FLS519 - Children's Literature of Spain since 1950
Course Justification
Our Masters Program is directed especially to teachers in the North Carolina public schools K -12.
The state ofNorth Carolina curriculum guide for foreign languages requires that teachers have substantial knowledge of the children' s literature of Spanish-speaking countries and be able to relate the literature to the target cultures. This course helps teachers meet this need.
This course is one of the literature/culture courses candidates can elect to take in our MA
program. We have no similar courses on the graduate level but we do have an undergraduate course, FLS 319 (Children's and Adolescents' Literature ofSpain and Latin America).
Course Objectives Students will:
Refine their concept of what children' s literature is.
Determine if a particular book is really written for children.
F orm a personal philosophy of what constitutes good children' s literature.
Articulate a reasoned response to specific contemporary issues in children' s literature, such as censorship, political correctness, canons.
Become acquainted with a substantial number of representative or meritorious Spanish texts for children 0-15 years of age, both traditional and that produced since the 1950s, including picture books, narrative fiction, poetry, and theater.
Recognize reflections of traditional children' s lore and literature in contemporary texts. Apply diverse critical and theoretical approaches to children' s literature.
Explain how picture books work, i.e., relationships between pictures and text.
Identify and describe trends in contemporary children' s literature in general as they are reflected in Spanish children' s literature.
Articulate and give examples of ways in which Spanish children' s literature reflects Spanish culture.
Describe how Spanish children's literature has changed from the 1950s through current times and relate these changes to political, economic, social, and cultural transformation in Spain.
Articulate and give examples ofways in which Spanish children's literature contributes to children's cognitive, linguistic, social, moral, and emotional development.
Become familiar with primary and secondary sources on Spanish children's literature on the Web. Develop a repertory of ways to engage children with Spanish children' s literature, including but not limited to, traditional games and songs, storytelling, dramatization, dramatic reading, puppetry , silent reading, and A-V media. Extend their linguistic skills in Spanish.
List of Textbooks
Cervera, Juan. Teoría de la literatura infantil. Bilbao: U de Deusto. - $25 - 1991
Nodelman, Perry. The Pleasures of Children 's Literature.White Plains, NY: Longman - $55 - 1992
Interdepartmental Consultation
No other department on campus is affected by the establishment of this course. The course will be administered by the Department of Foreign Languages and Literatures.
Textbook Information
Teaching Language in Context, Omaggio-Hadley, A. and Terry, R., Heinle & Heinle, 2000, $60.95; Research within Reach II, Galloway, V. and Herron, C. (editors), SCOLT, 1995, $15.00?; additional journal articles and instructional design handouts.
New Resources Required
Allocation of existing resources permits offering this course as part of the MA program.
SAMPLE SYLLABUS
Instructor: Louise Salstad
Office address: 1911 Building, #130 Telephone: 515-9296
E-mail address:
Web page: httl2:/ /sasw .chass.ncsu.edu/fl/facultv/salstad/ Class meeting times: Office hours:
Course prerequisites or restrictive statements: Restricted to MA students [?] Student learning objectives: Students will:
- Refine their concept of what children' s literature is.
- Determine if a particular book is really written for children.
- Form a personal philosophy of what constitutes good children' s literature.
- Articulate a reasoned response to specific contemporary issues in children' s literature, such as censorship, political correctness, canons.
- Become acquainted with a substantial number of representative or meritorious Spanish texts for children 0-15 years of age, both traditional and that produced since the 1950s, including picture books, narrative fiction, poetry , and theater .
- Recognize reflections of traditional children' s lore and literature in contemporary texts.
- Apply diverse critical and theoretical approaches to children's literature.
- Explain how picture books work, i.e., relationships between pictures and text.
- Identify and describe trends in contemporary children' s literature in general as they are reflected in Spanish children' s literature.
- Articulate and give examples of ways in which Spanish children's literature reflects Spanish culture.
- Describe how Spanish children's literature has changed from the 1950s through the present and relate these changes to political, economic, social, and cultural transformation in Spain.
