When entering a four year old Benton Community School District classroom between the months of January and February, you might hear the names Laura Numoroff, Karma WIlson, Mo Willams or James Dean. During the months prior to that, our 4 year olds are becoming familiar with books and what the author and illustrator do. This way they have prior knowledge about the topic before we begin our preschool author study, after winter break. Fast forward to the months after Christmas, we open the minds of our students and allow them time to experience, hands-on, what being an author and illustration is all about.
In Preschool, we use directed drawings to teach children how to draw the different characters from the stories we read and provide them with the tools they need to write and illustrate their own books in the book making center. At the end of our eight week author study, we celebrate by having them draw their favorite character and making a book.