CRAIG SAVOYE

VISUAL STORYTELLING

 

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         Teachers, use your judgment, but this second Discussion Guide is probably too advanced for the youngest grades. Kindergarten and First Grade teachers may indeed find a few points that work for them. Perhaps they could be tacked on, or edited in to, the discussion guide for textual storytelling. The final illustration in the book in particular is fun and has a few teaching points Kindergartners and First Graders should readily understand and appreciate.

         For Grades 2-4, this lesson plan goes through each illustration sequentially and:        

• highlights elements that help tell the story in pictures instead of words 

• highlights elements that reveal and layer character

• highlights word-picture complement

• shows how each captures a specific moment in the story

• shows how each are linked to help tell the story seamlessly

         

NOTE: In both discussion guides I sometimes include hints after questions. Use of any material in these plans is completely at the discretion of teachers, but I envision teachers waiting for an answer from the class, and if one is not forthcoming, then secondarily offering the hint.  

          *Also, depending on the lesson for each two-page spread, I’ve found it is often effective to start by showing only the words on a two-page spread (no illustration), or only the illustration (and now words). In the case of the former, even though the kids are familiar with the illustrations, the “blank page” puts them in the writer and illustrator shoes and gives them a sense of the writer and illustrator starting from scratch in terms of trying to find the right images to complement the block of text.  

         

TEACHER SCRIPT

 

After reading Rematch [yesterday], we talked about how the wordstold the story. Today I want to talk about how the pictures tell the story, and how both can tell the story separately, or at the same time.  

 

Illustration #1

—We’re going to go all the way through the book, starting with the first picture. 

         —An illustrator has to decide what “point of view” to start with. For instance, the first illustration is from the rabbits’ point of view. But the view could have been from behindRobbie looking at Taz and Judo. Or it could have been from the side, like the second illustration, where Robbie is to our left and the hollow log and [Taz] and Judo on the right.

         —Why do you think the illustrator chose to have the reader view this scene from behind Taz and Judo? [SO THE READER IMMEDIATELY UNDERSTANDS THE STORY BELONGSTO TAZ AND JUDO, TO THE RABBITS; IT’S NOT ROBBIE’S STORY] In other words, the illustration helps show that we, the reader, are going to see this story through the eyes of the animals, not the humans.

—[Yesterday] we talked about “setting up” the story in the first one-quarter of the book. The writer does that with words. But the illustrator also “sets up.” I count at least 11 things in this first illustration that come up in the story later. Can you name them?

         All of Robbie’s equipment, so right away we can list:

         1. skateboard

         2. model airplane

         3. potato gun

         4. cardboard box

         5. drumsticks (in his back pocket)

         What else?

         6. covered bridge (we see it many times, including when Taz flies through it)

         7. the stream Taz rows down in the cardboard box

         8. old truck (Taz and Judo use it to aim the potato gun)

         9 the hollow log (remember it’s the starting line for the race and also Judo hides in it with the skateboard)

         Two other things in the background…

         10. haystack (Taz & Judo test fire two potatoes into it, and we see it when the race gets near the finish line.)

         11. tractor (we see it when Taz is trying to reach it to steer, and then the last illustration in the book, when Taz is driving the tractor and they are gathering lettuce.)

 

Illustration #2

         —Let’s talk about the precise momentcaptured in this illustration: it’s an instantafter the potato rolled down the hill and hit the box.

         —Why is that timing so important? For instance, why wouldn’tan illustration one second laterwork very well?  [WE WOULDN’T SEE THE TRAP SET-UP, AND SEE WHAT IT LOOKS LIKE, OR EVEN UNDERSTAND THERE WAS A TRAP THERE.]

         —Why might it not be best to do an illustration one second beforewhat we’re seeing here? [BECAUSE WE NEED TO SEE THAT TAZ WILL BE SUCCESSFUL IN KNOCKING THE BOX ASIDE AND EXPOSING THE LETTUCE]

         —Is that clear? This illustration takes place at the best and most precise momentin terms of seeing something that helps us understand the story.

         —Here’s a little trick. How do we know Taz rolled the potato down the hill?

[THE BOUNCING WHITE LINE, CALLED A SWOOSH. ALSO, SEEING TAZ UP THERE WITH HIS ARMS RAISED HELPS US UNDERSTAND.]

         —The story says Taz went up to the potato field the night before. How do we know it’s a potato field where he is standing? [TWO POTATOES NEARBY AND THE BOX OF THEM]

         —By positioning the log the way the artist did, she made sure we see that it is…what? [HOLLOW] Once again that is…set-up. Why is it helpful to know the log is hollow? How does its “hollowness” come into play three more times in the story?

         1. In the next illustration, Taz and Judo jump into the hollow log to escape Robbie’s firecrackers.

         2. After that, we see Taz and Judo leap outof the hollow log to escape Robbie’s potato gun.

         3. We also see Judo hiding in the hollow log with the skateboard at the start of the Rematch.

—Can you see how a picture can take the place of words?  If I put my hand over the words, tell my what is happening here based solely on the picture: A boy is trying the trap a rabbit with a piece of lettuce but the rabbit, who is smart, is messing up his plan.

—Look at the lettuce. It’s under the trap with the box being knocked away.  As I turn the page…

 

Illustrations #3-4

—Where is the lettuce?  [IN TAZ’S MOUTH] 

—So, without words, what do we know happened? That is, tell me everything Taz did between the last illustration, when Taz is up on the hill, and this illustration.  

[TAZ RAN DOWN THE HILL, GRABBED THE LETTUCE IN HIS MOUTH, AND RAN TOWARDS THE LOG] 

—Do you see how, if the illustrations are done right, they are almost like a movie but without all the pictures and movement in between. 

 

Illustration #5

—Let’s talk about set-up again. Besides the usual things like skateboard, potato gun, airplane, and cardboard box, what is being “set-up” for later?  [HUBCAP;SEE IT FLOATING DOWN THE CREEK IN THE RIGHT HAND ILLUSTRATION]

—And how does the hubcap come back into play later? 