- Articulate and give examples ofways in which Spanish children's literature contributes to children's cognitive, linguistic, social, moral, and emotional development.
- Become familiar with primary and secondary sources on Spanish children' s literature on the Web.
- Develop a repertory of ways to engage children with Spanish children' s literature, including but not limited to, traditional games and songs, storytelling, dramatization, dramatic reading, puppetry , silent reading, and A- V media.
- Extend their linguistic skills in Spanish.
Required Textbooks:
Cervera, Juan. Teoría de la literatura infantil. Bilbao: U de Deusto, 1991. Approx. $25.00. Nodelman, Perry , and Mavis Reimer. The Pleasures of Children 's Literature. 3rd ed. Boston:
Allyn & Bacon, 2002. $55.00.
: Primary sources and supplementary readings will be placed in Reserves in D. H. Hill Library.
Course organization and scope
I. Introduction (4 days)
A. What is children's literature? (3 days)
1. What is special about children' s literature
2. Ideas about children and childhood
--The emergence of adolescence
3. What is good children's literature?
4. How to read children's literature
B. Other controversial issues (1 day)
1. Censorship and political correctness
2. Canons or The prized and the popular 3. Didacticism
C. Sources of primary and secondary material (will be accessible via Web links) 1. Libraries and special collections 2. Publishers and distributors 3. Electronic sources
II. Brief history of Spanish children' s literature in its political, social, economic, and cultural context (2 days)
A. Middle Ages to 19th century B. Early 20th century
C. Trends since 1950s
III. Traditional Spanish lore appropriated by children (4 days)
A. Children' s folklore (games, songs, riddles, tongue twisters, nonsense rhymes ) B. Folk and fairy tales C. Storytelling
IV. Spanish children's literature since the 1950s (16 days) A. Picture books (3 days ) B. Poetry (2 days)
C. Theater (2 days) 1. Plays 2. Puppetry
D. Narrative fiction (beginning readers, short story , novel) 1. Some theories and concepts (1 day) 2. Fantasy (2 days)
3. Contemporary realistic fiction and its sub-genres ( 4 days ) 4. Historical fiction (2 days)
V. The child-literature connection (2 days)
A. Contributions of Spanish children' s literature to children' s cognitive, linguistic, social, moral, and emotional development (1 day)
B. Engaging children with literature inside and outside the classroom (we will have discussed this aspect also in connection with folklore and the various genres (1 day)
(Total: 28 days + 1 day for orientation + 1 day for mid-term exam) Projected schedule of reading assignments
~: All students will do the readings from Cervera and Nodelman. Specific students will be assigned particular supplementary readings from the other titles listed and will be responsible for sharing information and ideas from these selections with the class.
Day 2: Cervera, Chapter 1 ("La literatura infantil: planteamiento de su estudio"). Nodelman, pp. 77-88 ("Characteristics ofthe Genre"), Chapters 2 ("How to Read Children's Literature"), 8 ("Literature in Wider Contexts").
Day 3: Cervera, Chapter 2 ("Bases para una teoría de la literatura infantil"), 1 O ("Literatura infantil yjuvenil"). Cervera. Juan. "La literaturajuvenil a debate." CLIJ75 (Sep. 1995): 12-16. Delgado Gómez, Alejandro. "Pero, ¿existe la literaturajuvenil?" CLIJ83 (Mayo 1996): 20-26. Teixidor, Emili. "La literaturajuvenil, ¿un género para adolescentes?" CLIJ 133 (Dic. 2000): 7-15. Selected articles on adolescent literature from CLIJ72 (Mayo 1995): 7-36.
Day 4: Nodelman, Chapters 3 ("Children and Children's Literature in History"), 4 ("Contemporary Attitudes toward Children").
Day 5: Aguilar Ródenas, Consol. "Los cuentos y ellenguaje políticamente correcto." CLIJ 134 (Enero 2001): 26-35. Lage Femández, Juan José. "Erotismo y sexo en la LIJ." CLIJ 116 (Mayo 1999): 18-26. Selections from Paradoxa 2.3-4 (1996).
