Mirror by Jeannie Baker. Published by Walker Books.
This is a wordless picture book that will challenge and delight any age group, however, it has been suggested as a text for older students to explore this year. The book has two parts designed to be read together - one from the left and the other from the right. Each part tells a story of a family - one from inner city Sydney and the other from a remote village in Morocco. The worlds are different but the same.
© 2010 Jeannie Baker
From MIRROR by Jeannie Baker
Reproduced by permission of Walker Books Australia on behalf of Walker Books Ltd.
Activity ideas
The story, Mirror, works on many levels and the suggested activities will be appealing for a wide age group. Guide your students to think about this book through the activities suggested below:
- To get started, older students may wish to listen to an interview with Jeannie Baker on ABC Life Matters
- Secondary students may like to research and discuss the book from a range of perspectives. Mirror is set in the Valley of the Roses in Morocco and the city suburbs of Sydney. Help students create their own journeys between two places, perhaps a friend or relative’s place of birth, or someone in the class. Working as individuals, in pairs or small groups, guide your students to explore the cultures of the places in their journeys as well as those in the book.
- Some students may enjoy thinking about where their ancestors are from and write about their lives, the languages they spoke, their religion or beliefs, the foods they ate, the clothes they wore and their interests. Create scripts and have your students create their own digital stories.
- Suggest your students use the link on the website to write to Jeannie Baker and discuss her book. Visit her website to find out more.
- Others may want to explore creative ways to present their findings. Jeannie Baker creates her artworks from natural and artificial materials. Each image is created as a collage that was photographed for the book. Her artwork, which celebrates the unique qualities of the landscapes, is sure to be an inspiration for your students. The notes on the website above provide simple directions for creating collages.
Teacher notes are available on the Walker Books website.
The activities on the Walker website were coordinated by Jeannie Baker and the Western Sydney Young People’s Literature Project. Go to the website for a full list of contributors.
More about the author and illustrator, Jeannie Baker
Jeannie Baker creates collages to illustrate her books. A book can take her up to three years. She has created 13 picture books using this technique that communicates layers of meaning ‘the most obvious of which young children can understand and the more subtle, older readers’. Short films have been produced by Screen Australia of The Story of Rosy Dock and Where the Forest Meets the Sea. Since the release of Mirror, there has been a travelling exhibition of the artwork. Dates and places can be found on her website as well as interviews and articles related to some of her books.