Module 2: The Snowman

 

The Snowman by Raymond Briggs

published in 1978 by Random House (New York).

 

Summary

The Snowman is a story about a British boy, a snowman he creates, and one adventurous night!  The story is completely told using pictures.  The pictures reveal the boy creating the snowman, then that night he goes outside to find the snowman waiting for him.  The boy introduces him to his world and it is fun to see the snowman's reactions--especially to the dentures sitting on the dresser.  The snowman then introduces the boy to his magical world.  

Impressions

I found this book to be quite charming.  The pictures are fun to look at, and kids will enjoy the snowman's reactions to the boy's world.  It's also a great book to help young, discouraged readers discover that magic of opening up a book.  The lack of text can help these particular readers enjoy books.  It can also help children use their imaginations and make up the text as they go along.  It's a great book to help encourage imagination and reading.  

 

Reviews

"A wordless story.  The pictures have 'the hazy softness of air in snow.  A little boy rushes out into the wintry day to build a snowman, which comes alive in his dreams that night.  Th experience is one that neither he nor young 'readers' will ever regret or forget." --(starred) Booklist. Retrieved from BarnesandNoble.com

http://search.barnesandnoble.com/The-Snowman/Raymond-Briggs/e/9780394839738/?itm=5&USRI=the+snowman#TABS

"If a picture is worth a thousand words, then Briggs has given us quite a novel with the 175 illustrations that tell the detailed story of a snowman come to life and the little boy who shares a magical evening with him...This title is one of the best and most well-known  of the wordless stories and it continues to stand the test of time.  Part of its charm is in the simple smile of the snowman himself.  Children love to see how the boy shows the snowman around his house and the snowman's fascination with things that make light--the lamp goes on and off, the flashlight shines brightly, and he loves the glow of the refrigerator...All together a totally satisfying book to 'read' over and over again, whether or not you decide it was all just a dream or you believe, as many do, that it 'really happened." --Sheilah Egan, Children's Literature Reviews. Retrieved from Children's Literature Comprehensive Database.

 

Uses

In a library setting, The Snowman could be used to help kids participate in storytime.  One kid can come up and make up the words to go along with the pictures for a page, and then another kid could come up for the next page.

In the home this can be down with a child and parent throughout the whole book.  Offering more interaction between child and parent than a regular story.