Thrifty Scissors: Art Inspired by Books

Showing posts with label Art Inspired by Books. Show all posts

Monday, February 17, 2014

Sparky and His Peanuts Gang

Charles Monroe Schulz (November 26, 1922 – February 12, 2000), nicknamed Sparky, was an American cartoonist, best known for the comic strip Peanuts (which featured the characters Snoopy and Charlie Brown, among others). He is widely regarded as one of the most influential cartoonists of all time, cited as a major influence by many later cartoonists. Calvin and Hobbes-creator Bill Watterson wrote in 2007: "Peanuts pretty much defines the modern comic strip, so even now it's hard to see it with fresh eyes. The clean, minimalist drawings, the sarcastic humor, the unflinching emotional honesty, the inner thoughts of a household pet, the serious treatment of children, the wild fantasies, the merchandising on an enormous scale -- in countless ways, Schulz blazed the wide trail that most every cartoonist since has tried to follow."

At its height, Peanuts was published daily in 2,600 papers in 75 countries, in 21 languages. Over the nearly 50 years that Peanuts was published, Schulz drew nearly 18,000 strips. The strips themselves, plus merchandise and product endorsements, produced revenues of more than $1 billion per year, with Schulz earning an estimated $30 million to $40 million annually. During the life of the strip, Schulz took only one vacation, a five-week break in late 1997 to celebrate his 75th birthday; reruns of the strip ran during his vacation, the only time reruns occurred while Schulz was alive.

Peanuts animations

Schulz said that his routine every morning consisted of first eating a jelly donute, and then going through the day's mail with his secretary before sitting down to write and draw the day's strip at his studio. After coming up with an idea (which he said could take anywhere from a few minutes to a few hours), he began drawing it, which took about an hour for dailies and three hours for Sunday strips. Unlike many other successful cartoonists, Schulz never used assistants in producing the strip; he refused to hire an inker or letterer, saying that "it would be equivalent to a golfer hiring a man to make his putts for him."

The first book collection of Peanuts strips was published in July 1952 by Rinehart & Company. Many more books followed, and these collections greatly contributed to the increasing popularity of the strip. In 2004, Fantagraphics began their Complete Peanuts series. Peanuts also proved popular in other media; the first animated TV special, A Charlie Brown Christmas, aired in December 1965 and won an Emmy award. Numerous TV specials were to follow, the latest being Happiness Is A Warm Blanket, Charlie Brown in 2011. Until his death, Schulz wrote or cowrote the TV specials and carefully oversaw production of them. Read more...

See these links and many more on one pinboard - "The Peanuts Gang Pinboard" by Kathy Grimm

^{General Links to Sites Specific to Schulz's Legacy:}

Schulz's home page
Charles Schulz Museum
Charles Schulz interview (12 minutes), Fresh Air, National Public Radio, December 1990
Works by or about Charles M. Schulz in libraries (WorldCat catalog)
"Good Ol' Charles Schulz", American Masters, PBS, October 2007
"Happiness is hearing an intellectual laugh!" (mp3) Charles Schulz interviewed in his study by Gail Rudwick and John Whiting (October 30, 1962)

The Peanuts Gang:

Good Old Charlie Brown and short clips: ***
Peppermint Patty, Peppermint Patty + Marcie and short clips: ***
Snoopy and short clips: ***
Linus Van Pelt and short clips: ****
Woodstock and short clips: ****

You Can Find Snoopy in the Most Unexpected Places:

Peanuts Doin' The Art Scene:

Get Graphic With Peanuts:

Photo of the Day: The Peanuts Gang as Peanuts

Get Crafty With Peanuts:

Charlie Brown Christmas Tree: Embroidered Gift
Snoopy quilts: quilt from WineDiva here * flying ace quilt here ****

Folks Like to Build Peanuts from Legos:

Peanuts in Sweet Treats, Entrees and Coffee Houses:

Sunday, February 16, 2014

Ed Emberley's Children's Books

This is a wonderful book for developing
geometric art projects for very young
students.

