AP English: Writing Your Own Children's Book

Part 1 of my favorite 2012 interview with Maurice Sendak (author of Where the Wild Things Are) with Stephen Colbert.

My lovely AP students, I was so moved yesterday when we went down to the library, pulled out some children's book and began to read. It felt like that day in elementary school and when your teacher says, "We're going to the library!" and every kid jumps up from their desk and says, "Yay!" As I looked around the library yesterday, you were all laughing and excited about the stories you were reading, and something suddenly became clear: some of our favorite books are not long, three-volume Victorian novels, but those written for children.

Today, we will be finishing step two of our Children's Book Project (assignment sheet here), making an outline of the story. I encourage you all to also finish step three, characters, so you are ready to jump into the rough draft tomorrow.

For today, we will warm-up by watching this 7-minute interview (Part 1) of Stephen Colbert's interview with children's book author Maurice Sendak, author of Where the Wild Things Are, which was first published in 1963, and very much like Lewis Carroll's Alice stories, still resonates with us today.

When we are done, get with your partner and complete step 2 (and 3 if you can) from your assignment sheet. Post your answers in the comments section below to turn in your assignment.


Standard/Rubric for this Assignment (here)
W3, "I can write narratives to develop real or imagined experiences using effective technique, well-chosen details, and well-structured event sequences."

Falling Down the Rabbit Hole: Adaptations of Alice's Adventures in Wonderland

1951 opening credits to Disney's Alice in Wonderland.

Writing Activity:
For today's class, we will be falling down the rabbit hole with Alice from Lewis Carroll's Alice's Adventures in Wonderland.  I want us to begin by looking at the opening credits of the 1951 Disney animated feature, Alice in Wonderland, and discussing the ways Disney has appropriated Carroll's story.  When we are finished, please answer the following questions in the comments section below.

1) What visual similarities do you see between Carroll's (and illustrator John Tenniel's) Alice and Disney's Alice?
2) Does the movie follow the story, characterization, and dialogue closely? Why or why not?

2010 opening credits from Tim Burton's Alice in Wonderland (Disney).

3) What major changes does Tim Burton make to Alice's journey down the rabbit hole?
4) What is lost and what is gained by these changes?
5) Lastly, why a rabbit hole?

Getting to Know Lewis and Alice: Who Was Lewis Carroll and Alice Liddell?

Before we fall down the metaphorical "rabbit hole" with Alice, we must first learn a little bit about the life of Lewis Carroll and who the infamous Alice Liddell was that inspired Carroll to write Alice's Adventures in Wonderland.

For today, watch 5-10 minutes of The Secret Life of Lewis Carroll. Then, listen as Dr. B. explains a few theories about Carroll's relationships with children, stammering, and storytelling. (Video on stammering, here.)

When we are done, answer all of the discussion questions below.

1) Who was Alice Liddell?
2) How did Carroll and Liddell meet?
3) What drew Carroll to Alice?
4) What made Alice different from the other children?
5) According to scholars in The Secret Life of Lewis Carroll, Alice's Adventures in Wonderland is the "third most-quoted book after the Bible and Shakespeare."  Do you agree with this claim? Why or why not (be specific)?