Waiting

Waiting is written by Kevin Henkes. It was published in 2015 by Jacket Art.

Lexile Level: 260L        Ages: 5-8

Summary:

     Five animals sit patiently on a windowsill, waiting and watching the world outside. The owl waits for the moon; the pig waits for the rain; the bear waits for the wind; the puppy waits for the snow; the rabbit waits for nothing in particular. Occasionally, gifts will appear on the windowsill, and a new friend might arrive, but together they all wait. One day a cat with patches joins them, and the windowsill friends receive a big surprise!

Evaluation and illustrations:

     This is a good story, but this story is unrealistic. Stuffed animals or porcelain toys cannot sit and wait for something to occur because they are not real. Although the characters are unrealistic the theme of this story is meaningful, it is teaching children that they will sometime in life have to wait. Whether it be in a line or for something to occur, like snow.

     The illustrations will definitely be interesting for students because they show the owl, pig, bear, puppy, and rabbits reactions while waiting. We see the animals sleeping, smiling when new gifts appear on the window, happy expressions when what they are waiting for arrives, and we see them scared when a terrifying thunderstorm rolls in. Henkes also gives us a look through the window and we see a rainbow, lightning, clouds shaped just like bears and umbrellas, icicles, fireworks, the moon, rain, wind, and snow.

Literary Elements:

     Kevin Henkes uses personification in Waiting. He gives the porcelain and stuffed toys life as if they are human, but really they do not have emotions and do not have the ability to wait. There is also foreshadowing. These animals are waiting for something and from the title of the book and explanations giving what they are waiting for will soon happen. He also uses foreshadowing when he mentions other toys come to visit but never stay foreshadowing a toy will come and stay, which does happen. The setting of the animals is important because it shows that they are waiting for things to occur outside and it also explains how the toys that join them end up disappearing because they fall off the windowsill and break.

1. Personification: giving the toys human-like traits
2. Foreshadowing: what they are waiting for will eventually arrive
3. Setting: the windowsill

In the Classroom:

     A mini-lesson I would do with the class is have them do a writing prompt about something they have had to wait for. It could be waiting for their parents to pick them up, waiting for summer to arrive, or waiting for the mailman to stop at their house. In this prompt they should write about what they wait for, how it makes them feel to wait, and if they are patient while they wait.

Henkes, K. (2015). Waiting. New York: Jacket Art.