Think Big

by Liz Garton Scanlon

The lilting poetry of Liz Garton Scanlon's text pairs perfectly with the playful art of Vanessa Newton in this warm, thoughtful, and-of course-creative picture book.

Genres: Picture Books, Art, Childrens, School, Poetry, Storytime

Paperback

First published June 5, 2012

About the author

Liz Garton Scanlon is the author of numerous beloved books for young people, including the highly-acclaimed, Caldecott-honored picture book All the World, illustrated by Marla Frazee, two novels for middle grade readers, and an upcoming chapter book series. Her many other picture books include the ones she's co-authored with Audrey Vernick, like Bob, Not Bob and World's Best Class Plant. Ms. Scanlon is also a poet, a teacher and a frequent & popular presenter at schools, libraries and conferences. She serves on the faculty of the Vermont College of Fine Arts and lives in Austin, Texas.

Reviews

[Andrea Keeland · Rating 3 out of 5]

Think Big introduces future possibilities for young students in a short and simple way. The characters in the book explored experiences related to adult jobs one could pursue as a "when I grow up" goal and they did so while collaborating on the production of a school play.

I would recommend this group for a very young audience and maybe even as a beginning readers book because of its simple phrases and large print. It really does have a sweet message; however, Im not sure a young audience would understand without further discussion taking place.

This book could be used as an introduction to brainstorming or as a circle time read right before asking the students to write about what they want to be when they grow up.

[Danica Midlil · Rating 4 out of 5]

"Ready Set? Make Art!"
Kudos for little boys knitting!

[Victoria Nesselroad · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is about a kid thinking in big ways coming up with many different ideas and using his imagination. How kids think they come up with many different ideas that are random that you actually use your imagination and they don't even know it. Some of the things that they think big about is how they are going to play that day or what kind of person that they are going to be like a super hero or something like that. That is what the book is about.

So for the teacher ideas this book would make your kids use their imagination and how they think. To me I feel that you can use this book in many different ways however you think.

[Deb · Rating 3 out of 5]

I like this book. It's the third one by Liz Garton Scanlon that I read to Alena today. The illustrations show how fun creating art can be. There are very few words, but that works for Alena, especially since we read other wordier books today.

[Jamie · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is very simple and straight-forward. I like that you can see the process and journey of the students putting together art. The vocabulary used in the book was very descriptive and truly captures the art making process.

[Erin · Rating 5 out of 5]

Sweet book about art.

[Dee Price · Rating 3 out of 5]

Great read-aloud that highlights working together and community building.

[Erin · Rating 3 out of 5]

Sweet! Gotta love any book that encourages kids’ creative expression.

[Clarissa · Rating 3 out of 5]

A simple read aloud introduction to making art for very young children.

[Katie Fitzgerald · Rating 4 out of 5]

I was excited when I won this picture book in a giveaway because it’s by the same author as one of my all-time favorite picture books, All the World. Whereas All the World is a meditation on the interconnectedness between people and the natural world, Think Big is a celebration of art and creativity.

The text is very minimal, with just two syllables per line and sometimes as few as two words per page. Each word or phrase suggests an artistic activity - painting, playing the cello, writing, cooking, knitting, sewing, etc. - and the illustrations by Vanessa Brantley Newton extrapolate entire scenes based on the textual cues. The various types of art are not presented in any particular order, which is distracting, but the illustrations attempt to create a plot that helps contextualize the words. (We see children creating their own props and costumes and then performing a play entitled “When We Grow Up.”)

There is very little connection between the words and pictures in this book, which weakens its impact overall, but there are some strengths worth mentioning. Scanlon’s poetic text is definitely inspiring, especially at the end of the book when it delivers its call to action: “Big breath / Brave heart / Ready, set... / Make art!” The illustrations are full of life, and the faces on the diverse characters convey the excitement and nervous energy of each scene as the story builds toward the big performance. Boys cook and sew right alongside the girls and each character has a personality that comes through in his or her expressions, clothes, and body language. My favorites are the African-American boy who plays the triangle and laughs when wet clay lands on his cheek, and the blue-eyed boy with glasses whose tongue hangs out of his mouth in concentration as he squeezes paint and spins the potter’s wheel. The image of all the kids gathered behind the curtain just before it opens is also a great one - their faces convey all the nerves and anticipation of opening night.

Even though the text is minimal, I think I would avoid using this book with babies and toddlers at story time and save it instead for preschoolers who can actually discuss the illustrations and point out what they notice or like. Related books that might work nicely with this one in an arts or creativity themed story time are I Ain’t Gonna Paint No More by Karen Beaumont, The Artist Who Painted a Blue Horse by Eric Carle, Harold and the Purple Crayon by Crockett Johnson, and Penny and her Song by Kevin Henkes.

[Amy Seto · Rating 5 out of 5]

Get out your art supplies and put on your thinking cap, it’s time to make art with the creative preschoolers in this book. As the kids put together all the elements of their school play in the beautiful illustrations, from painting sets, playing music, learning the dances, and even making snacks for the audience, Scanlon’s spare, rhyming text pushes the story along at a skipping pace. These kids all come to the same conclusion, it's fun to “Make art!”