[TAZ RETURNS WITH THE HEAD OF LETTUCE IN A HUBCAP SAILBOAT]

—Good. And how does all of that set-upcontinue in the next illustration?…

—Something else is set-up now. Another piece of equipment is positioned from later use. What is it?  [THE MODEL AIRPLANE. WHEN THE CARDBOARD BOX SINKS AND TAZ SWIMS TO SHORE, THE MODEL AIRPLANE IS RIGHT THERE FOR JUDO TO FLY TAZ TO THE FINISH LINE.]

—Of course the geese are set up too; we see them here and then several times later.

 

Illustration #6 

—It says in the book that Taz and Judo had colorful fur due to an unfortunate incident involving Robbie’s paintball gun. Why do you think the writer put that in and the artist added purple to Taz and yellow to Judo?   

[BECAUSE RABBITS LOOK SO MUCH ALIKE. VISUALLY, PURPLE AND YELLOW HELP YOU IMMEDIATELY IDENTIFY TAZ AND JUDO.]

—What else can we tell about the story based on this illustration? It’s a little bit of a hard question; I’ll give you a hint: Taz and Judo walking away are part of the answer. [THE FIRST FOUR PAGES (TWO CENTER SPREADS) WITH A TOTAL OF 6 ILLUSTRATIONS, FORM A SEQUENCE. WITH TAZ & JUDO WALKING AWAY, AND WITH ROBBIE WALKING AWAY, THE READER KNOWS, WITHOUT EVEN SPECIFICALLY THINKING THE THOUGHT, THAT THE SEQUENCE IS ENDING.]  The ideal situation is for the words to tell part of the story and the pictures another, but also match up, synchronize, or complement one another, The words simply say “they headed home.” The illustration basically reinforces those words.

 

Illustration #7

—Which turtle here is First Shell? [THE ONE ON THE LEFT]

—In the story, it says the turtles’ leader, First Shell, spoke. That’s all it says, so how do you know that guy is First Shell? Fiver things. What are they?

         1. HOW HE IS DRESSED, different from the others; his top hat gives him authority, but his cane sort of does too.

         2. HE IS OLDER

         3. HIS MOUTH IS OPEN, SPEAKING

         4. HIS ARM IS RAISED, GESTURING AS HE SPEAKS

         5. HE IS UP HIGH, LIKE ON A STAGE, LIKE SPEAKERS OFTEN ARE

         —All of that may seem obvious when you see it, but remember the artist only has the writer’s words and a blank page. The artist needs to think up all those things.

 

—We kind of know Turtleeny is Turtleeny because his shell is glistening and his white silk scarf is blowing in the breeze, the way the words describe him. But how do we know Dulles is Dulles? [DULLES IS A BITDULL. A bit of a nerd. So he has a plaid shell and sandals with socks] Do you see how the words don’t have to say he wears socks with sandals; they just have to say Dulles is a bit dull and nerdy and the socks and sandals showthat: the words and pictures are different, yet they go together, they match up.

—But there is something else that literally points to the three main characters in this illustration. What is it?  [THE ARTIST USES SHAFTS OF LIGHT TO HIGHLIGHT THE MAIN CHARACTERS]  This is the first time we meet First Shell, Turtleeny, and Dulles, so the artist wants to make sure, when we read about them, we connect them to the turtles in the illustration.

—Before I turn the page, notice the color of the sky. What time of day is it?

It’s not night time, but not day either. [IT’S CALLED SUNSET OR TWILIGHT]

 

Illustration #8

—What time is it in thisillustration? [YES, NIGHT]

—Think about how the story progresses. Earlier this same day we saw Taz & Judo outsmarting Robbie. Tomorrowis the Rematch, at noon. So the light itself in the last two illustrations forms a “progression.” The changing light helps tell the reader the story is moving along:

         —Taz & Judo outwit Robbie in daylight; turtles gather in early evening, twilight; the rabbits gather at night, it’s dark; and then the next day, sunshine again, the race starts.  

         —Do you see that? The writer didn’t have to say(write) “the turtles met later that evening,” or “the rabbits at night;” the very color of the sky helps tell/move the story. All the author says is “Later…” and the illustration does the rest.

—Taz’s father is named Mister Choak. Which rabbit is he? [YES, THE ONE WITH THE RED HAT]  Howdo you know that? The illustrator provides three details to help you know.  

    1. In the story, Taz and his father talk, so we know in the picture they must be near each other. 

    2. There is a rabbit standing next to Taz, but are we sure it’s his father? The red hat tells us he is different from the other rabbits and helps us know it’s Taz’s Dad.  

    3. Mister Choak is just plain bigger and whiter than the other rabbits, again, to stand out.

This is a hard question, but why don’t we see Mr. Choak’s face?  There are really two reasons.

    1. He is turned so it looks like he is talking to Taz.

    2. Mister Choak is not a main character in the story, Taz and Judo are, so we see them straight on, but we don’t want to take away from the two of them by showing Mister Choak. It wouldn’t be a problem showing him, we just want to keep 

the spotlight on Taz and Judo.  

—Do you see somebody down in the corner?  Who is it?  [FIRST SHELL] Why is he positioned there? [THIS IS REALLY BIG FOOT’S CHANCE TO TALK HIS RABBITS AS THEIR LEADER, AND OUR CHANCE TO MEET HIM. FIRST SHELL ONLY STEPS FORWARD TO SPEAK AT THE END, SO IT WOULD TAKE AWAY FROM BIG FOOT TO HAVE FIRST SHELL STAND RIGHT NEXT TO HIM.]

 

Illustration #9

—If you looked at this picture without any words, what would you say Taz is trying to do? [DIG A TUNNEL UNDERNEATH THE CARROTS TO GET SOME]

—Without any words, we know he will not succeed, he will fail. How do we know that? [DIRT IS STARTING TO COLLAPSE ON THEM]

—Correct. But what’s a second clue? [JUDO STARTING TO RUN; TAZ DROPPING THE SHOVEL]

—It’s dark in tunnels. What did the artist do so the tunnel isn’t black—so we can see Taz & Judo? [GAVE THEM MINER’S HELMETS WITH HEADLAMPS]

—Who is that boy standing there?  [ROBBIE!]

