in the Forest ABOUT THE BOOK LEARNING STANDARDS TEACHER S GUIDE Written by Frédéric Brrémaud and Illustrated by Federico Bertolucci

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TEACHER S GUIDE in the Forest Written by Frédéric Brrémaud and Illustrated by Federico Bertolucci ABOUT THE BOOK Chipper and Squizzo are a precocious puppy and squirrel who love to explore new and

In each volume of this fun, educational series, they tour a different location, encountering the real-world animals found there in beautiful illustration and fun cartoon strip antics.

978-1-942367-25-3 A fun, lusciously illustrated series of wildlife discovery books for children of all ages.

1 TEACHER S GUIDE in the Forest Written by Frédéric Brrémaud and Illustrated by Federico Bertolucci ABOUT THE BOOK Chipper and Squizzo are a precocious puppy and squirrel who love to explore new and exciting environments, flying their cardboard box airplane to wondrous worlds full of fascinating animals and creatures. In each volume of this fun, educational series, they tour a different location, encountering the real-world animals found there in beautiful illustration and fun cartoon strip antics. This first volume takes them into the forest, where they discover bugs, birds, bears, and more! A fun, lusciously illustrated series of wildlife discovery books for children of all ages. Little Tails is a series of young readers graphic novels created by Eisner Award nominated illustrator Federico Bertolucci and writer Frédéric Brrémaud, creators of the world-famous, multi-award-winning Love series of silent, wildlife graphic novels. LEARNING STANDARDS Activities included in the Teacher Guide for Little Tails In The Forest allows us to organically hit upon many of the Common Core standards for reading literature. This lesson covers the following: Common Core Standards: RL.K.1, RL.K.3, RL.K.4, RL.K.7, RL.K.10 RL.1.1, RL.1.3 RL.1.6, RL1.7, RL.2.7, RI.K.5, RF.K.1a, SL.K.1a, SL.K.1b SL.K.2, SL.1.1a, SL.1.1b, SL.1.2 1

2 USING VISUAL THINKING STRATEGY Visual thinking strategy was developed by cognitive psychologist Abigail Housen and museum educator Phillip Yenawine in the 1980s as a tool for docents at the Metropolitan Museum of Modern Art to make the collection more accessible for patrons. Using this method, the discussion of a piece can be facilitated using three basic questions: 1) What is going on in this picture? 2) What makes you say that? 3) What else can we find? Megan Dowd Lambert of Simmons College and the Eric Carle Museum adapted this approach to picture books as a means for encouraging young children to think deeply about how a story is told through illustrations as well as words. Letting students teach each other allows them to take ownership of their learning. Visual thinking strategies require students to pay close attention to detail. Rich illustrations in picture books provide background knowledge that will scaffold for reading non-fiction later. Illustrations expand vocabulary and improve comprehension. They also provide support for language acquisition for English language learners. The job of the teacher is to facilitate discussion, paraphrase the student response, and to ask the basic questions. Most of the questions on this guide will not have clear answers, and that s okay. EXPLORING THE COVER What do you see on the front cover? What do you see on the back cover? How do you think are they related? Based on these pictures, what do you think the story may be about? The front cover should make us excited about the book and makes want to know more about what is inside it. What questions do you have after looking at these pictures? Did you notice that the way the letters are made is different on the words Little, Tails, and Forest? We call the shape and size of typed letters the font. Why would the publisher use different fonts on the cover? If the students did not mention it, point out that the front cover tells us the names of the two main characters, Chipper and Squizzo. 2

There are no pictures on this half title page but have we seen these colors or this combination of fonts before? Next, let s look at the picture on the title page.

