An English version of 'facebook＋少し！　絵本で言葉が豊かになる時・・・　NPO多読講座'

I tweeted

Wrote an article on how picture books can help us gain deeper insight into language. Will translate if requested. http://tadoku.org/sakai-note/

and got a request from @Temo65.

So here it is...

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One of the pupils in my tadoku class at the non-profit organisation Tadoku Supporters posted the following report in the facebook page, which is translated as follows:

One English picture book I borrowed at the NPO class last week was certainly not for children only. I opened the book and there in the first page it said 'Be generous with your time.'

I got muddled. What can generous mean here? It's usually translated as gentle, so does it mean gentle with time? I went on reading and the real meaning gradually dawned on me. Like for example in the next page it said 'Take your time to listen each day.' Do I always spare time for someone and listen carefully for what that person has to say?

I used to teach at an elementary school and in the class I would often say 'Be kind to your friends,' or 'Have some thoughts for other people.' Some kids were really kind but still they often made taking turns into a big thing. I tried not to use big words like generous or obstinate and said 'It's no big deal,' instead but those words didn't quite sit well with the kids or myself. If only I had this picture book with in those classes...

My comment went like this...

The grown-up pupils in my tadoku class have now learned to dip into picture books and come to realise that language is not the black prints on white pages. Small class in a room with lots of easy English books seems to help them to really dig into the world of picture books. And yet K-san's comments were an eye-opener to me, because she is right in the process of re-acquiring an English word she learned while at school. The word 'generous' now has flesh and blood and depth and width as well.

What I am saying here is that flash card approach to vocab building is not the way to the heart of any language. Hope you know what I mean. I'm sure I will come back to this topic time and again, though.
(This paragraph is not in the blog article.)

Picture books are tremendously powerful. I have started to think because of a number of similar incidents like K-san's that mother tongue may be acquired without going through hoards of picture books but as far as foreign languages are concerned, it may not be possible. Also K-san's case seems to suggest that in some cases picture books can be more effective than manga, films or anime in giving deeper picture of behind a word.

Next questions would be 'in what cases picture books are better than their rivals?'. I'll collect a lot cases so I can gain insight in the matter. That means I need a lot of feedback from you!

Thanks for the report, K-san.

K-san is saying good-bye to 'generous=寛大な' mind-set, but had it not been for her English lessons she wouldn't have acquired the mind-set in the first place.

That could mean those who studied too diligently in Japanese schools may have to rid themselves of mind-sets by enjoying a lot of picture books. I have met a number of people who read English paperbacks as fluently as Japanese language books, but who strangely have only a shallow understanding of English.

K-san's report may shed light on the mystery. They only have two-dimensional understanding which does not escape the pages of a book. Their vocabulary is dead and dry like fallen leaves on the ground.

I used to recommend picture books to people who don't have an English paperback at hand during all waking hours. That may have been wrong. I may have to recommend picture books even to paperback readers who haven't enjoyed them at some point in their learning.

(Films and 'living or working in English' give you three- or four-dimensional experience in English, which can substitute picture books.)

I once advised Julie-san that if she wanted to be 'a pro in English' she should read a lot of picture books. It seems there's no need to amend that advice.

Thursday evening Skype session is about to begin. So much for this topic for now.

Oh, incedentally, K-san and I talked about translating this series--Character Education--into Japanese someday.

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That was the end of the original blog entry.
I wanted an English version because many English-speaking learners of Japanese seem to say no to picture books. They say picture books are kids' stuff.

Point taken--to a certain extent.

You see, if you come to think of it, the creators of picture books are grownups, right? And some of them produce those kids' stuff with all their might and mind. They put all their life history in them. If they enjoy making picture books, why not we enjoy reading them?

Posted by さかい＠tadoku.org | △PageTop