Edward Randolph Emberley (born October 19, 1931) is an American artist and illustrator, best known for children's picture books. He studied art at the Massachusetts School of Art in Boston (now Massachusetts College of Art and Design), from which he received a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in painting and illustration. He also studied at the Rhode Island School of Design.

Emberley is best known for his children's book work - particularly instructional drawing books. His drawing books for children feature clear step-by-step instructions employing numbers, letters, and shapes graded to the early elementary school level. For example, the book Ed Emberley's A.B.C. uses this style of instruction, presenting a single letter-based drawing for each letter of the alphabet. He has also illustrated or contributed to over 50 books, many of which were first published between the 1960s and 1980s. Renewed interest in Emberley's work has come from adults who first encountered his books as children and now are purchasing them for their own children. His most recent book,The Red Hen, was released on October 26, 2010; like his preceding work, Chicken Little (2009) it is a collaboration with Rebecca Emberley.

Emberley's first book, The Wing on a Flea (1961), was an ALA Notable Book and made the New York Times list of best-illustrated books for that year. He was sole runner-up for the 1967 Caldecott Medal, as illustrator of One Wide River to Cross, written by his wife Barbara Emberley. Next year he won the Medal for another collaboration with Barbara, Drummer Hoff. The award by children's librarians annually recognizes "the most distinguished American picture book or children". Drummer Hoff was also named to the Lewis Carroll Shelf Award list.

"Product reviewed: Ed Emberley's Drawing Book of Animals My goal is not to promote or hinder the sale of any product, but to help other parents make informed decisions. My reviews might also give a few ideas for birthday gifts to those who aren't sure what to buy for young children."

Sunday, November 10, 2013

Visit Jan Brett's Coloring Pages

Download and print her charming coloring pages at her website here.

Jan Brett (born December 1, 1949) is a best-selling American author/illustrator of children's books. Her books are known for colorful, detailed depictions of a wide variety of animals and human cultures ranging from Scandinavia to Africa. Her best-known titles include The Hat, The Mitten, The Three Snow Bears and Gingerbread Baby.

Monday, October 28, 2013

Laura's Life: A Comprehensive Internet Guide to The Little House Series

Laura and Almanzo Wilder pictured with their last home.

Laura Elizabeth Ingalls Wilder (February 7, 1867 – February 10, 1957) was an American writer, most notably the author of the Little House series of children's novels based on her childhood in a pioneer family. Her daughter Rose encouraged Laura in her writing and helped Laura edit and publish her novels. Read more...

Little House on the Prairie is a media franchise that started with a series of children's books by Laura Ingalls Wilder that were originally published between 1932 and 1943. Read more...

Complete guide to the world of little house on the prairie, and a special guide to pioneer life.
Little House on the Prairie original site near Independence, Kansas
Laura Ingalls Wilder Memorial Society, located in De Smet, South Dakota
The Little House archive, bibliography for the series, its spinoffs, and Little House scholarship.
All about the Show on Series-80.net
Little House Wiki : littlehouse.wikia.com/wiki/Little_House_Wiki
The LITTLE HOUSE Encyclopedia, devoted to the television series and spinoffs
Laura Ingalls Wilder, Frontier Girl – Comprehensive site
Pioneer Girl, Fact and Fiction of Laura Ingalls Wilder, A–Z – Comprehensive site
Laura Ingalls Wilder Museum, Walnut Grove, MN

Rose Wilder Lane.

Rose Wilder Lane (December 5, 1886 – October 30, 1968) was an American journalist, travel writer, novelist, and political theorist. She is noted—with Ayn Rand and Isabel Paterson—as one of the founding mothers of the American libertarian movement. Read more...

Works by Rose Wilder Lane at Internet Archive
Rose Wilder Lane (1886–1968), from the Cato Institute.
Rose Wilder Lane: Pioneer of Liberty, by Amy Lauters, from Legacy.com.
"The Libertarian Legacy of Rose Wilder Lane" by Jeff Riggenbach
Lane's 1923 expedition in the Syrian Desert

Caroline and Charles Ingalls. Replica cabin.

