introducing make-your-own books by curved house kids
DESCRIPTION
Curved House Kids make fun, inclusive books that empower children of all ages, all abilities and all learning styles. We publish picture books of two types: books with a story but no illustrations so kids can ILLUSTRATE their own book and books with pictures but not story so the kids can WRITE their own book. Our tactile, dynamic method allows kids to use their own ingenuity to develop three crucial elements of literacy: Vocabulary, Reading Comprehension and Visual Literacy.Curved House Kids is an imprint of The Curved House, a Berlin-based publishing and production company with a strong focus on design, visual literacy and visual arts.TRANSCRIPT
your own books
The Curved House Kids series hit the stores in November 2013. Our books aim to empower and inspire children by allowing them to produce their very own book. Our fun, tactile, dynamic method allows kids to use their own ingenuity to develop three crucial elements of literacy:
Vocabulary
Reading Comprehension
Visual Literacy
Our books are for children of all ages, all abilities and all learning styles.
We are here!
There are two types of books in our series. The WRITE books have illustrations but no words, so children can create their own story based on how they interpret the illustrations.
We work with talented, creative illustrators and call upon a panel of teachers, parents and experts to ensure the books have a logical flow and lots of visual clues for the kids to pick up on.
This is visual literacy at its best!
Write
The second type of book, ILLUSTRATE, has a story but no pictures so kids can illustrate their own book.
The stories are carefully crafted by talented children’s authors and editors to ensure they contain suitable language, lots of learning tools, and plots and characters that the kids can associate with.
By allowing kids to write their world into a book we encourage a direct interaction with books and a way in to the stories for all kids.
Illustrate
B O O K P L A N N E R
Use this page to plan how you are
going to illustrate your book
All our books come with...
a book planner, so the kids can plan their great book!
Phew! So glad this book has landed in YOUR hands because
we really need a kid who LOVES to draw – that’s you, isn’t it?
We’ve got this great story that our friend Chester wrote but we
need you to add some pictures and make this your very own
book. Now, maybe you just want to jump right in, in which case,
go for it! Or maybe you want a helping hand, in which case,
here are a few tips from some really awesome illustrators...1 MAKE A PLAN, STAN!Ask an adult to help you get started with planning your book. The
first thing to do is tear out this middle part of the book, then you can
use the BOOK PLANNER on the other side to work out what you’re
going to draw. Maybe an adult or a brother or sister can help you
work out what to draw. Don’t worry if you make mistakes – that’s
what the book planner is for!
2 GET INSP IRED!Good illustrators draw what appears in the story but they also use their own special style. They’re usually inspired by the world around them. You can get inspiration EVERYWHERE. Look around you right now – what do you see? Maybe your friend is wearing a baseball cap? Perhaps there’s a woman with a huge umbrella? Or a bird flying in the sky? All of these things can inspire your drawings!
3 SKETCHIt’s time to start drawing your illustrations. Lots of illustrators use pencil first so they don’t have to worry about making mistakes. You can do this too and if you make a mistake, just rub it out. And don’t forget to draw from your heart – every drawing is a good drawing if it comes from the heart!
4 ADD COLOURWhen you’re happy with your sketch you can go over it with
coloured pens, pencils or crayons. This is where it gets really
exciting! Don’t forget to look around you for inspiration. What
colours can you see? Are there patterns and shapes that you can
use to decorate your snowman?
5 SHAREWow, well done! You’ve just finished illustrating your first book. What now? Read it to your friends, give it to someone you love or upload a photo to our Curved House Kids online gallery at www.curvedhousekids.com. You’re a publisher now, so it’s time to share your awesome book with the world!
Tips from authors and illustrators on how to write and draw
I, the illustrator,
dedicate this book to:
My SummerSnowman
WRITTEN BY CHESTER TRAVIS
I LLUSTRATED BY :
Lots of places for kids to personalise their books.
Guidance notes to help teachers, parents and carers get the most out of our books.
And kids can upload their finished books to our online gallery!
Empowering kids to publish their own books!
INCLUSIVE Some kids are good with words and numbers and others learn visually. These books offer a way for all kids to learn to read, no matter how their brain works, what their level of learning is or how confident they are.
EMPOWERING Books can be scary, especially for less confident children. Taking ownership of a book can help those kids overcome their fears.
CREATIVE Literacy is a priority in mainstream education, but ‘creative literacy’ (encouraging kids to imagine, express themselves freely and explore their artistic talents) is often undervalued. We want to give creative kids a way in to books
FUN AND INTERACTIVE Books now compete with a huge range of devices and distractions. Our books are interesting, interactive and fun, encouraging kids to read for pleasure.
PERSONAL The statistics on reading are frightening: only 40% of England’s 10-year-olds having a positive attitude toward reading. Giving kids the chance to draw or write themselves into a real book is a great way to unlock the pleasure of reading.
ACCESSIBLE 14% of children in lower income homes rarely or never read books for pleasure. We want to change that by making our books accessible for all children.
Books with benefits
These books are a fantastic tool for running events for children. All of our authors and illustrators are creative, vibrant individuals who have lots of experience working with children and we have designed and tested some great event ideas, like this one
We covered a whole room in chalkboard paint and wrote a story on the wall that the kids then had to illustrate! It was a huge success.
We’d love to hear from schools, galleries, shops, festivals and anyone else who would like to run one of our events.
Events, Workshops and Festivals
Accessibility is at the core of this series and we strive to produce books that make books and reading accessible to all children. The Curved House Kids is proud to support Booktrust’s Children’s Reading Fund, specifically the work they do with children with additional needs.
Kids love our books!
...and so will you!Contact the PublisherPublisher
Kristen Harrison
The Curved House
Phone +49 17687602770
Distribution (UK/Ireland)Central Books
Fax: 0845 458 9912
Phone: 0845 458 9911
Mailorders: [email protected]