Blackout

Blackout

Author and Illustrator: John Rocco

Genre: Realistic Fiction

Major Awards: Caldecott Medal

Grade Level: Pre-K-4

Summary: On a summer night in the city, a young boy longs to spend time playing games with his family, but everyone seemed too busy. Suddenly, a city-wide blackout occurred, so the family gathered around the table with flashlights and candles. They went outside to find their neighbors talking and laughing together. When the lights came back on, the rest of the city went back to normal, but the young boy's family turned all the lights off and played games in the candlelight.

Evaluation: This is a great book to have in the classroom because it addresses both family issues and fear. Children of many ages can relate to the story and learn to cope with similar situations in their own lives.

This book is great for younger students (pre-k through second) because it relies a lot on the illustrations to tell the story. They will learn visual literacy while also practicing new words. Older students will be able to relate to the boy in the book because they have an easier time making emotional connections.

I would love to use this book as the introduction to a science lesson about energy. I can read the book, then talk about why the power goes out and about electricity. I think it would be fun for the children to have the book read to them in the dark to make the book come alive.