Picture books are wonderful resources to have in the classroom. They can be used to introduce children to a variety of topics, stimulate classroom discussion, fuel imagination and also foster a love of reading. While it is always enjoyable to read picture books in class, sometimes it is nice to try something different. With this in mind, I’ve taken a quick look online to see what video resources are available for teachers to use in the classroom. I’ve decided to focus my attention on videos where the author or illustrator reads their own picture book story. While nothing beats meeting an author or illustrator in real life, if this isn’t possible, a virtual clip is the next best thing.
The first video I’d recommend is the delightful tale of The Ice Bear read by Jackie Morris. Authors and illustrators use a variety of styles in the clips that I’ve selected. In this one, Jackie choses to be heard but not seen.
The CLPE (Centre for Literacy in Primary Education) have a fantastic project called the “Power of Pictures” which is really worth taking a look at. There are so many videos (and other classroom resources) freely available through this website. Authors and illustrators who have been recorded reading their picture stories for this project include Alexis Deacon, Viviane Schwarz, Mini Grey, Tim Hopgood, Benji Davies, Emily Hughes, Chris Haughton, David Lucas, Tom McLaughlin and Ed Vere. I’ve chosen to include this one by Alexis Deacon, but they are all worth a look.
Another favourite of mine is this lovely video of Nicola Davies reading her very moving story The Promise. If you are interested in hearing more about this story, Nicola has also recorded videos explaining the writing process behind it, which I have also included below.
The Scottish Book Trust have also created some entertaining videos of authors and illustrators reading picture books stories, which have been shortlisted for the Bookbug Picture Book Prize. Their website provides a range of ideas for cross curricular activities relating to these picture books. Some of the authors/illustrators included are Ross Collins, Nick Sharratt, Debi Gliori, Chae Strathie, Michelle Sloan and Kasia Matyjaszek. Definitely a website to check out and it’s very interesting to see the different approaches adopted by the authors/illustrators.
So, that’s a flavour of some of the video resources that are available online featuring authors/illustrators reading their own picture books. Do you have a particular favourite that you use in class? Feel free to let us know.