ENG 215‐003: Children’s Literature Fall 2011 Monroe Community College The Children’s War Victims Monument – Lidice, the Czech Republic ENG 215‐003: Children’s Literature Table of Contents Course Information 4‐12 Course Information Sheet Course Calendar 4‐9 10‐12 13‐36 13‐22 23 24 25‐28 29 30‐32 33‐36 37‐50 General Resources MLA Formatting Assumptions about Children Assumptions about Children’s Literature Fairy Tale Chart Determining Genre Genre Evaluation Criteria Plot Overview Written Response Assignments Written Responses #1: Once Upon a Time, Before Children Were Children #2: Sambo’s Sad History #3: Lessons Learned on the Prairie #4: To Burn or Not to Burn #5: Giving The Giver’s Language Some Thought #6: Is Terrible Things Terrible? #7: The Power of Pajamas #8: How Is One to Tell a Tale #9: The Man Behind the Curtain #10: All Marketing and No Substance Makes Children’s Books… 37 38 39‐41 42 43 44 45‐46 47 48 49 50 Paper Options Paper Audience Expectations Option #1: The History of Children’s Literature Option #2: Controversial Children’s Literature Option #3: Children’s Literature of the Holocaust Option #4: Children’s Book Publishing 2
51‐55 51 52 53 54 55 ENG 215: Children’s Literature Fall 2011 Section #003: Instructor: Phone: Office: E‐mail: Web: T/Th, 12:30‐1:50pm Regina Fabbro 292‐3464 5‐541 rfabbro@monroecc.edu http://web.monroecc.edu/rfabbro Office Hours: T/Th, 2‐3pm Mailbox: English/Phil. Office (5‐532) Course Description “A survey of classic and contemporary children's works from Aesop to Rowling. Students will analyze a variety of different genres such as fables, poems, myths, fairy tales, picture books, and novels with themes such as evil, escape, individuality, and the demands of society. Critical approaches such as historical, psychological, feminist, and Marxist theories may be discussed and applied to texts.” ‐‐ MCC Catalog & Student Handbook When, if ever, is it inappropriate to approach a subject through fiction? Who decides when our use of story is acceptable and what might an unacceptable story look like? How have children and children’s books been viewed in the past? And are we genuinely trying to give children worthy, rewarding literature today or are we training them to see books simply as things to buy? In an attempt to respond to these questions and others, we will read, discuss, and write about a number of literary works from different genres (historical fiction, fantasy, etc.) and periods (from ancient oral tales to contemporary publications). Through discussion, group work, and brief lectures, we’ll investigate both traditional and more unconventional methods of approaching children’s literature. We’ll also trace its history and attempt to gauge its future course. Terminology common in literary analysis will be discussed and used and we’ll consider the treatment of several themes present in children’s literature. Course Outcomes Successful completion of this course will reflect your ability to:  Demonstrate an understanding of the historical development of children’s literature.  Demonstrate an understanding of the literary genres within children’s literature.  Demonstrate literary analysis of various children’s works from an academic perspective.  Demonstrate an understanding of the global socio‐cultural concept of child as paralleled to children’s literature. 3
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Produce 3 papers (totaling approximately 2250 words) and written assignments (totaling approximately 2500 words) that emphasize 1) the history of children’s literature, 2) an understanding of the socio‐cultural concept of “child” as it exists today and how the development of this concept has influenced children’s literature, 3) the complex cultural and scholarly conversations regarding selections of topics, genres, and writing styles for children’s literature, and 4) the complex cultural and scholarly conversations regarding children’s book publishing. Produce 3 papers and written assignments that respond to the arguments of children’s literature scholars. Produce 3 papers and written assignments that consider multiple meanings in and approaches to children’s literature. Required Texts Boyne, John. The Boy in the Striped Pajamas. Bunting, Eve. Terrible Things: An Allegory of the Holocaust. Hacker, Diana. A Pocket Style Manual. (5th edition w/2009 MLA update) Lester, Julius. Sam and the Tigers. Lowry, Lois. The Giver. Snicket, Lemony. The Bad Beginning. Tatar, Maria. The Classic Fairy Tales. (Norton Critical) Wilder, Laura Ingalls. Little House on the Prairie. 2 series books (needed only if you select the last paper option – I recommend you check these out from a library rather than purchasing them) Required Materials 
