Chrysanthemum by John Henkes is a picture book about a young female mouse with a strange name that gets her criticized in school. The theme of the book is all about loving who you are and not worrying about what others think of you. It's set in a small town, generally around the school with a few parts in Chrysanthemum's home. The illustrations are bright and beautiful with a more sketched look, and cover full page. The book falls under the picture book genre as it is paired with easy text for young readers and full page illustrations that compliment the book nicely. This book would work well for first day kindergartners to ease their nerves and get them excited about the rest of the year. As Chrysanthemum introduces and expresses herself in the book, students could use a piece of paper with a printed, black and white Chrysanthemum picture, glue a small picture of their face taken by their teacher in the middle, and on each peddle write something about themselves, or instruct their teacher with what to write. These could be hung on the door or just outside the classroom to introduce the class. A teacher could also use this to teach students a mini lesson on bullying, and could be read at the end of the day or as a reward.
Reader Response:
- Why do you think the other girls would pick on Chrysanthemum for something she didn't choose, like her name?
- If you were Chrysanthemum's teacher, what would you do about the bullying?
I have always loved this book and found it very intriguing. My mother read it to me when I was little and I plan to read it to my children and one day my students. Henkes illustrations are very colorful and humorous and compliment the book well.
References:
Henkes, Kevin. Chrysanthemum. New York: Greenwillow, 1991. Print.
Galda, L., Liang, L. A., & Cullinan, B. E. (2010). Literature and the child. Boston, MA: Wadsworth/Cengage Learning.
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