Unsatisfied with the unresolved conflict between characters “Mudambo” and “Honkitonk” from the book, Doctor De Soto Goes to Africa by William Steig, the children decide to play out alternative scenarios with paper versions of the characters.
Wally (as Honkitonk): I didn’t like it when you called me that bad name.
Mason (as Mudambo): I won’t do it again. How can I help you feel better?
The children decide to interject themselves into the story as characters.
Mason: Super Mason and Super Wally can rescue Doctor De Soto!
Emilio, Estelle, Charlie and Clemmy decide to create additional characters and props for the paper world.
Emilio: This is the cage that Doctor De Soto was trapped in!
The children’s relationships to books has shifted from a purely pleasurable, often passive, audience of listeners to that of a more critical, actively engaged participant in conversations stemming from the medium of books – a thrill for me as a bibliophile, a lover of books! By engaging with the narratives and challenging the motives and actions of both characters and authors alike, the children share not only their depth of reading comprehension, but also their now integrated social strategies that support perspective taking. Kristin