Aside from American author Laura Ingalls Wilder's original Little House series, several series of books for juveniles, young adults and adults have also been published. These separate series are fictionalized accounts of the lives of Wilder's great-grandmother Martha Morse Tucker, grandmother Charlotte Tucker Quiner, mother Caroline Ingalls, daughter Rose Wilder Lane's childhood and teenage years and Wilder's own missing adult years. In addition, simplified versions of the original series have been published for younger children in chapter and picture book form. Read more ...

Lesson plans for teachers:

Take a little Field Trip:

Crafts & Activities Perfect for Laura's books:

Little House Lap Books:

Melissa Gilbert, child actress.

Little House on the Prairie is an American Western drama television series, starring Michael Landon, Melissa Gilbert, and Karen Grassle, about a family living on a farm in Walnut Grove, Minnesota, in the 1870s and 1880s. The show is an adaptation of Laura Ingalls Wilder's best-selling series of Little House books. Television producer and NBC executive Ed Friendly became aware of the story in the early 1970s. He asked Michael Landon to direct the pilot movie, who agreed on the condition that he could also play Charles Ingalls. Read more...

Little House on the Prairie is a book musical adapted from the children's books, Little House on the Prairie, by Laura Ingalls Wilder. The creative team includes Rachel Sheinkin (book), Rachel Portman (music), Donna di Novelli (lyrics), and Francesca Zambello (director). The musical premiered in regional theatre at the Guthrie, Minneapolis, Minnesota, followed by a tour in 2009-2010 of the United States, starting at the Paper Mill Playhouse in Millburn, New Jersey. Read more...

Little House on the Prairie, the Musical official website
Little House on the Prairie - the Musical Facebook page (linked from official website) offers the possibility that only the first year of the traveling show has come to an end. Retrieved 2012 April 30.
"Music Fom A Little House, December 14, 2009 playbill.com article
Review, Newark Star-Ledger, September 21, 2009

"The inspirational stories of Little House on The Prairie, one of the most beloved literary celebrations of pioneering America since Laura Ingalls Wilder published the first book of her classic series 75 years ago, take on a brand new frontier in this uplifting new musical. Melissa Gilbert, who we embraced as Laura for 10 years in the much-loved television series, is all grown up and stars as Ma. Through the magic of live theater, audiences will follow the Ingalls family journey westward to make a better life for their children. Recommended for the entire family, Little House on The Prairie, The Musical brings the joys and sorrows of family life during the settlement of the prairie to contemporary America. Families will identify with its life-affirming stories that celebrate the pioneering spirit and the core values on which this country was founded." Visit The Kansas City Starlight Theatre on YouTube

Friday, October 25, 2013

Creative Art Lessons Inspired by Books

Topic - Art and Literacey: Title of The Book and Author: Art Lesson and Teacher/Author: Books are listed in Alphabetical order omitting 'The' and 'A'.

