Story Talks: In 1942 by Jean Marzollo
Welcome to the Story Talks blog series. Talking to your children about books they read (or you read to them) helps improve comprehension, expand vocabulary, and practice critical thinking skills. In this series, I offer discussion starters and questions to ask that correspond with specific children's books to help encourage conversations about the stories we read.
In honor of Columbus Day, today's book is In 1942 by Jean Marzollo. If you don't have a copy of the book, you can listen to it being read here:
Talking about Christopher Columbus can be challenging since he generally isn't hailed as the hero he once was. This book presents a very basic version of his accidental discovery of the Americas. It acknowledges the importance of that discovery without heralding him as anything more than the sailor that he was.
After reading the book, there are a few things you can talk about with your child. Start with basic comprehension and about specific details that can be found in the story. (If your child can't recall the details, go back in the book to find the answers.) Draw on those basic questions to start an in-depth discussion. To expand further, plan an activity to go along with the story. Here are a few questions to start with, along with ways to continue the discussion:
*How many ships did Christopher Columbus sail with? Expand your child's knowledge by naming the three ships (the Nina, Pinta, and Santa Maria) and then ask what they would call their ship if they had one and why they would choose that name.
*How did he find his way? Talk about navigation using the stars and/or about how a compass works. Discuss how we find our way today (maps, GPS, etc.) and which method is easier.
*What land did he find? Find the Bahamas on a map. Talk about the climate and the different things that come from that region of the world.
In addition to talking about the details of the story, you can talk about the language used in the story. This book uses many rhyming words. Ask your child how many rhyming words they can find. You can also ask your child if there are any words in the book that they didn't understand. Look those words up in a dictionary to learn the meaning.
Want more books related to exploration and sailing ships? Check these two out:
