Use this customizable resource to help students dig deeper into the three modes (text, visual images, and design) that picture books use to convey meaning and create a unique reading experience. The guide is organized into sections based on literary elements and on how the picture book may be examined and discussed in a classroom. Here is a list of the guide’s sections, along with a brief overview of the kinds of activities found in each section: Pre-Reading Activities (Students think about who they are as readers, what experiences they bring along with them, and what their initial impressions are of the book’s illustrations.) - Plot (How are we introduced to the story, how are the story’s events organized, and how do these events build on one another? What conflicts drive the story?) - Characters (Who are the major and minor characters, how do they interact with one another, and how do they react to the events of the story? Who is telling the story and how is it being told?) - Setting (What are the places in which the story takes place, and how do these places affect the story? How is the world of the story like or unlike our own world?) - Writing Craft (How does the author use language to create the voices of the characters and the mood of the story? What do characters say, and what does this tell us about them? How do the words work with the pictures to tell the story?) - Visual Craft (How does the illustrator's use of styles, color, lines, motion, and perspective help readers understand what is happening and who the characters are? How do the illustrations influence our reading of the text.) - Post-Reading Individual Activities (Activities include creating verbal and visual story maps and a photo glossary. Students also connect the world of the story to their own, give advice to characters, create a sequel, and express their opinion about the book.) - Post-Reading Collaborative Activities (Activities include creating a class encyclopedia and a multimodal group project. In pairs or groups, students also act out scenes, discuss the story’s lessons, write text for wordless picture books, dissect illustrations, write questions, and go on a story scavenger hunt.) - Text-to-Text Connections (These activities ask students to compare and contrast the characters, events, settings, themes, and craft of two distinct picture books.) Each section includes Teacher Instructions that provide overviews for every activity within the section. The sections based on literary elements feature a Quick Guide to help explain the element to your students, a set of writing prompts for students to make a more personal connection to the story, and a mentor-text prompt that asks students to use a writing or drawing technique from the book to create their own work. Activities feature text-dependent questions that encourage close analysis and call for evidence to support claims. The wide range of topics explored in these activities ensures that this guide is adaptable to any picture book that may be taught in a classroom. Just use those that are a perfect fit for the one you are teaching. This resource is 128 pages in all.