Oh Say can you seed? By Bonnie Worth

 

Oh say can you seed? is a perfect non-fiction book for introducing children to flowering plants. The cat in the hat examines various parts of seeds and plants in this easy to read story for young children.

With the Cat in the Hat as the guide, children are encouraged to think about the different ways we use plants, "from the paper for books and the cloth for your pants". He helps students understand that plants are used for food, clothing, and medicines, and are used for so many of our daily needs.

With the assistance of Thing 1 and Thing 2, Cat in the Hat defines what a seed is for students and illustrates the anatomy of seeds. He illustrates the growing timeline of seeds and identifies the parts of the plant once the seed has grown. Bonnie Worth also shares what plants need to grow and how plants are the only living things on Earth that make their own food through photosynthesis.

Language

The first thing that struck me about the language of this book were the American English links. First of all, the title Oh say can you seed? instantly reveals the language of the book before you even read the first page due to the fact it is a play on words of lyrics from the American National Anthem. Secondly, there are phrases used throughout the book such as pants and traveled (spelt travelled in England). From that point of view, if the book were to be used in science lessons, teachers would have to be careful with the terminology and phrases used in the book.

Throughout the book there is a sing song rhyme that instantly transforms its contents from a non-fiction education book to a story about seeds i.e.

I'm the Cat in the Hat,
and I think that you need
to come take a look at
this thing called a seed.

The rhyme makes the book much more fun and enjoyable to read for children and could also help in reinforcing and improving the intake of the information presented through the story.

The book also gives the reader a very personal connection between the reader and the characters in the story. The Cat in the Hat often says I think, I will or I mean which reinforces the fact that he is the one doing the teaching in the story and taking the reader on the journey of a life of a seed.

By using phrases such as the cloth for your pants or the veggies you eat , Bonnie Worth gives the reader the feel that the Cat is talking directly to them, and also relating themes in the book back to a students everyday life. Presenting information in the context of a child's everyday life can also help to improve and increase understanding of key concepts.

Rhetorical questions such as Can you think of the ways? gets the reader thinking. In the context of this story, it gets the children thinking about all the different ways in which plants are used throughout our lives.

Illustrations

Opening pages of Oh say can you seed?

The book is full of colourful and interesting illustrations that can attract attention,  enhance understanding and create context. The illustrations can also help in aiding retention of key facts/ concepts because they give the children something that they can use in identification i.e. matching an idea with a diagram.



Photosynthesis diagram from Oh say can you seed?
 

The book also goes into great detail with diagrams and charts that match descriptions in the text in order to help children understand and bring to life the processes or parts involved with seeds and plants.

Laura's Star by Klaus Baumgart

This book has been a favourite of mine ever since I was a youngster for two reasons; firstly because I have so many lovely memories of it being read to me by my granddad and secondly, because I love the way that Laura's character transforms from the beginning to the end of the story.

Plot Summary
The title of the story is quite self explanatory: the story is about a little girl called Laura who longs for a friend that she can talk to and share secrets with. One night she is mesmerised by a glittering star, falling from the sky, which lands broken on the pavement. Laura rescues the star and takes it carefully to her room to fix it. There, Laura confides in the star by telling it all of her secrets.

In the morning, Laura wakes up to find her new friend missing and is sad throughout the day. When she later goes to bed, she finds her bandaged star in the same place she had left it. While she is happy to have her friend back, Laura realises that her star is dyeing and so makes the decision to set him free to return to the night sky.

Key themes
A magical story that helps children to understand the importance of friendship and that sometimes, we have to let go of things that are precious to us. Baumgart's story also teaches children that, sometimes, we have to put the needs of other before our own and that no matter how alone we may feel, there will always be someone there. Friends come in all shapes and sizes. This story can also be interpreted as a metaphor for children dealing with bereavement, as the star symbolises their lost one.

Structure

           ✤ OPENING:

"I wish I had a friend," sighed Laura as she gazed out of her bedroom window.
 

✤ CLOSING:

Each night when she went to bed, she could whisper her secrets into the darkness, knowing that the little star was somewhere out there, listening.

The story, in my opinion, is based heavily upon Laura's character transformation and growth as a person, the opening and closing lines of the story are clear evidence of this.  In the opening line we meet a lonely, unhappy Laura that hides away and longs to find a friend but by the end of the story, we see that Laura has transformed into the happy, comforted little girl that she should be.


Adaptations
Laura's star is also a 2004 German animated film based upon Baumgart's book and produced by Warner Bros. The film was produced in both German and English and has become the most successful animated film in all of German history with a sequel to the story released in 2009. Though I'm yet to watch the film, plot summaries that I have read online lead me to believe that the story has been dramatized for film purposes. In the film, Laura and her brother Tommy (there was no Tommy in the book) discover that the little star has powers and can do amazing things like making people fly and brining inanimate objects over time (this also never happened in the book).

A sad but beautiful story of the friendship between a lonely little girl and a star.