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Notebook/paper for in‐class notes and writings Folder to store handouts A college dictionary and thesaurus Blue or black pens—work in pencil is not accepted A working MCC e‐mail address that is checked at least twice per week & a willingness to help classmates who e‐mail you with questions about the class Access to the web (Brighton Campus, 11‐106 or Damon Campus, 4‐071) A public library card & a willingness to use it 4
Course & College Policies Course Readings:  Buy all of the books for our class immediately. The bookstore will begin sending books back to publishers before our course ends, and you are always expected to bring assigned texts with you to class.  Since our classes will involve lots of discussion and reflection on the assigned readings, it’s very important that you come to each class having read the material. I recommend that you start reading the novels as soon as possible—these will probably take more time to read and really digest.  Read actively! Make lists of characters and their dominant traits & attitudes, summarize chapters, and jot down questions you have about the plot as you make your way through a book or story.  Critical texts, or “secondary” pieces, will require several readings in order to fully understand the specific arguments offered in each. Plan ahead and make time to read these actively and as often as necessary for you to feel comfortable with them.  While I certainly don’t mind if you save a few bucks and find used or cheap copies of class texts, make sure that you’re getting a full, unabridged (un‐shortened) version of each. You can also borrow copies from your local public library, but keep in mind that you’ll need these books for several weeks at a time and should feel comfortable writing and underlining in the copy you use (librarians hate this kind of thing).  Do not plan on returning any of the course texts before the last day of class (this is a great rule of thumb for all courses). E‐Mail: Assignments, papers, or other attached documents will not be accepted via e‐mail. While I will happily respond to any e‐mails you send within a reasonable amount of time, don’t plan on sending your work to me this way. It is your responsibility to check your MCC e‐mail account at least twice per week – no exceptions. I often send class information this way, including extra credit opportunities and helpful links, and you may receive e‐mails from classmates with questions you can answer. Remember that becoming part of this class means accepting that classmates may contact you for help. You may check your e‐mail while on campus, too (11‐106). If you experience problems with your account, contact the help desk at 292‐2555. Readings: Some assigned readings listed on the course calendar are located in Angel in pdf format. You can access these readings from any computer with an Internet connection and a copy of Adobe Acrobat Reader (visit http://get.adobe.com/reader for a free copy if necessary). Be sure to print a copy of each reading to bring to class! Late Work: For all assignments and papers, an item is late the moment our class has ended. Some assignments are accepted late with a penalty, while others are not. It is your responsibility to carefully and thoroughly read this course pack to familiarize yourself with the specific late policy for each assignment. 5
Attendance: Be here. Without regular class attendance, it will be impossible for you to do well in this course. There will plenty of information from brief lectures, which you’ll need to do well on assignments and papers, and there may be changes made to the course calendar and assigned readings—be sure to bring a notebook for class notes and review it often! Keep in mind the following policies regarding attendance:  MCC mandates that attendance be taken to keep track of those students with financial aid. I’ll pass around an attendance sheet at some point during class. It is always your responsibility to sign in; failing to do so means you will be counted as absent.  If you miss classes you will almost certainly miss in‐class assignments or quizzes, too. These cannot be made up and count toward 20% of your final grade.  Late arrivals are unacceptable, since they interrupt the work of the class. If you arrive and the door to our class is closed, do not enter. No matter what the reason for your tardiness, one individual’s issues never take priority over our class community. You’ll have to take an absence for the day.  I teach each class one time and one time only. If you miss class, don’t plan on calling or e‐
