2016 Sibert Medal Winner, Pura Belpré Honor, and Orbis Pictus Honor: Funny Bones

• Visual Literacy and Interpreting Calaveras. Many of Posada’s drawings of calaveras are clear in their meaning, while others offer layers of possibility for interpretation. Project images of Posada’s calaveras for students to observe and discuss. Explore the historical context for Posada’s work and compare his art to other famous works of his time period. Review artistic, such as color, line, light and shadow, and texture with students to support their visual literacy skills. With that information, engage students in close reading and analyses of different calaveras.
• Día de los Muertos. Like the calaveras that Posada drew, the Día de los Muertos holiday is a festive, rather than frightening, one. In fact, cultures and countries around the world celebrate similar occasions to honor those who have passed before us. Have students study and explore various aspects of the holiday: its origins, the diverse ways it is celebrated, other holidays across the world that are similar, the origins of the holiday, other famous artists who depict it in their work. With the help of students’ families and local communities, plan a Día de los Muertos celebration in which all students at your school can participate. 
• Political Cartoons. Many of Posada’s calaveras were political cartoons that criticized governments and power structures in Mexico. Share a wide array of political cartoons with students, making sure to gather a variety of artistic styles but also uniting them around a common theme or political issue. Provide students with the appropriate background knowledge they need to understand the cartoons, as well as the artistic principles (e.g., color, line, texture, light and shadow, etc.) they need to analyze their effectiveness. Have students create their own political cartoons around a specific issue, making sure they can explain their final products in terms of the background knowledge and artistic principles you’ve discussed. See the websites below in Further Explorations for some galleries of political cartoons, as well as a lesson plan on using them.
• Mexican Artists and Artwork. Mexico’s art culture is as rich and varied as any other country’s. Engage students in an inquiry into some of Mexico’s notable artists, such as Diego Rivera, Frida Kahlo, José Clemente Orozco, Carlos Mérida, Rufino Tamayo, Carlos Almaraz, as well as a deeper study of Posada. In small groups, have students research information about a particular artist’s life and work. Have them also gather a collection of the artist’s work, using online museum resources, such as those listed below. Like Posada, how did these artists draw inspiration from the social, political, and artistic world around them? Encourage students to create their own artwork, inspired by the artist they studied. Create a classroom or virtual gallery for them to display their knowledge of Mexican art and to showcase their original artwork. 
• Author/Illustrator Study. Gather a collection of Duncan Tonatiuh’s work and biographical information, including interviews and videos. Read through his books as a class, noting similarities and differences across the books’ formats and styles. Take a close look at his writing techniques, noting his word choices and use of figurative language. Ask your students to identify patterns in setting, theme, character, and plot across the books. Examine Duncan Tonatiuh’s storytelling techniques, as well as the topics and perspectives he writes about in his books. Based on students’ inquiries, observations, and analyses, compile a list of lessons about writing gained from this study and invite your students to try out some of the writing techniques you have discussed in their own writing. Have them do the same with Tonatiuh’s illustrations. What styles, media, and techniques does he employ? What themes or symbols do they see across his illustrations? See the titles listed below, as well as previous Classroom Bookshelf entries on Tonatiuh’s books: Separate is Never Equal and Diego Rivera: His World and Ours. 
• Nonfiction Book Awards. Funny Bones has garnered two prestigious awards for excellence in a nonfiction children’s book: the Sibert Medal from the American Library Association, and the Orbus Pictus Honor Award from the National Council of Teachers of English. Compare and contrast the criteria for the Sibert Medal and the Orbus Pictus Award, and determine how this book meets those criteria. Invite students to study books that won honorable mention and other books that won in past years. Then, have your students apply those criteria to a vast swath of nonfiction books for children and young adults to build their skills for evaluating literature.

