Teaching Point of View

One of my favorite things about being a teacher is getting to read (and buy!) new books.  Going to a bookstore or filling up my shopping cart online never feels guilt-ridden--it's always perfectly okay to spend some money on books.  After all, me and my students will not only enjoy them but use them for a learning experience.  There is no way to put a price on that!

There are a couple of second grade reading standards relating to characters.  One is how characters respond to major events and challenges, and the other is acknowledging the differences in the characters' point of view.  I use a couple of different books for this purpose--I usually use one to teach the concept with the whole class (I Wanna Iguana), and then I use a second book to assess the standard.  I use The Day the Crayons Quit by Drew Daywalt (illustrated by Oliver Jeffers) to do the point of view assessment with my second graders.  I also use The Day the Crayons Quit for other teaching purposes (stay tuned to upcoming posts about those), and our school librarian reads it to the kids as well.  So I find that my students have a good grasp on the storyline and characters, thus making it a great choice for an authentic assessment.

This text lends itself beautifully to the discussion of of point of view.  If you aren't familiar with The Day the Crayons Quit, it is comprised of a series of letters written from the various colors of crayons found in a box of crayons to their owner, Duncan.  They are, as the title implies, quitting.  Each of them has their own issue with Duncan and his use of them.  One of the best things about this book is that each page appears to be written by the actual crayon--meaning in that color--and in a script-like font.  It can be a bit tricky for kids who don't know cursive to be able to read it, but it adds so much to the book.  The illustrations are 'colored' in crayon and helps kids remember what each crayon mentioned drawing in their letter to Duncan.  After you enjoy this book with your students, you can follow up with The Day the Crayons Came Home.  This time, instead of letters, the crayons have written to Duncan on postcards.

Much of my 'teaching' with this text involves talking about it each time we read it.  By the time I use this text for my point of view assessment, my students have generally heard it 2-3 times.  I read it one more time and discuss the crayons' letters to Duncan.  You could even make an anchor chart as students recall the details of the text.  The next day I pass out a sheet that asks the kids to tell me the point of view from 3 different crayons.  I even let them write with colored pencils that match each crayon (which they love!).  Because this book is told from each crayon's perspective, it makes it really easy for the kids to give text evidence in their answers.

What are your favorite books for teaching point of view?

Happy Reading!!

~Carrie

The Day the Crayons Quit