Antler, Bear, Canoe

Antler, Bear, Canoe: A Northwoods Alphabet Year. ISBN:0-316-10315-2. Betsy Bowen. (1991). Maddie Simons Advocate Award; Northeastern Minneapolis Book Award for Art and Photography Celebrating Birch; Northeastern Minnesota Book Award Nominee. Ages 4-8. Northern Minnesotan life.

This book introduces letters of the alphabet and months of the year. As you go from A to Z in the book, you are learning about northern Minnesotan seasons in many ways (from January to December). You are introduced to the climate, the wildlife, the food, the scenery, the clothing, the people, and some of their past times.

The pictures are woodblock prints that are made by carving the design and letters backwards into a flat block of white pine and then dipping them into black ink. The pictures are finished by adding color through water color paints. It reminds me of some of the Indian art that I had seen when traveling up north. The children in the pictures are doing very realistic activities. For example, when the adult man is cutting wood, the kids are in the background climbing and sitting on the wood pile, like it is their own private playground.

This book could be used in conjunction with the beginning of each calendar month during circle/calendar time, and taken out at the beginning of each month to look at a new picture and read about something that is happening in MN that month. It would be a great book to read to preschoolers to also review their letters...but in a fun way, not just flashcards.

This book would also be a supplemental book to read with "Courage at Indian Deep" by Jane Resh Thomas because children could use the illustrations in this book to help create pictures in their minds about the scenery on Lake Superior.

Children could create an alphabet book about where they live and include their hobbies, the climate, the animals/pets, and important family dates if you also coordinate with the months of the year. They could also create this book for someone else and do a biography of the person, and where they live.