteBetty,
ReplyDeleteIt did give us an enormous amount of information on books for different subjects. I think it helps to know what is influencing the books our kids are reading
Chapter 2 makes us realize how strong a book and its history really are. How many of our favorite stories traveled to us from the old campfire tales to a book. We went from the book teaching a child morals and lessons. To today the books help our children deal with divorce, death, and life. As the times change so do the stories we come to love and read. Yet the long ago fairy tales and magical stories still come out on top. Every kids loves to hear the tales of Mark Twain, Huckleberry Fin, Cinderalla,and Treasure Island to just name a few. The thing that changed the most seem to be the price of books. They use to pay a cent today we pay anywhere from ten to fifteen dollars. But as we learned in chapter 2 no matter what happens we will always long for books. Life just wouldn't be the same without books.
ReplyDeleteRobin,
ReplyDeleteI agree with you when you say that it's sad that we have ventured away from good old storytelling. My kids love to hear my mom, aunt, or grandma tell stories of their childhood. They seem so interested in what happened to them as they were growing up. A book is a book, but a story hold so much more.
Robin,
ReplyDeleteI agree that is sad that we have gone away from story telling. I think that is why I like the read alouds in our assignments. I think reading to children has become a form of story telling, so children are still being able to experience it, at least a little bit
From reading chapter 2 the one thing that I am impressed with is how far literature in terms of technology. When it first started it was all an oral tradition, now we can listen to stories read by actors on the internet. I thought that it was pretty amazing because I just listened to "Thank You, Mr. Falker" today. Also from reading the chapter it was interesting to see how the characteristics of books changed (The Child and the Family). In the early times (1856-1903) the books respected adult authoirity and had religous emphasis. Now a days in books adults are becoming less authoritarian. I think that you can see this not only in books but in the way some children act at school. Just from the time I was in elementary school to now, kids are doing and saying things that I would never have thought about doing or saying.
ReplyDeleteRe: Robin
ReplyDeleteI thought that two of the points you made in your post were good. The first one is about how we have gotten away from storytelling. The other point was about the evaluation criteria for chosing literature for young adults. I think this group is a group that needs something this this so it can help them to choose a genre or author to stick with and essentially enjoy reading more.
Chapter 2
ReplyDeleteThere has been a dramatic changed in history as far as our literature is concern. In this chapeter it teaches you about the history and where stories were orginated from. It is amazing that children still today like some of the same stories. Lots of kids today are much different than back in the earlier times. The generations has truly changed in our world today.
Luke I do understand. You are exactly right. With me working in an elementary school I get my feelings hurt all the time. I think we need to stick more to story telling. I personally like the read aloud. The students seem like they are more into listening instead of story telling.
ReplyDeleteElizabeth
ReplyDeleteThe past stories of history are important. People tend to not want to tell the stories oral anymore. Why I don't know. These could be stories that of history that kids will be able to cherish.
Robin,
ReplyDeleteYour post is so true and hits home for me. My parents use to read to me every night as a child, and then we would make up our own stories that went along with the books. I can remember just waiting and waiting for evening to come, so we could learn what would happen next in the book. The two books I can remember the most are The Yearling and Wild Folk. As an adult now, I have both of those books. I have found with many of my students they don't know the art of storytelling and why it can be so rewarding. I think it is important as an teacher to try and incorporate this into our classrooms.
After reading Chapter 2, I was amazed that books weren't initially made for children. It just amazes me that reading for children wasn't important back then. If they did have books, they were used just as textbooks. Also, I learned that one reason books weren't so accessible is because of the price of making them. I am glad times have changed and books are geared more toward children. Also, the prices have gone down. You can get some pretty good deals on books through Scholastic and other companies like them. I learned about some of the early illustrators. I think illustrators are sometimes not given enough credit. Their pictures either add or take away from the storyline. It is vital to have a great illustrator to go with a great author. This chapter was very informative, and I enjoyed learning about the history of children literature.
ReplyDeleteChapter 2:
ReplyDeleteI was amazed to learn that children haven’t had books written specifically for them, outside of textbooks, for very many years. It is neat to see that some of the original books published for children are still popular today. I didn’t realize how old some of the books that I love are, in terms of publishing date. It was very interesting to see how far we have progressed in this area in such a short span of history. This chapter really made me appreciate how large the variety of children’s books that I grew up with was. I strongly believe there is a large connection between the amount of reading done when you are young and your abilities in later school years. I can’t imagine how differently I would have developed if I had not found a love of reading early in life. The lists in this chapter were helpful for researching books to use in the classroom that would help teach children that even one hundred years ago, children faced many of the same problems that they do today. A lot of the historical information given in this chapter does not have direct classroom application, but is necessary for any teacher choosing literature to offer to young children.
