Window

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Choose one of the images and create a plan view map showing the places that you can see through the window. Repeat this for a different image in the story. How are your maps similar / different? How many animals can be found in each illustration? How many trees are there? How do the numbers of these items change as the story progresses? This is a similar book to Home by Jeannie Baker. They are both wordless books, and feature gorgeous collage illustrations. Progressing scenes with a sad message. Upon closely studying each collage I became more and more impressed. I can't begin to know how long each took to construct. There are many potential uses for this book in a classroom and it could easily be engaged with across the curriculum.

Works are held in permanent collections of The Powerhouse Museum (Sydney), National Library of Australia (Canberra), Queensland Art Gallery (Brisbane), State Library of New South Wales, State Library of Victoria and Art Gallery Western Australia (Perth)What different materials can be seen outside of the window? Why have the man-made objects been created using those materials? Not quite sure what the boy was aiming at with the slingshot but I didn’t much like that picture. However, overall, the collage illustrations are outstanding. And there’s a cat! Now invite the children to read on in pairs and to think aloud themselves. Encourage them to speculate and ask questions as they read the spreads. Sentence starters such as those below will support this type of thinking:

The resource guide contains two articles: 'In the Dreamtime : Attitudes to Land in Aboriginal Australia' by Christopher John Kirkbright and 'Learning the Country : The Impact of Europeans' by John Vandenbeld. y Belonging Jeannie Baker How many different creatures can you identify in the illustrations? Can you find out more about some of them? Children’s Book Council of Australia Picture book of the Year Honour Book Award 1990 The Australian Wilderness Society Fiction Award for Children’s books 1996 The American Library Association Notable Book 1996 Australian Film Industry Award for Best Australian animated Film Finalist 1995 Gold medal for animation Palma international Film Festival 1995I used this picture book during my sequence of English lessons on 'Rainforests'. I focused on this book during my starter activity in which I gave each table a different picture from the book. The book is designed to be read side by side. Look at the first spread together modelling reading the Australian story from left to right and the Moroccan from right to left. Windows took nearly three years to complete. Did she expect such a simple concept to take that long?