Wordless Picture Books

Author: Tomie DePaola
Title: Pancakes for Breakfast
Publisher: Harcourt Brace Jovanovich Publishers, 1978.

Grade Level: Primary (K-2)

Summary: An old woman attempts to make pancakes for breakfast, but meets challenges along the way when she realizes she doesn't have enough supplies and when her pets get involved.

Strengths: One strength of the book is its illustrations. The illustrations are colorful and fun. There are enough details in the pictures to tell the story without overwhelming the reader. In some parts of the book the illustrations mimic a cartoon strip style while in other parts DePaola utilizes double page spreads to tell his story. Another strength is the simplicity of the story. Despite having no words, the story is easy to follow and understand, yet still fun to read.

Concerns: My only concern with wordless books would be younger readers not comprehending the story. Using wordless books opens many possibilities for supplemental activities, but require guidance when young children first begin to use them. Constant reinforcement of the story while reading this book would help children fully grasp and understand the story.

Classroom use: Wordless books allow for children to create their own text to the story or create their own wordless stories. By stopping the story a few pages short of the ending students can be responsible for creating pictures to appropriately end the story and then see how Tomie DePaola actually ended his story! Since words are not a prerequisite in this genre, younger students can enjoy making their own books by creating related pictures resulting in their own story without worrying about writing or correct spelling.

(image from Amazon.com)