—How do you know? We can’t even see his face. Or a name tag either. But you’re right, that’s Robbie. What five things together tell us it’s him?:

1.RED HAIR   2. HOLDING THE BOX   3. LETTUCE BAIT IN HIS POCKET

4.STRING   5. The last one is a little hard: the simple fact that Robbie is always trying to get Taz. He knows Taz is always up to something, he just doesn’t know what or where. So he’s guarding the carrot patch. 

 

Illustration #10

—This picture is trying to do the same thing as the last one: tell us, with pictures, but not words, that Taz is trying a crazy scheme—to drive the tractor. But he will… what?

[FAIL, NOT SUCCEED.] He just can’t stretch that far.

—This is kind of a hard question, but what do you think the squiggly lines on one side of the illustrations means?  

[THEY MEAN THESE ILLUSTRATIONS ARE DIRECTLY LINKED TO THE RABBIT MEETING AND WHAT IS SAID THERE] 

         —Without the squiggly lines the reader might think these are things that are happening nextin the story, but they actually happened a while ago. 

—And of course this is still the part of the story where we are setting up. So even as Taz’s tendency to try crazy schemes is being set up, so is the tractor itself: we see it again in the very last illustration.

 

Illustration #11

—If I was to ask: What’s going on here? You might say, “It’s the start of the race, silly!”

—But you’d say that because the artist did such a good job showing you that.

         —She started with a blank page and had to think through what to include in order to show it is the start of the race.

         —There are four main things that tell us a race is starting. What are they?

(Note to Teachers: suggest you write the answers on a board)

      1. [TAZ AND DULLES LINED UP BY THE LINE IN THE DIRT]

      2. [THE BANNER THAT SAYS ‘START’]

      3. [BIG FOOT & FIRST SHELL FIRING THE POTATO GUN ‘START PISTOL’]

      4. [ALL THE TURTLES AND RABBITS LINED UP TO WATCH]

         —But it’s not just having all of those parts in the illustration. It’s also how bigthose parts are and where you place them. 

         —Okay, let’s number the 4 elements in order of importance. 

         1. TAZ AND JUDO LINED UP

         2. PROBABLY A TIE BETWEEN POTATO GUN & START BANNER

         4. THE CROWD IS FUN AND IT’S IMPORTANT THEY’RE THERE, BUTTHEY’RE FOURTH MOST IMPORTANT IN TERMS OF TELLING US THIS IS THE START OF THE RACE.

         —Okay, here’s where I’m going with this. Because Taz and Dulles are most important what has the artist decided to do with them? 

[PUT THEM RIGHT IN THE MIDDLE AND FACING US. WE TALKED ABOUT POINT OF VIEW BEFORE. WE COULD HAVE SEEN THIS IMAGE FROM THE SIDEOF THE ROAD, BUT THIS IS THE BEST WAY TO SEE TAZ AND DULLES AND THE START BANNER] 

         —Why don’t we see allof the banner? [BECAUSE WE DON’T NEED TO]. Let me explain. If Taz & Dulles are the mostimportant, and the banner is next most important, there is no reason to shrink Taz and Dulles so we can see ALL of the banner.

         —The top priority is Taz & Dulles. The artist started by making them as big as they needed to be. That meant the banner couldn’t be quite so big. So the artist showed just enough of the letters on the banner so that we know it says START,but notso much that the artist had to shrink Taz or Dulles.

         —Here’s another way to look at this: Picture in your mind seeing all of the Start banner and Taz & Dulles a little bit smaller. The focus would be as much on the Start banner as Taz & Dulles. It would distract from them, even though they’re most important; the start banner is less important.]

         —Remember the illustration where the potato rolling down the hill hits the cardboard box trap? Remember I said the artist picked that exact momentfor us to see?   A second before or a second later and that illustration would not have “worked.”

         —Let’s think about that here. Imagine we’re standing right where we are for this illustration half-an-hour before the race. What would we see in that half hour?

         —TURTLES & RABBITS SLOWLY COMING OUT OF THE WOODS

         —JUDO SNEAKING INTO THE HOLLOW LOG

         —DULLES & TAZ STRETCHING, MAYBE GETTING A PEP TALK

                     FROM BIG FOOT AND FIRST SHELL

         —Of course we don’t want to that picture. It doesn’t help tell the story of the start of the race. But what about one secondbeforethis illustration? What wouldn’t be happening [THE POTATO GUN WOULD NOT BE FIRING. The picture would be less interesting and it wouldn’t tell us the race was actually starting; we’d still be preparingto start.]

         —One second afterthis illustration would be better, but you wouldn’t see the potato, just the smoke, so again, there would be no sense of action and overall the picture would be less interesting. Also, what happens when the race starts? [DULLES STARTS FORWARD WHILE TAZ MOVES OVER TO JUDO.]  But the writer and artist don’t want to give that away; the reader will see that in the nextpicture.  

         —So, the point is: the writer and artist started with a blank page and had to decide what the precise momentwas to illustrate, and best tell the story, and also be interesting looking and include some action. 

—Look at Taz’s eyes. Where is he looking? [OVER AT JUDO] That is the artist giving us a hint about what is coming up next. 

—What are some fun things the illustrator put in for kids to see? [TURTLE AND RABBIT BANNERS, FANS TAKING PICTURES, SIGNS, AND TURTLEENY AND MR. CHOAK IN THE BACKGROUND.] Do you also see how a little bit of the creek is visible? The illustrator always wants to keep you aware of where you are, to orientyou. What other object helps orient us? [THE LOG; WE SAW IT IN THE FIRST ILLUSTRATIONS]

 

Illustration #12

—LET’S KEEP TALKING ABOUT the artist orienting us, using the background and the periphery—the sides—of a picture to help tell the story.  

         —I see four different things, besides the creek, around the edgesof this picture that help orientus, help “set the scene,” help show us the “big picture,” help tell us where we are. Can you name them?

         1. THE START BANNER— We only see the S this time, but because it is the next picture, right after the start of the race, we know it is the Start banner, and it helps us, the reader, understand where we are—a few steps past the start of the race.

