best picture books for literary essays

Picture Books to Teach Literary Techniques

I’ve been sharing a little series of posts about how to use living literature to teach writing – specifically, narratives and persuasive pieces .  In this post, I’m focusing less on a particular style of writing and more on writing with style – otherwise known as literary techniques.

No matter the age of your children, you can use these picture books to teach literary techniques.  However, since I don’t begin formal writing lessons until 5th or 6th grade, I only casually mention the literary techniques to elementary students.  So, yes, you read correctly…When it comes to actual writing lessons, I’m using these picture books with middle and high school kids !

Why use picture books to teach literary techniques?

While I could (and do) certainly use longer literary works and poetry to demonstrate literary techniques, picture books make for quick reads that get the lesson concept across clearly.  Not to mention, {living} picture books are really good at helping young writers learn how to compose short pieces well.  Most young writers I meet aren’t writing 300 page novels in the beginning.  In fact, asking them to write three pages can be overwhelming.  Picture books help writers see that even short stories can be written well.

What is a literary technique?

Don’t be confused.  Literary techniques are not the same as literary elements.   Both are important in writing!  I like to think of literary elements as the building blocks of a story, while literary techniques use words artistically.

Literary elements – characters, setting, plot, theme, moral – are the basic parts included in most stories.

Literary techniques – alliteration, metaphors, onomatopoeia, personification – might or might not be included in a story.  They play with words to develop interest and variety.

Together, these are known as literary devices.  Both are important to purposely teach and develop.  Today, I’ll only focus on literary techniques.  There are many literary techniques used in writing .  I’ve only included books that teach the most common techniques to get you started.

While it’s first on my list alphabetically, allegory is actually the most difficult technique (of those I’ve included) because it’s typically used throughout an entire story, rather than here and there like other techniques.  An allegory tells one story, while the underlying meaning transfers to something else.  That’s hard to understand, isn’t it?

As an example, The Squire and the Scroll tells the story of a young squire who must bravely follow the words from his scroll in order to survive and even defeat an evil dragon.  The allegory of the story helps readers understand the importance of purity and following the Word of God.

Alliteration

Alliteration uses the same letter or sound several times throughout a sentence, paragraph or story.  It’s used to focus the reader’s attention.

An example:  Peter Piper picked a peck of pickled peppers.

Hyperbole, otherwise known as exaggeration, is another technique that tends to be used throughout an entire story rather than in just a few places within a story.  Many of us would call these stories “tall tales.”  Tall tales usually have an element of humor in them, making these fun to write.

If I’m being truthful, idioms drive me crazy!  My youngest son loves them, though, so I get to read lots and lots of idioms.  His favorite idiom stories are the Amelia Bedelia books.  If you’ve ever read Amelia Bedelia, you’ll know that she takes idioms literally.  If someone tells her to dress a turkey, she puts clothing on a turkey.  Idioms, then, are phrases that shouldn’t really be taken literally like “it’s raining cats and dogs.”

Imagery is vivid and descriptive language that paints wonderful pictures in the reader’s mind as it evokes the senses.  Obviously, imagery utilizes adjectives, adverbs and rich words well.  An example: “The aroma of freshly brewed hot chocolate filled the room making everyone feel warm and cozy.”

When something is ironic, it’s the opposite of what you would have expected.  In the book Caps for Sale , for instance, the peddler tries and tries to get monkeys to take his caps off of their heads.  Ironically, once he gets angry and throws his cap down, the monkeys (mimicking his every move) throw the caps down.  It’s not at all what the peddler expected.  It was ironic that they did what he wanted when he stopped trying.

Metaphors and Similes

Both metaphors and similes compare things.  Typically, similes use the words “like or as” within the phrase of comparison.  For example, “I was as cold as ice.”  Or, “It felt like a razor on my back.”

Metaphors make comparisons without using the words “like or as.”  For example. “The store was a gold mine.”  Or, “The fog was a curtain.”

In both cases, the techniques help readers to build clear mind pictures.  I love how easily they can be inserted into any type of writing to create a strong impact.

Onomatopoeia

Onomatopoeia is such a big word for such an easy technique.  Basically, any word that sounds like its name is onomatopoeia.  “Achoo” “Buzz” “Creak” “Zoom” “Pop”

These words, used sparingly, can pack a lot of emotion into a story.

