The Legend of the Indian Paintbrush~retold and illustrated by Tomie dePaola

Originally published January 1, 1988

Summary

“The Legend of the Indian Paintbrush” illustrated by Tomie dePaola retells the old folk tale about how the ‘Indian Paintbrush’ Wyoming flower came to be.  The overall summary of the book is a young Indian boy named Little Gopher who is different than everyone in his tribe.  Throughout the story Little Gopher has a dream to find the perfect colors to paint his sunset.

 

Genre

This book is a historical fiction; it is both myth and legend. “The Indian Paintbrush” is the name of the Wyoming state flower.  The book tells a story about a Native American heritage/old folktale.

 

Personal Comment

I find this book to be educational and fun to read.  The colors used in the illustrations are bright and eye catching.  Before reading this book I never knew that the state flower of Wyoming was called "The Indian Paintbrush". 
I presented this book to a previous first grade class that I was volunteering at for my practicum. I was suprised how much the students enjoyed the story, along with the illustrations.  When I finished teaching the lesson plan for this book, I had my students complete a direct instruction lesson.  Each student was given a little booklet made by me and they had to write a short response for (beginning, middle, and end).  Once the students were done they were allowed to decorate the front cover of their booklets.

 

Author's Background Information:
 

Tomie dePaola was born in Meriden, Connecticut on September 15, 1934.  He lived with his mother Florence, father Joseph, brother Joseph, and two sisters Judie and Maureen.  He wanted to become a writer since he was four years old; some say he developed the love for books because his mother would read to him every day.  Tomie dePaola would even illustrate the books that his mother would read to him.  Along with his love for writing he also loved to dance.  When he graduated from high school he decided to continue his education and attend Pratt Institute in Brooklyn, New York.  

His first children's book job was to illustrate "Sound" a science book.  "The Wonderful Dragon of  Timlin" was the first book he wrote and illustrated.  Since his first job he has illustrated approximately 250 book and written 100 of the story books.

Books: 

Strega Nona (1975) 
26 Fairmount Avenue (199)
Nana Upstairs (1973)
The Cloud Book
Pancakes For Breakfast
The Legend of  Poinsettia
The Knight and the Dragon
Strega Nona, Her Story
The Legend of the Bluebonnet
Oliver Button
The Clown of God
Little Grunt and the Big Egg
etc....

Motivational Activities:
Make Indian headbands and students will write vocabulary words on the paper feathers.
If you were Little Gopher what would be your Dream-Vision?  Illustrate your Dream-Vision.
If you were Little Gopher what would your hut look like?

Readers Response Questions:
What connection did you make from this book to your own life?
My favorite character is...because...
What character was your favorite? Please explain using at least two of the vocabulary words.

Bibliography:
dePaola, T. (1988). The Legend of the Indian Paintbrush. New York, NY: Scholastic Inc.

dePaola, T. (2011). Biography. In Tomie.com. Retrieved November 19, 2012, from http://www.tomie.com/