Won Ton: A Cat Tale Told in Haiku
By: Lee Waldlaw
Illustrated by: Eugene Yelchin.
Publisher: Henry Holt Copyright Date: 2010
ISBN: 978-0-8050-8995-0
Genre: Children's Poetry Format: Fiction
Major Awards Received:
Lee Bennett Hopkins Poetry Award
Myra Cohn Livingston Award for Poetry, 2012 Winner United States
Summary: This poem is about the life of a cat, Won Ton named by it's new owner, that is in a shelter. She is adopted by a family and has to get used to being in a new environment. Over time she gets used to her new home and eventually feel like she belongs there.
Personal response: I enjoyed reading this book because I can see that it can relate to many different situations that children may be going through such as adoption, abandonment, or new family situations. At first I thought it was written in Haiku but after reading the Author's note, I see that it is written in Senryu which she says is almost the same as Haiku with the difference being that Haiku usually focuses on nature where as Senryu focuses on the short comings of human nature or as in this story cat nature! The pictures in the book are excellent for students who can not read yet.
Classroom connections: Before reading this book to the students, I would have them do a picture walk with me because the pictures are so accurately drawn to the situation. This would give the students an opportunity to envision what happens in the book and when I read it to them they will be able to see if their predictions were correct. After reading the book, I would explain to the students that it is written in Senryu and explain how it is similar to Haiku and have them make their own Haiku poem using http://www.pbs.org/parents/creativity/ideas/haiku.html. This website is perfect for students even if they can not read yet just to understand the format of the poem.
Illustrated by: Eugene Yelchin.
Publisher: Henry Holt Copyright Date: 2010
ISBN: 978-0-8050-8995-0
Genre: Children's Poetry Format: Fiction
Major Awards Received:
Lee Bennett Hopkins Poetry Award
Myra Cohn Livingston Award for Poetry, 2012 Winner United States
Summary: This poem is about the life of a cat, Won Ton named by it's new owner, that is in a shelter. She is adopted by a family and has to get used to being in a new environment. Over time she gets used to her new home and eventually feel like she belongs there.
Personal response: I enjoyed reading this book because I can see that it can relate to many different situations that children may be going through such as adoption, abandonment, or new family situations. At first I thought it was written in Haiku but after reading the Author's note, I see that it is written in Senryu which she says is almost the same as Haiku with the difference being that Haiku usually focuses on nature where as Senryu focuses on the short comings of human nature or as in this story cat nature! The pictures in the book are excellent for students who can not read yet.
Classroom connections: Before reading this book to the students, I would have them do a picture walk with me because the pictures are so accurately drawn to the situation. This would give the students an opportunity to envision what happens in the book and when I read it to them they will be able to see if their predictions were correct. After reading the book, I would explain to the students that it is written in Senryu and explain how it is similar to Haiku and have them make their own Haiku poem using http://www.pbs.org/parents/creativity/ideas/haiku.html. This website is perfect for students even if they can not read yet just to understand the format of the poem.