I was first introduced to Animalia by Graeme Base during my teaching practicum. I was as enamored by the illustrations and the eccentric vocabulary as I would have been if I had read this as a child!
This beautiful book was published before I was born, and each page features an alliterative phrase using the letters of the alphabet in sequence. But the illustrations show so much more! As the “introduction” says…
“Within the pages of this book
You may discover, if you look
Beyond the spell of written words,
A hidden land of beasts and birds.
For many things are ‘of a kind’,
And those with keenest eyes will find
A thousand things, or maybe more—
It’s up to you to keep the score.”
Graeme has also included his childhood self in each illustration, which he challenges the reader to find. Think Where’s Waldo? (Or Where’s Wally? depending on where you grew up!).
Okay. So…How to use it?
Use It In the Classroom
RL.2.4; L.3.4.A, L.4.4.A; W.3.3, W.4.3, W.5.3, W.6.3, W.7.3, W.8.3; RL.7.4, RL.8.4, RL.9-10.4, RL.11-12.4
-Introduce or review alliteration. If you’re looking for a book to teach kids to identify alliteration, this is it. Read this book to illustrate alliteration, then…
-Write! There are a few ways you could do this depending on your students’ ages and experience with alliteration.
1) For younger students: Give each student a piece of paper. Allow students to choose a letter of the alphabet or assign each student a letter (Grab bag style, maybe?). Have each student write a phrase or sentence that uses alliteration. Then, have them illustrate, including “extra” things in the picture that start with the same letter they chose or were assigned.
2) For slightly older children: Use the activity above, but add an extra parts-of-speech challenge! You’ll notice that many of the phrases in Animalia feature a noun that is modified by adjectives doing something that is sometimes modified by an adverb involving another noun that is modified by an adjective. Um…what? Let’s look at an example: “Diabolical dragons daintily devouring delicious delicacies.” So, you have a noun: dragons. But these dragons are specifically diabolical (adjective). What are they doing? Devouring (verb). How? Why look! They’re doing it daintily (adverb). What are they devouring? Delicacies, of course (noun). And believe me…those delicacies are delicious (adjective)! Do you see where I’m going with this? Give your class a “target” (i.e., “Your phrase or sentence must include at least 2 nouns, at least 2 adjectives, at least 1 verb, and at least 1 adverb that starts with the letter ___.”). Then laugh maniacally, if that’s your sort of thing.
3) For middle and high schoolers: Yep. You read that right. Now, most middle and high school students will have at least encountered alliteration. But that doesn’t mean they’ve used it. After reviewing alliteration, examine how alliteration could be used in narrative writing at a middle or high school level. You may want to have students look for examples of alliteration in poetry, works of fiction, advertisements, and other writing to determine how it’s used. Then have them use it!
4) For any age: Use Animalia as a springboard. Post a picture with its phrase, and give students ten minutes to write a short narrative about what is happening. Right here in this book you have at least 26 brand new writing prompts!
-Introduce or review parts of speech: I’ve already referenced parts of speech above, but if adjectives or adverbs are new to your students, use Animalia to help them learn to these (sometimes confusing!) parts of speech. Adverbs can be especially tricky, and you’ll find several examples of adverbs modifying verbs and adverbs modifying adjectives that may help students to understand what adverbs do and how to use them.
-Enjoy “big” words and explore new vocabulary: There are probably several words that your students haven’t encountered before in Animalia (V is my personal favorite…It features the words vaudeville, versatile, virtuoso, vociferous, and vexatiously). Have students identify words they don’t know. Then, have them look at the pictures and write what they think each word means based on the context and the illustration. Finally, have students check their guesses by looking up new words in a dictionary. Here’s a freebie you can use with almost any book to get you started!
Animalia Exploring New Words Worksheet
Animalia Exploring New Words Worksheet (secondary)
Use It At Home:
-Boredom buster! Pull this out on a rainy day or for a long car trip (if your kids don’t get carsick…). Take turns looking for the hidden illustrator on each page, or make a list of all of the things that start with the featured letter on each page.
-Go to the library. Look for more Graeme Base books at your local library OR order on Amazon.
Your turn! Did you grow up reading Animalia? Which phrase is your favorite?
P.S. Celebrate life!
P.P.S. Don’t forget your freebie!