Monday, April 22, 2013

Module 5- Red Sings from Treetops: A year in colors (Sidman Poetry)



Sidman, Joyce, Red Sings from Treetops: A Year in Colors: Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company: New York, 2009.

ISBN: 978-0-547-014949-4

I have to start my review with my favorite part of this book, the illustrations. Oh my goodness. The illustrations stretch from one end of the page to the other full of vibrant colors representing all the different seasons. The text even seems to be a part of the illustrations in a way. Sidman incorporates the text by highlighting the colors when spelt, in the color it is describing. For example:

IN the winter woods,
GRAY and BROWN
hold hands.
Their brillant sisters—
RED, ORANGE, and YELLOW—

I admire the consistency of this book. Each page, while offering a completely different version of the seasons, gives subtle descriptions and illustrations that create a familiarity when reading. It keeps the reader in tune with the content of the poetry and keeps us from getting lost in the beautiful illustrations! For example, on many pages, Sidman uses actual text... looking a lot like they come from a dictionary page in the characters outfit or the setting some how. It's cool to see how it will be used on each page!

I would love this book of poetry for younger students who are learning about the seasons. Sidman describes the seasons so vividly and Zagarenski creates illustrations that would help any young reader or listener help imagine the different seasons. Students could also be introduced to just the poem and create their own illustrations using the colors and words described by Joyce Sidman. There are a lot of opportunities with this book because the imagery is so great! Overall, I would really highly recommend adding this to a collection. My students love hearing the descriptions and seeing the beautiful illustrations! 

... I also found this blog to offer interesting ideas of way to teach using Red Sings from Tree Tops. 


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