Scanlon’s brief text, just a few words per page, makes this a great book for toddlers and preschoolers with short attention spans. Although minimalist, the text manages to describe the actions, sounds, and joys of creating art. The illustrations feature a cast of racially diverse children dressed in bright colors, stripes, and patterns. The illustrations use a variety of mediums to create dynamic and colorful compositions. I especially love the collage elements, such as musical notes made from sheet music, photographs of real art supplies and equipment, and word definitions from dictionaries.

Full Review at Picture-Book-a-Day: http://picturebookaday.blogspot.com/2...

[Linda · Rating 5 out of 5]

Whenever I browse in libraries or on Goodreads and in bookstores, I am on the lookout for books that the teachers with whom I work can use. I generally know their class themes, or individual units for each child and keep some of that in my mind while I look. This book fits one particular teacher well because she always has her class create and host a Halloween haunted house for others to visit and in the spring, her students participate in a play performed for the entire school (these are 1st-2nd graders). They act in it, make costumes, props & sets. The book, Think Big is for this teacher and for any theater that shows students how big goals yield satisfying results.
THINK BIG is about creativity, showing beautiful illustrations telling the story of happy kids doing art, making costumes, performing, and so on. The words support the idea that no idea is too big to try.

[Laura Salas · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a fantastic celebration of all forms of creativity, told in terse verse. The art shows kids preparing for a school production, and the text names the activity:

excerpt:

Black ink
Line, shade
Knit, purl
Handmade
No thought
Too great
You think
We'll wait

I love that last couple I shared there because the waiting is important. If you're reading this book aloud, it might be tempting to zip through it, because it's so short. But don't. Read slowly. Let kids study the picture. Help them figure out what is happening on each spread. Art and understanding both take time.

And then the book ends:

Big breath
Brave heart
Ready, set...
Make art!

What a great celebration, full of both art and heart!

[Samantha · Rating 3 out of 5]

A celebration of all forms of art. Atwork is detailed and showcases kids of many different skin tones. The children are drawn in a way that make them look old time-y and sweet. Text is simple and colorful. The story and pictures build upon each other and the culmintae into a big art show for parents.

Although this title is not one I'd recommend for a read aloud, it is visually stunning and would be a great display item or book suggestion for readers/teachers interested in art.

[Mary · Rating 3 out of 5]

While I loved the illustrations, I think many children would find it difficult to understand the arc of the story. I feel like the content (creating a performance) and the execution (2 words per page) didn't match up - it seemed like a book for younger children but with content related to an elementary school student's experience. While I appreciate the message about the importance of making art, I was a bit disappointed in the story.

[Jenny · Rating 3 out of 5]

Very simple rhyming text. The illustrations really add a lot to this book. Shows children engaged in many types of artistry: painting, sculpting, making music, dancing, singing, sewing, and acting to name a few. I especially like the expressions on their faces. Fun to read this in the summertime when my kids and I are trying to do a formal art project at least once a week, music practice daily and lots of informal singing, dancing, painting, drawing, etc.

[Fjóla · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a good book that highlights creativity. My just turned 4 year old son grabbed it at the library, drawn in by the colorful illustrations, but I doubt he really got the take-home message of the story. In fact, despite being short on words, this is really a book to inspire older kids, or at least kids of school age.

[Katie Plumley · Rating 3 out of 5]

* Inspire children to "think big", although this book is a little lackluster with the text. The drawings carry it.

* Use as part of a unit on creative expression.

* Could be used to build community. Everyone works together to produce a play in the book. Could show how working together makes us able to accomplish something much bigger than ourselves.

* K-1

[Shannon Brasher · Rating 3 out of 5]

A book for young children depicting children participating in a variety of artistic activities. While I liked the concept of the book, I wish the text was not so sparse. If you have a little one with a short attention span, this book would be perfect. I would not use this book for a read aloud, but would have it in my classroom library.

[Ed · Rating 4 out of 5]

I thought this was a really good book, with some great illustrations. Loved the endpapers, with all the art supplies at the beginning. I thought the rhymes were charming, and the pictures were a lot of fun.

[Melissa · Rating 3 out of 5]

I find these books with the short rhyming phrases are tricky to read out loud, but I love all the different kinds of creative endeavors displayed throughout the book, and the "Brave heart / Make art!" message is a winner.

[Aleisha Pendleton · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was adorable. I really enjoy the creativity that the children had. I think it would be a great boo to read during or before an art lesson, to open kids up to the idea of thinking big. I really enjoyed the illustrations.

[Sarah Threlkeld · Rating 3 out of 5]

I love the idea behind and message of this book, but I got bored with the sparse text. The illustrations were engaging and the last page was fantastic, but I'm not sure that's enough to hold kids' interest.

[Edward Sullivan · Rating 3 out of 5]

A simple, enjoyable celebration of creativity.

[Brindi Michele · Rating 3 out of 5]

I really like this book, but not sure if it will work in a story time. Young children might not understand what is going on in the pictures. It would be great to set out for an art program though.

[Ana · Rating 3 out of 5]

Loved these little guys' creative efforts and their endearing end result. Loved Vanessa Newton's style of illustration, too.

[Sarah · Rating 2 out of 5]

Digital art collage of gouache, charcoal & mixed media
Short phrases

[Julie · Rating 5 out of 5]

love love love this!
a great introduction to the different styles of art. great for toddlers, pre-k, or a music and movement class.

[Charlotte · Rating 3 out of 5]

I love art and I root for Liz. It's all good.

[Sarah · Rating 3 out of 5]

http://librarianosnark.blogspot.com/2...