mailing me to ask, “What did I miss?” You won’t get much information. Instead, refer to the class contact list handed out at the beginning of the semester; it lists each classmate’s MCC e‐mail address. You’ll need to be willing and able to both ask others for help and give classmates information when they contact you for it. Should you miss class and need to get handouts, check the folder outside my office door. Handouts from class will be stored there for 2 weeks, depending on the number of handouts. Due to their size, you will need to visit me during office hours to obtain a copy after that time. Withdrawing: The last day to withdraw is listed on the course calendar. While I never enjoy losing students, I do strongly urge you to drop or withdraw from the class if you miss four or more classes. If you stop attending altogether, it is still your responsibility to withdraw formally through the Office of Records & Registration. I reserve the right to withdraw any student who misses four or more classes, though you may also simply receive a failing grade. If you don’t want to take the chance of receiving a failing grade, be sure to withdraw yourself. Similarly, if you miss four or more classes and don’t want to be withdrawn, get in touch with me as soon as possible or know that I’ll decide your fate in our class without you. Paper & Response Formatting Guidelines: Papers must 1) be typed or word‐processed, 2) be double‐spaced, 3) have equal 1” margins on all sides, 4) use only black ink and white 8½” x 11” paper, 5) use a standard font, such as Times New Roman, in 12 pt. size, 6) follow all MLA standard guidelines, and 7) be spell‐checked and edited properly for grammar and punctuation. Plagiarism: Plagiarism is the use of another author’s words or original meaning without properly crediting that author. This can be done through 1) outright cheating, in which a person knowingly steals another’s work (through borrowing, purchasing, etc.) and submits it under his or her own name, 2) non attribution, in which a person uses passages copied directly from the work of another without providing quotation marks, a bibliographic reference, and parenthetical entry, or 3) patchwriting, in which passages are borrowed from another author—passages are not copied exactly; instead, the meaning is borrowed and the author is unacknowledged through both 6
bibliographic reference and parenthetical citation. All suspected cases of plagiarism will result in a private conference with me and a failing grade in the course. Online Book Summaries, Reviews, & Analyses: If you spend just a few minutes searching, you’ll know doubt come upon many sites (SparkNotes, Cliff’s Notes) that offer information about several of our class texts. These barely scratch the surface, of course (they’re meant to be used by everyone from an 8th grader to a college student, after all), so you will be expected to move far beyond the analysis provided by such an online resource. Additionally, keep in mind that if you’ve located an online resource, it’s likely that I have, too. Review the section above on plagiarism and be sure you fully understand the expectations regarding use of any source’s ideas. Above all else, remember that I am looking for your ideas about our class texts! Make good use of each opportunity to prove that you’re fully engaged with course material. Learning Centers: MCC has a number of Learning Centers at Brighton (e.g., Accounting, Math, Psychology, Writing, the Electronic Learning Center, etc.) and at Damon (e.g., the Integrated Learning Center, Electronic Learning Center, etc.). Learning centers are staffed with instructional personnel and may be equipped with computers and software to assist students. MCC recommends that students use the Learning Centers to get additional help with concepts learned in the classroom and with their homework. Emergency Closings & Class Cancellations: If the College is closed due to inclement weather or some other emergency, all Rochester area radio and television stations will be notified no later than 5:30 a.m. In addition, the homepage on the MCC website (www.monroecc.edu) will display a message indicating the College is closed. Please do not call the College to avoid overloading the telephone lines. Class cancellation information is available daily on the web or through the telephone. Simply go to the MCC website (www.monroecc.edu) and under the “Quick Links” window on the homepage, click on “Class Cancellations.” Class cancellation information is also available by dialing 292‐2066; press “1” for the Brighton Campus and “2” for the Damon Campus. If possible, please use the web as there could be delays in the voice recordings based on the number of