Kiefer+-+Reading+the+Art+of+Picture+Book

Kalpana M. Iyengar/Dr. Martinez/2/1/12
 * Kiefer, B, (2008). Reading The Art of the Picture book. In Flood & Lapp (Ed.), //Handbook of Research on Teaching Literacy Through the Communicative and Visual Arts// (Vol. 2, pp. 375-379). New York: Lawrence Erlbaum.

The article defines a picture book and the different strategies employed in understanding a picture book. The article takes an interdisciplinary approach to analyzing the picture books by drawing from different disciplines such as semiotics, aesthetics, linguistics, anthropology, art history, and psychology. Several theorists such as Rosenblatt's transactional theory and Elliot Eisner's aesthetic representation are described in the article to help teachers understand the rationale in using picture books for instructional and curricular practices. The article also compares and contrasts the two different interpretations of viewing a picture book using semiotics and art. Semioticians look at the placement of the objects and positioning of shapes etc whereas, artists consider eye movement and the emotional appeal a picture creates in the reader's mind. Another important dimension explored in this article is the incidental learning that happens in young children while reading the picture book.

 a. Dilemmas in Reading and Art

 Visual comprehension precedes linguistic abilities in a child and children make connections based on what they see before they begin reading words.

 What is a Picture book?

 According to Bader, picture book is "text, illustration, total design; an item of manufacture and commercial product; a social, cultural, historical document; and foremost an experience for a child. As an art form it hinges on the interdependence of pictures and words, on the simultaneous display of two facing pages, and on the drama of the turning page" (quoted in Kiefer, p. 375).

 Perspectives from Semiotic Theory

 Semiotics enables readers to decipher is signs as portrayed in picture books. It also helps children understand the meaning signs convey in a particular story or book. The different geometrical shapes employed in the picture book along with the positioning of the images to create a specialized effect falls under semiotics. For example, in the book, //Where the Wild Things Are,// the different capillarity signifies the characters state of mind. The more the capillaries, the intense the character's instability. Another semiologist, Nodelman, provided "a thoroughly developed scheme for how pictures provide information about stoories" (Kiefer, year, p. 376). He further explained how pictures can be surreal, impressionistic, stylistic (both national and individual). His research finding on how the mismatch between the pictures and words and vice versa creates irony in the story is interesting to a picture book researcher. Drawing on M.A.K. Halliday's functional grammar, Kiefer thinks that children who read picture books tend to seek multimodal representation instead of linear modality. A juxtaposition of words and pictures is today’s children’s' choice of picture books.

 Grammar can also be applied to images and there are three branches - representational/ideational structures, interactive, interpersonal, and compositional/textual.

 1. Representational - shows events (concrete, verbal, timeline, and symbolic images)

 2. Interaction - visual demands (social, attitude, power, and realism)

 3. Composition - layout or composition (layout, framing, and spatial aspects on images)

 The positioning of the images also reveal the power relationships of the characters in the storybook.

 One drawback of this semiotic scheme is that the theory discusses the content of the images, but fails to identify the relationship between images and text. Nikaolajeva and Scott provide us with five different ways in which we can see the relationships between the text and images in a picture book.

 1. symmetrical - two repetitive stories

 2. complementary - completes the relationships between the images and words

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px;"> 3. expanding/enhancing - interdependency of visual image and text

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px;"> 4. counterpointing - two stories relying on each other

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px;"> 5. sylleptic - two or more stories independent of each other (the opposite of counterpointing)

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px;"> Another picturebook expert, Lawrence Sipe expanded this categorization and posited that the relationship between images and words are synergistic, i.e., two or more aspects work together to produce an advanced understanding that cannot be produced using one of the aspects. **Synergy is parallel to the interdisciplinary approach to looking at problems and strengths.** Hence, pictures and text must work together to help the readers transact the meaning of the story. Also, both the images and words are equally important in this transaction; no one modality is the highlight of the book.

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px;"> Aesthetic Readings of Picture books

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px;"> The semiotic underpinnings enable us to categorize the picture books, but fail to help us understand the joy of reading the same. The artistic appreciation in engaged reader is overlooked if we just use semiotics to analyze picture books. Another pivotal factor in examining a picture book is the reader response theory (RRT) that Rosenblatt propounded. According to Langer (quoted in Kiefer, p. 377), art is the primary source of symbolism and expression in a human being. Martantz expatiates on the aesthetics and describes the picture book as a beautiful artifact. Gombrich is of the opinion that visual representation plays a crucial role in evoking the reader's emotions and both visual and textual factors have to work synergistically to achieve good reader response. Doonan's categorization of the picture books (arrangement of geometrical shapes along with colour, medium, and literal and expressive elements used to convey meaning). Good examples of these features are books like "When Sheep Cannot Sleep" Nand "Where the Wild Things are".

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px;"> Kiefer believes that both the writer and the illustrator have to work hand in hand to help the reader transact the meaning of the picture book. Her three additional classifications of the artistic choices of the illustrator such as design choices, choices of historical or cultural convention, and technical choices help us decide which picture book is preferred and which one is not. Pictures help in the co construction of meaning and themes in a picture book. Finally, it calls for reader training to look at the picture books properly and achieve the desired effect. However, the child may be able to appreciate art and painting later in his/her life if trained to look at pictures early on in life. The synergy of pictures and text facilitates a better appreciation of picture books.

