Middle School Literature via Picture Books

[alisha]

I'm working on my 7th graders literature for next year, and thought it might be nice to do some faster reads with longer, meaningful picture books. I've seen a few blog posts about teaching the literary devices or something via picture books but can't seem to find them again. What do you know of that is for middle school age, but uses picture books to teach literature? Preferably a unit or two type of thing, but I would look at a whole years' worth if it's out there and pull what I want. Either how to teach literature with picture books, or just a list of good literature picture books would work also. Thanks!

Edited May 25, 2022 by alisha

[Miss Tick]

I did something similar in '20/21, once a week with a couple of middle school girls to look at literary devices. We notebooked it based on the book Figuratively Speaking. We used poems and short stories, some suggested by the text and some I found on my own. 

If you particularly want picture books, I highly recommend incorporating The Lost Thing, by Shaun Tan. I've used it in the past, and there is a literal film translation on YouTube.

[caffeineandbooks]

We like Center for Lit's approach.  They use picture books every year, right up through 12th grade, as well as grade level literature.  You might like their Ready Readers - questions and discussion notes for 10 literary picture books suitable for any age.  You might also like their Reading Roadmaps; this is simply an annotated booklist, but includes 8 picture book recommendations for each grade year after K-1 (which include 72 picture books each).  Sometimes the picture books echo the longer works, eg you might do Barbara Cooney's Chanticleer and the Fox the same year that you do Chaucer's Canterbury Tales (picture book introduction and original classic), or Lynd Ward's The Biggest Bear the same year as Marjorie Rawlings' The Yearlings (similar themes in these two).

[PeterPan]

6 hours ago, alisha said:

I've seen a few blog posts about teaching the literary devices or something via picture books but can't seem to find them again.

I had posted some info about Notice & Note, and I think I had shared links (not mine) for files that had powerpoint lessons with video clips and book lists. We worked through the fiction signposts last year and enjoyed them. This coming year I'm hoping to do the nonfiction signposts. 

See if these links work

https://docs.google.com/document/d/155Jba91zgHW6V-nXt46sAg1utbsNd0C82yQwNwWsV48/edit

https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/18wnpkxYcFceOFKYJh57MZ1OqLqFPD68zIHaQx1KLNJI/htmlview

I haven't seen similar docs for the nonfiction unfortunately. I may go looking again as we get closer. I saw a suggestion to use CBS Sunday Morning videos, but I haven't really worked through that to figure it out.

[cintinative]

I bought this, but never used it;  Using Picture Storybooks to Teach Literary Devices: Recommended Books for Children and Young Adults by Susan Hall, Volume 3, ISBN 1-57356-350-1,

One year we did a bunch of read alouds using a schedule for Figuratively speaking. It was mostly short stories, not picture books though.

We have also done Center for Lit but I have not done a discussion of a story book for years so I can't comment on that.

[Boymama5]

I bought two different books which are using picture books in middle school to teaching literary elements. They looked good but we didn’t end up using them as I just had too much planned. I believe they were both by scholastic.