         2. THE TOP HATS— At the bottom of the picture. We know that’s Big Foot and First Shell. All we need to see are the hats. But we also know from the previous illustration…that’s right where they were standing. 

         3. DULLES— See where Dulles is relative to Taz & Judo and how much smaller he is? It tells us all we need to know: he’s moving ahead while Taz & Judo mess around.

         4. This is several things; combined they show us the REST OF THE RACE COURSE: the path leading through the bridge;past the haystack;to the finish line. 

  —We saw some of this in the very first illustration. But the artist is thinking ahead. Remember, Taz will later fly throughthe covered bridge on his way towards the finish line. Again, the writer and artist wants to “orient” you; make sure the reader always has a sense of where they arewhile reading the story.

  —And what’s still sitting in the grass waiting to be used later? [MODEL AIRPLANE]

 

Illustration #13

—Okay, let’s step back a minute and remember what we’re doing here: sometimes a writer has to depend on words onlyto tell the story, sometimes the picture tells the story without words, and most often the words and pictures go together.They match, or “complement” one another. This illustration is an example of that: the words explain the story by themselves, but the illustration also tells the story without words. 

—Look at the illustration for a moment, forget the words, forget you know what happens, forget you have ever read Rematch. Let’s say you handed Rematch to a friend who had never read it. What would they say they are seeing?

          —I’ll start us off: Taz is up in the air on his skateboard. How did he get there? [HIS SKATEBOARD BOUNCED OFF DULLES’S SHELL]

          —Yes the words tell us that, but so does the illustration. What in the illustrationtells us that? [THE SWOOSH MARK TRACES DOWN TO DULLES’S SHELL] 

          —What else does the swoosh mark tell us? [IT GOES ALL THE WAY BACK TO JUDO, WHERE HE LIT THE FIRECRACKER]  Do you see how that continuation of the swoosh basically connects the previous picture to this one? The swoosh tracks Taz from near the start line and Judo in the last illustration to his position here. Why is it red? [Just so we can see it better]

         —So the skateboard ricocheted off Dulles’s shell, but what gave it the power to get airborne? [FIRECRACKERS]

         —Do we see the firecrackers? [YES]      

         —What is different between the firecracker here and the same one in the last illustration? [IN THIS PICTURE THE FIRECRACKER IS BURNED OUT]

         —What is the burned out firecracker telling us? [TAZ HAS GONE AS HIGH AS HE IS GOING TO GO]

         —And if Taz has gone as high as he is going to go, if the firecracker has run out of power, what is going to happen next? [HE’S GOING TO FALL]

         —Yes, Uh-oh, as Taz says, he’s going to fall. Where? [IN THE CREEKRIGHT BELOW HIM]

—But let’s not forget there arewords The words say the skateboard hit the shell and shot into the air, they say the skateboard nosed over and dropped towards the creek. So word and picture go together; the illustration reinforces the words. We can hardly see Dulles, but we know from the previous picture and the words that it’s him down there: again, pictures and words working together

—Here’s a good question for you! I keep saying there are only so many illustrations allowed in a book. But what if I let you do one extraillustration betweenthese two illustrations. What might it be? Hint: think about what we talked about with the START illustration: you want to capture the precisemoment of a specific action. 

 [THE MOMENT TAZ HITS DULLES’S SHELL AND GOES AIRBORNE]

 

Illustrations #14, 15, 16

—The next three illustrations were a little bit complicated for the writer and artist. 

—Think about what they’re trying to achieve. They need to explain that Taz and Judo are test-firing a potato towards the haystack at the finish line, and that once they get the aim right on the gun, Taz is going to lower himself into the barrel and blast himself to the finish line like one of the potatoes—with Judo lighting the fuse.

         —That isn’t toohard to do with words, but it’s a bit complicated to do in still pictures. The writer and artist knew they couldn’t do it in one illustration. So they decided three pictures would be best.

         —But if you use three illustrations, you have to make sure they lookdifferent and achievedifferent things. Otherwise why havethree?

         —First thing to look at here is the “point of view.” It’s different in all 3 pictures. We talked earlier about point of view. How does it change in these 3 illustrations?

         —[IN THE LEFT ILLUSTRATION WE ARE NEAR THE HAYSTACK WITH THE TRUCK IN BACKGROUND. THAT IS OUR POINT OF VIEW]

         —[IN THE RIGHT ILLUS IT’S THE EXACT OPPOSITE: WE’VE REVERSED THE ANGLE OF VIEW; WE’RE NEAR THE TRUCK WITH THE HAYSTACK IN THE FAR BACKGROUND]

         —[IN THE MIDDLE ILLUSTRATION WE ARE SORT OF IN THE ‘MIDDLE’ OF BOTH OF THOSE TWO POINTS OF VIEW: NEAR THE TRUCK AND LOOKING STRAIGHT AT IT.]

         —The words tell us Judo couldn’t just shoot Taz out of the spud gun. They had to test fire it to make sure they could land Taz in the haystack. What would the problem be if the point of view of the left illustration was reversed: if we were by the spud gun seeing the haystack far away and the potato about to land in it? [THE HAYSTACK AND POTATO WOULD BE SO FAR AWAY WE COULD HARDLY SEE EITHER, BUT THAT’S EXACTLY WHAT WE WANTTO SEE; SO WE NEED TO BE NEAR THE HAYSTACK] 

         —Also, by giving the three illustrations three different points of view, we make each interesting and unique. If all three were from the same point of view they would be repetitious, a bit boring. 

—Let’s talk about Judo for a second. The artist and writer are having a little fun here, but they are telling the story too, and also telling us a little bit about Judo’s character. Look at whereJudo is looking in the middle picture, and the expression on his face. What does it tell us is going on in his mind?  [HE MESSED UP LIGHTING THE FIRECRACKERS ON THE SKATEBOARD, SO HE’S WORRIED HE’S GOING TO MESS UP LIGHTING THE POTATO GUN FUSE.]

         —See how that tells us something about his character without words. We know Judo is unsure of himself; the picture tells us that without words. 

