Elementary Library

●​ What is the purpose of a dedication page? · Why do you think the book is dedicated to YOU? · Why do you think the author calls readers “lucky”? · Consider the subtitle of the book and discuss why the boy on the dedication page is crying. Do you notice the boy reappear throughout the book? How does he change, and w ●​ Explain why people thought fun books would turn children “wild.” Lead the class in a discussion about what this concern says about people’s attitudes toward children in the 1700s. Ask students to share whether or not they think books have the power to change readers’ behavior. ●​ Lead a class discussion about why John Newbery is called the “father of children’s books.” Tomfoolery! Randolph Caldecott and the Rambunctious Coming-of-Age of Children’s Books by Michelle Markel (921 CAL) Meet Randolph Caldecott, the artist who revolutionized picture book illustration and for whom the prestigious Caldecott medal is named! From acclaimed picture book creators Michelle Markel and Barbara McClintock comes a lively, humorous, and energetically informative biography that celebrates the spirit of storytelling in art. Discussion prompts: ●​ How does the title “Tomfoolery!” set the tone for the book? What do you think it will be about? ●​ How do illustrations make or inform a text? How did Caldecott’s artwork change books for children? ●​ Why would the author call Caldecott’s work “rambunctious”? ●​ Why do children need different kinds of books than adults? Do all children need the same books? Miss Moore Thought Otherwise: How Anne Carroll Moore Created Libraries for Children by Jan Pinborough Once upon a time, American children couldn’t borrow library books. Reading wasn’t all that important for children, many thought. Luckily Miss Anne Carroll Moore thought otherwise! This is the true story of how Miss Moore created the first children’s room at the New York Public Library, a bright, warm room filled with artwork, window seats, and most important of all, borrowing privileges to the world’s best children’s books in many different languages.

Discussion prompts:

●​ What is a library? ●​ How can libraries meet the different needs of their communities? ●​ What do children need in a library that is different than adult readers? ●​ Who is welcome in our school library? ●​ How can we make this a safe place every students wants to be?

The Librarian of Basra: A True Story from Iraq by Jeannette Winter During the Iraq War of 2003, librarian Alia Muhammad saves thirty thousand new and old books in her Basra library from destruction. Discussion prompts: ●​ Talk about the libraries you have been to. Discuss what people do at the library. Why is a library an important place in a community? ●​ What does Alia do when the governor refuses to help her? Why is this an important 166