The Polar Express
(Houghton Mifflin-2009)
Written and Illustrated by: Chris Van Allsburg
Grades: 1-2
*Caldecott Award 1986*
The Polar Express is about a boy who is listening for the bells of Santa's sleigh and hears a steam engine outside his house instead. The conductor invites him to board the Polar Express, a train filled with children on their way to the North Pole. The train takes the children to the center of the city, where Santa and the elves have gathered for the giving of the first gift of Christmas. The boy is chosen to receive this first gift. Knowing that he can choose anything in the world, he decides on a simple gift: one silver bell from Santa’s sleigh. When the children return to the train, the boy realizes the bell has fallen through a hole in his pocket. Heartbroken, he is returned to his home. In the morning, his little sister finds one small box with the boy’s name on it among the presents. Inside is the silver bell! The boy and his sister are enchanted by its beautiful sound, but their parents cannot hear it. The boy continues to believe in the spirit of Christmas and is able to hear the sweet ringing of the bell even as an adult. I love this book because it brings out the true hopefulness of Christmas. The characters are great in the story and students can really relate.
Theme: Faith (seeing is not necessary believing)
About the Author: Chris was born in Grand Rapids, Michigan on June 18th, 1949, the second child. During junior and senior high school in East Grand Rapids, Chris didn't take art classes and was instead interested in math and science. An admissions officer from the University of Michigan came to Chris's high school and explains the college of Architecture and Design. Chris loved to draw but was not aware one could go to school to study art. This was the last year the University admitted art students without a portfolio (lucky for Chris). Because he had not taken art in his high school years, the officer questioned his qualifications. The officer tested Chris asking his opinions on Normal Rockwell. Chris assumed correctly, that he was a fan of the writer, and told him he thought he was wonderful. Chris was accepted. He graduated in 1972 and went to graduate school at the Rhode Island School of Design (RISD) to continue his study of sculpture. In 1975, after earning his M.F.A. degree at RISD, Chris set up a sculpture studio in Providence, RI and got married. He did not think of his drawings were very important, but others did. Alan Stone showed two of them to a curator from The Whitney Museum of Art, where they were exhibited in 1978. His wife encouraged Chris to consider making illustrations for a story book. A friend of Lisa’s, illustrator and author David Macaulay agreed with Lisa that the kind of pictures Chris was making could be effective book illustration. Though still involved in making sculptures, Chris set aside some time and created the story and pictures that became The Garden of Abdul Gasazi, published in 1979. Since then, Chris has written and illustrated 15 books and has illustrated three others that were written by Mark Helprin.
Chris Van Allsburg's Bio
Pre-Reading Activities: Show the class the cover of the book and read the title. Have the class predict what the Polar Express is.
Post Reading Activities: For a treat during Christmas, give the students a paper bell to decorate and wear around their necks.
-Go over vocabulary terms (conductor, rustle, pranced, nougat, flickered, paced, desert, harness, lurc)
-Emotions Chart
Emotion | Why Did the Boy feel that way? | When do you feel that way? |
Curious | | |
Excited | | |
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