—Look at the illustration on the right.Let’s talk again about the need to capture the right moment, the precise moment. This is a little complicated, but think hard.

         —If the artist drew this illustration 2seconds beforethe potato gun was fired, what might be the problem with it? [WOULD LOOK TOO MUCH LIKE THE MIDDLE ILLUSTRATION; IN FACT IT WOULD BETHE MIDDLE ILLUSTRATION]

         —If the artist drew this illustration 2or more seconds afterwhat we are seeing, what might be the problem with it? [TAZ WOULD BE OUT OF THE PICTURE]

         —Here’s a thirdpossibility. Let’s say the artist showed the momentJudo lights the fuse but also lights his ear on fire. Can you picture that in your mind? What would the problem be with that picture? [THE POTATO GUN WOULD NOT HAVE BEEN KICKED OVER, IT WOULD STILL BE POINTING TOWARDS THE HAYSTACK] 

         —That wouldn’t work because this illustration needsto show Taz being fired in the wrong direction. Plus…Taz would still be down in the barrel.

         —Do you see how all of that goes together? If the artist is going to show Taz being shot out of the potato gun, it hasto be afterthe fuse has been lit andafterthe barrel has been kicked over. 

         —Again, the whole point here is: the story really demandsthat this be the exact moment that is turned into a picture.

         —Let me repeat a point I’ve touched on; another example of an illustration reinforcing the words. The most important piece of the story right here is Taz being shot in the wrong direction. So we need to seethat, and we do:  we see the finish line straight ahead, Dulles moving slowly toward it, and Taz flying off in another direction. Again, even without words the picture gives you a sense of what is happening in the story.

 

Illustration #17

—So far I’ve mostly talked about individualillustrations telling the story without words, but let’s think about how illustrations are linked to tell the story, starting with this illustration. If you handed it to a friend without any words, and they knew nothing about Taz or the story of Rematch, what would they say is happening in this picture? 

         —A dizzy rabbit is up in a tree in a nest with baby chicks all around and a big eagle about to land, probably the mom.

         —What question might your friend ask?  Hint: How did… […THE RABBIT GET IN A NEST UP IN A TREE?]

         —Let’s go back to the previous illustration. What's the last thing we see? [TAZ FIRED OUT OF POTATO GUN] 

         —Okay, this gets a little complicated again, but follow along with me, it’s fun. I talked about capturing the right “moment” with these illustrations. But the artist only gets about 30 illustrations, so each one has to tell the story andbe spaced out properly,too.  It’s not a movie; you can’t show everything. You can only show a few snapshots. So you need to link them. So what don’twe see betweenTaz fired out of the gun and Taz in the nest.  [TAZ FLYING THRU THE AIR; CRASHING THROUGH BRANCHES AT THE TOPS OF THE TREES; THE MOMENT HE ACTUALLY CRASH LANDS IN THE NEST.]        

         —Correct! Butwe don’t needto see that. Get it? The way the two pictures are drawn, we know the flying through the air happens betweenthese illustrations. If one picture is him shot out of the cannon and the next in a nest looking blurry-eyed, we know he landed there. The illustrations stretch out time, yet keep the story connected. 

         

Illustration #18

—Aha! A lot of what I just said doesn’thappen in the next illustration. There is too much happening in the story for one picture to connect with the next. If there were no words, we would not really know how Taz got from the nest downstream to the riverbank. We have to rely on the words in this case: Taz tells Judo he’s been conked out for an hour and needs to hurry to the finish line, and the best way is to row downstream in the cardboard box Judo brought.

—BUT…the illustrator did add one thing to the left illustration to help link the two picture a little bit. What is it? [JUDO RUNNING ALONG WITH THE BOX ON TOP OF HIS HEAD]  Do you see that? The box helps us understand,visually, that Taz got down out of the nest, met up with Judo, and rode the box like a boat downstream.

—Okay, this is a pretty hard question, but I want you to try and make a connection. This illustration represents something important. Remember back to yesterday. We talked about how the hero, Taz, keeps running into obstacles on the way to his goal. His goal is to win the Rematch in record time. But first his skateboard hits Dulles and goes airborne and lands in the creek, then he is shot into a bird’s next, and then his cardboard boat box sinks. Do you remember?: what happens after the hero faces all of these hard obstacles?  Hint: her or she reaches a… [LOW POINT] Yes, remember? The hero feels defeated, is ready to give up, but he or she grits his or her teeth, says “I’m notquitting,” and keeps going. So what does this illustration represent?  [YES, TAZ’S LOW POINT] Since that is an important point in any written story, it’s important in a picture book to showit.

—Let’s talk about some individual items in this illustration. I’m going to mention an object, and you tell me everything the story and illustration is telling us about it.

           —Cardboard box.[IT’S ALMOST UNDERWATER, SO WE KNOW IT’S SINKING]

           —Drumsticks. …hint: Yes, Taz used them to row the cardboard boat, but when do we see them again? [WHEN TAZ SAILS UP THE CREEK WITH THE HEAD OF LETTUCE.] One drumstick is a mast for the lettuce leaf sail, another serves as a rudder.

           —So what is the illustration telling us is happening to the “oars” right now? [FLOATING DOWN THE CREEK WHERE TAZ WILL FIND THEM LATER]

          —Model airplane  [IN A MINUTE TAZ WILL SEE IT AND GET AN IDEA TO RIDE IT] So it needs to be in this illustration here. 

          —Skateboard…. [WHEN TAZ FLEW UP IN THE AIR RIGHT AT THE START OF THE RACE, the skateboard landed in the creek. We see it here so we know it didn’t sink or float downstream. Why is that important…for later? [BECAUSE WE SEE THE SKATEBOARD ONE MORE TIME]…in the last illustration. We are basically setting that up here (the skateboard didn’t float away or sink).

          —What about Taz? The way he’s drawn we know 2 things about him. What are they?