cancellations. Additionally, your MCC e‐mail account will receive a message if I should cancel class in an emergency situation. Grading Policy Papers: There will be 4 paper options offered during this semester, and you must select 3 (and only 3) of these to pass the course. There are no additional points given if you complete all 4 assignments, nor is it possible to complete all 4 papers with the lowest score dropped; the additional paper simply will not be evaluated, so plan accordingly and read the assignments in advance! Papers will focus on the themes and texts for each of the 4 course units. Each will be 3‐4 pages in length, each will be graded on a 100‐point scale, and each will be worth 20% of your final grade. Additionally, each must follow the requirements specified in the paper assignment area of this course pack; remember to pay close attention to all “Audience Expectations.” All papers must 7
comply with the paper formatting guidelines listed above. See the course calendar for specific due dates. Late papers will be accepted only one class period late (see “Late Work” above) and will lose 10 points. Assignments: Throughout the semester, there may be a variety of in‐class writing opportunities, group work assignments, quizzes, and/or homework assignments (including the written responses listed on the course calendar) based on the course readings and class discussions. All homework must comply with the paper formatting guidelines listed above. Each assignment or quiz will be graded on a 10‐point scale; when combined, they are worth 20% of your final grade. These assignments may occur during the first fifteen minutes of class; since late arrivals are unacceptable (see “Attendance” above), if you’re late, you may miss these opportunities, which cannot be made up—no exceptions! Keep in mind that quizzes may be unannounced – be sure to review your class notes frequently and do the assigned readings! Some assignments are accepted late with a penalty, while others are not. It is your responsibility to carefully and thoroughly read this course pack to familiarize yourself with the specific late policy for each assignment. Submitting Papers & Written Responses: All papers and written responses must be submitted online via the Angel Course Management System. Angel currently supports Internet Explorer 7 or higher and Mozilla Firefox 2.0 or higher. To log in, head to http://monroecc.sln.suny.edu. Your username is your full MCC e‐mail address (e.g. rfabbro@monroecc.edu), and your password is your MCC e‐mail password. Upon logging in, you’ll see a list of your fall semester courses on the left. Click into our course, select the “Learning Modules” tab at the top, and then click on the specific assignment you’re submitting. NOTE: Papers and written responses must be submitted as “doc”, “docx”, or “rtf” files. Work submitted in other formats will not be graded and will receive zeroes. Be sure you’re fully comfortable and confident with the submission process early on to avoid painful late hour attempts…and failures. Scores for and feedback on submissions will be posted in Angel, as well. Use the “Report” tab at the top of our course to access yours. While you will be able to view your scores for papers and written responses via Angel’s gradebook feature, your participation score and other components of the “Assignments” portion of your final grade will not be viewable via Angel. Technology Problems: Should you experience any technical problems with your computer or our course, you must contact the SLN HelpDesk (http://sln.suny.edu/sln_helpdesk.htm or 1‐800‐875‐6269) for assistance. Please understand that I do not have the technical training or know‐how to solve any such problems. I strongly urge you to locate a secondary computer by which you might access our course in an emergency! By definition, an emergency takes us by surprise – the only way to cope with these situations is to prepare, no matter how new your computer or how stable your connection. Public libraries, for example, are great back‐up options since they offer online access. The Brighton and Damon campuses both have Electronic Learning Centers with accessible computers. Check with neighbors, family members, or friends, too, to locate a second option for yourself well in advance of your first submission! 8
