Lum, K. (2002). What! Cried Granny. An almost bedtime story.
New York: Penguin Putnam Books for Young Readers.
ISBN# 0-14-230092-6
What! Cried Granny. An Almost Bedtime Story is about a boy named Patrick who is having his first sleep over at his grandmother’s house. As evening approaches and bedtime nears, a night of activity ensues for Granny. Whenever Granny tells Patrick to go to bed, Patrick mentions that he is missing an item. Granny races to construct this item so that Patrick is able to go to sleep. Granny ends up building a bed, a pillow, a blanket, and a teddy bear. By the time Patrick has all that he needs, its morning (Lum, 2002)!
New York: Penguin Putnam Books for Young Readers.
ISBN# 0-14-230092-6
What! Cried Granny. An Almost Bedtime Story is about a boy named Patrick who is having his first sleep over at his grandmother’s house. As evening approaches and bedtime nears, a night of activity ensues for Granny. Whenever Granny tells Patrick to go to bed, Patrick mentions that he is missing an item. Granny races to construct this item so that Patrick is able to go to sleep. Granny ends up building a bed, a pillow, a blanket, and a teddy bear. By the time Patrick has all that he needs, its morning (Lum, 2002)!
This book is comical. Each time Patrick mentions that he is missing something Granny cries “WHAT?”(Lum, 2002, p. 4). If a funny voice is used each time Granny yells, one could enhance the comedic value of this publication when presenting the story.
There is a pattern and rhythm that is evident as the story progresses. With each statement from Patrick “But Granny I don’t have a ------” Granny responds “WHAT?”(Lum, 2002, p. 5-6) which gets longer and eventually becomes “WHAAAAT?!!?” (Lum, 2002, p. 18). This could prove to be interactive and engaging.
This is a very action oriented book with a sequence of events that is summarized (and repeated) allowing for connections to be drawn from item to action. Granny requests for Patrick to “climb into bed, lay your head on the pillow, tuck the blanket under your chin and give your teddy bear a hug” (Lum, 2002, p. 21). This sentence starts earlier in the book and is repeated with the addition of each item, until this last and final summary.
This book could also introduce the concept of manmade items and their origins. This may stimulate connections to nature, materials and construction. I would hope that the children also connect to their personal belongings and possibly gain a greater appreciation for their commodities.
Color references such as “a restful shade of blue’ (Lum, 2002, p. 7) and “the prettiest shade of twilight purple’” (Lum, 2002, p.15) augment this wildly colorful book. The illustrations were produced with acrylic paint on art board. I believe these vibrant and large illustrations may evoke a sense of excitement; inspiring creation and experimentation. This daring color palette is a beautiful invitation to originality.
I would provoke interest in the book before presenting it, in the following ways:
Provocation #1
I would create a large laminated poster by photocopying the double spread illustration of
Granny building Patrick’s bed on page 5/6. This is the most detailed image in the book with a big construction plan surrounded by inset images of Granny’s step-by-step process.
I would post this on a wall at eye level and place a bright red toolbox to the side of this poster.
Provocation #2
I would create a scene out of the book in a section of the room:
Granny sews Patrick a pillow by stuffing a cloth bag full of feathers and sewing it up (Lum, 2002). I would place a cloth bag with feathers and a sewing machine on a low table. I would include pieces of cloth and thread.
Granny spins wool into yarn to make Patrick a blanket, which she then dyes purple (Lum, 2002). I would rent or borrow a spinning wheel and display it with yarn and a sealed container of purple dye. There is a Greater Vancouver Spinners and Weavers Guild, which I would utilize as a resource www.gvwsg.com for this provocation.
Provocation #3
I would use a felt board and place a “WHAT” word bubble on it. The following day I would add Granny to the felt board.
Provocation #4
I would recreate Patrick’s colorful bed somewhere in the room. I could do this by turning a table upside down, wrapping blue material around the base and legs to make the blue bed frame. I would add a red comforter and blankets or cushions to depict the red mattress and provide a purple blanket and pillow.