          1. [HE NEARLY DROWNED] How do we know that?  [WATER UNDERNEATH HIM & DRIPPING OFF HIS CHEST]

          2. [HE IS AT HIS LOW POINT, as we talked about] How do we know that? [IT’S CALLED ‘BODY LANGUAGE.’] His shoulders are slumped, his head is down, and his ear are dropping—and wet, too.

          —What about Judo? What would you say is happening with Judo based on the way he looks? [HE IS ARRIVING, ON THE RUN, ON THE ROAD WE HAVE SEEN BEFORE, FROM UPSTREAM WHERE HE HELPED TAZ GET IN THE CARDBOARD BOX]  There’s something interesting about all that. When we talk about all that, like we just did, you agree with it, but when you see Judo, you don’t really think all that through, the picture of him running just tellsyou all that. You don’t really have to think it through. That’s the beauty of an illustration well done. 

 

Illustration #19

—Okay, let’s play our game here: forget you know the story, forget you know what is going to happen. If you justlookat this picture, tell me what is going to happen next?

[TAZ IS GOING TO RIDE ON BOARD THE PLANE]

         —I would say there are three ways we know he is about to ride on the plane, besides the words telling us, of course. What are the three things?

         1. [IT CLEARLY LOOKS LIKE TAZ IS LINING THE PLANE UP ON THE PATH—LIKE THE PATH IS A RUNWAY]

         2. [JUDO IS HOLDING THE CONTROLLER]

         3.  The third is tricky; look closely! [TAZ FOUND A HAT FROM SOMEWHERE!] We don’t know where he got it, but he wouldn’t be wearing it if he was staying on the ground. It’s an old pilot’s hat. 

         Remember I talked about carefully setting upeverything. In the first illustration we saw all of Robbie’s equipment that Taz and Judo are going to use later, including the controller and airplane. But the hat is brand new. It wasn’t set-up. But the writer and illustrator decided it was fun to include the hat so they did! It’s called “creative license.”

—Let’s look at Judo.

         —What does it tell us that Judo is holding the controller? [HE IS GOING TO FLY/CONTROL THE PLANE]

         —The way Judois standing a looking down at the controller looks familiar, doesn’t it? Where have we seen that before? [WHEN HE WAS HOLDING THE LIGHTER,JUST BEFORE HIS LIT THE FUSE ON THE POTATO GUN]

         —And what does this look tell us? [HE’S NOT SURE HE KNOWS HOW TO WORK IT. HE KNOWS HE FUMBLES THINGS AND HE’S WORRIED AGAIN]

         —Do you see how that’s “communicated” withpictures and without words? That’s exactly what I mean by telling a story with pictures. The writer doesn’t have space to remind us that Judo is unsure of himself, so the picture does it without words.

         —Also, when you show something like this several times—like this exact same look from Judo—it’s called a “running gag.” Storytellers also just call it a “runner.” It’s funny because it’s the exact same look we saw before and we know exactly what is going through Judo’s head. 

 

Illustration #20

—This illustration tells us two main things without words, what are they? 

         1. [TAZ IS INDEED ABOARD, FLYING ON THE PLANE]

         2. [JUDO IS FLYING THE PLANE USING THE CONTROLLER]

—Which of those two things is more important? [TAZ FLYING THE PLANE]

—Why? [BECAUSE TAZ IS THE HERO AND TAZ TRYING TO GET TO THE FINISH LINE IS MOST IMPORTANT]

—Very good. But both Taz flying on the plane and Judo controlling the plane are important. It’s just that the Judo part is less important that the Taz part. How does the illustrator show that? What little trick is used to show the Judo part is less important than the Taz part? [JUDO IS BLURRED AND OFF TO THE SIDE]

         —Get that? The artist definitely wants you to see Judo; it is important to know he is controlling the plane. But it ismoreimportant to know Taz is flying on it, so Taz is in focus and Judo is secondary. The blur helps tell your eye and brain that Judo isn’t the “focus” and Taz is.

         —Where is this scene taking place? [NEAR THE STARTING LINE] Remember we talked about orienting. The writer and illustrator use visual clues to help orient the reader – help you know where you are geographically. There are two main ways we know we are near the starting line. What are they? 

       1. TEACHER: flip back to illustration #11. [ThePOINT OF VIEW] of this illustration is basically the same point of view as the illustration showing the start of the race. That similarity helps tell you we are on the same stretch of path we saw at the very beginning of the story (the road a background of trees should be familiar). 

       2. Hint: this clue is hidden, but we can see a tiny part of it. [HOLLOW LOG] Remember ,we saw the log in the first four illustrations, and again when the race started, so when we see it again here, we know where this spot is.

       Question: If we know where we are, what are Taz and his plane pointed towards? Hint: it’s back up in the trees in the background. [THE NEST TAZ LANDED IN]

 

Illustration #21

—What tells us Taz and the plane are on a wild ride? [THE SWOOSH MARKS BEHIND THE PLANE SHOW ITS FLIGHT PATH]

—The story tells us the plane is coming right at Judo and makes him dive onto the ground. So we need to see that, and we do. But is the plane out of control?  [NO]

—Ah! That’s a key point. Judo barelyhas the plane under control, but he does. He is about to fly it through the covered bridge, a tricky maneuver, so it is important we see…what? [JUDO ACTUALLY HOLDING THE CONTROLLER IN HIS HANDS, OPERATING IT, AND THE PLANE LINED UP TO FLY THROUGH]

 

Illustration #22

—Remember what we talked about yesterday and just a minute ago. Taz the hero reaches a low point. We need to see that and we did when he came out of the creek after almost drowning. There’s also something important about Judo. He goes from being unsure of himself and unsuccessful to doing something right. What does he do right? [FLIES TAZ TOWARD THE FINISH LINE ON THE PLANE]That’s really important because we want to show that characters learn, and grow, and get better; be better people…or rabbits. So just like we showedTaz at his low point, we need to showJudo being successful. There are two elements in this illustration that show Judo being successful: one big and one small. What is the big element and how does it show Judo being successful? [THE SWOOSH MARK SHOWS US THE PLANE SUCCESSFULLY FLEW THROUGH THE COVERED BRIDGE, A VERY DIFFICULT THING TO DO. ]

—What is the small element  [JUDO IS UP OFF THE GROUND, STANDING UP, WITH THE CONTROLLER IS HIS HANDS]

—There is something else is the picture that’s there to both orient us and as set-up. What is it? [THE TRACTOR] It shows up in the very last illustration, so the illustrator wants to remind the reader of it so it isn’t a surprise when we see it later.

