Ezra Jack Keats Author Study

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This week first grade read "Whistle for Willie" by Ezra Jack Keats in our basal reader.  We also read "Snowy Days" which is Keats' most well-known book and winner of the Caldecott Award.  We used a Venn Diagram to compare the two stories.  My kiddos are "Venn Masters" at this point and can compare/contrast just about anything. 

 

 My students loved the illustration in these books.  They made their own "Ezra Jack Keats Illustrations" using crayon and watercolors.  We talked about texture and patterns in the pictures and they used this in their own settings.  I used this activity to reinforce what an illustrator does and how setting is important in a story. 

I think their illustrations all turned out really cute.  They loved the layering of paint on the crayon and making their own patterns and textures.