Further Explorations

Online Resources

Duncan Tonatiuh’s website
http://www.duncantonatiuh.com

Robert F. Sibert Informational Book Medal – American Library Association
http://www.ala.org/alsc/awardsgrants/bookmedia/sibertmedal

Pura Belpré Award – American Library Association
http://www.ala.org/alsc/awardsgrants/bookmedia/belpremedal

Orbis Pictus Award – National Council of Teachers of English
http://www.ncte.org/awards/orbispictus

Musuem and News Articles about José Guadalupe Posada
http://www.hrc.utexas.edu/enews/2009/october/insider.html
http://www.mfah.org/exhibitions/past/calaveras-mexicanas-art-and-influence-jose-guadalu/
http://mati.eas.asu.edu/chicanarte/html_pages/PosadaIssOutl.html
http://www.sfgate.com/mexico/mexicomix/article/La-Catrina-Mexico-s-grande-dame-of-death-2318009.php
http://theculturetrip.com/north-america/mexico/articles/illustrator-of-death-the-macabre-art-of-jos-guadalupe-posada/

Online Museum Collections of Posada’s Art
http://www.moma.org/collection/artists/4707
http://www.artic.edu/aic/collections/artwork/artist/Posada,+Jose+Guadalupe

“The Calaveras of José Guadalupe Posada” – The Public Domain Review
http://publicdomainreview.org/collections/the-calaveras-of-jose-guadalupe-posada/

“Art Through Time: A Global View – La Calavera de la Catrina” – Annenberg Learner
https://www.learner.org/courses/globalart/work/124/index.html

Posada Educator Guide – National Museum of Mexican Art
‪http://www.nationalmuseumofmexicanart.org/sites/default/files/Posada%20Educator%20Guide_1.docx‪

Articles about Duncan Tonatiuh
http://www.nbcnews.com/news/latino/duncan-tonatiuh-wants-latino-children-see-themselves-books-n136901
http://www.hbook.com/2015/10/authors-illustrators/five-questions-for-duncan-tonatiuh/

Online Collections of Political Cartoons

Lesson Plan on Analyzing and Drawing Political Cartoons – NY Times
http://learning.blogs.nytimes.com/2015/09/17/drawing-for-change-analyzing-and-making-political-cartoons/?_r=0 

Books

Barner, B. (2010). The day of the dead/El día de los muertos: A bilingual celebration. Trans. by T. Malawer. Holiday House.

Bracegirdle, P. J. (2012). The dead family Diaz. Ill. by P. Bernatene. New York: Dial.

Bryant, J. (2013). A splash of red: The life and art of Horace Pippin. Ill. by M. Sweet. New York: Knopf.
http://classroombookshelf.blogspot.com/2013/10/a-splash-of-red-life-and-art-of-horace.html[MA6]

Burleigh, R. (2014). Edward Hopper paints his world. Ill. by W. Minor. New York: Henry Holt. http://classroombookshelf.blogspot.com/2015/01/edward-hopper-paints-his-world.html

Morales, Y. (2014). Viva Frida. New York: Roaring Brook Press. 

Parker, M.B. (2012). Colorful dreamer: The story of artist Henri Matisse. Ill. by H. Berry. New York: Dial Books.
http://classroombookshelf.blogspot.com/2013/05/picture-book-biographies-of-artists.html

Rosenstock, B. (2014). The noisy paint box: The colors and sounds of Kandinsky’s abstract art. Ill. by M. Grandpre. New York: Knopf. 

Tonatiuh, D. (2010). Dear primo: A letter to my cousin. New York: Abrams.

Tonatiuh, D. (2011). Diego Rivera: His world and ours. New York: Abrams.
http://classroombookshelf.blogspot.com/2012/03/2012-pura-belpre-award-for-illustration.html 

San Vicenter, L. (2002). The festival of bones: The little-bitty book for the Day of the Dead = El festival de las Calaveras. Cinco Punto Press.

Winter, J. (2004). Calavera abecedario: A Day of the Dead alphabet book. New York: Voyager Books/Harcourt.