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px;"> Potentials in Reading the Art of the Picture books

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px;"> Hence, the different theoretical approaches applied to understand the value of reading picture books is important to keep in mind as teachers of literacy to young children. Semiotics, linguistics, aesthetics, and art are all important in understanding the layout, language, appeal, and emotional need that the child uses while reading the picture books that we chose for them. <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px;">Reflection <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px;">Given that there are different kinds of learners with different learning styles, today’s teachers have to look for innovative ways of accommodating these learners. Picture books are an excellent resource for visual, linguistic, auditory, and interpersonal intelligences (Gardner). It is important that children’s emotional needs are met and their imagination is valued. Picture books are an excellent source to hone one’s curiosity and enable them to acquire incidental learning through the reading or listening to the narratives in the books. A wonderful example of acquiring incidental knowledge is by reading the book, “Snow White and the Seven Drawfs”, an all time classic. Through reading the book, a child learns about vices, friendship, love, and human nature. Children can feel secure and try to resolve any harshness in their lives through conversing with the picture book characters.

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px;">Eeds, M., & Peterson, R. (1991). Teacher as Curator: Learning to Talk about Literature. //The Reading Teacher 45//(2), 118-126.

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px;">This article compares literature to art work and reading teacher to a curator; both collects artifacts and cherish their treasures. Both have to learn to help participants engage in their collection so the participants can benefit and enjoy their activities. <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px;">Reading as Transaction <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px;">Rosenblaat’s transaction theory claims that both reader the text benefit from each other in the process of meaning making. The reader constructs new knowledge, while adding meaning to the text. Unlike the traditional method employed in teaching reading, transaction enables an interactive way to teach reading where both the teacher and the participants communicate with each other. IT is not a one way street where the teacher does all the work, while the students listen silently. Further, the students have a say in the choice of the books. Through guided reading (teacher and students read together taking turns), the teacher is able to help develop “literary insight and aesthetic judgment” (p. 119). <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px;">Preparing for literature study <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px;">The authors of this article are curriculum developers, and hence they invite teachers to engage in practices that will enhance readability and appreciation of literary works. Children must learn to annotate while reading so they can remember the text and share freely during the study circle time. It is imperative that the author of the text is important because he/she has created the text. Reading strategies cannot be self learned, but they have to be taught by the teacher and hence it becomes the obligation of the teacher to invite transformation in their students to learn to appreciate literary works. <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px;">Questions to ask yourself about literary elements <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px;">The authors of this article have categorized teacher’s methods employed during reading <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px;">*Round or flat <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px;">*How do characters affect the story? || <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px;">Place <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px;">*How does the place influence the characters? <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px;">*How does language help the readers understand the place? || <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px;">Time <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px;">*Chronological <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px;">*Psychological || <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px;">Point of View <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px;">*First or third person narrative <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px;">*Objective <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px;">*Dramatic <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px;">*How do characters affect the author’s point of view? || <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px;">Mood <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px;">*Author’s mood <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px;">*Reader’s mood <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px;">*The role of language to evoke mood || <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px;">Symbol and extended metaphor
 * 1) <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px;">1. Character
 * 2) <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px;">2. Place
 * 3) <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px;">3. Time
 * 4) <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px;">4. Point of View
 * 5) <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px;">5. Mood
 * 6) <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px;">6. Symbol and extended metaphor || <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px;">Character


 * Symbol and meaning
 * Cannotation
 * Life
 * Universal truths ||

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px;">Literature groups in action <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px;">Literature groups facilitate literary insights and the authors used several books to elicit these insights in students. The third graders discuss “Stone Fox”; the fourth graders discuss “The Secret Garden”; and the fifth graders discuss, “Hawk’s Hill” <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px;">Growing in ability to act as curator <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px;">A pocket of students ventured to trying the literature studies and learned to appreciate literature along with gaining a life skill that will keep children from complaining of boredom. The authors request teachers to consider their own reading strategies first. The teacher has to gather all the literary elements in action in a text with a thorough understanding of the author’s categorization mentioned above (see grid above). Secondly, the teachers must learn to write along with their students. Also, refer to experts to gain firm understanding of the reading methods. Graves and Murray are good examples for this activity. Third, be an active participant in student’s study circles and take copious notes. The teacher may also label the student’s responses and help them consolidate their opinions in concrete terms. This labeling will help students learn the language and build vocabulary necessary for success across the disciplines and later in life. Lastly, have faith in yourself and your students. Try to surprise each other with your insights through reading literary works. <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px;">Reflection <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px;">Each reader brings his/her own persona to the text. This is dependent on the reader’s experiences and culture. Literary circles will enhance students’ ability to appreciate and language. There are so many families that do not engage in dinner table conversations due to the technologically demanding society we live in today. Children will not be able to learn and use words well if they are not trained to do so while they are in their formative years of life. A work of literature is an excellent platform for children to exercise their language skills and teachers have to consider helping students learn to talk about literature.
 * <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px;">John Berg

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px;"> Saussure

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px;"> Barthes

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px;"> Moebius

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px;"> Nodelman

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px;"> M.A.K. Halliday

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px;"> Unsworth

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px;"> Hallberg

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px;"> Nikaolajeva and Scott

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px;"> Sipe

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px;"> Rosenblatt

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px;"> Langer

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px;"> Marantz

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px;"> Gombrich

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px;"> Doonan

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px;">Rosenblaat ||  ||