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AnonymousLuenn, Nancy The Dragon Kite. Harcourt, Brace and Company:New York. 32 pp.
1982
Chen, Jiang Hong The Legend of the Kite: A Story of China. Futech Interactive Products, Inc.:
1997 Phoenix, AZ. 32 pp.
When schooldays arrive, I get nostalgic for my good old days. A third grade teacher and I combined classes, I conned the science teacher into a unit on aerodynamics, and large and small, child, parent and teacher, we made and flew kites in the fall winds. We put up fighters, hawks, dragons, butterflies, wind socks, banners, and good old diamond kites. And all of us, in our minds, rode, like the clipper ship captains of old, those fluttering sails.
The Legend of the Kite tells of Dan-Long and his grandfather, who after a long winter, flying their beautiful dragon kite. The Grand Dragon becomes entangled on the temple roof and ripped to shreds when the string breaks. Grandfather uses the tragedy to tell why there are so many kites flying in the skies of China. He tells of how two lovers use a kite to thwart the plans of the emperor and stay together. The book also has a page on the geography of China and another on the Chinese kite flying tradition.
The Dragon Kitetakes place in Japan at the beginnning of the 17th century. Ishikawa, a Japanese Robin Hood, dreams of stealing he golden dolphins from the roof of a nearby castle. He hits upon the idea of using a giant kite to accomplish the task. It takes him four long years to acquire the skills necessary to construct his kite and carry out the theft. Little does he know that the dragon kite he frees into the winds will return to free him.
Chapter books are difficult to use in class when time always seems to be rushing by. I really like picture books, though I won't let the students use them for book reports, because the illustrations convey so much of the culture they depict and the stories are interesting and short. I can digitize them, pass out a copy of the text, and have a great little lesson that is complete in much less than a class period.