Participation: Because so much of our time together will be spent discussing, it’s important that you feel comfortable participating regularly. That means you’ll be expected to meaningfully contribute to class discussions and group work. Some of us are natural gabbers and others fear speaking in groups more than anything else. For those of you who feel comfortable speaking, remember to share time with classmates so we can benefit from everyone’s ideas. For those of you who don’t like public speaking, try your best to overcome your fears – your ideas are valuable and welcome here! Should you have serious trouble participating in class, come and participate during my office hours; sometimes students feel more comfortable discussing class material one‐on‐one. If at the end of the semester I find that you have not contributed sufficiently to our class or that you have adopted an insulting or demeaning tone, your overall level and quality of participation will certainly affect your final grade. The opposite is also true – positive participation will be rewarded. Participation is worth 20% of your final grade and can significantly change your grade. A Word About Respect: Most of our time in class will be spent discussing. Because we’ll be sharing lots of ideas and opinions with each other, some basic ground rules for civility should be noted. If you endorse a prejudice based on ethnic, religious, national or cultural origin, sexual preference, gender, physical handicaps, social class, or political preference, leave it at the door. Those who violate this request will be asked to leave. We want to generate light through our discussions, not heat. Work Percentage Value 3 Papers (worth 20% each) 60% Assignments 20% Participation 20% 9
COURSE CALENDAR (subject to change during the semester) ** assignments & readings are due on the date they are listed ** there WILL be assignments announced in class T, 09/06 Introductions THE HISTORY OF CHILDREN’S LITERATURE Th, 09/08 Read: Course pack (be sure that you’re familiar with it in its entirety!) Read: The Classic Fairy Tales, “Little Red Riding Hood,” pg. 3‐24 (you do not need to read “The False Grandmother” or “Goldflower and the Bear”) T, 09/13 Read: The Classic Fairy Tales, “The Concept of Childhood and Children’s Folk Tales: Test Case—‘Little Red Riding Hood’,” by Zohar Shavit, pg. 317‐32 Written Response #1 Due Th, 09/15 Read: The Classic Fairy Tales, “Hansel and Gretel,” pg. 179‐211 (you do not need to read “The Rose‐Tree” or “Pippety Pew”) T, 09/20 Continuing work with “Hansel and Gretel” Th, 09/22 Read: The Classic Fairy Tales, “Cinderella,” pg. 101‐137 (you do not need to read “Yeh‐hsien,” “The Story of the Black Cow,” Lin Lan’s “Cinderella,” or “The Princess in the Suit of Leather”) CONTROVERSIAL CHILDREN’S BOOKS T, 09/27 Paper Option #1 Due Th, 09/29 Read: “The Story of Little Black Sambo” (online – visit http://web.monroecc.edu/rfabbro, select ENG 215, then “Children’s Lit Readings”) Sam and the Tigers Written Response #2 Due 10
T, 10/04 Th, 10/06 T, 10/11 Th, 10/13 Continuing work with “The Story of Little Black Sambo” Read: Little House on the Prairie (be sure you’re ready to discuss the entire text) Written Response #3 Due Read: Chapter from Should We Burn Babar? by Herbert Kohl (located in Angel) Written Response #4 Due T, 10/18 Read: The Giver (be sure you’re ready to discuss the entire text) Written Response #5 Due Th, 10/20 Continuing work with The Giver T, 10/25 Continuing work with The Giver CHILDREN’S LITERATURE OF THE HOLOCAUST Th, 10/27 Paper Option #2 Due Read: From Trust No Fox: “The Eternal Jew,” “Once a Jew, Always a Jew,” and any story that includes “Don’t trust a fox on the greensward, And never a Jew on his plighted word” (online at http://www.calvin.edu/academic/cas/gpa/ww2era.htm) T, 11/01 Read: Terrible Things: An Allegory of the Holocaust Written Response #6 Due Th, 11/03 Read: The Boy in the Striped Pajamas (be sure you’re ready to discuss the entire text) Written Response #7 Due T, 11/08 Read: Selection from And the Sea Is Never Full, by Elie Wiesel (located in Angel) Written Response #8 Due 11
Th, 11/10 Continuing work with The Boy in the Striped Pajamas CHILDREN’S BOOK PUBLISHING & SERIES BOOKS T, 11/15 Paper Option #3 Due Th, 11/17 Read: The Bad Beginning (be sure you’re ready to discuss the entire text) T, 11/22 Written Response #9 Due W, 11/23 Last Day to Withdraw from Classes! Th, 11/24 No Classes – Happy Thanksgiving! T, 11/29 Read: The Classic Fairy Tales, “The Struggle for Meaning,” pg. 269‐273 Th, 12/01 “Frontline: The Merchants of Cool” viewed in class T, 12/06 Continuing work with “Frontline: The Merchants of Cool” Th, 12/08 Read: “Children’s Book Publishing in Neoliberal Times,” by Daniel Hade (located in Angel) Written Response #10 Due T, 12/13 Continuing work with “Children’s Book Publishing in Neoliberal Times” Th, 12/15 Paper Option #4 Due 12
