Learning About Illustrations

Previously we've learned that there are three ways to read a book, and one of those ways is to read the pictures.  Lately we have been learning about illustrations in a text and how they help us read a story. There are lots of things we can do to read the pictures!

First, good readers take a picture walk before reading the book.  What is a picture walk?  It's when readers take a quick look at the pictures in the text and think about these three questions:  What is the book about?  What do I think/predict is going to happen?  What do I already know about this text? Picture walks help readers understand the book.

Another thing we've been doing with the illustrations in a book is learning to ask five questions: Who is in the picture?  What are they doing?  Where are they?  When is it?  Why do you think . . . ?  Doing this helps readers know what is happening in the text.  Readers can make connections or predictions based off the pictures in the text.  It helps understand the sequence of the story as well.

In some books we've noticed that sometimes the illustrations tell the story more so that the words. We read Mem Fox's Tough Boris and enjoyed not only learning about Tough Boris but also realizing the story that takes place in the pictures as well.  

Finally, we've learned that there is a relationship between the pictures in the story and the words on the page.  They have to match!  This will help us, too, when writing our own stories.

When reading at home, see what information your child can get from looking at the illustrations!