"A" Was Once An Apple Pie" by Suse Macdonald - Apple Pie Pocket for Teaching by Kathy Grimm *
"Andrew Henry's Meadow" by Doris Burn - A Treehouse Collage by Kathy Grimm *
"Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, Very Bad Day" by Judith Viorest - A Terrible Horrible Cursive Exercise! by Kathy Grimm *
"The Artist Who Painted a Blue Horse" by Eric Carle - Elephant Art Project by Patty Palmer * The Artist Who Painted a Blue Horse by Mark Warner *
"Blueberries For Sal" by Robert McCloskey - Blueberries For Sal by Art Teacher * Blueberries for Sal by Beth Gorden * We made blueberry pie in preschool by Teach Preschool * Potato Blueberry Stamps by little page turners *
"The Bumpy Little Pumpkin" by Margery Cuyler - Paint, Cut and Paste Your Own Bumpy Little Pumpkins by Kathy Grimm *
"The Boy Who Drew Birds" by Jacqueline Davis - Second grade has gone to the birds by Shannah *
"Caps for Sale" by Esphyr Slobodkina - "Hats" by ExploraStory *
"Chicka Chicka Boom Boom" by Bill Martin Jr. - "Chicka, Chicka, Boom, Boom in my classroom" by Kathy Grimm * Chicka, Chika, Boom, Boom ... Happy Friday by Mrs. Steberger's First Grade * Coconut Tree Craft by No Time for Flash Cards *
"Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs" by Judi Barett - Cloudy With A Chance Of .... by Art Dish *
"Dogs Don't Brush Their Teeth" by Diane deGroat - Dogs Don't Make Art! by Katie Morris *
"Don't Let the Pigeon Drive the Bus!" by Mo Willems - Don't let the pigeon drive the bus by Ashley * pigeon paintings *
"The Dot and Ish" by Peter H. Reynolds - Guide for classrooms by Can (large pdf) *
"Elmer's Special Day" by David McKee - Elmer's Day Parade by Kristin Bolster *
"The Story of Ferdinand" by Munro Leaf - Fiar: The Story of Ferdinand by Kristina *
"Frog and Toad Are Friends" by Arnold Lobel - Frogs, Toads and Pollywogs for Spring *
"Galimoto" by Karen Lynn Williams - A Galimoto Art Lesson Plan by Kathy Grimm *
"The Giving Tree" by Shel Silverstein - The Giving Tree: A Lesson on Earth Day by Mama in the Kitchen *
"Green" by Laura Vaccaro Seeger - green by Michelle Sterling *
"Green Eggs and Ham" by Dr. Seuss - 10 Green Eggs and Ham Crafts *
"Goodnight Moon" by Margaret Wise Brown - Goodnight Peep Diorama --Peeps Show IV by MaryLea*
"Guess How Much I Love You" by Sam McBratney - Guide by The Mermaid Theatre of Nova Scotia's *
"Harold and the Purple Crayon" by Author Crockett Johnson - Harold and The Purple Crayon by KinderArt * Harold's Purple Crayon by Mrs. Goff * decoupaged frame *
"If the Dinosaurs Came Back!" by Bernard Most - If dinosaurs came back art lesson by Kristin Bolster *
"If You Give a Mouse a Cookie" by Laura Joffe Numeroff - More Mice by Sylvan Hollow Schoolhouse * If You Give a Mouse a Cookie, Moose a Muffin or A Pig a Pancake Lesson Ideas by The Virtual Vine *
"I Want My Hat Back" by Jon Klassen - Texture, emphasis, and anthropomorphism *
“Knuffle Bunny Free” by Mo Willems - Summer Virtual Book Club for Kids by Jenn *
"The Little Engine That Could" by Watty Piper - Kindergarten Shape Trains by Mrs. Weber * * Train Chalk Pastel Art Tutorial by Hodgepodge *
"Leaf Man" by Lois Ehlert - Paint, Cut and Paste a Leafy River Scene by Kathy Grimm *
"Love You Forever" by Robert Munsch - Feelings - preschool lesson plans *
"Madeline" by Ludwig Bemelmans - Madeline Chalk Pastel Fun *
"Miss Nelson is Missing" by Harry Allard - Which Witch? by Joanna Davis *
"The Mitten" by Jan Brett - We did a Readers Theater of the story... by Mrs. Bell *
"Mouse Paint" by Ellen Stoll Walsh - Cotton Ball Easel Painting by MaryLea *
"Possom and Wattle" by Bronwyn Bancroft - Bronwyn Bancroft Inspired Animals by Mary *
"The Pot That Juan Built" by Nancy Andrews-Goebel - Clay Slab People *
"The Rainbow Fish" by Marcus Pfister - Craft an entire school of "Rainbow Fish from paper plates by Kathy Grimm * Rainbow Fish by tomato * Cupcake Liner Fish * Fish paper plate craft ****
"Rechenka's Eggs" by Patricia Polacco - Oil pastel and watercolor Easter egg art by Buggy and Buddy *
"Sandy's Circus" by Tanya Lee Stone - Sandy's Circus *
"Snowballs" by Lois Ehlert - Ice Cube Painting and Salt Paint Snowmen by Michelle * Snow People at Artsonia *
"Snowflake Bentley" by Jacqueline Briggs Martin - 12 Six-Sided Snowflake Templates *
"The Snowy Day" by Ezra Jack Keats - The Snowy Day Art Project *
"Stellaluna" by Janell Cannon - Let's Talk About Bats by Dr. Inez Heath *
"Stephen Biesty's Cross-sections Castle" by Stephen Biesty - Poppins Book Nook-Castle Craft *
"Sylvie" by Jennifer Sattler - pink flamingos by Apex E Art *
"Tar Beach" by Faith Ringgold - Quilted Dreams by Cynthia McGovern *
"The Ugly Duckling" by Hans Christian Anderson - Cotton Balls and Fingerpaint by Jennifer Fischer *
"The Very Hungry Caterpillar" by Eric Carle - Craft a Very Hungry Caterpillar by Kathy Grimm *
"Where The Wild Things Are" by Maurice Sendak - clay and paint projects from Cheryl Hancock * Wild Things by Mrs Tannert * "Wild Thing" Watercolor Monster by Kathy Barbro *

