this presentation will focus on the introduction to children's literature particularly on its definition its value and its development you might think children's literature could be easily defined as books for kids however there are many different definitions of children's literature and even varying definitions for literature and children one definition given to children's literature is from lean brown and her colleagues which says that children's literature is good quality trait books for children from birth to adolescence covering topics of relevance and interest to children of those ages through prose and poetry fiction and non-fiction understanding this definition requires further inquiry of its two main aspects content and quality [Music] let us first look into the content aspect of children's literature the content of children's books include amazingly diverse topics that are of interest to children they express experiences of childhood both good and bad from which children would draw their own realizations as lynch brown and her companions say the manner in which content is treated also helps to define children's books childhood stories told in a forthright humorous or suspenseful manner are appropriate for young breeders stories about childhood told in nostalgic or overly sentimental terms are inappropriate [Music] [Music] another aspect to be considered is the quality children's books have been everywhere in stores in drugstores and even in grocery stores and can be easily accessed by anyone with this abundance of books an important pressing question is are they really good children's books [Music] quality in writing has to do with originality and importance of ideas imaginative use of language and beauty of literary and artistic style that enable a work to remain fresh interesting and meaningful for years the best children's books offer readers enjoyment as well as memorable characters and situations and valuable insights into the human condition these books have permanent value many so-called children's books today are nothing more than advertisements for film and television characters and associated products such as candy clothing and toys these books represent the low end of the quality spectrum [Music] do [Music] [Music] [Music] another topic that will be dealt with in this presentation is the value of children's literature according to janet shulman children's book editor the educational and emotional benefits of reading to children is expressed in the metaphor that most help give children a leg up on the ladder of life hence literature for children is expected to give them personal fulfillment and academic gains on personal value personal value that children's literature brings is enjoyment the most important personal gain that good books offer to children is the most obvious one enjoyment the fun thrill excitement and other emotions children may experience upon reading books are positive early experiences which often lead to a lifetime of reading enjoyment [Music] imagination and inspiration by seeing the world around them in new ways and by considering ways of living other than their own children increase their ability to think divergently stories often map the divergent path that our ancestors might have taken or that our descendants might someday take through the vicarious experience of entering a world different from the present one children develop their imaginations in addition stories about people both real and imaginary can inspire children to overcome obstacles accept different perspectives and formulate personal goals knowledge and insights good books offer both information and wisdom informational books provide factual knowledge whereas realistic fiction fantasy and poetry offer insights into life and historical fiction and biography offer both when a story is so convincingly written that readers feel as though they have lived through an experience or have actually been in the place and time where the story is set the book has given them a valuable personal experience [Music] understanding and empathy literature helps young people gain an appreciation of the universality of human needs across history which makes it possible for them to understand that all humans are to some degree alike walking in someone else's shoes often helps children develop a sense of social justice and a greater capacity to emphasize with others [Music] heritage and cultural identity stories are handed down from one generation to the next connect us to our past to the roots of our specific cultures national heritage and general human condition stories are the repositories of culture knowing the tales characters expressions and adages that are part of our cultural heritage is part of being culturally literate moral reasoning often story characters are placed in situations that require them to make moral decisions young readers naturally consider what they themselves would do in such a situation as the story unfolds and the character's decisions and the consequences of that choice are disclosed readers discover whether their own decisions would have had positive outcomes regular experience with these types of stories can help young people formulate their own concepts of right and wrong literary and artistic preferences another valuable result of children's interacting with literature is that they quickly come to recognize the literary and artistic styles of many authors and illustrators children who read regularly from a wide variety of children's books soon develop their own personal preferences for types of books and select favorite authors and illustrators personal preference and interest as expressed through soft selection of reading materials are powerful reading motivators [Music] do [Music] in addition to the personal benefits of literature for young readers there are important academic benefits [Music] academic value [Music] reading breeding ability like other skills improves with practice many teachers and librarians believe that regular involvement with excellent and appropriate literature can foster language development in young children and can help them learn to read and value reading [Music] writing by listening to and reading excellent literature children are exposed to rich vocabulary and excellent writing styles which serve as good models for their own speaking and writing voices the acquisition of a larger vocabulary through reading offers young writers better word choices for their own stories devices found in the books such as the use of dialect dialogue and the precise description are often assimilated into students own writing content area subjects in reading about and discussing children's literature you will often hear the phrase literature across the curriculum this means using works of literature as teaching materials in the content areas of social studies and history science health and mathematics good teachers always use literature across the curriculum art appreciation if you as a teacher appreciate art for its own sake there is much that you can do in your classroom to instill in your students a similar appreciation an example is the use of illustration in children's picture books which can be appreciated for its ability to help tell the story or the cognitive value and for its value as art or static value [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] the last topic to be covered in this presentation is the development of children's literature the earliest books written for children were entirely religious instructional or for the improvement of their morals and manners development of children's literature is quite an exhaustive topic but for the purpose of this presentation a few significant details will be emphasized one significant event in the development of children's literature is the publishing of the newbery books in the latter half of the 18th century an english publisher named john newberry published books for children to enjoy one such book the history of little goodie two shoes 1765 is considered the first novel written specially for children newberry's books were also highly moralistic but at least someone had recognized that children needed to be entertained as well as indoctrinated young children read and enjoyed these books of course because there was a little else for them to read however those early books would not entertain children today [Music] do [Music] another important persona who contributed a lot in the development of children's literature is charles dodgson charles dodgson was a mathematics lecturer and ordained deacon at the christ church college of oxford university in england he often entertained the young daughter alice liddle of the dean of his college by telling stories about wonderland later he published the stories under the pseudonym lewis carol in alice's adventures in wonderland and the sequel through the looking glass and what alice found there in 1871 alice was the prototype the first of its kind of modern children's literature other good books that were widely read by children also appeared during the remainder of the 19th century not all were specifically intended for children and certainly not all were free from moralism however these books were primarily entertaining and most contained child character this ends our discussion on the introduction to children's literature thank you and please do not forget to like and subscribe on this channel [Music] [Music] [Music] you