Basic Info
Course Description
This course provides an introduction to Children’s Literature. Through class discussions, writing assignments, lectures, oral presentations, and other means we will attempt to create a working definition of Children’s Literature by considering its elements, the nature of its general and specific appeal, and its significance within the literary tradition. By appraising the works on the reading list from literary, aesthetic, sociological, educational, psychological, and cultural perspectives we will cover a variety of the topics and issues current in the discipline and begin a conversation about the continuing implications of Children’s Literature and culture.
Reading List
Course Objectives
After completion of this course, students should be able to:
- Section # 22444736 -- MWF 10:00-10:50 am in AN-150
- Section # 22444735 -- MWF 11:00-11:50 am in AN-150
- Format: in person face-to-face
- Hyflex or Hybrid formats are not an option for this class
Course Description
This course provides an introduction to Children’s Literature. Through class discussions, writing assignments, lectures, oral presentations, and other means we will attempt to create a working definition of Children’s Literature by considering its elements, the nature of its general and specific appeal, and its significance within the literary tradition. By appraising the works on the reading list from literary, aesthetic, sociological, educational, psychological, and cultural perspectives we will cover a variety of the topics and issues current in the discipline and begin a conversation about the continuing implications of Children’s Literature and culture.
Reading List
- Roald Dahl, Matilda
- Matt de la Peña & Christian Robinson, Last Stop on Market Street
- Joy Harjo & Michaela Goade, Remember
- Kate Klise & M. Sarah Klise, Regarding the Fountain
- Lois Lowry, The Giver
- Elise Paschen (ed.) et. al., Poetry Speaks to Children
- J. K. Rowling, Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone
- Pam Muñoz Ryan, Becoming Naomi León
- Louis Sachar, Holes
- Maurice Sendak, Where the Wild Things Are
- Shaun Tan, The Arrival
- E. B. White & Garth Williams, Charlotte’s Web
- Rita Williams-Garcia, One Crazy Summer
Course Objectives
After completion of this course, students should be able to:
- To introduce Children's Literature as a field of research and study
- To develop the skills necessary to critically read, interpret, and analyze Children's Literature
- To discuss a variety of approaches to works in this field, including literary, aesthetic, sociological, pedagogical, psychological, and cultural approaches
- To learn to recognize and identify major archetypes and motifs of Children's Literature, along with various styles and media in picture books and illustrations
- To participate in an on-going discussion about the nature of childhood in relation to the implications of Children’s Literature and culture
- To engage in a process of drafting, revising, and editing assignments that integrates feedback into a graded final product