3 MOVING ON TO THE TITLE PAGES Is there a connection between the cover art and the color of the end papers? A page that contains just the name of the book and the name of the author but not any information about who published the book or when they published it is called a half title page. There are no pictures on this half title page but have we seen these colors or this combination of fonts before? Next, let s look at the picture on the title page. The title page is where the name of the author and illustrator are listed. It also tells us the name of the company that published the book, when they published it, and where the book was printed. This title page includes pictures. What do you see? Do you think it is decoration or part of the story? If it is part of the story, what could that be telling you? Where do you think my story will take place? What makes you think that? What is a forest? What do you already know about forest and the animals that live there? Vocabulary Forest: Forests, land populated by many trees, are one of the most common and most important kinds of ecosystems on earth. 3

4 DELVING INTO THE STORY What do you notice about the color of the panels? Is the art the same in the panels as on the rest of the page? Why do you think the panels are at the top of the page? How does the author let us know which character is speaking? Let the students know that the boxes on the top of the page are called panels. The space between panels is called the gutter. Just like a book, the panels are read left to right, top to bottom. If you work with older students or strong readers, you could invite two students to read the parts of Squizzo and Chipper. If you read to the students, you may wish to give the characters distinct voices to clarify who is speaking. Use the basic visual thinking strategy questions about the art in any page of the book. If students need more prompting here are some questions about the first page of text to get you started. On this page, we see the main characters. We saw them on the cover and on the title page. What does the squirrel tell us that the dog s name is? What does the dog tell us that the squirrel s name is? What do you notice about the second panel? Why do you think the illustrator added the lines around the words Look Out? Look closely at the second and third panels. Do you see the stag beetle? Why do you think the illustrator chose to have the stag beetle in the panels and below the panels? Why are there little clouds above the stag beetle in the third panel? 4

Notice that Squizzo has question and exclamation marks over his head. What do you think that means? How could we read this out loud? How does the illustrator show us movement?

5 Notice that Squizzo has question and exclamation marks over his head. What do you think that means? How could we read this out loud? How does the illustrator show us movement? Onomatopoeia: Sometimes books contain sound effects. Another name for sound effects is onomatopoeia. OOPS examples of onomatopoeia. Be on the look-out for more as you continue to read. Vocabulary Stuntman: person whose job is to do dangerous things in a movie instead of an actor so that the actor does not risk being injured. If students do not point it out to you, make sure students know that Squizzo is giving a fact about each animal he sees in the accompanying illustration. What happened in the fourth panel. How could we read this out loud? Vocabulary Intruder: someone who goes into a space where they are not invited to be. How does the illustrator connect the first panel to the action on the previous page? Look closely at the first two panels. What does your eye do? What does the illustrator do to make your eye travel that way on the page? Where have you seen this before? This is called a motion line. Why do you think it s called a motion line? Why is Squizzo tell Chipper to be quiet when they see the fox? What makes you think that? Little Tails In The Forest T E A C H E R S G U I D E lionforge.com/educator 5

Is that a teddy bear? Why or why not? Why does Squizzo think he looks hungry?

the book? What does this map show? How can you tell?

6 Is that a teddy bear? Why or why not? Why does Squizzo think he looks hungry? When one illustration is spread across two pages, we call this a double page spread. Why do you think the illustrator decided to spread the map over both pages of the book? What does this map show? How can you tell? In the last panel Squizzo tells Chipper that he has a perfect sense of direction. Do you agree? Why or why not? Little Tails In The Forest T E A C H E R S G U I D E lionforge.com/educator 6

What do you notice about the sky on this page compared to the sky on the last page? What do you think this means? What s happening in the last panel? How do you know?

7 What do you notice about the sky on this page compared to the sky on the last page? What do you think this means? What s happening in the last panel? How do you know? Why does Squizzo think Chipper is acting crazy? What do you think Squizzo will explain later? What is happening in these panels? How do you know? How does the illustrator make the wolf cub seem scary? What are Squizzo and Chipper doing in the second panel? How does the illustrator show this? Where have you seen this before? 7

