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Margaret K. McElderry Books, 1992
Summary: Great-aunt Alice Rumphius was once a little girl who loved the sea, longed to visit faraway places, and wished to do something to make the world more beautiful.
Level: Gr: 1-3
Themes
- self-actualization
- life-long learning
- making a difference in the world
Activities:
1. In a small group, brainstorm questions you might ask about lupines. (e.g. How tall do they grow? When do they bloom? etc.) Find the answers and make a chart which illustrates what you found. On a separate piece of paper list at least five things that Miss Rumphius tells you about lupines. Remember to use the illustrations. Decide whether or not the pictures in Miss Rumphius are accurate. Be specific.
2. Miss Rumphius is told by way of a flashback; most picture books use a linear plot development. As a class, list on the board the events in three picture books that everyone has read or heard read. (Ask questions such as: How old is the Lupine Lady in the first paragraph of the book? Last pages? Middle of the book?) Then number these "events" chronologically. Compare with flash-forward book.
Books employing flashbacks:
Yanosh's Island by Yossie Abolafia, Greenwillow, 1987;
How My Parents Learned to Eat by Ina R. Friedman, Houghton Mifflin, 1984;
Watch the Stars Come Out by Riki Levinson, Dutton, 1985;
Why the Chicken Crossed the Road by David Macaulay, Houghton Mifflin, 1987;
Fat Chance, Claude by Joan Lowery Nixon, Viking, 1987;
What's Under My Bed? by James Stevenson, Greenwillow, 1983;
Dakota Dugout by Ann Turner, Macmillan, 1985;
The Wreck of the Zephyr by Chris Van Allsburg, Houghton Mifflin, 1983.
FLASH FORWARD: Quilt Story by Tony Johnston. Putnam, 1985;
Island Rescue by Charles E. Greenwillow, 1985.
3. What Maine town is pictured in Miss Rumphius? Where do you think Miss Rumphius end up living? What evidence supports your view? Find some present day photographs and compare and contrast.
4. Miss Rumphius' grandfather tells her that she must "do something to make the world more beautiful." She passes the word on to her great- niece, Alice. Write letters for a time capsule telling what you would do to make the world a better place.
5. Class discussion: Examine a collection of Barbara Cooney's illustrations. (See some suggestions in the resource list.) With what media does she work? What changes can you see from her earliest paintings to her later ones?
6. Miss Rumphius ordered five bushels from a seed catalog. Obtain some old catalogs and plan an "ideal" garden or field of "wildflowers." Fill out an order form as if you were going to purchase them. Also write a "check."
Books illustrated by Barbara Cooney
All in a Suitcase. By Samuel French Morse. Little Brown, 1966.
Chanticleer and the Fox. Adapted and illus by Barbara Cooney, Crowell, 1958. also Weston Woods.
Christmas. Written and illus by Barbara Cooney. Crowell, 1967.
Christmas in the Barn. By Margaret Wise Brown. Crowell, 1952.
City Springtime. By Helen Kay. Hastings House, 1957.
The Courtship, Merry Marriage and Feast of Cock Robin and Jenny Wren, to Which is Added the Doleful Death of Cock Robin. Scribner, 1965.
Emma. By Wendy Kesselman. Doubleday, 1980.
A Garland of Games and other Diversions: An Alphabet Book. Initial letters by Suzanne R. Morse. Colonial Williamsburg, 1969.
Hattie and the Wild Waves: A story from Brooklyn, 1990.v How the Hibernators Came to Bethlehem. By Norma Farber. Walker, 1980.
Island Boy. Story and pictures by Barbara Cooney. Viking Kestral, 1988.
The Lazy Young Duke of Dundee. By William Wise. Rand McNally, 1970.
Little Brother and Little Sister. By Jacob Grimm. Doubleday, 1982.
The Little Juggler. Adapted from an old French legend and illus by Barbara Cooney. Hastings House, 1961.
A Little Prayer. Hastings House, 1967.
Katie's Magic Glasses. By Jane Goodsell. Houghton Mifflin, 1965.
Kildee House. By Rutherford Montgomery. Doubleday, 1949.
I Am Cherry Alive, the Little Girl Sang. By Delmore Schwartz. Harper, 1979.
Louhi, Witch of North Farm. By Toni de Gerez. Viking, 1986.
Midsummer Magic: A Garland of Stories, Charms, & Recipes. By Ellin Greene. Lothrop, 1977.
Miss Rumphius. Story and pictures by Barbara Cooney. Viking, 1982.
Mother Goose in French. Translated by Hugh Latham. Crowell, 1964.
The Owl and the Pussy-cat. By Edward Lear. Little, Brown, 1961. (Also Weston Woods).
Peter and the Wolf. By Sergei Prokofiev. Viking, 1986.
Pumpkin, Ginger and Spice. By Margaret G. Otto. Holt, Rinehart and Winston, 1954.
Papillot, Clignot et Dodo. Freely translated into French from the English of Eugene Field's "Wynken, Blyken and Nod," By Francis Steegmuller and Norbert Guterman. Ariel Books, 1964. Also Weston Woods.
Peacock Pie. By Walter de la Mare. Knopf, 1961.
Plant Magic. By Aileen Fisher. Bowmar, 1977.
Read Me Another Story. Child Study Association of America. Crowell, 1949.
Read Me More Stories. Child Study Association of America. Crowell, 1951.
Roxaboxen. By McLerran, Alice. Lothrop, Lee and Shepard, 1991.
Shaun and the Boat: An Irish Story. By Anne Molloy. Hastings House, 1965.
Snow-White and Rose-Red. By Jacob Grimm. Delacorte Press, 1965.
Spirit Child: A Story of the Nativity. Translated by John Bierhorst. Morrow, 1984.
The Story of Holly and Ivy. By Rumer Godden. Viking, 1985.
Tortillitas para Mama and Other Nursery Rhymes: Spanish and English. Selected by Margot C. Griego, et. al. Holt, 1982.
When the Sky is Like Lace. By Elinor L. Horwitz. Lippincott, 1987.
Where Have You Been? By Margaret Wise Brown. Hastings House. 1952.
The Year of the Perfect Christmas Tree. By Gloria Houston. Dial, 1988.
Prepared by Gail Garthwait, Asa Adams School.
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