Provocation #5
I would create a slide of six images
A sheep and beside it wool
a chicken and beside it feathers
a tree and beside it wood.
I would leave the slide up all day and have a wondering session the following day providing information about these resources.
After a week of provocation, I would present this story in one of four ways:
I would create a scene out of the book in a section of the room:
Granny sews Patrick a pillow by stuffing a cloth bag full of feathers and sewing it up (Lum, 2002). I would place a cloth bag with feathers and a sewing machine on a low table. I would include pieces of cloth and thread.
Granny spins wool into yarn to make Patrick a blanket, which she then dyes purple (Lum, 2002). I would rent or borrow a spinning wheel and display it with yarn and a sealed container of purple dye. There is a Greater Vancouver Spinners and Weavers Guild, which I would utilize as a resource www.gvwsg.com for this provocation.
Provocation #3
I would use a felt board and place a “WHAT” word bubble on it. The following day I would add Granny to the felt board.
Provocation #4
I would recreate Patrick’s colorful bed somewhere in the room. I could do this by turning a table upside down, wrapping blue material around the base and legs to make the blue bed frame. I would add a red comforter and blankets or cushions to depict the red mattress and provide a purple blanket and pillow.
Provocation #5
I would create a slide of six images
A sheep and beside it wool
a chicken and beside it feathers
a tree and beside it wood.
I would leave the slide up all day and have a wondering session the following day providing information about these resources.
After a week of provocation, I would present this story in one of four ways:
I would present this story with a felt board, felt characters, and images. These would include: a bed, a bed with a blue frame, a blanket, a purple blanket, a chicken, a pair of scissors, a pillow, some sheep, the sun, a grandmother character, a boy character, trees, a house, a hammer and saw, a window with curtains, a feather, a light bulb, knitting needles, a sewing needle, wool, and lastly three word bubbles containing the print “WHAT?”, “WHAAAT?!” and “WHAAAAT?!!?” (Lum, 2002, p. 4,13,18). 3H Crafts, does not carry a felt story for this publication. They may be able to pull these components from existing stories and will be confirming this order by the end of the week.
A second way that I would present this story is as a prop box. I would collect the following items: a little bed, a paint brush, a small bottle of blue paint, a little piece of cloth, a little bucket, a purple piece of cloth, scissors, a pre made mini pillow, a feather, cotton wool, a grandmother doll, a little boy doll, a small branch, a toy hammer, a teddy bear with a red ribbon, a knitting needle, a spool of thread, a sewing needle and recipe cards with the print “WHAT?, “WHAAAT?!” and “WHAAAAT?!!?”(Lum, 2002, p. 4,13,18). I would use a simple shoebox to place all of these items and paint it a bright color to match one of the illustrations in the book.
A second way that I would present this story is as a prop box. I would collect the following items: a little bed, a paint brush, a small bottle of blue paint, a little piece of cloth, a little bucket, a purple piece of cloth, scissors, a pre made mini pillow, a feather, cotton wool, a grandmother doll, a little boy doll, a small branch, a toy hammer, a teddy bear with a red ribbon, a knitting needle, a spool of thread, a sewing needle and recipe cards with the print “WHAT?, “WHAAAT?!” and “WHAAAAT?!!?”(Lum, 2002, p. 4,13,18). I would use a simple shoebox to place all of these items and paint it a bright color to match one of the illustrations in the book.
A third way that I would present this story is as a story vine. I would color photocopy and laminate certain images from the book. I would use a piece of string and clothes’ pins to affix the images too. The laminates would include: Patrick, Granny, three speech bubbles containing the print “WHAT?”, “WHAAAT?!” and “WHAAAAT?!!?” (Lum, 2002, p. 4,13,18),
the trees on page 4, the bed on page 8, a real feather, granny with the pillow on page 11, the sheep on page 14, the image of granny dyeing the blanket on page 15, the teddy bear on page 19, and an image of the sun laminated to depict morning. To aid my presentation I would write my script/story on the back of each piece before lamination.
