English 112A: Literature for Children

Fall Semester 1999

San José State University

Professor Carolyn Sigler

Office: FO 106

Office Hours: T-U 7:30-8:30 a.m., W 9-10 a.m. and by appointment

Phone/Voicemail: 924-4457
E-mail: csigler@email.sjsu.edu

Required Items

Natalie Babbitt, Tuck Everlasting (FSG)
Molly Bang, Picture This(Bulfinch)
Eve Bunting, Smoky Night (Voyager)
Lewis Carroll, Alice in Wonderland (Dover)
Beverly Cleary, Ramona the Brave (Avon)
Barbara Cohen, Molly’s Pilgrim (Bantam)
Christopher Curtis, The Watsons Go to Birmingham-1963 (Dell)
Marie deBeaumont, Beauty and the Beast and Other Fairy Tales (Dover)
Paul Goble, The Girl Who Loved Wild Horses (Macmillan)
Jacob and William Grimm, Sleeping Beauty and Other Fairy Tales (Dover)
Roberto Innocenti, Rose Blanche (Harcourt)
Gail Carson Levine, Ella Enchanted (Harper)
Andrea Lunsford et al, Easy Writer: A Pocket Guide (Bedford)
Carol Lynch-Brown, Essentials of Children’s Literature (Allyn and Bacon), 3rd. Ed.
Sharon Bell Mathis, The Hundred Penny Box (Puffin)
Katherine Paterson, The Great Gilly Hopkins (Harper)
Faith Ringgold, Tar Beach (Dragonfly)
Jon Scieszka, The True Story of the Three Little Pigs (Puffin)
Gary Soto, Baseball in April and Other Stories (Odyssey)
R.L.Stine, Goosebumps Series: any title
Eleanora Tate, The Secret of Gumbo Grove (Bantam)
Virginia Walter, Making Up Megaboy (Bantam)
An activated university e-mail account

COURSE PURPOSES and PHILOSOPHY

The following passage is taken from Richard E. Ishler’s "The Preparation of Elementary School Teachers," which appeared in the Spring 1995 Phi Kappa Phi Journal:

Persons who will spend their professional lives as elementary school teachers must be liberally and broadly educated, more so than individuals with other careers, because of their positions as role models for our children?positions that are crucial not only to the students whose lives are directly affected, but to the general society as well. Other than a student’s parents, no other person has such an opportunity to influence, to motivate, and to inspire a child to value the intellectual life. In fact, acting as an intellectual role model may well be the single most significant aspect of the teaching profession. (4) As a means of developing your "intellectual life," this course will introduce you to the history, forms and functions of literature for children, as well as provide you with a variety of critical tools for reading, discussing, and writing about literary as well as pedagogical discourses. Our survey of children’s literature will cover both classic and popular texts, including discussion of film and television, as both have a profound influence not only on books for children but on the very ways that children read books. Through the readings, lectures and our class discussions you will develop your awareness of social and pedagogical issues that impact the use of children’s literature both in and outside of the classroom, your ability to read texts carefully and with attention to their literary merit, and your ability to write clear, thoughtful and persuasive prose.

COURSE REQUIREMENTS
Two exams, consisting of in-class short-answer questions and a take-home essay (25% each); a 7-10 page class project (25%); participation, quizzes and short writing assignments (25%). Attendance and improvement are also considered in determining the final grade. Assignments must be turned in on time to receive full credit.

GRADING POLICY
The following statement has been adopted by the English department for inclusion in all greensheets: The department of English reaffirms its commitment to the differential grading scale as defined in the official SJSU catalogue ("The Grading System"). Grades issued must represent a full range of student performance: A = excellent; B = above average; C = average; D = below average; F = failure. Courses graded according to the A,, B, C, No Credit system shall follow the same pattern, except that NC (No Credit) shall replace D or F. In such classes, NC shall also substitute for W (Withdrawal) because neither grade (NC or W) affects students’ GPA. In English 112A this scale is based on the following criteria:

A = Excellent: The "A" essay is well organized and well developed. The paper has good topic sentences and is virtually free of grammar, spelling, and punctuation errors. Besides a clear and persuasive use of evidence and fluid transitions, an "A" essay contains a fresh insight which teaches the reader something new about the subject matter and maintains the reader's interest.
B = Above average: The "B" essay demonstrates a good understanding of its subject, a clear and persuasive use of evidence, a certain level of ease of expression, and solid organization. However, it may contain some minor problem with mechanical flaws, organization, sentence variety, or analysis. It usually lacks the spark of originality and creativity that characterizes the insight found in an "A" essay.
C = Average: The "C" essay makes a good attempt at all the assignment's requirements. It has a reasonable understanding of its subject matter but its ideas are frequently simplistic or over-generalized. The writing style is also more bland and repetitive than the style shown by "A" and "B" essays and it often contains a large number of flaws in grammar, punctuation, spelling and/or word choice.
D = Below average: The "D" essay is poorly organized and generally unclear. It has inappropriate or inadequate examples, is noticeably superficial or simplistic, or contains serious mechanical and grammatical problems. A "D" essay may also reveal some misunderstanding of the assignment requirements.
F = Failure: An "F" essay has not addressed the requirements of the assignment and is unacceptable work.