 

Illustration #23

—What does this illustrations say without words? Three things mainly.

[PLANE FALLING OUT OF THE SKY; TAZ TRYING TO GET OFF OF IT; GEESE COMING TO HELP]

—let’s look at those one at a time. 

      1. How do we know the plane is falling [IT’S POINTING DOWN; THAT’S KIND OF EASY. AND THE WHITE LINES SIGNIFY TROUBLE]

      2. we know Taz is trying to get off because he is climbing up the back of the plane rather than clinging to it the way he was in the previous three pictures.

      3. Why don’t we see much of the geese here? …hint: look at the next illustration

 

Illustration #24

—This illustration is really about Taz holding on to the geese’s legs and the geese flying him to the finish line. The previous illustration is really about the planeand Taz.So we see alittlebit of the geese coming in for the rescue—they are sort of “introduced”—but because the geese are the stars of thisillustration, and the planeis the star of previous illustration, just a little bit of the geese are shown in illustration #23 so that together the two illustrations are not repetitive. 

—Let’s go back and take a look at illustration #23 again. When the illustrator first drew it, we saw the geese’s head and wings, but something was missing. What did the writer ask be added, and why? Hint: you can just barelysee what was added. [GEESE’S FEET] And why were they added? Remember, we talked yesterday about set-up. You want to introduce things first that you see later. Oftentimes you do that at the start of the story, like see all of Robbie’s gear (skateboard, etc.) that Taz uses later, but sometimes you set-upin the middle of a story. 

         What does seeing the geese’s feet set-up?  [YES, TAZ HOLDING ONTO THE GEESE’S FEET WITH HIS EARS IN ILLUSTRATION #24]We only catch a glimpse of the feet in the left illustration, but Taz’s ears are reaching for them, so its important we see them. 

 

Illustration #25

—I’ve talked about words without pictures, and pictures without words, and words and pictures working together. A way to talk about word and picture togetherness is say they complementeach other. That’s not the same kind of compliment like, “You look nice today.” Another meaning of complement is different things coming together to make something whole, complete, or better. Let me give you an example. The words tell us the geese are struggling to fly. I count 3ways the illustrator “complements” those words with things that showthe geese struggling. What are they?

         1. [THEIR HEADS/NECKS ARE RAISED/STRAINING AND THEY’RE SQUAWKING]

         2. [THEIR WINGS ARE FLAPPING INTO EACH OTHER]

         3. [FEATHERS ARE FLYING]

Do you see how those things are not specifically mentioned in the words, but the images complementthe words: they show in a picture what the words are saying on the page

—How can we tell Taz is slipping? [ONE EAR IS WRAPPED AROUND A LEG THREE TIMES, THE OTHER ONLY ONCE]

Teachers: please return to Illus. #22

—I’m going to go back for a moment. Listen to this part of the text. In the book it says… “Taz was gazing far ahead, past the scary Dark Forest, where another farm field began. Taz could not believewhat he saw there.” 

Teachers: return to Illus. #25

—Okay, what did Taz see beyond the scary Dark Forest? [THE LETTUCE FIELD! AFTER TAZ TIES THE RACE, THAT’S WHERE HE GOES TO GET LETTUCE TO FEED THE RABBITS AND TURTLES.] So the writer needs to make sure the reader knows about the lettuce field, and even sees it.

 

Illustration #26

—Okay, again, pretend you have never read Rematch, you don’t know the story, but you have seen the previous illustration. What does thisillustration says without words?

         —For instance, what is happening to Taz? [DROPPED BY THE GEESE, HE IS BOUNCING TO THE FINISH LINE] How do we know he was dropped? [THE SWOOSH MARKS TELL US THEY DROPPED HIM AND MOMENTUM IS CARRYING HIM TO THE FINISH]

         —Who is going to win? [WE CAN’T SAY FOR SURE RIGHT NOW, BUT IT SURE LOOKS LIKE A TIE]

—Remember at the Start of the race how we didn’t see all of the word START? See how we don’t see all of the word FINISH. Why is that? [IT’S A LITTLE COMPLICATED, BUT IN ORDER TO SEE THAT THE RACE ENDS IN A TIE, WE NEED TO SEETAZ AND DULLES FROM THE SIDE, LIKE WE DO IN THIS ILLUSTRATION.]  If we see them from the side, we can’t see the word FINISH very well. So the artist just wrote a few letters, and that is enough to tell the reader it is the Finish line. If you can see FIN…    you know it is FINISH.

          --As a writer and illustrator, you always want to take advantage of the entire image, to fill it in with things that either tell the story, reinforce the story, tell about character, or are just plain fun. Besides all the turtles and rabbits lined up as the end, what are a few other things in the illustration related to the story? [SCARY DARK FORESTjust past the finish line, and the HAYSTACK THAT TAZ AND JUDO TEST-FIRED THE POTATOES INTO, AND THE POTATOES ARE EVEN STILL THERE. 

          -- this book is also meant to be fun. A different word for that is whimsical. There’s something fun the illustrator lets us see about Taz, that’s part of who he is. Anyone know what feature I’m talking about?  [BECAUSE TAZ SEEMS TO GETS INTO SO MUCH TROUBLE, LIKE GETTING FIRECRACKER BOMBED OR HAVING TUNNELS COLLAPSE ON HIM WHILE DIGGING FOR CARROTS, ONE OF HIS WHISKERS IS CROOKED. DESPITE TAZ’S TUMBLING HERE, THE ONE THING WE CAN SEE CLEARLY IS HIS CROOKED WHISKER.]