Personification

Personification is one of my favorite literary techniques.  Any time a non-human takes on characteristics of a human in stories, it’s called personification.  So, when a tree can think or a mouse can talk or a car has feelings, that’s personification.  We see examples of personification all over the place, but these three books have made me happy for years and years, so they get the honor of being highlighted.

How do you use the books?

Usually, I introduce my children (or co-op students) to the literary technique first.  I give them a definition and some examples, then ask them to help me come up with some examples.

Next, we’ll read the book together paying special attention to the use of the technique.

Afterwards, we’ll talk about how the author crafted his or her words and made the technique really work with the story.  Again, we work together to write some examples.  (These are always better than the examples before the book was read!)

Sometimes I just challenge the kids to use the technique more often.  Other times, we go directly into some story writing time where they must use the technique effectively.

And, there you have it.  Use a few of these books to teach your writing lessons and watch your writers grow exponentially!

Need a little more direction in how to use picture books to teach writing?

I taught a practical class that can help!

Be sure to check out the other posts in this series to get ideas for using picture books with various styles of writing and literary techniques!

20 Comments

Loving this series! Thank you for making it easy for us to incorporate wonderful books into the teaching of writing. What a fun way to learn about these writing techniques! You are a blessing!

Corinne, YOU are a blessing for taking the time to share such a sweet comment!

This is SUCH a great post, cindy!

Thank you, Alicia! Picture books are my happy place.

Thanks for this series–I really am enjoying it, and taking notes for upcoming lessons. Picture books are the best!

Cindy, you just really inspire me! Every time I visit your blog, I am more inspired to teach my children with more creativity and enthusiasm. This is a great post, and my all-time favorite picture book is on this list: Sylvester and the Magic Pebble–such a moving book. It takes you to utter despair and then to elation, all within 32 pages! Cindy, I used to be a more eclectic homeschool mom, like you, but now I have two toddlers who capitalize almost all my energy, and I am not sure how to fit it in anymore. My oldest kids are very independent learners, and they take pride in that, but I want to be more involved, like when we read lots of picture books together. I guess I haven’t found that balance. At least I can do all that sort of stuff with my two youngest ones.

Alicia, I hear you about balance! That’s definitely tough and I’ve been there. I finally decided it was really OK for my big kids to work mostly independently (and is very good for them.) I’m not constantly hands-on with them in every subject. And, I KNOW you are an awesome teacher for your kids! 😉

This is my first time visiting your blog and I just have to thank you! This is awesome! My kids and I will love revisiting some of these books that we did unit studies on long ago! I have used a picture book called “Aunt Isabel Tells a Good One” with kids in upper elementary to help understand literary elements of a short story. I love these ideas for introducing literary techniques as well. Thanks so much for sharing.

Thank you, Melissa! I can wait to check out the book you mentioned!

These look like some great suggestions – I love using picture books with older kids!

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This is fantastic! You know, I would happily buy a download that included these and more of the literary techniques illustrated through children’s books. Such a great and accessible way to demonstrate this! Also- I just want to thank you for linking to Barnes and Noble instead of Amazon. I worked there for several years before leaving to homeschool, and I loved every minute of it. My co-workers were awesome & many of them are still working there. Just appreciate anything that keeps a brick-and-mortar afloat & helps out my friends .

Jennifer, thanks so much for sharing this with me! I’ve had a few other requests for a download recently. It’s definitely on my to do someday soon list. 🙂

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Very helpful and inspiring. You are such an angel full of blessings. Would feel lucky if more knowledge in children’s literature and writing style is provided.

I’m glad it was helpful, Minu! 🙂

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My 23 Favorite Picture Books to Teach Perspective

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Teachers and parents, use  picture books  as  mentor texts  to teach perspective ! Stories like these help you model for your students and children that our perspectives and the perspectives of different characters, including the narrator, are how we see the world and the events in it. These are my favorite books to teach perspective that I’ve used with children.

It’s easy to call this point of view, but from a literary standpoint, the perspective is a bit different.  Point of view  is the narrator’s voice: first, second, or third person.

Perspective is the lens through which we see things. This is DIFFERENT than the point of view.

Reading about characters with distinct perspectives gives children an opportunity to identify the character’s perspective and live there for a while. Noticing a character’s perspective is a good first step in noticing our own perspectives as well as the perspective of other people in our lives.

As the adage goes, walking a mile in another person’s shoes builds understanding and empathy.