ATTENDANCE POLICY

Attendance is required and consists both of being in class on time, remaining for the entire class period, and being prepared with that day’s assignment. More than three absences will likely lower your final grade in this. Reading quizzes may not be made up; however, the lowest score will be dropped at the end of the semester.

ACADEMIC INTEGRITY

The misrepresentation of another's work as one's own, whether the original work is published or not, is plagiarism and will result in a failing grade. The incident will also be reported to the dean of students for possible further action. All quotes must be enclosed in quotation marks or, when more than three lines, put in an indented block. Full citation of the original author and source must also be included. Copies of SJSU’s Policy on Academic Dishonesty are available in the office of the Dean of Student Services.

DISABLED STUDENT SERVICES

Students with disabilities who need special accommodations should register with the Disabled Student Services Department. Please advise the professor immediately of any special needs.

READING AND ASSIGNMENT SCHEDULE

The following schedule may be slightly modified during the course of the semester, but students will be notified of any change at least one class day in advance. Detailed descriptions of the exams and project will be distributed in class. All reading assignments must be completed by the first date listed. Titles with an asterisk (*) are films, which will be viewed in class.

Tuesday Thursday

	8/26 WELCOME! Introduction to the class
8/31 HISTORY AND BACKGROUND OF CHILDREN’S LITERATURE Early Children’s Literature (handouts) Lynch-Brown, "Learning About Books" (25-39)	9/2 REALISM Cleary, Ramona the Brave
9/7 REALISM Lynch-Brown, "Realistic Fiction" (129-140) Cleary, Ramona the Brave cont.	9/9 REALISM Paterson, The Great Gilly Hopkins
9/14 HISTORICAL REALISM Curtis, The Watsons Go to Birmingham-1963	9/16 HISTORICAL REALISM Lynch-Brown, "Historical Fiction" (149-159) Curtis, The Watsons Go to Birmingham-1963
9/21 CLASSIC FAIRY TALES de Beaumont, "Beauty and the Beast"; Disney, Beauty and the Beast*	9/23 THE "DISNEYFICATION" OF CLASSIC FAIRY TALES Disney, Beauty and the Beast* Lynch-Brown, "Traditional Literature" (93-102)
9/28 MODERN FAIRY TALES Levine, Ella Enchanted; Grimm, "Sleeping Beauty", "Hansel and Gretel," "Little Red Riding Hood," "Rapunzel"	9/30 MODERN FAIRY TALES Levine, Ella Enchanted
10/5 THE GOLDEN AGE OF FANTASY Carroll, Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland	10/7 THE GOLDEN AGE OF FANTASY Carroll, Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland Lynch-Brown, "Modern Fantasy" (111-122)
10/12 MODERN FANTASY Babbitt, Tuck Everlasting	10/14 MULTICULTURAL LITERATURE Goble, The Girl Who Loved Wild Horses Lynch-Brown, "Multicultural and International Literature" (187-208)
10/19 MULTICULTURAL LITERATURE Tate, The Secret of Gumbo Grove	10/21 CENSORSHIP AND THE CLASSROOM Lynch-Brown, "Learning About Children and Their Literature" (1-22)
10/26 MIDTERM EXAM	10/28 BOOK SELECTION, OR, WHAT MAKES A BAD BOOK GOOD? Stine, Goosebumps, any title of your choice
11/2 PICTURE BOOKS and VISUAL LITERACY Bang, Picture This	11/4 PICTURE BOOKS Read: Ringgold, Tar Beach; Scieszka, The True Story of the Three Little Pigs; Lynch-Brown, "Picture Books" (67-78)
11/9 PICTURE BOOKS Bunting, Smoky Night; Innocenti, Rose Blanche	11/11 ILLUSTRATED BOOKS Mathis, The Hundred Penny Box
11/16 REASEARCHING CHILDREN’S MATERIALS Discussion and tour of library resources.	11/18 PROFESSIONAL WRITING FOR TEACHERS
11/23 EDITING WORKSHOP Due: Complete, typed draft of semester project	11/25 Thanksgiving Holiday
11/30 CHILDREN’S LITERATURE AND MEDIA LITERACY Cohen, Molly’s Pilgrim; Bryant, Molly’s Pilgrim*	12/2 CHILDREN’S LITERATURE AND MEDIA LITERACY Soto, Baseball in April
12/7 MEDIA LITERACY AND THE CLASSROOM Walter, Making Up Megaboy	12/9 CREATING A READING-CENTERED CLASSROOM Lynch-Brown, "Planning the Literature Curriculum," "Developing Teaching Strategies" (224-273)
FINAL EXAM: Wednesday 12/15 9:45-12:00

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