Pistes d'exploration

Generate a list of appropriate questions for an interview with someone about an object that has been in your family for years. Share the object (or photo) and its story with the class.

Bring in an object or piece of clothing that is important to you. Present it to the class, explaining how you feel about it, how you take care of it and what you plan to do with it as you grow older. 

Discuss the meaning of: one man’s trash is another man’s treasure. List ways that used clothing can be recycled.

Discuss the moral of this story. Why do families tell stories? Learn more about oral traditions.

Find and learn the folksong “I Had an Old Coat.”

Take a picture walk. Discuss the story through the illustrations.

As the story unfolds and is read aloud by the teacher, predict what will happen to the piece of material from grandfather’s coat.

Choral read the recurrent passages. Prepare a Reader’s Theatre that can be presented to another group.

Compare this story with Something from Nothing by Phoebe Gilman. Use a Venn diagram to show your results. 

Discuss reusing and recycling objects in various ways. Create a shorter version of this tale featuring a favourite piece of clothing of your own (e.g. jeans to bag to pencil case).

The Keeping Quilt, Mr. King's Things, Something From Nothing

Mots-clés

Picture book , clothing , creativity , family history , Jewish folktales , recurrent patterns , resourcefulness

Commentaire descriptif

Based on a beloved Yiddish folk song and told through the eyes of a grandchild, this rhythmic, rhyming tale celebrates the thrift, hard work and conservation ethic of America’s early immigrants. The protagonist’s grandfather is the main focus, a man who worked hard as a tailor and made his own wedding coat. Over time, the garment frays and is repurposed into smaller and smaller things – smart jacket, snazzy vest, stylish tie and so on – until there is nothing left “except for this story.” Built on a repeating structure and perfect for read-aloud, the text uses the same lines throughout to describe how the grandfather makes a garment, wears it out, makes a smaller garment from it, and begins the cycle anew “He snipped and he clippedand he stitched, and he sewed,and out of the still-good cloth of his item he made.…” Each page presents a joyful series of tableaux: vintage cartoon-style illustrations suggesting the passage of time in their depiction of the aging grandfather and his shrinking garment. In addition to the important recycling theme, the story touches on the continuity of life. A bonus recipe for Grandfather’s Coat Cookies is provided on the back jacket.