Mirror Mirror

Singer, M., & Singer, M. (2010). Mirror mirror. New York, NY: Dutton Childrens Books.

Genre:  Poetry, Young Adult, Fairytale

Age Level: 8-12

         This poetry book includes various versions of class tales.  The best part…….. the poems are reversible.  I was amazed.  Each poem presents the classic view of the story and the other side represents another perspective of the event. 

 

MIRROR MIRROR: A Book of Reversible Verse

In Reverse  (excerpt)

Who
says
it’s true–
down
is
the only view?
If you believe that,
this poem
will challenge
you.
Up
is
something new.
***************************
Something new
is
up.
You
will challenge
this poem
if you believe that
the only view
is
down.
It’s true.
Says who?

 

Mirror Mirror is a poetry book because it contains a collection of stories that show expression of ideas through precise and imaginative words and also contains rhythmical effects.  It is also considered a picture book because it contains amazing illustrations.  The book uses many elements of poetry.  The book includes verses because this text gives us simple thoughts of stories.  The meaning of the poems varies by poem.  However, each poem portrays two sides to the classic tale.  For example, in the Sleeping Beauty poem, one poem is told from the perspective of Sleeping Beauty and another written from the Prince.  This collection of poems also uses rhyme.  This is used often in this text, especially in the poem about Little Red Riding Hood.  It says “picking berries to eat-juicy and sweet-what a treat.  This quote above also gives the reader sense imagery by appealing to our senses, especially the sense of taste- yum! 

I cannot wait to take this book to school because my kiddos are going to love it as much as I did.  I am so excited because we are starting a poetry unit and I know this text will excite them.  My children will be able to relate to this text because they’ve all read the classic versions of these stories.   PLEASE READ THIS COLLECTION OF POEMS.  IT’S GREATJ

Ideas for teaching/comprehension strategies that can be used with this text:   I plan on using this test as an introduction into our study of poetry.   This text is great for introducing the terms associated with poetry (see above).  I would also love to challenge children to write their own reversible poems.  This collection of poems would also be great for teaching children about the types of conflict.  Many types are present in this text.

Questions to pose:

Which poem was your favorite?  Explain.

Which poem did you connect with the most?

Did you like this collection of poems?  Why or why not?

Additional Resources:

http://marilynsinger.net/books/mirror-mirror-dutton-2010/

http://teachingwithpicturebooks.wordpress.com/category/mirror-by-marilyn-singer/

The true story of the three little pigs

Scieszka, J. (1989). The true story of the three little pigs. New York. Penguin Books.

 
Age Level: 5-10

Genre: Picture Book, Comedy and Humor, Folktale

This story is hilarious!  I had never thought about the Wolf’s view of the happenings in The Three Little Pigs, that is, until now.  This story depicts Alexander Wolf’s view of how things really happened.  Throughout this book the Wolf tells his journey of trying to make his grandmother a cake for her birthday.  When he goes to get some sugar from a neighbor, the story gets interesting. 

Many aspects of this text remain the same as the classic story many of us know.  The setting and plot are very similar but the point of view of the story is different.  Read this story to see who you believe.              

The illustrations are great and really create an interesting mood.  They do a great job of depicting the story as A. Wolf sees it.   I would absolutely recommend this book because it is a new look into a classic tale and it would be great for perspective!  I already plan to use it (along with several colleagues) for an upcoming unit on point of view. 

Relevancy with children can be built around discussing several different points of view (perspecitve ehich the story is told) in a given experience.  I look forward to being able to discuss how in a given experience, there can be many different perspectives/points of view. 

Ideas for teaching/comprehension strategies that can be used with this text:  I would love to use the text to compare and contrast two similar texts.  I would use the class version and discuss how the perspectives are different in each test but that many aspects remain the same in both (setting and plot).  This book could also be used to discuss story elements and the illustrations would be great to discuss mood in a text.  I would also like to use this book for character development.  This story really does a great job developing the character of A. Wolf throughout the story.

Questions to pose:

Do you think A. Wolf is guilty or not guilty? Explain your thinking.

What support did A. Wolf provide that he wasn’t guilty?  Did he do a good job presenting his case?

How does this story compare to the traditional story?