Day 6: Fouts, Elizabeth. "A BriefHistory ofSpanish Children's Literature." Bookbird37.3
(1999): 47-51. Bravo-Villasante, Carmen. Historia de la literatura infantil española. Madrid: Escuela Española, 1979. Chapters 1-9.
Day 7: Selections from Beffilejo, Amalia. La literatura infantil en España. Madrid: Asociación Española de Amigos del Libro Infantil y Juvenil, 1987. Colomer, Teresa. Laformación del lector literario: Narrativa infantil y juvenil actual. Madrid: Fundación Geffilán Sánchez Ruipérez, 1998. Chapters 2-3. Selections from García Padrino, Jaime. Libros y literatura para niños en la España contemporánea. Salamanca: Fundación Geffilán Sánchez Ruipérez, 1992.
Day 8: Bravo- Yillasante, Carmen. Historia de la literatura infantil española. Madrid: Escuela Española, 1979. Chapter 10. Bravo-Yillasante, Carmen. Adivina, adivinanza. Madrid: Didascalia, 1982. Bravo- Yillasante, Carmen. Una, dola, tela, catola. Yalladolid: Miñón, 1987. Juegos tradicionales en la escuela infantil. Coord. Pilar López López. Salamanca: Amaru, 1992. Pito, pito, colorito: folclore infantil. Prólogo y selección de Carmen Bravo- Yillasante. Palma de Mallorca: José J. de Olañeta, 1998.
Day 9: Cervera, pp. 69- 73. Nodelman, Chapter 11 ("Fairy Tales and Myths"). López Tamés, R. "La narrativa." Introducción a la literatura infantil. [Santander]: U de Santander, 1985. 21-104.
Day 10: AII students read: Rodríguez Almodóvar, Antonio. "Estudio preliminar." and story "Las tres maravillas del mundo." Los cuentos maravillosos españoles. Barcelona: Crítica, 1982. Assigned student: Bryant, Sara Cone. El arte de contar cuentos. Trans. from How to Tell Stories to Children. Barcelona: Biblaría, 1995.
Day 12: Nodelman, Chapter 10 ("Picture Books"). Selections from Ellibro-álbum: invención y evolución de un género para niños. [Yenezuela ] : Banco del Libro, 1999. Hidalgo Rodríguez, María Carmen. "La ilustración infantil española actual." CLIJ 144 (Dic. 2001): 51-60. Orquín, Felicidad. "Tendencias en los libros ilustrados para niños." CLIJ 102 (Feb. 1998): 70-73.
Day 13: Nikolajeva, Maria, and Carole Scott. How Picturebooks Work. New York: Garland, 2000.
Day 14: Selections from Schwarcz, Joseph H., and Chava Schwarcz. The Picture Book Comes of Age: Looking at Childhood through the Art of lllustration. Chicago: American Library Association, 1991.
Day 16: Cervera, Chapter 4 ("Poesía y canción"). Nodelman, Chapter 9 ("Poetry").
Day 17: López Tamés, R. "La poesía infantil." Introducción a la literatura infantil. [Santander]: U de Santander, 1985.107-57.
Day 18: Cervera, Chapter 6 ("Teatro y dramatización"). López Tamés, R. "El teatro infantil." Introducción a la literatura infantil. [Santander]: U de Santander, 1985. 159-205. Tejerina, Isabel. "Teatro y literatura infantil." CLIJ 89 (Dic. 1996): 18-29.
Day 19: Cervera, Juan. Cómo practicar la dramatización con niños de 4 a 14 años. Madrid: Cincel, 1981. Tejerina, Isabel. Dramatización y teatro infantil: Dimensiones psicopedagógicasy expresivas. Madrid: Siglo Veintiuno de España, 1994.