 

Illustration #27

—Let’s do our test: see if the illustration tells the story here without words. If you know the Rematch to decide who gets the meadow ended in a tie, forget Taz in the upper right corner of this illustration for a moment. Looking at everyone else, what are they doing?  [EVERYONE JUST STANDING AROUND] 

         —What are they thinking? And how can you tell? ...hint: gestures  [ONE RABBIT HAS A HAND TO HER MOUTH, ANOTHER IS SHRUGGING, ANOTHER HAS A HAND ON HIS OR HER HEAD]  They are puzzled and perplexed. They’re wondering: what do they do now? 

—The book says Taz calls out “Ahoy!” How do we know he is calling out, even without words to tell us?  [HAND CUPPING HIS MOUTH]

         —Yes, NOW take a look at Taz. There is something in storytelling called foreshadowing. It’s basically giving a hint that something is about to happen. You can do it in writing but you can do it in pictures, too. We can see Taz coming upstream in a boat with a lettuce leaf sail and a head of lettuce. We don’t know what it means until we read the words, but we know everyone will gather around Taz. 

         --Remember how we just talked about the book being fun and whimsical? There is a little whimsical element in the part of the picture where all the rabbits and turtles talking to each other.  …Hint: it has to do with a character you know [DULLES HAS A TOWEL OVER HIS NECK, LIKE HE HAD QUITE A WORKOUT. HE DID FINISH THE RACE, BUT HE WALKED IT PRETTY SLOWLY, RATHER THAN RAN IT, RIGHT?, SINCE THAT’S WHAT TURTLES DO]

 

Illustration #28

—Remember we talked about how each illustration not only needs to tell a story but togetherthey all need to tell the wholestory? They need to be linked/connected somehow

—How is this illustration, which is only an hour or so later than the last picture, linked to it? [THE GATHERING THAT TOOK UP THE WHOLE LAST ILLUSTRATION IS NOW IN THE BACKGROUND OF THIS ILLUSTRATION] We know Taz stepped away from the turtle colony because we can see it in the background and the words told us too.

—Also, can you see how the artist again used the sky to show the passage of time? (Recall this was done at the beginning of the book, too.) The Rematch was during the day. It ended. Taz said he would be back to the turtle home in a few hours. The story says he goes out to give lettuce to the geese in the dark, so in the previous illustration the sky is what? [PINK-ISH AND RED-ISH.] That tells us it is late in the day and about to get dark, so that when we get to this picture the darkness isn’t a surprise. If you jump from one place to another or one time to another, the reader can get confused. Like if it is day in one picture and night in the next, the reader says “Whoa, how did it get to be nighttime already?” A writer tries to build in what are called transitions. Like, a writer could say, “And before you know it, it was nighttime.” Before that sentence the story was taking place during the day, but we know after that sentence it will shift to nighttime. The twilight sky in the previous illustration is a picture transition. 

—If night has fallen it should be pitch black and we couldn’t see anything. So how did the artist “create” light so we could see things?  There are four sources of light. The first two are kind of easy. [FULL MOON and CAMPFIRE]  Ah, but the artist used two sneaky ways to create even more light. What do I mean by that?  

[REFLECTION OF THE MOON OFF THE CREEK, GLOW OF THE CAMPFIRE OFF OF THE SURROUNDING WOODS.]

—Remember we talked about the outer story, which is the race, and the inner story, which is about Taz and his character. We talked about Taz maybe not being good about something but trying to learn to be better. Taz has lots on nice character traits, but what is a problem he has? What doesn’t do very well? [SHARE] Remember, he saved the geese’s lives by letting go off their legs when they were flying him but he was pulling them down. He was learning then not to be selfish and to think about others. 

         —But that’s not the end of the story. The geese saved Taz’slife, rescuing him from the falling airplane and getting him to the finish line so he could tie the race and not lose. So now he has to express his gratitude and pay back the geese.

         —Do you see how that part of the story, the inner story, is more important even than the outer story – who won the race?  So….the writer and illustrator have to show that. They have to show the moment Taz becomes a better rabbit. 

 

Illustration #29

(Note to Teachers: toggle back and forth between page 11 and the final illustration)

—Take a look at Taz in the illustration on the right [stretching to reach the tractor steering wheel]. Then take a look at the final illustration in the book. 

—What is Taz doing in this last illustration that he couldn’t do in the first illustration? [REACHING THE STEERING WHEEL AND DRIVING THE TRACTOR]

—How is he now able to reach the steering wheel? [TAZ IS USING THE SKATEBOARD TO HELP HIM REACH THE STEERING WHEEL]

—Really think about that for a moment. Why would the writer put that in here?

         …hint: Think about how Taz has changed.

[THE STORY IS ABOUT TAZ GROWING UP. THEY CALLit a ‘Coming of Age’ story. Before, his crazy schemes didn’t work. But Taz never stopped believing in his ideas. Now, after all he has been through, he is confidently moving forward towards the rest of his life. The skateboard is “symbolic” of that. It shows how the new and better Taz has figured outhow to make his ideas work.]

—Remember, everything I just mentioned was accomplished without…what? [WORDS. JUST A PICTURE OF TAZ NOT REACHING THE STEERING WHEEL, AND NOW HE CAN REACH THE STEERING WHEEL]

—The skateboard was “set-up” too. Robbie used it, then Taz used it with firecrackers. So seeing it here now, it’s not new. It’s familiar, which makes the illustration and its message more meaningful.

 

—It’s also fun! What’s that other word for fun? [WHIMSICAL]. What are some of the other ways it is whimsical?

         1.  JUDO IS STILL JUDO THE SIDEKICK. WHILE TAZ GETS TO DRIVE, POOR JUDO HAS USE ALL HIS MIGHT TO PUSH DOWN THE GAS PEDAL

         2.  THE ANIMALS ARE DOING A CONGA LINE, DANCING, CELEBRATING ALL THEIR LETTUCE WHILE AN ANIMAL BAND PLAYS

         3.  DULLES MAYBE ISN’T SO DULL: HE’S SHAKING A MARACA

         4. there’s one other thing.  …hint: it’s up in the sky.  Hint: what the geese doing?

[INSTEAD OF FLYING IN A V FORMATION, THEY’RE FLYING IN  U FORMATION.  THEYRE SMILING!!]