Prior to this assignment I was familiar with Eric Carle’s work, but I did not know about his background nor had I thoroughly evaluated his work. After the assignment I appreciate how much of his personal life is wrapped into his books and can critically evaluate his books.
Eric Carle had an interesting childhood that involved extended family, positive and negative experiences with formal education, living in two countries, and early exposure to nature. He often adds elements from life into books, but you may need to look closely or have knowledge of his background to realize this. Now that I have learned that he creates stories based on real life events I am curious and will do research when I read a new Eric Carle book to see what inspired it.
While completing this assignment I checked out approximately 35 of Eric Carle’s books and looked at each one in depth. After realizing how much detail he put into learning elements, such as vocabulary, days of the week, cycles in nature, and counting, I started seeing it everywhere in his books. It seems nearly impossible for a child to be exposed to an Eric Carle book and go away without learning something new. The great part about his books is they have learning at multiple levels. This allows a younger and older child to enjoy the book at the same time, as well as for one reader to gain something new each time they read the book. I also have a greater appreciation for his illustrations. Although they look simple, Carle adds quite a bit of detail to make each illustration come alive.
Due to this assignment I will be able pass on information about Eric Carle to my patrons. This will help give them context for his work, look for educational elements in his stories, and inspiration to create their own Eric Carle themed art. I will be able to refer them to resources to learn more about his work, such as The Eric Carle Museum, his website, or the book The Art of Eric Carle. Finally, I have greatly expanded my knowledge of the scope of Eric Carle’s work. This will allow me to go beyond referring patrons to his classic book, The Very Hungry Caterpillar, and open up a whole world of Eric Carle books to children and their families.
Photo Credits:
Koch, C. (2019). Books on table[Photograph].
Koch, C. (2019). Stack of Eric Carle books [Photograph].
Author/Illustrator Study and Top Children's Materials 