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Assumptions about Children: Children have limited understanding and short attention spans. These are inescapable aspects of childlike thinking and inherent in human development, which proceeds throughout childhood in clear stages. At any given stage, a child is capable of understanding only a certain amount. Children are innocent by nature, blissfully naive and inherently good. They can’t really understand what evil is or what sexuality is. Children are emotionally vulnerable, easily upset, and often permanently damaged by exposure to ugly or painful matters. They respond to depictions of evil or deprivation not by becoming evil but by having nightmares, or even by developing permanent neuroses. Children are inherently wild—born animal‐like and not yet disciplined or cajoled into understanding the need for law, order, and self‐control that keeps people safe and sane in their dealings with one another. Exposing children to evil or violence in books merely encourages their most basic, most unfortunate, and most uncontrollable tendencies Although neither inherently innocent nor inherently wild, children are nevertheless not yet fully formed. They are pliable and, therefore, highly suggestible, and they are prone to dangerous experimentation. They respond to depictions of violence by becoming violent themselves. Conversely, thank goodness, they also respond to depictions of good by becoming good. Children will become whatever they read about. Any or all of the above happen because children are egocentric. They assume that whatever they read is somehow actually about them—about who they are or who they ought to be. And they aren’t interested in matters outside their own immediate experience. They dislike stories about people different from them living in places unlike their own. On the other hand, though, children are highly imaginative. The adults in their lives have not yet persuaded them that there’s only one version of truth—the one adults call reality. There's a direct connection between childlike thinking, imagination, fantasy, and creativity. Or maybe there isn’t. Children are inherently conservative. They have a basic dislike for thinking and learning, for experiencing anything different from what they know and like already. To teach them anything, adults have to make learning fun. Without spoonfuls of sugar, the medicine will be rejected. Although all children are childlike, boys are different from girls. Children are inherently gendered—boys are boyish and girls girlish from birth. A child’s gender determines his or her activities, interests, and tastes. 23
Assumptions about Children’s Literature: The best children’s stories have simple texts, bright, colorful pictures, and happy endings. Books that are too long or too difficult frustrate children, and may even destroy their interest in literature and reading. In choosing children’s books, the most important thing to consider is the age of the children they are chosen for. The books that five‐year‐old children enjoy and can understand are different from the books that three‐year‐olds or seven‐year‐olds prefer; therefore, adults should choose books appropriate to a child’s age. Children respond with delight to fantasies—particularly stories about animals who act like humans. Children like books they can relate to: stories about typical childhood experiences. Boys like stories about boys, and girls like stories about girls. And children in general are unlikely to be interested in reading about—or even capable of understanding—certain aspects of experience that belong exclusively to adult life, such as sexuality or the boredom of daily life in the workplace. If they are interested in such matters, they shouldn’t be. Children’s stories shouldn’t describe unacceptable behavior, such as violence or rudeness or immorality, that readers might choose to imitate. Children’s stories should also not contain depictions of frightening things that might scare them. Children’s stories should contain positive role models: characters who act in acceptable ways and are rewarded for it. Good children’s books teach valuable lessons about life but do so unobtrusively. They make learning fun. Nodelman, Perry and Mavis Reimer. The Pleasures of Children’s Literature. 3rd ed. Boston: Allyn and Bacon, 2003. 24
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DETERMINING GENRE OF FICTION
NO
KNOWN AUTHOR?
TRADITIONAL
original
Examples include myths, folksongs,
author/storyteller is fables, parables, Proverbs, Psalms, Bible
unknown ("translated stories, legends, epics, tall tales, urban
by," "as told by," etc.)
legends, nursery rhymes, fairy tales
YES
ARE LAWS OF
NATURE VIOLATED?
YES
FANTASY
Could happen but unlikely; NOT stories
about one fantasizing
NO
IS STORY SET
BEFORE 1949?