Day 20: Cervera, Chapter 5 ("Cuentos y narrativa"). Wall, Barbara. The Voice ofthe Narrator: The Dilemma of Children 's Fiction. Chapters 1-2. Colomer, Teresa. La formación del lector literario: Narrativa infantil y juvenil actual. Madrid: Fundación Germán Sánchez Ruipérez, 1998. Chapters 6-7. Colomer, Teresa. "Las voces que narran la historia." CLIJ 111 (Dic. 1998): 18-27.
Day 21: Selections from "Corrientes de la fantasía." Corrientes actuales de la narrativa infantil y juvenil española en lengua castellana. Madrid: Asociación Española de Amigos del Libro Infantil y Juvenil, 1990.
Day 23: Selections from "Corrientes del realismo." Corrientes actuales de la narrativa infantil y juvenil española en lengua castellana. Madrid: Asociación Española de Amigos del Libro Infantil y Juvenil, 1990.
Day 26: Rosell, Joel Franz. "La narrativa detectivesca." CL/J 112 (Enero 1999): 7-16.
Day 27: Femández López, Marisa. "Control ideológico en la novela histórica para jóvenes en España." Amigos del Libro 37 (Julio-Sep. 1997): 7-14. Gilabert Juan, Jesús. "Modelos estructurales en la novela histórica." CLIJ 113 (Feb. 1999): 7-17.
Day 29: Cervera, Chapters 8 ("Juego y literatura infantil"), 13 ("En el marco de la pedagogía"). Nodelman, Chapter 14 ("Teaching Children's Literature"). Selections from Tucker, Nicholas. El niño y el libro: exploración psicológica y literaria. Trans. María Martínez Peñaloza. México: Fondo de Cultura Económica, 1985.
Day 30: Selections from El niño, la literatura y la cultura de la imagen. Cerrillo, Pedro C., y Jaime García Padrino, coords. Universidad de Castilla-La Mancha, 1995. López Tamés, R. "Los medios de comunicación social y la literatura infantil." Introducción a la literatura infantil. [Santander]: U de Santander, 1985.209-70. Consult section "La práctica" in issues of CLIJ ( Cuadernos de Literatura Infantil y Juvenil).
Projected schedule of homework due dates and tests
In conjunction with specific assignments on the different genres, students will read primary texts oftheir choosing, from among the books in our library collection placed in Reserves in D. H. Hil1 library .In addition to these readings and the secondary materiallisted above, students will be responsible for:
~: Topic and approach will be decided by the student in consultation with the
instructor. For teachers, this project should involve directly or indirectly a way of
engaging children with a particular work or works of literature and should include an
explanation of how the primary texts or their adaptations are related to the developmental levels of the children for whom the texts are intended.
Explanation of how grades are determined and relative value of the various evaluation components
Class Participation 25% Storytelling 5% Written Project 25% Midterm Exam 15% Final Exam 30%
97-100 A+ 87-89 B+ 77-79 C+ 67-69 D+ 93-96 A 83-86 B 73- 76 C 63-66 D
90-92 A- 80-82 B- 70-72 C- 60-62 D-
Policies on incomplete grades and late assignments
Late assignments will not be accepted except in the case of an excused absence or under extraordinary circumstances beyond the control of the student. F or information on Incompletes, please see www .ncsu.edulDrovost/academic Dolicies/ grading/reg.htm.
Policies on absences (excused and un-excused) and scheduling makeup work
Students are expected to attend all classes. Absences for any reason affect the participation grade. Written make-up work after an excused absence should be submitted within one week of returning to class. Students are responsible for scheduling make-up exams with the instructor. For further information see httl2:/ /www .ncsu.edulDrovost/academicl2olicies/attend/reg.htm.
Academic Integrity statement
Academic integrity is expected of a1l students, as it is of the instructor. We will abide by the code of conduct established by the University. See codeof.htm.
Students with disabilities: Reasonable accommodations will be made for students with verifiable disabilities. In order to take advantage of available accommodations, students must register with Disability Services for Students at 1900 Student Hea1th Center, Campus Box 7509,515-7653. See http:/ /www .ncsu.edu/provost/offices/affirm-action/dss/