A fourth way I would like to present this story is by creating 6 large linear drawings of the key parts of the story. I would have these in a stack in front of me on a table and lift them up and place them down as I tell the story. These illustrations would be black drawings on white foam core. There would be a section on each board that would be cut out. As a provocation and group project, I would provide sheets of card stock divided into sections for each child to decorate with materials such as cloth, jewels, pencil crayons, during the week prior to telling the story. I would slip these decorated sheets of card stock into each of the cutout sections. I would adapt the story with the children’s artwork to include their artistic expression into the story. For example when presenting the story instead of mentioning a blue bed I would mention the colours and designs the children created. Their artwork would be emphasized against the white backdrop and be the main point of focus incorporating the idea of color and creativity.
the trees on page 4, the bed on page 8, a real feather, granny with the pillow on page 11, the sheep on page 14, the image of granny dyeing the blanket on page 15, the teddy bear on page 19, and an image of the sun laminated to depict morning. To aid my presentation I would write my script/story on the back of each piece before lamination.
A fourth way I would like to present this story is by creating 6 large linear drawings of the key parts of the story. I would have these in a stack in front of me on a table and lift them up and place them down as I tell the story. These illustrations would be black drawings on white foam core. There would be a section on each board that would be cut out. As a provocation and group project, I would provide sheets of card stock divided into sections for each child to decorate with materials such as cloth, jewels, pencil crayons, during the week prior to telling the story. I would slip these decorated sheets of card stock into each of the cutout sections. I would adapt the story with the children’s artwork to include their artistic expression into the story. For example when presenting the story instead of mentioning a blue bed I would mention the colours and designs the children created. Their artwork would be emphasized against the white backdrop and be the main point of focus incorporating the idea of color and creativity.
During my presentation I would wonder with the children. There is a silent character, a dog, which appears throughout the story. This character is active in so many illustrations and provides a great opportunity to wonder. I wonder what the dog’s name is? I wonder if this is Granny’s dog? What shall we name him or her? I wonder what dog is thinking? I wonder what dog is doing? Look at how silly dog is? I wonder why dog is so silly!!! This would provide an awareness of animals and our shared experiences. This character adds to the humorous of this book and is prevalent once spotted. This character adds another dimension to this book and encourages focus.
On page 4 Granny runs out to her yard to chop down a tree. I would wonder:
I wonder how many trees Granny has in her yard? This may provoke the concept of
our environment and the idea of limited resources? On page 17 I would wonder what Granny is going to do? I wonder how Granny knows how to make so many things? These wonders could encourage arts, crafts and being resourceful.
I would not chunk this book, as it is a perfect length to read in one sitting. If the children were making connections, and were interested in discussing these connections in greater detail, I would stop and allow the conversation.
On page 4 Granny runs out to her yard to chop down a tree. I would wonder:
I wonder how many trees Granny has in her yard? This may provoke the concept of
our environment and the idea of limited resources? On page 17 I would wonder what Granny is going to do? I wonder how Granny knows how to make so many things? These wonders could encourage arts, crafts and being resourceful.
I would not chunk this book, as it is a perfect length to read in one sitting. If the children were making connections, and were interested in discussing these connections in greater detail, I would stop and allow the conversation.
This book would lead me into the following extensions:
Extension #1
I would sew mini pillows with the children. I would provide material, and the filling. The children would choose their material, which would be pre-sewn except for one opening, they would stuff their pillow and I would sew them closed. A variation of this idea would be to dye pillowcases. We could learn about the creation of colors through this activity.
Extension #2
I would organize a wool spinner to provide a demonstration of spinning wool.
I would organize a wool spinner to provide a demonstration of spinning wool.
Extension #3
I would take the children on a field trip to see sheep shearing.
I would take the children on a field trip to see sheep shearing.
Extension #4
I would tie the book into Naptime and encourage everyone to bring a teddy bear and a blanket. We would use the pillows we made.
I would tie the book into Naptime and encourage everyone to bring a teddy bear and a blanket. We would use the pillows we made.
Extension #5
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