Crane Operator, written by Lachlan S.

The other day Lachlan was really struggling because he wanted to draw a vehicle of some sort and he didn't know where to start.  I tried to verbally break it down by asking him what shape the tires were and so on but he just got frustrated and gave up.  So in my searching through the library system I ran across this book and requested it right away.  When I first brought it home I thought it might just be too advanced for him and put it to the side.

Then a couple days ago in our FunShine curriculum they had the idea of having them write their own book and illustrate it.  So I started by asking Lachlan what he wanted the book to be called, see below.

Lachlan and Peter purchased a remote control crane with their Birthday and Christmas money so crane is on the brain.  I have it set up on their play table with a tray of beans to scoop and lift and dump into the dump truck that came with the crane.

Then I asked him what he wanted the book to be about.

We wrote all the words first and then came back to them for the illustrations.  For this illustration of a boy I asked Lachlan what shape his head is.  He said circle and started drawing the circle.  Next I drew the live for the body and talked to him about where the arms and legs should go.  I struggled with this part a bit, after all what shape is a persons body, I have been told mine is pear shape, but that's a whole other blog post. Lachlan didn't skip a beat and drew in the eyes after I asked him what should go on his face.  

Next we worked on this page of a dump truck.  I know it is a bit hard to see, Lachlan struggles with pressing down while writing.  But I was absolutely floored with how well the how to draw book worked for him, to give him a place to start.

 

I opened the book to semitrailer truck on the bottom here, the closest I could find to a dump truck, and pointed out the first shape.  He studied the shape of the cab and very carefully took the crayon to the paper in his attempt to match it.  Not frustration, just concentration.  It was so great to see.  Next I pointed out the shape of the truck trailer, rectangle, which happens to also be our shape of the month.  What I found interesting was that he started drawing the rectangle totally disconnected to the cab shape he had already drawn.  So I drew a very light rectangle behind the cab for him to retrace but he went straight to drawing the tires which I didn't have to prompt at all.  

So far we have only illustrated 2 of the pages but we will keep chipping away at his book, bit by bit.  I was just so thrilled by how well this book worked for him and had to share. 

If you find my blog posts helpful and you decide to make a purchase at FunShine Express please select my blog name in the referral section when you check out. We are so thankful for any help we get towards the expense of our boys education.