If You Were the Moon by Laura Purdie Salas

Salas, Laura Purdie, and Jaime Kim. "IF YOU WERE THE MOON by Laura Purdie Salas , Jaime Kim." Kirkus Reviews. N.p., n.d. Web. 18 Jan. 2017. 

Thank you, Violet Nesdoly for hosting Poetry Friday this week!

A Review

One of my favorite visual thinking strategies to use with kids is called See-Think-Wonder.
See-Think-Wonder invites students to look at something with purpose, develop opinions and questions for further learning.

I had the lovely opportunity to read a pre-publication version of If You Were the Moon (Millbrook/Lerner 2017) Laura Purdie Salas and illustrated by Jaime Kim. As I paged through the gorgeous illustrations and was touched by the lyrical story, See-Think-Wonder kept coming to mind. I see so much....I think and wonder too.

If You Were the Moon, begins with a child’s seeing the easy side of being the moon. But the moon has some gentle instruction to impart on the child and us all. We see the moon born and growing into a child that pulls close and pushes away from mother into a mature part of the universe that has important tasks. Kim's interpretation of Salas' text is playful and warm.

Science facts on each page keep readers grounded about what our moon actually does. A glossary and suggestions for further reading are provided for curious kids. (like me)

I recommend If You Were the Moon, for pre-readers through grandparents!

If I had an infant laying against my shoulder I would read these words about the moon and allow my baby to begin hearing the rhythm of the universe.

If I had a pre-reader snuggled on my lap, I would read pictures first…what do you see? What do you think? What do you wonder? Next, we would read the poetry of the text, stopping to delight over words like twilight and peek-a-book and pathway.

If I were a child, I’d have fun with spotting the games both the moon and I play.  And, I'd be curious about the physical science facts about our earth and its moon.

If I were a Teacher Librarian, I’d ask students to choose an object in nature and write a similar tale about something that we see in our world…something we don’t often consider. I’d ask those students to add facts as Salas has done so that they could show true and real learning instead of sitting down for a silly old benchmark test.

If I were a grandparent, who took walks with their grands…. I’d make a gift of this book for the days when I might not be able to be there for a walk. I'd write a special message on a special page.

I simply cannot think of a readers bookshelf where, If I Were the Moon, doesn’t fit. It fits and invites us to pick it up and read to the moon and back. 

My OLW for 2017 is LOOK. I’m so glad I got to look at this book and that now it’s a part of me. Thank You Laura Purdie Salas and Jaime Kim. Thank you!