YES
HISTORICAL FICTION
Determined by text and illustrations; can
contain real life, BUT no single life can
dominate
NO
CONTEMPORARY
REALISTIC FICTION
Doing what comes naturally -- everyday
life; serious issue stories -- death,
illness, child abuse, segregation; humor
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Genre Evaluation Criteria Criteria for Evaluating Traditional Literature—Fables1 1. Is there a message or moral, whether implied or stated? 2. Does the fable contain few characters, each reflecting one main quality? 3. Are any characters, animate or inanimate, personified? 4. Is there a brief though interesting plot? 5. Does the story reflect human strengths, weaknesses, and imperfections? Criteria for Evaluating Traditional Literature—Myths and Legends1 1. Does the tale reflect the customs, values, and beliefs of the culture from which it originated? 2. Is there an explanation for natural phenomena, the origins of life, or human behavior? 3. Are the origins of social or religious customs explained? 4. Does the tale contain action, suspense, and conflict? 5. Is the story entertaining without requiring a prior knowledge of mythological or legendary characters and events? 6. Is the setting appropriate for the plot? 7. Will the tale help the reader better understand human vulnerabilities and strengths? 8. Does the story provide lessons for life? 9. Does it stimulate the reader's imagination? Criteria for Evaluating Traditional Literature—Folk Tales1 1. Is the plot suspenseful and fast‐moving? 2. Is the setting timeless, one that can occur anywhere or at any time? 3. Is the sequence of events easy to follow? 4. Is the problem described in a simple and direct fashion? 5. Can a child identify with the characters? 6. Does the conclusion immediately follow the climax and reflect a logical outcome? 7. Is there repetition, either of responses or situations? 8. Is it entertaining? 9. Does the story provide an outlet for the expression of feelings? 10. Does the story express universal values? 30
Criteria for Evaluating Fantasy2 1. Does the author encourage the reader to suspend disbelief by developing a point of view that is consistent in every detail, including sights, feelings, and physical reactions? 2. If several time periods are developed, are the settings authentic and an integral part of the story? 3. Is there careful attention to the details in the setting? Do these details reflect the point of view? 4. Does the author use an appropriate language or create a believable language that represents the characterization in the story? 5. How does the author’s characterization allow children to suspend disbelief? Do characters begin in a real world before they travel to the world of fantasy? Does a believable character accept a fanciful world, characters, or happenings? Is every action consistent with the framework developed by the author? 6. Is the theme worthwhile for children? Criteria for Evaluating Historical Fiction2 1. Is the setting authentic in every detail? 2. Are details integrated into the story so that they do not overwhelm the reader or detract from the story? 3. If the setting is the antagonist, are the relationships between characters and setting clearly developed? 4. Do the characters’ actions express values and beliefs that are realistic for the time period? 5. Is the language authentic for the period without relying on so many colorful terms or dialect that the story is difficult to understand? 6. Do the experiences, the conflicts, and the characters’ resolutions of conflicts reflect what is known about the time period? 7. Is the theme worthwhile? Criteria for Evaluating Contemporary Realistic Fiction2 1. The content should be honestly presented; sensationalizing and capitalizing on the novelty of the subject should be avoided. 2. Contemporary realistic fiction should expose those personal and social values central to our culture, while revealing, at the same time, how the overt expression of those values may have changed. 31
3. The story should allow the reader to draw personal conclusions from evidence; the personal intelligence of the reader should be respected. 4. Realistic fiction should recognize that today’s readers are in the process of growing toward adult sophistication. 5. The language and syntax should help to reveal the background and nature of characters and situations. 6. Contemporary realistic fiction should be written in a hopeful key; it should communicate in an honest way that there is hope in the world. Criteria for Evaluating Poetry2 1. Poems that are lively, with exciting meters and rhymes, are most likely to appeal to young children. 2. Poems for young children should emphasize the sounds of language and encourage play with words. 3. Sharply cut visual images and words used in fresh, novel manners allow children to expand their imaginations and see or hear the world in a new way. 4. Poems for young children should tell simple stories and introduce stirring scenes of action. 5. The poems selected should not have been written down to children’s supposed level. 6. The most effective poems allow children to interpret, to feel, and to put themselves into the poems. They encourage children to extend comparisons, images, and findings. 7. The subject matter should delight children, say something to them, enhance their egos, strike happy recollections, tickle their funny bones, or encourage them to explore. 8. Poems should be good enough to stand up under repeated readings. 1
Rothlein, Liz, and Anita Meyer Meinbach. The World of Books: Discovering Good Literature. HarperCollins,
1996.
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Norton, Donna. Through the Eyes of a Child: an Introduction to Children’s Literature. Merrill Prentice Hall, 2003.
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