8 REFLECTING ON THE ENDING How did the story end? Look at the bottom panel. What time of year is it? How do you know? Are there any clues about where Squizzo and Chipper might go on their next adventure? ANIMAL FACTS The animal facts at the end of the book can be a starting point for a science unit on forest ecosystems, or the beginning of an introduction to research. This is interesting, how can we learn more? If you wish to get you started, you may use the attached chart to record the facts found in this book. Forest animal research on the web: National Geographic Kids: USDA Forest Department- Kids in Woods: education-themes/kids-in-woods Blue Planet Biomes: Geography for Kids: Endangered Wolf Center: US National Parks Service - Bears: US National Parks Service - Bats: REFERENCES About Us. Visual Thinking Strategies, vtshome.org/about/. Lambert, Megan Dowd. Reading Picture Books with Children: How to Shake up Storytime and Get Kids Talking about What They See. Charlesbridge, 2015 Robinson, Kristina Visual Thinking Strategies for Improved Comprehension. Colorín Colorado, WETA, 1 Dec. 2015, 8

9 LITTLE TAILS IN THE FOREST ANIMAL FACTS Animal Encountered Animal Fact Stag Beetle Marten Wild Boar Skunk Fox Butterfly Deer Bear 9

10 LITTLE TAILS IN THE JUNGLE ANIMAL FACTS Animal Encountered Animal Fact Squirrel Owl Cat Woodpecker Bat Wolf Hedgehog Snake 10

ABOUT THE AUTHOR Frédéric Brrémaud grew up on a farm in the west of France, which instilled him with a love for nature and an immediate appreciation for

His interest in storytelling was let loose at the Center Nationale de Bande Desinnee in Angouleme, leading to a career writing and creating numerous

artists and publishers. As much as he likes to play in different genres, however, he will always return to tell more animal stories.

being accepted into the Disney Studio in Milan in 1998.

(Richard Lionheart) with Brremaud, which led to continued collaboration together, next on Racambole, then the LOVE series.

Federico recently received a 2016 Eisner Award nomination for his work on the LOVE series in the category Best Painter/Multimedia Artist.

11 ABOUT THE AUTHOR Frédéric Brrémaud grew up on a farm in the west of France, which instilled him with a love for nature and an immediate appreciation for life and death. His interest in storytelling was let loose at the Center Nationale de Bande Desinnee in Angouleme, leading to a career writing and creating numerous series, spanning many genres, from historical adventures to classical novel adaptations to westerns to vampires stories, all published with numerous artists and publishers. As much as he likes to play in different genres, however, he will always return to tell more animal stories. ABOUT THE ARTIST Federico Bertolucci began illustrating at the College of Arts in Lucca, Italy, then the Accademia della bella Arti in Carrara, before being accepted into the Disney Studio in Milan in Having illustrated several comics based on popular animated characters, including The Flintstones and Lilo & Stitch, he codeveloped Richard Coeur de Lion (Richard Lionheart) with Brremaud, which led to continued collaboration together, next on Racambole, then the LOVE series. He too will always return to tell more animal stories. Federico recently received a 2016 Eisner Award nomination for his work on the LOVE series in the category Best Painter/Multimedia Artist. MORE PICTURE BOOKS FROM LION FORGE LITTLE PIERROT THE ENCHANTED CHEST THIS IS A WHOOPSIE! LITTLE RED WOLF Little Tails in the Forest Teacher s Guide 2018 The Lion Forge, LLC. Little Tails in the Forest, published 2017 by The Lion Forge, LLC. Copyright 2017 Little Tails in the Jungle (Volume 2), Frédéric Brrémaud and Federico Bertolucci. LITTLE TAILS Frédéric Brrémaud and Federico Bertolucci. LION FORGE, CUBHOUSE, MAGNETIC COLLECTION, and the associated distinctive designs are trademarks of The Lion Forge, LLC. 11

Written by Frédéric Brrémaud and Illustrated by

TEACHERS GUIDE Written by Frédéric Brrémaud and Illustrated by ABOUT THE BOOK A day in the life of the king of the jungle, this lavishly illustrated story follows a single majestic tiger through a wordless