L. Marie-
ReplyDeleteGood point about illustrators not being given enough credit. I agree that for children's book, the illustrations can make or break a story. They are important in helping children learn to love reading and to use their imaginations later in life when the books have no pictures.
Chapter-2 The History of Children's Literature
ReplyDeleteThat's intersting that way back then that books were not written for children. Children learn so much from reading books. It's interesting also that some of the books from the early 1900's are still read today, like The tale of Peter Rabbit, The Wind in the Willows, and Dr. Seuss, And to think that I saw it on Mulberry Street. It would be neat to read one from back then and read one today and compare them. My daughter loves the book from E.B. White-Charlotte's Web and it's on the chart of notable authors in 1952. She thought that was cool! It's very interesting reading the history of censorship.
LaceyE,
ReplyDeleteI agree with you about the illustrations. When you read to a child, they love at the pictures and some even try to imagine they are in the story. My daughters favorite book is the Very Hungry Catepillar by Eric Carle. We've read it over and over and now she is reading it to me (first grader). The pictures are beautiful!!
It was very interesting to learn about the history of children's literature. I thought it was very interesting to learn about how illustrations in book came about and how back in the day books were not written for children. It was also interesting to learn about poems and, adventure stories and fantasies and how they got started. My nieces and nephew love fantasy stories and they love pictures, they learn so much when i read to them or look at picture books with them. I couldn't imagine back in the day when they didn't have book for children. I though it was also pretty cool to learn about how the families would just sit around and tell stories to children, just make them up or tell storied that the parents were told growing up. My father did that when I was little and it was always fun to make the pictures to the story in your mind.
ReplyDeleteChapter two was full of information. It is amazing how far literature has come. I cannot imagine what life would be like if stories were still just told. It was nice to learn more about the history of literature. I didn't know much about Newbery, Locke or the Brothers Grimm. (I thought the Brothers Grimm was just a movie.) I remember talking about Hans Christian Anderson in elementary school. Even more incredible, my grandmother used to have a hornbook in her basement. I feel like learning the history of literature will make me more confident in my own classroom.
ReplyDeleteRE: Jessica,
ReplyDeleteI was also amazed by the history. I really get into history. I think it's interesting that I know now that there was a Victorian Era in both literature and architecture. My parents also used to tell us stories during dinner. They told personal stories of what it was like when they were growing up. My family is very large. My dad was one of nine children and I am one of eleven. There were many stories about family member and lesson we needed to learn.
When I began reading Chapter 2 in our textbook, honestly I thought I would be bored with the reading, but it turned out to be the complete opposite. It is so amazing to me how so many of the books we read today began so many years ago as a story told orally around a fire or a story passed down from generation to generation, maybe changing a little bit each time or not changing at all. It was hard for me to imagine living in a time where reading a book was not something that was encouraged for everyone. I don’t think I could live such an enjoyable life without the books I love so much to read. I guess I never really thought about books not being allowed in a society or not being made available to all children and adults. Another thing that I enjoyed reading about in Chapter 2, was learning about how early books were made, not the stories, but for instance, the “chapbooks” were impressive to me. What a wonderful idea it was to create the “chapbooks” since other books were too expensive for common people. This is the reason I believe the creation of public libraries is so wonderful, providing books for free to anyone, no matter what their financial status. I also found the chapter really interesting when it brought up the book Little Women by Louisa May Alcott. I believe that her book is one of my very favorites. I appreciate that this book was brought up in the chapter, because it is such a great book when referencing that particular era.
ReplyDeleteThe only question about the chapter I might have would be about the censorship. I would love to learn more about censorship of books and why some of them have been censored. Otherwise, I do not have any questions and thoroughly enjoyed this chapter.
Re: JodyB
ReplyDeleteIsn't it amazing how there are so many books out there today and yet, we still read the fairytales and folktales of so long ago. It really shows the lasting effect that books have on children and society in general. I loved how the chapter referenced so many titles that were written so long ago, yet they were books that I have read many times in the last couple years. Isn't it amazing?
Re: Alison M.
ReplyDeleteI agree with you when you said you believe children should be able to fantasize. It is vitally important in a child's development for them to be able to pretend and play out their dreams. I love watching children pretend and enjoy to learn how so much of their pretend play references stories that were read to them throughout their life.
Ch. 2 really opened my eyes and helped me to appreciate my European heritage. I am the third 3rd generation born in America, on my father’s side. My father still remembers the old German attitudes regarding children by the Grandparents on his father side, children are to be seen and not heard, and there should be respect for authority (1856-1903). His mother’s parents were ahead of their time. They were more tolerant and encouraging towards children, but still they maintained some of the old German views about the importance of accepting responsibility, females ran the household and the men took care of the farms, and a deep concern for Christian goodness.
