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Tale of Despereaux




Tonight was the culmination of the One Book/ One School Project at Komensky School with a viewing party of the movie, The Tale of Despereaux.  Over the summer I delighted in reading Kate DiCamillo’s Newberry Award-winning book, The Tale of Despereaux.  After reading the book in English I purchased the book in Spanish and enjoyed it equally as well, if not a bit better.  I talked to a number of other coaches and decided that I would suggest that all our students, staff and families read The Tale of Despereaux in the language of their choice. The response to the heroic little mouse, a Princess, soup, and a spool of thread was overwhelming.  Children from kindergarten to fifth grade fell in love.

The American Library Association had this to say about the book: “With finesse, DiCamillo masterfully weaves drama, mystery and intrigue with high humor and fun into a cohesive, captivating and distinguished tale,” said Newbery Award Chair Eliza T. Dresang. “Time-honored themes of good versus evil, light versus dark, unrequited love, loyalty and search for identity have roots in many mythic and literary classics familiar to children. This story is sure to entice, challenge and delight readers of all ages.”

When presented with the calendar of daily reading, Theresa Sievers, an amazing third-grade teacher asked my thoughts about daily sketch noting as a way to help her students be accountable for the story and to make the words of DiCamillo come to life. I was thrilled to see where the daily sketch noting would take them. 


Attached above is a Koma Koma stop motion video of the sketch notebook prepared by Gisselle.  Like the beautiful book written by DiCamillo, this too is terrific work of art.

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