What makes a children's book so popular that by 2012, the 43th anniversary of its publication, more than 33 million

copies had been sold and it had been translated into more than 50 languages? In the case of Eric Carle's The Very Hungry Caterpillar, it's the combination of wonderful illustrations, an entertaining story, and a unique book design. Carle's illustrations are created with collage techniques. He uses hand-painted papers, which he cuts, layers, and shapes to create his colorful artwork. The pages of the book vary in size, which is part of the fun. The Very Hungry Caterpillar: The Story

The story of The Very Hungry Caterpillar is a simple one that emphasizes numbers and days of the week. The caterpillar is not only very hungry, but he also has unusual tastes in food, ones that delight children. After popping out of an egg on Sunday, the very hungry caterpillar eats holes through the book's pages as he eats his way through a variety of foods, beginning with one apple on Monday and two pears on Tuesday and ending with five oranges on Friday and 10 different foods on Saturday (chocolate cake, ice cream, a pickle, Swiss cheese, salami, a lollipop, cherry pie, sausage, a cupcake, and watermelon). Not surprisingly, the very hungry caterpillar ends up with a stomach ache. Fortunately, a serving of one green leaf helps. The now very fat caterpillar builds a cocoon. After staying in it for two weeks, he nibbles a hole in the cocoon and emerges a beautiful butterfly. For an entertaining explanation of why his caterpillar comes out of a cocoon rather than a chrysalis, see Eric Carle's Web site.

The Very Hungry Caterpillar: The Artwork and Design

Eric Carle's colorful collage ilustrations and the book's design add immensely to the book's appeal. Every page has a hole in it where the caterpillar eats through the food. The pages for the first five days are different sizes, corresponding with the number of pieces of food the caterpillar eats. The page for the day the caterpillar eats one apple is very small, a little bigger for the day it eats two pears, and full size for the day it eats five oranges.

Analysis of Literary Elements 1) Theme: The theme that is shown is metamorphosis. This is worth imparting to children because it is a major process and the children should know what it is. The theme develops naturally throughout the story. 2) Plot Development: This book tells a great story. What makes the story effective is the fact that it is a toy concept book. It makes learning about metamorphosis fun. Children will definitely enjoy seeing all of the foods the caterpillar eats and what he turns into in the end. The action in the book is when the caterpillar eats and when he goes through metamorphosis.

3) Character Development: The character is introduced through narration. The character is convincing, but not exactly credible because a real caterpillar would not eat all of the foods that this one did. The behavior of the character though is consistent with its background. The author shows development by showing the process of going from an egg to a butterfly.

4) Writing Style: The style of the writing is appropriate to the subject. This is because the writing is short and very easy for a younger reader to understand. The style is very straightforward. The author creates a good mood by having the caterpillar constantly be hungry and eat well known foods. 5) Illustrations: The illustrations are excellent and are used to help tell the story of the very hungry caterpillar. The illustrations are large, simple, and colorful. Eric Carle makes sure to leave enough white space so that it is clear what the reader should focus on. For example, each food the caterpillar eats is on its own page. The illustrations are appealing to young children because they are so inviting. The children will easily be able to relate to the story. Children will be able to identify the different foods the caterpillar eats because they are well known foods. The illustrations are also significant. One reason for this is because they illustrate metamorphosis. This is a topic that will be covered in school and this book illustrates the process. It could be used in the classroom to introduce this unit. Another reason the illustrations are significant is because they show progression. Each day the caterpillar eats more and more food. The caterpillar starts by eating something small and by the end the caterpillar is eating something large.

Synopsis This story starts out with an egg. From the egg hatches a caterpillar. The story goes on to follow the progress of a hungry little caterpillar as he eats his way through a varied and very large quantity of food until, full at last, he forms a cocoon around himself and goes to sleep. He then becomes a beautiful butterfly.

Personal Reaction This was one of my favorite books growing up. I can remember that after reading this book in class and discussing metamorphosis, we got baby caterpillars to keep in the classroom. We watched them hatch, grow, and then turn into butterflies. I was chosen to be the person who got to let all of the butterflies go at the end. It was so exciting and from then on my mom and I always got caterpillar eggs and went through the process for a few years. I also liked how to find out what the caterpillar ate by flipping the flaps. That was my favorite part of the whole book. Last, the illustrations were so well done. They were so unique looking and I really enjoyed just looking at the pictures.

