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There is much more to explore in our calendar. Find other important events in literary history, authors' birthdays, and a variety of holidays, each with related lessons and resources.
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Home › Classroom Resources › Calendar Activities
August 25
Caldecott-winning illustrator Lane Smith was born in 1959.
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| Grades | 3 – 12 |
| Calendar Activity Type | Author & Text |
Lane Smith has collaborated with Jon Scieszka on titles including the Caldecott Honor book The Stinky Cheese Man and Other Fairly Stupid Stories and the best-selling The True Story of the Three Little Pigs. In addition to his collaboration with Scieszka and other authors, he has written and illustrated several of his own children's stories. His illustrations have appeared in several publications other than books, including The Atlantic Monthly and Newsweek.
Discuss with your students some of the ways in which illustrations can enhance a story. Begin by reading just the text of a picture book. Then share the actual book, pointing out the illustrations. Ask students how the pictures help them understand the story better. Then, have your students become illustrators, using a variety of media. Offer choices including paint, pencil or colored pencil, pen and ink, felt-tipped markers, or collage. Offer students a variety of choices such as:
- Illustrate a favorite story they have written.
- Collaborate with a partner and become an author—illustrator team. Alternatively, each student writes a story and then illustrates each other's works.
- Select a favorite children's book and mimic the illustrator's style, or create illustrations for the story in their own style.
When students have completed their illustrations and stories, be sure to display them in the classroom or school library!
- The Time Warp Trio
This site offers information on the adventures of the Time Warp Trio, as well as links for games and the TV show. There is also a section of links for teachers and parents.
- Lane Smith
Penguin Publishers offers this biography of Smith. Also included are links to an author interview and a booklist.
- Squids Will Be Squids
This resource from Scholastic provides suggested activities for teaching Squids Will Be Squids by Jon Scieszka and Lane Smith. There is a link on the page to similar resources for The True Story of the Three Little Pigs.
- Lane Smith Books
Lane Smith's website offers a brief biography and bibliography, as well as sketches, videos, and games related to his work.
Grades K – 2 | Lesson Plan | Standard Lesson
Cowboys and Castles: Interacting With Fractured Texas Tales
What do cowboy hats have to do with fairy tales? Two traditional fairy tales and their Texas-based counterparts set the stage for five different ways to respond to text.
Grades 3 – 5 | Lesson Plan | Standard Lesson
Comics in the Classroom as an Introduction to Narrative Structure
This lesson uses comic strip frames to define plot and reinforce the structure that underlies a narrative. Students finish by writing their own original narratives.
Grades 6 – 8 | Lesson Plan | Standard Lesson
Once Upon a Fairy Tale: Teaching Revision as a Concept
Students use fractured fairy tales to practice revision and editing as separate activities when they write their own versions of fairy tales.
Grades 3 – 5 | Lesson Plan | Standard Lesson
Once Upon a Time Rethought: Writing Fractured Fairy Tales
Students read and analyze fairy tales, identifying their common elements. They then write their own “fractured” fairy tales by changing one of the literary elements found in the original.