Collections and Larger Listings:

Excellent Video About Illustrators who work in the Children's Literature Industry and Also About Books In General:

Follow my pinterest board, "Art Lessons Inspired by Children's Books"

Monday, September 30, 2013

Paint, Cut and Paste a Leafy River Scene

This fall leaf art lesson was inspired by a very popular children's book, "Leaf Man" by Lois Ehlert. View and hear the book below.
The project may be completed over several consecutive days in an early learning center environment:

First day: Collect and share fall leaves from your center's playground and/or surrounding neighborhood.
Second day: Draw and cut many stencil patterns from the leaves that students have collected from the previous day. Let students play with the stencils, discovering how these can be layered or moved about in order to mimic the creatures depicted in the Leaf Man book.
Third day: Draw plastic combs through acrylic and glitter paints on construction paper to recreate the Autumn colors found in the student's leaf collection.
Fourth day: Trace the leaf stencils onto the decorated papers and cut them out. Now let each student paste together his or her own river scene depicting fish and turtles similar to those illustrated in the Leaf Man book.
Fifth day: Let the students help you display their dry art works in the hallway or classroom of their school. Serve up some warm cider or chocolate and talk about all the things they have accomplished while enjoying the fall leaves!

Harcourt Trade Publishers also includes a fun teacher's guide for an alternative art project. Below I have linked to additional fall leaf lessons that young students may enjoy.

Students paint, cut and paste leafy fish and turtles to swim in their colorful blue river.

A detail of the paper turtle cut from papers combed with glitter paints.

Young students can achieve very professional looking results when they work
from stencils. Collecting, tracing and cutting leaf stencils is a very complex
exercise for little students but it teaches them confidence, patience and a
set of tasks that will generate excellent results. Chunk down lofty goals into
to smaller tasks that may be performed successfully and your little artists
will achieve great things!

This popular children's book is read by Jonah.

Tuesday, September 24, 2013

Paint, Cut and Paste Your Own Bumpy Little Pumpkins

This little story reminds me of the trips my husband and I used to take to the pumpkin patch with our children every year when they were small. They would roam the fields for an entire afternoon looking for the perfect pumpkins to carve on Halloween. My husband would pull them in a little red wagon when their small legs became tired. It was a charming annual event and some of our best photo opportunities happened in the pumpkin patch.

The little girl in this story feels self-conscious about her preference for the bumpy pumpkin. Her sisters tease her but her animal friends encourage her to trust her own artistic vision for the bumpy jack-o-lantern she imagines in her head. I will be reading this sweet little story at the early learning center this Fall and will also include a bumpy little pumpkin craft along with it.

"The Bumpy Little Pumpkin" by Margery Cuyler is illustrated by Will Hillenbrand. Teaches young students the importance of perseverance and individual taste.

I used the above pictures sponge rollers for the painting of these little bumpy pumpkins. I also mixed together both red glittery paint and a bright orange acrylic to achieve the color and texture used in this Halloween craft.

