Nonfiction Form (Biography and Information Books)

Your Name: Title:

Ariadna Bahena The Crayon Man: The True Story of the Invention of
Crayola Crayons
Author: Illustrator:
Natascha Biebow Steven Salerno
Publisher/Date: Genre:
HMH Books for Young Readers/ 2019 Biography
EVALUATE THE BOOK USING THE FOLLOWING ELEMENTS

Explain how the cover and first pages of the book attract and hold the reader’s interest. Give 3examples from
the book

1. The cover is colorful and fun, showing a mustachioed man holding a fistful of crayons. He is
surrounded by children also holding crayon. The art is realistic but expressive and will catch young
readers' eyes.

2. The cover has a small caption that read “The True Story of the Invention of Crayola Crayons.”
Crayons are an everyday item that children might take for granted. The cover will spark their
curiosity and make them question “who invented the crayon.”

3. The book is a picture book and features illustrations on all its pages. Students who are not advanced
readers will be drawn in by the art.

STYLE AND LANGUAGE – Explain how the book shares information with children. Examples: “little-known
facts;” new vocab sprinkled in the text; and selection of information to create/maintain reader’s interest.
Give 3 examples from the book

1. The book presents information in a way that is appropriate and fun for young children. The story
begins like a regular storybook usually does, “Once there was a man who saw color everywhere. He
noticed the yellow-orange petals of black-eyed Susans in his garden. He marveled at the rich scarlet-
tones of the cardinal’s feathers. He admired the deep blue greens of the waves in the sea. Colors
made him really, really HAPPY!”

2. The book uses dialogue from the characters to share information.

She said “let’s mix the French word craie for stick of chalk, and the word ola from the word
oleaginous, meaning oily like the texture of the crayon wax, to invent a new word craie-ola.”

“Crayola” Edwin listened.

3. The book places bits of information that do not fit within the narrative in little boxes.

“By the 1900s, inventors had figured out how to make cheaper paper from wood pulp, so now
 children could draw on paper instead of just slate.

ACCURACY – up-to-date research, any sources or references provided, no mixing of fact and fiction.

Explain:

The author presents up to date research and does not mix fact and fiction.

The end of the book features additional information of Edwin Binney.

There is a bibliography at the end of the book where Biebow lists her resources.

This includes primary sources (print, interviews, and correspondence) and secondary sources (books, articles,
websites and videos).

INFORMATION –Explain how the book captures a child’s interest: unusual subjects or viewpoints -
personalized content – new perspectives, first-person accounts, and fascinating comparisons.

Give 3 examples from the book.

1. Children use crayons in their everyday life for school projects and for fun. They are something we
often take for granted and can’t imagine living without. This book gives a look at the problems that
people in the 1800s faced such as “Paper was expensive in the 1800s, so children wrote with chalk on
slates (which are like small handheld blackboards.)”

2. The book shows the perspective of people living in the 1800s. Edwin Binney’s wife, Alice, was a
teacher and told Binney about the problems her students faced. “The crayons we have are big, dull
and clumsy. The lumps of colored clay only make fat, clunky lines. And the artists’ crayons from
Europe are too expensive- they crumble and break easily. Some are even poisonous!”

3. Children are curios and might wonder how crayons are made. The book goes into detail on how
Edwin went about creating the Crayola crayon and will answer their question.

“In a small stone mill in Pennsylvania, in a top-secret lab, Edwin’s team experimented. How could
they make better, stronger crayons? Melted paraffin wax? Perhaps.”

ILLUSTRATIONS-- Select a 2-Page Spread to evaluate the book with following:

Media (paints, pencils, pen, watercolors, charcoal, photographs, crayon, acrylics, chalk, oils ): Explain the media choices used:

The illustrator used mixed media when creating the art for the book. He created the line art with pencil and
then refined and added color using Photoshop.

illustration and text combine to share the information:

What does the text explain and how illustrated?

The text explains that Edwin Binney owned a company that sold black carbon.
The previous page showed his love of color and the following page shows how that contradicts with his job.

“But all day long at work, all he saw is black. Black dust, Black tar,

The illustration shows him standing in his carbon factory surrounded by workers. The illustration places him on the left page and he
appears unhappy with his hands up in the air.

What do illustrations show that text does not explain?

The text does not mention his workers or the conditions of working inside a carbon factory. The illustration gives you a look at what
working inside of Binney’s factory would be like showing workers standing over steaming black tubs.

Page design – Describe the following: use of borders; text placement and font size; use of information boxes, charts or
identification of vocab use of white and dark space; types of illustrations and placement on both pages:

There are no borders, the illustrations take up the entire page. The text is placed on the upper left of the
page. The text is white and is placed over a dark cloud of smoke. There is additional information placed in a
box on the bottom right of the page. The text is small, and this gives importance to the illustrations.

Child Development Theories –Select 1 theory: Erikson’s Stages of Psychosocial Development

Identify the stage Industry vs . Inferiority and age level__5 to 11____from the theory.

Select one trait from the developmental stage/level.

Children begin to develop a sense of pride in their accomplishments and abilities.

Explain and give 3 specific examples from the book that fit the developmental stage/level.

1. Edwin Binney and his team do not create a better crayon during their first attempt. When he fails he
continues experimenting and improving his formula. This encourages children to not give up and to learn
from their mistakes.

2. Edwin Binney listens to the problems that children and teachers face when using crayons. He works to
create a product to make their life easier. Children will be encouraged to spot problems in their daily life and
come up with solutions.

“At last, because Edwin Binney, the man who saw color everywhere, who had a knack for listening and
making what people needed, children all around the world could reach the right shade.”

3. Edwin appreciates his workers and listens to input from his wife. He must work in a team in order to have a
successful formula for his crayon.

1. OVERALL RATING (3 high, 1 low) 1 2 3

I give the book an overall rating of 3.

Explain the rating:

Crayon Man is a great biography book for children. The story is easy to follow along but does not talk down to
young readers. I really appreciate the additional information placed in the margins because they help spark
more curiosity such as the creation of paper. The illustrations are vibrant and go well with the text.