Apply this understanding to higher-level thinking in both social skills, English class, and history. We want our kids to be able to analyze the perspectives of authors and of their peers. We also want kids to be able to take a stand for themselves — how do they feel about screen time? school lunches? bullying? Finally, in writers workshop, how can their perspective shift the narration of the story? Do they describe the bully with compassion or with anger?

I hope these book reviews give you a starting point for further discussion and activities.

Picture Books to Teach Perspective

They All Saw a Cat  by Brendan Wenzel Use this beautiful book to talk about perspective. The cat walks through the world. And is seen by different creatures, each who sees the cat differently depending on their background knowledge. It’s  SUCH  a cool book on point of view, especially for classrooms. LOVE.

Frank and Laverne  by Dave Whamod and Jennifer Stokes, illustrations by Dave Whamod This book perfectly captures the differences between cats and dogs. It’s two different stories (flip the book to start the second story)– one told from the irritated cat’s perspective and the other from the loving dog’s. These classic opposites will have very distinct perspecctives on life.

Duck! Rabbit!   by Amy Krouse Rosenthal, illustrated by Tom Lichtenheld Have you seen this visual mind-bender? What are you seeing– a duck or a rabbit? Two off-screen characters have a conversation about the illustration which encourages us as readers to consider each person’s opinion and flip the image in our minds. Which is it? Can you pick?

Elephant in the Dark  based on a poem by Rumi, retold by Mina Javaherbin, illustrated by Eugene Yelchin A merchant arrives with a mysterious beast which he puts into a barn. The villagers are anxious to figure out what it is, so they each creep into the dark barn and feel part of the beast. One thinks it’s like a snake, the other thinks it’s like a fa, others see a tree trunk, and so on. But no one listens to the other people. The next day, the merchant leads the beautiful elephant out of the barn, but  no one noticed   or saw the truth because they were too busy fighting. What a great lesson to listen to others so that you can see the whole elephant — not just your small part.

The True Story of the Three Little Pigs   by Jon Scieszka, illustrated by Lane Smith You’ve only heard this story from the perspective of the  three little pigs . Now, the wolf tells his side of the story! It’s hilarious as it deftly shows children how the story we are told depends on the narrator. I see this applicable in not just our English classes but also in history.

Big Problems, Little Problems  by Ben Feller, illustrated by Merce Lopez You’ll love this close father-son relationship as much as I do!  As the father and son get ready for each day, they help each other find perspective about things that go wrong by asking if it’s a big problem or a little problem.  The dad is open about his feelings of frustration and his strategy of deep breaths. When Sam accidentally spills Dad’s coffee, Sam asks Dad questions to determine if it’s a big problem or a little problem. Their questions are an important model for us all to help us reframe our perspectives!

The Cot in the Living Room  by Hilda Eunice Burgos, illustrated by Gaby D’Alessandro A little girl feels jealous of the kids who stay overnight at her apartment because their parents work nights.  Those kids get to sleep in a cot in the living room. One day, she gets to sleep there and realizes that it’s not that fun. This helps her feel more empathic towards the visiting kids. Her selfish “ it’s not fair ” becomes an empathetic “ it’s not fair ” when she realizes that the kids probably prefer being in their own beds.

Days Like This  by Oriane Smith Alice Gravier See something from two different perspectives  in oversized illustrations of a sunrise, strawberry mornings, chocolate afternoons, and evenings when the night has swallowed everything, among other scenes.

It’s Not Jack and the Beanstalk  by Josh Funk, illustrated by Edwardian Taylor On every page, the narrator of this hilarious story interrupts the narration to boss Jack around. Jack doesn’t appreciate it– nor does he like the whole story in general since he doesn’t want to be a thief and murderer. Finally, at the giant’s house in the sky, Jack stops following the story. He befriends the giant, makes him a taco salad, and goes to Cinderella’s house for a party. It’s the perfect updated version of Jack and the Beanstalk with a take-charge hero and curmudgeonly narrator.

XO, Exoplanet  by Deborah Underwood, illustrated by Jorge Lacera Get ready to laugh at this hysterical story with a poignant message about seeing multiple perspectives! When our solar system’s planets write a friendly letter to an exoplanet, their communication turns into a funny argument when the exoplanet tells our planets that THEY are actually the exoplanets. A visiting comet helps our planets to see that depending on how you’re looking at things, both arguments could be true. Letters, dialogue bubbles, and expressive illustrations capture the planets’ strong emotions.