Eric Carle is one of my favorite children's authors, because he is so colorful and understands what children need in their literature. His book "The Very Hungry Caterpillar" uses many techniques young children recognize and appreciate in their literature. Repetition, use of animals, factual actions taken by the animals, and the use of stiff pages are all techniques used in this book to create a delightful easy read for young children. For picky eaters, it can also be used as an encouragement to get them to try new foods, just like the very hungry caterpillar did in the story! Its also a great way to talk to older children about balancing healthy foods like fruit, meat, and cheese with sweet treats like cupcakes and pie.

Eric Carle constructs the story of a young caterpillar, freshly hatched from his egg, looking for food. What should he eat? Through each day of the week, the capterpillar finds foods such as pears, apples, and cupcakes, but he is still hungry! The phrase "but he is still hungry" is repeated six times, and this repetition captures a young child's attention. Children like to know what is coming next. They are guaranteed the caterpillar will still be hungry, at least for six pages, in this story. Some children will lose interest after the repetition stops because there is a lulling sense to repetition in children's books. Eric Carle makes good use out of repetition.

There is also a certain amount of factual actions in this book. The egg is hatched on a leaf. Caterpillars, born of eggs, are hatched on leaves. When the caterpillar eats all that food which is not meant for caterpillars, he ends up with an awful tummyache! Finally, the caterpillar finds a food which is truly meant for caterpillars, and he suddenly feels all better. The theme is hope, change, metamorphosis, and survival. Although one can classify and study literature according to genres, not all books fit into one and only one category. Some books fit well in two categories, and some books fit into none! For example, I am never sure whether to shelve my copy of The Very Hungry Caterpillar (Carle) with animal fantasy or counting books.

Literary Genres of Childrens Literature Early Childhood Books ( Chapter 4 ): Books written for children birth through age 6 Conceptpicture books that present numerous examples of a particular concept,

such as the common colors Alphabeta concept book that presents letters of the alphabet Countinga concept book that presents the counting numbers Generalconcept books that present other common concepts such as colors and opposites Pattern bookspredictable books that contain repetitive words, phrases, questions, or structure Wordless books books in which the story is revealed through a sequence of illustrations with noor very fewwords Traditional Literature ( Chapter 5 ): Stories, songs, and rhymes with unknown authorship that were passed down orally through generations Mythstraditional religious stories that provide explanations for natural phenomena, usually containing deities as characters Fablesvery brief traditional stories that teach a lesson about behavior, usually with animal characters Balladstraditional stories that were sung as narrative poems Legendstraditional stories that combine history and myth, based in part on real people or historical events (e.g., Joan of Arc) Tall talesexaggerated stories with gigantic, extravagant, and flamboyant characters (e.g., Paul Bunyan) Fairy tales traditional stories written for

entertainment, usually with magic and fantastical characters Traditional rhymes traditional verses intended for very young children Fiction ( Chapters 6 10 ): Literary works designed to entertain; the content being produced by the imagination of an identifiable author(s) Fantasy fiction story with highly fanciful or supernatural elements that would be impossible in real life Animal fantasy fantasy in which the main characters are anthropomorphic animals that display human characteristics Contemporary realistic fiction fictional story set in modern times with events that could possibly occur Historical fiction realistic story in a real world setting in the historical past with events that are partly historical but largely imaginative Biography and Autobiography ( Chapter 11 ): Nonfiction works describing the life (or part of the life) of a real individual Informational Books ( Chapter 12 ): Trade books with the primary purpose of informing the reader by providing an in-depth explanation of factual material Poetry and Verse ( Chapter 13 ): Verse in which word images are selected and expressed to create strong, often beautiful, impressions

As a teacher, when teaching about literature it is very important to discuss the literary elements. Once a child can pick out the elements that make up the story, it really tests their comprehension skills. The literary elements are the characters, the setting, plot/conflict, theme and conclusion. For a first grade class, a good example of a book you could use is The Very Hungry Caterpillar by Eric Carle. Character- The Caterpillar Setting- Outside... trees Plot/Conflict- The caterpillar is very hungry and trying to find food to eat... Theme- The life cycle of a butterfly Conclusion- The little caterpillar changes into a beautiful butterfly

This a great book to start off with because the kids love it. It is simple and the story line is very familiar with children. Also there are a variety of ways you could teach the literary elements with this story.