Saturday, April 13, 2013

30. Sail Away by Donald Crews



















Bibliographic Citation:
Crews, Donald. Sail Away. New York, NY: HarperTrophy, 1995. 40 p. ISBN 978-0688175177.

Awards/Selection Lists:
Booklist Editors' Choice

Format Examined:
Paperback

Annotation:
A family rows out to their sailboat, and goes sailing all day, through sun, wind, and a storm.

Personal Reaction:
Donald Crews uses illustrations and typeface together to form the story of this book about a family who sails the day away. The colors are bold and the use of large letters draws a child's eyes to the words as an important part of the story. The tone of the reader's voice is encouraged to change through the growing size of the font. Crews also uses words to symbolize the sound of the boat and the wind. 


Age Recommendation:
I would recommend this book for children ages 3-7 years of age.


Themes/Issues:
Sailing, family, storms


Early Literacy Skill Value:

Letter Knowledge
While letter knowledge is not a direct focus of this book, letters can be identified through the large text that is printed on several pages to symbolize the wind and sailing through a storm.

Narrative Skills: 
Narrative skills are modeled through the reading of this story, and children may be encouraged to help tell the story since the text is short and simple. Children may also be encouraged to participate in the sound effects of that are a part of the story.

Phonological Awareness: 

Phonological awareness is a part of this book through the use of words to represent the sound of a small boat engine ("putt... putt... putt...") and the sound of the wind picking up the sail ("WHOOSH!).

Print Awareness:

This book provides a rich print awareness experience through the use of text that is a direct part of the story through changes in size, color, and position in relation to the illustrations. 

Print Motivation: 

This book provides an active experience for children through the use of sounds and a growing intensity throughout the book. Children will find the illustrations interesting to look at as well, since there are many details to explore on each page.

Vocabulary:
New words pertaining to sailing are presented, as well as words that symbolize sounds. 



Author/ Illustrator Website:
No official author website


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