ReplyDeleteThese old-fashioned values are still alive today. I can see many of the good values have been passed down to my nephews and niece. I believe they poses a sense of the importance of being responsible, of family loyalty, and sacrifice. Since the importance of moral values has not changed, why have so many people changed their views? Since the old ways were not broken, why did the generations in the 20th century need embrace so much irresponsibility?
I am so happy to see that contemporary authors are coming out with books that help children to relate to others as they try to survive emotional problems. Since there seems to be a decline in the traditional values for the masses, hopefully children can learn from books strong positive character traits.
As a society, we are challenged to respond to the plights of our civilization. As an educator, I am challenged to find modern books that will reach every child who is suffering in their own way. Children today have a different kind of suffering then the children had in the 17th century. Perhaps, a combination of the older books and the contemporary books would provide a greater range and present a balance that can help the sufferings of modern children.
Re: L.Marie
ReplyDeleteI agree with what you said. I too am so glad the costs for making books is more affordable today. It is amazing to see how far they have come with illustrations over our lives even. I too learned a lot in this chapter and found it very informative.
MeredithC says:
ReplyDeleteIn chapter 2 I was interested in the section on oral tradition. I grew up in an extended family that told stories at family gatherings. The same stories were repeated until another generation had them memorized. There were stories of relatives back in Swedon, covered wagons and building houses and making it through the depression and World War II and getting first jobs. My parents took the time in recent years to write down some of their stories for us. As well as family sotries, my parents recited and sang nursery rhymes. Recently, as part of a reading lesson I was supposed to lead a discussion of nursery rhymes. The only one the first graders knew was "Mary Had a Little Lamb." With busy parents I wonder if we are getting away from passing down the oral tradition of family stories and the nursery rhymes for preschoolers.
I didn't realize that there is such a short history of books written especially for children. I feel lucky to have had a childhood at a time when there were lots of children's books both at hme and at the library. I was surprised to learn that Heidi was published in 1880. I had a cute paperback of it in grade school so I though it was a new book!
I was surprised to learn in Chapter 2 that childhood has not always been considered a stage in life. I personally struggle to find history interesting, but with age have found the it can be interesting. I knew that children of lower class familys had to work but I never dreamed that childhood wasn't important. I was amazed to find that the verbal tales told around the campfire or village square where not create to teach and instruct the children of the village. This chapter made me appricate the progress that has been made in childrens literature. It was also interesting to me to learn about the progress of childrens literature and the attitudes towards children as it changed.
ReplyDeleteI have to agree with you TriciaS. There seem to be a lack in todays society when it come to values and morals. It is good to know that todays author have seen that and have tried to complensate for this lack. It just enforces the need to know the literture out there and avaliable for you and the students.
ReplyDeleteMeredithC says
ReplyDeleteLuke,
I was intereted in you talking about helping young adults select books. I run into middle school students who are required to read, but aren't finding books that interest them. I always feel bad when I don't have something to recommend that would match their interests. That needs to be my side project this semester. Chapter 3 talks about matching interests of the readers with the subjects of the books.
I am fascinated by the progression of childrens books. I thought that they were always around. I liked the idea of the hornbook (no ripped pages to tape). Now my girls have (card)Board books. I believe having them around is a good way to start children in reading.
ReplyDeleteMy kindergartner is now in an SFA reading program and brings home a book to read every night. She reads the words and sounds out the ones she can. I am proud of her.
Tricia- agree to what you said about finding books to reach our youth. I am greatful for the many types and topics of books that are available to help us teach our children.
ReplyDeleteElizabeth,
ReplyDeleteI agree that sometimes we seem to take for granted the oral storytelling tradition. I remember that as a young child I would sit for hours with my grandfather who would tell me all kinds of stories. Now as a kid it was for entertainment. But now that I am an adult I can think back and pull out the meaning behind the stories.
Jolene
This was an interesting chapter to read. I guess I never really thought about the progression of children’s books. I love the idea of the horn book because it could be passed down from child to child and it would still be readable after several children. I thought that it was also interesting to see how many different people were so influential on early children’s literature.
ReplyDeleteRE: To everyone
ReplyDeleteYou all did a great job! I guess we all learned something new from chapter 2.
