The Hello, Goodbye Window by Norton Juster

These illustrations and journal entries may be compiled into a classroom book or they can be taken home individually. If I am teaching first or second grade I may require my students to write a page or two describing their illustration and why it is special to them. They may decide to draw the stars or the beach or someone who is special to them. This activity can also be turned into a collage. My students could create a hello, goodbye window project where the frame of the window is drawn but the student has to draw what is behind their window. I might ask my students how they think the illustrator draws his illustrations. As a teacher, I might discuss the different activities that your students like to do at their grandparent’s house. Some of my happiest childhood memories occurred at my grandparent’s house and I will forever be grateful for the memories we made together. I think it is clever that the author portrays a situation that can be both “happy and sad.” When I was younger and my parents dropped me off at grandma and grandpa’s house I can remember missing my parents but also hating to leave my grandparents when it was time to go. This is a story about a little girl who loves to visit her grandparents. It isn’t the television or toys that keep her happy but rather the simplicity of the universe and all that is inside. The Hello, Goodbye Window: Speech & Language Book Companion Created by Speech Sanity This book companion is designed to be used in combination with the Caldecott Award Winning Book, The Hello, Goodbye Window, by Norton Juster and Chris Raschka.

In this story, the little girl notices the jars in the kitchen, her grandfather’s harmonica and even the raisin hidden at the bottom of the oatmeal. We look at every detail in wonder and amazement. I love the color in this story because I think it truly captures how we look at the world when we are a child. The pages are painted as if a child has painted them and almost every page is full of color. The story actually begins with the illustration on the title page and the images make for a great picture walk prior to reading.

I truly love the illustrations in this picture book.

The Hello, Goodbye Window by Norton Juster