These "baby faced" jack-o-lanterns wouldn't scare anybody. A simple and sweet cut and paste project for very young students.

Thursday, September 12, 2013

"A" was once a counting apple pie too!

Suse Macdonald illustrates this beloved poem, "A was once an apple pie" for children in her colorful, popular book. The poem, is an absurdly endearing classic by Edward Lear.

I cut and pasted an apple pie pocket just for teaching simple math to the young students in our classroom. Teachers should probably laminate the pie and apples so that the game will endure for a couple of years at least.

I used tin foil for the pie's plate and painted, cut, and pasted construction paper for the pie top and the apples. These elements looked much like those illustrated inside Suse Macdonald's book.

Many people believe that it is a marketing device to produce multiple subjects using similar themes and illustrations. However, expert educators have proven that illustrating multiple academic subjects with similar visual cues helps to stimulate a student's memory, particularly if it is done within the context of a limited span of time. This is why preschool teachers consistently use the thematic presentation of multiple subjects.

Of course, it is much more entertaining for young students to count apples instead of dots on a page. Teachers try to make learning fun so that immature students will happily comply without too many complaints.

For this apple game, students may be asked to add or subtract apples from the pie. The answer to their math problem is then what remains inside the pie pocket! All they need to do is empty and count the remaining apples to give the correct answer to the games question. This playful use of adding and subtracting pleasant visual aids greatly improves young appetites for math exercises. It also may ensure that little tummies will begin to grumble while playing it.

Why no serve up a healthy snack of chopped apples for an afternoon snack after reading the poem and playing the game?

An Alphabet' by Edward Lear read by Murray Lachlan Young

Wednesday, August 21, 2013

Back To School Books

Our lead teacher has an abundance of books for children to read and explore according to the theme she is teaching. "The first week of school" is our opening theme for preschool this week, and as you can see, there are plenty of books in the classroom based upon this topic:

"First Day Jitters" by Julie Danneberg
"Little Critter's This Is My School" by Mercer Mayer
"The New Bear at School" by Carrie Weston
"D.W.'S Guide to Preschool" by Marc Brown
"Pooh's First Day of School" by Kathleen Zoshfeld
"If You Take A Mouse To School" by Laura Numeroff
"Tucker's Best School Day" by Susan Winget
"It's the First Day of School!" by Charles M. Schulz
"Class Clown" by Michael Martchenko

Actor and author John Lithgow talks from his own experience about why reading aloud to children is important. Lithgow visited the Plaza Branch of the Kansas City Public Library on September 15, 2012, to read from his children's books and visit with Kansas City Symphony conductor Aram Demirjian.

Find out more about the Library's Building a Community of Readers initiative at http://www.kclibrary.org/building-com....

Learn more about Family Read Aloud month and the Turn the Page KC for city-wide literacy at http://turnthepagekc.org/

Saturday, May 11, 2013

100 Dr. Seuss Resources

      Theodor Seuss Geisel was an American writer, poet, and cartoonist most widely known for children's picture books written and illustrated as Dr. Seuss. He had used the pen name Dr. Theophrastus Seuss in college and later used Theo LeSieg, and once Rosetta Stone, as well as Dr. Seuss.
      Geisel published 46 children's books, often characterized by imaginative characters, rhyme, and frequent use of anapestic meter. His most celebrated books include the bestselling Green Eggs and Ham, The Cat in the Hat, The Lorax, One Fish Two Fish Red Fish Blue Fish, Horton Hatches the Egg, Horton Hears a Who!, and How the Grinch Stole Christmas!.
       Numerous adaptations of his work have been created, including 11 television specials, four feature films, a Broadway musical and four television series. He won the Lewis Carroll Shelf Award in 1958 for Horton Hatches the Egg and again in 1961 for And to Think That I Saw It on Mulberry Street. Geisel also worked as an illustrator for advertising campaigns, most notably for Flit and Standard Oil, and as a political cartoonist for PM, a New York City newspaper. During World War II, he worked in an animation department of the United States Army, where he wrote Design for Death, a film that later won the 1947 Academy Award for Documentary Feature. Read more . . .