Personally, I can not imagine living in a time when there were not the creative and stimulating books of today. I grew up with a love of literature and had my mind "sparked" by books of science fiction, adventure and fantasy. It was not only the words but also the illustrations that led to my love of drawing and creative expression as a child. It is very strange to think of a time when books like this did not exist and when children were without their own literature. Especially, since we now know so much about the importance of such literature in conveying ideas, attitudes, and cultures, as well as aiding in mental development. One piece of literature discussed in this Chapter was Louise May Alcott's Little Women. This book is special to me because when I was a little girl my dad would read a chapter of this book to me and my sister each night before we went to sleep. I remember idolizing the character “Jo” when hearing the novel, because she was so strong and sure of herself. She was not confined to the roles of women of her time. She had dreams and she was prepared to follow them despite adversity. I also greatly admired the loyalty and love between all of the family members in the book. It is interesting to think of how differently young women of the time may have viewed such a book. It is also interesting to think how children of the future will view books of the past as well as today. What will the children's literature of our time convey about our society and how we view and treat children?
ReplyDeleteResponse to Lacy E.:
ReplyDeleteI completely agree. I am also very excited to be reading all these fantastic children's books. It is interesting to think of how much children's literature has changed just in the past twenty some years, since I was a child. I like that the characters in books now are reflecting many of the issues that, I, myself experienced. Today when children are feeling alone all they have to do is pick up a book and I bet someone has written a story about how they experienced the same thing. That is so wonderful to me!
This chapter was so interesting. I have never really thought much about the history of literature. It is crazy to think that books used to be nonexistent. To me, children grow up way to fast these days, so I can't imagine how it was back in the beginning when they were pushed to grow up. Literature is so important to children, and it was so interesting to learn how the literature has progressed to today. The part of the chapter that really hit home was the beginning of literature, the oral tradition. My great grandmother had a very interesting life. She grew up on a farm and worked very hard just for food and shelter. I remember her sitting all of us great grandchildren down and telling stories. It was so much fun and I wanted to make sure that I never forgot them. My mom and I sat down and wrote down every story my grandma told us and gave copies to everyone in my family. It meant so much to everyone and they were very excited. This chapter was full of information about how literature has become what it is today. Literature started out geared towards adults and today, books teach so many lessons for children to grow up with. I love history and this way a new subject to learn about.
ReplyDeleteReply to Laura C:
ReplyDeleteI agree with you Laura. I think it is so sad to think of young children having to grow up so fast. I personally don't have children of my own yet, but I see my little cousins growing so fast and they can't wait to grow up. I believe literature helps children enjoy their childhood and make the most of it!
Reply to Luke S:
ReplyDeleteI completely agree with you. I think children are doing things that I could never have even thought about doing. I think not only through books, but all types of media, respect to elders has been lost. I hope that as a teacher, we can reintroduce that very important character.
OMG look how far we have come! Just to think about how the first books were put together makes my eyes and head hurt. Our children just don’t have a clue.
ReplyDeleteLooking at how the oral tradition of stories were handed down makes me wonder just how much different are that stories from when they were first told. Like the story of The Three Little Pig. They have two different variations for this story. Which one is the true one? I guess it would just be based on your culture and what you believe is to be the true one.
I love reading Fairy Tales. My mind just wonders to that place while I’m reading that book. I like to read these books aloud to my two girls’ right before they go to bed. I like to think that it helps them to have happy dreams. Looking at what Anderson said about his life in Italy has prompted me to take a trip to the Romeo and Juliet house in Verona Italy.
Literature can open so many doors to the field of education with teaching on so many subjects. I never knew that there were so many areas that can be taught.
WOW!
Tamika Merkison
Reply to Jolene
ReplyDeleteThis was a very good chapter to read. As I stated I never knew that the first books were mad that way. When I was growing up no one ever read to me, everything was just handed down. My how some things have stayed the same and some have change for the better.
After reading Chapter 2, I was amazed that books weren't initially made for children. It just amazes me that reading for children wasn't important back then. If they did have books, they were used just as textbooks. Also, I learned that one reason books weren't so accessible is because of the price of making them. I am glad times have changed and books are geared more toward children. Also, the prices have gone down. You can get some pretty good deals on books through Scholastic and other companies like them. I learned about some of the early illustrators. I think illustrators are sometimes not given enough credit. Their pictures either add or take away from the storyline. It is vital to have a great illustrator to go with a great author. This chapter was very informative, and I enjoyed learning about the history of children literature.
ReplyDeleteRobin,
ReplyDeleteYour post is so true and hits home for me. My parents use to read to me every night as a child, and then we would make up our own stories that went along with the books. I can remember just waiting and waiting for evening to come, so we could learn what would happen next in the book. The two books I can remember the most are The Yearling and Wild Folk. As an adult now, I have both of those books. I have found with many of my students they don't know the art of storytelling and why it can be so rewarding. I think it is important as an teacher to try and incorporate this into our classrooms.
I rthink that Adpen did a grea about how books started as stories around the campfire.
ReplyDelete