The Desert Is Theirs

This is a beautifully illustrated book about the desert, its creatures and its people. It is about the desert's creation according to the Papago people. It is a very good depiction of traditional Native American legends and how they recount their histories. It is a great way to introduce other cultures and their story telling to young readers. This may be especially good as an introduction to Native Americans in an elementary school classroom.

The Desert is Theirs is a wonderful informational book that holds a Caldecott Honor award. This is a book about the desert and the people (Papago Indians), animals and insects that occupy and “share” the land. In a very unique and pleasant manner, the author address the many aspects of desert living from what the desert looks like and how it feels (temperature), to what can be found in the desert (plants, animals etc.). The author has done a wonderful job of describing desert life and living through her use of word choice and organization of the text.

Being a person that grew up in the south west, I can relate to this book and desert living. I am familiar with the scenes/illustrations and actually feel as though I have visited the show more setting of this book. The author of this story writes beautifully and in a manner that will draw the reader in.

As classroom extension ideas, I would use this book in teaching a unit about deserts and also as a reference for a multicultural study on Indian tribes. After reading the story, I would have the students create a graphic organizer (topic or story map) about the desert. I would have the key element labeled deserts, and then have them chart and organize the information we learned from the story. Information that could be included on the chart would be people, plants, animals, insects, ceremonies, skills of the people, traditions etc. As a part of the multicultural study, I would have students find and bring in books about other Indian tribes and where they live and what life is like for them. It would be fun to compare/contrast different lifestyles and locations of various tribes. show less

She writes so powerfully about a subject that is often neglected, the southwestern desert and its inhabitants. The illustrations are certainly different than what people would expect today, but they're beautiful. I mean, after all, they did receive Caldecott Honors.

This is a long poem about the symbiotic and respectful relationship between native desert dwellers and their harsh environment. Finely drawn ink illustrations washed in hot tones match up well.

Another sparse and beautiful book about the desert and the creatures who live there.

This is a great book for teaching about other cultures, and also it is a good idea to point out how to book is structured.

Summary:
This book talks about the clase relationship of people, animals, and the land.How they respect the land that they each love and depend on.It also talks about how they share the land and live together in harmony with each other in the desert.

Personal Reaction:
I can relate to this book as I look out my back window or sit on my back porch and see the deer and rabbits crossing my back yard to their own home on the land we share.

Extensions:
Nature walk
Plant a tree