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A Mountain Alphabet
by Margriet Ruurs
illustrated by Andrew Kiss
Themes include: environment / ecology, art, geography
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About this book:
A black bear browsing on berries, a moose in the morning
mist, a wolf walking through a winter wonderland - welcome
to an alliterative journey through the magnificent mountains
of western North America. Each painting captures a special
mountain mood and invites readers to discover intriguing
animals, plants, and even a letter of the alphabet. Thus a
beautifully illustrated nature book becomes a puzzle book as
well - one which young naturalists will spend hours
exploring, discovering all the plants and animals found
among the words listed at the back of the book. Truly a book
for all ages, A Mountain Alphabet combines detailed
information about our mountain landscapes with beautiful
works of art. Objects that begin with a particular letter
are waiting to be discovered in each of the twenty-six
full-color paintings. A line of alliterative text describes
the treasures of nature shown in each one. At the back of
the book is a list of all the things that begin with each
letter as well as detailed information about each setting
painted. To encourage close observation of the
illustrations, the artist has hidden a particular letter of
the alphabet in each painting. The lyrical text and useful
notes make this book as informative as it is beautiful.
Teaching Ideas:
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Prereading Preparation:
Teacher-librarians may want to
prepare cards for the library collection and use throughout
the school. Use two paperback editions of A Mountain
Alphabet. Take the books apart so that each letter of the
alphabet can be mounted and laminated.
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Introduce the book:
• Show a copy of the book and tell students that it
is much more than an alphabet book; it is also a puzzle book
packed with information. Explain that one letter of the
alphabet is hidden in each painting.
• Distribute the cards, one per student and, for younger
children, allow approximately five minutes for them to find
their assigned letter. (As far as possible, letters may be
assigned matching students' initials.)
• Allow another five minutes for students to list as many
plants and animals as they can find on their card.
Reference books may be used.
• Shuffle the cards and redistribute them to repeat the
exercise.
• Have students in turn read their card aloud.
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Postreading:
• Mount the individual pages in order on a bulletin
board or blackboard.
• Make a classroom chart with two columns: ANIMALS and
PLANTS. Use one color on the chart to list all the names
that the class can identify on each page over a period of a
few days or a week. When everyone is "stuck," check the
list at the back and add to the chart in a different color
any names that were missed.
• Have several reference books available for
identification and further information about unfamiliar
species of animals and plants. Have students take another
look at all the pictures to identify the species they aren't
familiar with.
• Have students reread their page to the class, sharing
information about one new animal and one new plant that they
learned about.
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Literary Connections
ALPHABET BOOKS:
• Display a variety of alphabet books from simple
one-word-for-each-letter books to more complex examples.
Discuss the author or illustrator's interpretation of art
and language.
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A few suggested titles
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John Burningham's ABC
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John Burningham
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Primary
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The ABC Bunny
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Wanda Gag
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Primary
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Animal Alphabet
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Bert Kitchen
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Primary
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Anno's Alphabet
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Mitsumasa Anno
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All Ages
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Ashanti to Zulu: African Traditions
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Margaret Musgrove
Illustrated by L&D Dillon
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All Ages
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A Northern Alphabet
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Ted Harrison
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All Ages
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Play Mas'! A Carnival ABC
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Dirk McLean
illustrated by Ras Stone
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All Ages
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A Prairie Alphabet
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Jo Bannatyne-Cugnet
Illustrated by Yvette Moore
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All Ages
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A Seaside Alphabet
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Donna Grassby
illustrated by Susan Tooke
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All Ages
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The Z Was Zapped
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Chris Van Allsburg
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Intermediate
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Thematic Connections
OUTDOOR RECREATION:
• Have students list all the outdoor activities shown in
the paintings. These could be charted in a separate column
with the plants and animals.
ENVIRONMENT / ECOLOGY:
• Discuss how mountains affect our way of life and how
they help provide some of our basic needs:
• water (snow and ice) for reservoirs
• rivers that flow to the ocean, providing transport;
silt in deltas for farming, and habitat for fish
• minerals for mining
• trees for the forest industry
• a natural environment for a wide range of plants and
animals
• a natural environment for sports and recreation
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Interdisciplinary Connections
SOCIAL STUDIES / PHYSICAL GEOGRAPHY:
• Use a world map
and/or an atlas. Have students locate the Alps in Europe,
the Himalayas in Asia, the Andes in South America, and the
Coast Ranges and Rockies in North America. Have students
use the key or legend to compare the elevations of the
various mountain ranges of the world.
• Focus on the Rockies and the Coast Ranges to have
students determine how colors are used to show elevation.
Find the names of some of the highest peaks.
• Use several reference books from the school library.
Have students research the ways mountains are formed:
volcanic explosions, ice-age formations, and sedimentary strata
thrust upwards through pressure. Have them determine how
the Rockies and the Coast Ranges were formed.
SCIENCE:
• Discuss how mountains change over time and what
causes the changes: a) natural forces: wind, ice, snow,
glaciers, rain, running water, b) man-made forces: forestry
overcutting, logging roads that allow increased progression
of natural forces.
CONSERVATION:
a) Why is conservation of natural resources
important?
b) What are some conservation measures now in
place?
c) What is sustainable logging?
ART:
• Compare the naturalistic style of art by Andrew
Kiss in A Mountain Alphabet with more interpretive styles,
for example, the later works of members of the Group of
Seven, or Emily Carr.
• Compare the various effects produced by different
mediums, for example, oil paintings by Andrew Kiss in A
Mountain Alphabet and watercolor paintings by Tony Onley.
• Art and language enrichment activity: Have pairs of
students design a travel brochure to advertise a holiday in
a mountain region. Have several brochures for other areas
available for reference and to use as models. Consider the
recipients and their needs. What facilities might they want?
What interests would the people who receive these brochures
have? Consider the balance of information and illustration.
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ENGLISH / LANGUAGE ARTS:
• Have the students make their
own alphabet book as a class project. Decide on the
subject; perhaps their own school, town, or neighborhood.
Have each student be responsible for one or two pages.
Challenge them to write sentences with words beginning with
only their initial letter. (Exceptions may be made for
rarely used letters.)
• Language appreciation and grammar: Teachers can easily
develop a chart using students' information from "their"
page of the book. Answers must be based on the initial
letter and the correct context of the word in the sentence.
For example:
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NOUNS
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VERBS
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ADJECTIVES
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A
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aspen, autumn
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are
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*avalanche, aglow
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B
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bear, berries
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browses
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black, boreal
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C
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climbers
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cling
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*canyon
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D
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deer, danger, daisies, dandelions
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detect
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*avalanche and canyon are usually used as nouns but here
they are used as adjectives
• Use the laminated pages for descriptive paragraph
writing. Have students examine the background first (as a
painter paints the background first), describe it in a
sentence, and then move forward in the illustration,
continuing to build the description. The words of the
author may be incorporated into the paragraph.
• Take one page and have students imagine it as a
postcard that they are sending to a friend. Have them write
about the experiences and activities in this scene.
Alternatively, copy one of the illustrations on one side of
a postcard-size sheet of stiff paper and have students write
their message on the other side. Let them mail the postcard
to a friend or relative.
• Enrichment for older students: Debate the conflicting
positions of protecting nature versus needing to build a
country's economy on natural resources.
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Other Tundra Teacher Guides:
Amazing Grace,
Charlotte,
Dippers,
The Legend of the Panda,
The Long Road,
Lucy Maud and the Cavendish Cat,
Silent Night
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