Thursday, February 09, 2006
Celebrate Clifford’s Birthday on February 15th…
Clifford's huge heart makes him a great role model for building young children's social skills and teaching them about the importance of responsibility, honesty, and other good choices. In addition, Clifford's popularity makes him the perfect teacher's helper for early childhood educators.
Created by Norman Bridwell in 1962. There are over 44 million copies of Clifford books in print and many of his stories are translated into other languages.
Bridwell sums up Clifford's characteristics matter-of-factly: “He's red and he's warm. Clifford does what you'd like to do but can't. Because Clifford is so big and also because he's a dog, he's able to do the most unbelievable and imaginative things.” But not too unbelievable or imaginative. You won't see Clifford traveling in outer space, for example. Bridwell is firm about his decision that Clifford won't do anything that a real dog wouldn't do.
Although Clifford books are based on rather ordinary events, such as camping, going to the seashore, or the circus, when the Big Red Dog comes on the scene, things start to happen! “Clifford always tries to do the right thing,” Bridwell explains, “but he does make mistakes.” Bridwell gets the ideas for Clifford's behavior from other dogs — dogs in movies, dogs in stories, and, of course, dogs he's watched over the years, including his own. After Bridwell decides what will happen in the story, he sketches it out. Next, he writes the text — first just letting the story flow and later revising it. From start to finish, the process usually takes about three months. Check out Clifford's web site to learn more about the big red dog.
Clifford’s Website Clifford’s Interactive Storybooks Clifford Teacher Guide Clifford Parents Guide
Clifford's huge heart makes him a great role model for building young children's social skills and teaching them about the importance of responsibility, honesty, and other good choices. In addition, Clifford's popularity makes him the perfect teacher's helper for early childhood educators.
Created by Norman Bridwell in 1962. There are over 44 million copies of Clifford books in print and many of his stories are translated into other languages.
Bridwell sums up Clifford's characteristics matter-of-factly: “He's red and he's warm. Clifford does what you'd like to do but can't. Because Clifford is so big and also because he's a dog, he's able to do the most unbelievable and imaginative things.” But not too unbelievable or imaginative. You won't see Clifford traveling in outer space, for example. Bridwell is firm about his decision that Clifford won't do anything that a real dog wouldn't do.
Although Clifford books are based on rather ordinary events, such as camping, going to the seashore, or the circus, when the Big Red Dog comes on the scene, things start to happen! “Clifford always tries to do the right thing,” Bridwell explains, “but he does make mistakes.” Bridwell gets the ideas for Clifford's behavior from other dogs — dogs in movies, dogs in stories, and, of course, dogs he's watched over the years, including his own. After Bridwell decides what will happen in the story, he sketches it out. Next, he writes the text — first just letting the story flow and later revising it. From start to finish, the process usually takes about three months. Check out Clifford's web site to learn more about the big red dog.
Some more websites resources on Clifford...
Kids love reading about Clifford's adventures. Build on that natural enjoyment with these teaching plans for specific Clifford books. And Happy Birthday to the Big Red Dog!
// posted by Tammy Wachter @ 7:26 PM 