I Will Fight Monsters for You   by Santi Balmes, illustrated by Lyona It’s a parallel story of a young girl and a young monster who are both frightened about sleeping because of fears about each other. Can the little girl and monster come together and see each other as something not scary?

The Catawampus Cat  by Jason Carter Eaton, illustrated by Gus Gordon A small gray cat walks into town slightly tilted to one side. At first the townspeople tried to straighten him out but that didn’t work. What did work was for the people to tilt and notice life differently? Which created all sorts of wonderful, happy results for everyone. You’ll walk (and see life) a little differently after reading this super special slanty picture story!

Snappsy The Alligator Did Not Ask to Be in This Book  by Julie Falatko, illustrated by Tim Miller Snappsy doesn’t agree to be in this story which means much of the story is spent arguing with the busy-body narrator. Very funny.

Breaking Cat News: Cats Reporting on the News that Matters to Cats  by Georgia Dunn These are hilarious, tongue-in-cheek cartoons of cats reporting the very latest news from their oh, so news-worthy lives. As you can imagine, they report breaking news about empty food bowls, the best sunspots, and the vacuum cleaner’s return, as well as life’s many mysteries. Good stuff, right?! What would the humans think about these same events?

Milo Imagines the World   by Matt de la Pena, illustrated by Christian Robi A powerful story that takes of the boy’s present reality and his imagination…  Milo travels on the subway with his sister, his anxiety making him feel like a shook-up soda, even though it’s a weekly ride. He observes the people around him and in his notebook, draws and writes stories about them. They arrive at their stop and he’s surprised to see a boy that he noticed before is there, also– a boy wearing a fancy suit who he had made assumptions about. Seeing him in the line, helps Milo realize that you can’t tell people’s stories just by their appearance.

Weird  (Book 1)  ,  Dare!  (Book 2) , and  Tough!  (Book 3)  by Erin Frankel It’s the same situation told from different points of view, each in three different books.  Weird!  is Luisa’s story of being targeted by bullying.  Dare!  is Jayla’s story of watching the bullying as a bystander.  Tough!  is Sam’s story of being the bully. Isn’t this a cool concept?

Wagons Ho!  by George Hallowell and Joan Holub, illustrated by Lynne Avril Side by side stories in diary and scrapbook form share two girls’ experiences, both moving from Missouri to the West. One story takes place in 1846, the other, in the present day. It’s a fascinating comparison of what is the same and what is different from each girl’s different setting.

July & August The Wretched Rockies

Some wagons are too heavy to go up and down the mountains. Many things must be given up in order to cross. The Rockies look like a graveyard of precious belongings left by many families going west.

We cross the Rockies in Wyoming. Buddy is carsick from the curves.

A Tiny Brown Monkey on the Big Blue Earth  by Tory Christie, illustrated by Luciana Navarro Powell What a cool book about perspective, showing small to big, starting with a tiny brown monkey swinging from a branch in the jungle and moving to a crowded bus to a busy town on an ocean into outer space. Talk about a global perspective! Incredible artwork!

Children’s Books to Teach Point of View

Picture Books to Teach Problem & Solution

Books to Teach Description

Picture Books to Teach Metaphors & Similies (Figurative Language)

Melissa Taylor, MA, is the creator of Imagination Soup. She's a mother, former teacher & literacy trainer, and freelance education writer. She writes Imagination Soup and freelances for publications online and in print, including Penguin Random House's Brightly website, USA Today Health, Adobe Education, Colorado Parent, and Parenting. She is passionate about matching kids with books that they'll love.

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Hi Melissa,

I came across your site and really enjoy how you have laid out lists of picture books for different topics that we want our kids to learn. My wife and I have three boys (6, twin 4 yr olds) and we have been testing a lot with how to teach them concepts in a way that they understand and gravitate towards. Books are a great way to do that 🙂

The pandemic happened to coincide with when we were focused on teaching them listening and perspective taking (a bit more complex), and ended up with our family creating a children’s book together where the main character, a garbage truck, learns the same in a funny way. Has been a lot of fun, and my oldest has even led the charge to have it carried at several local bookstores!

We would love to send you free a copy and see if it might fit well with your list on perspective! And if interested more on the book is available at http://www.littleapplehouse .com

Thanks again for creating this site. It is a wonderful resource.

Cheers, Matt Kirk

Thanks for reaching out! I’m not taking self-published books, but I wish you the best in your endeavors!