Students at C. A. Reinhard learned there is much more to the success of a children’s book than the story. Under the direction of library media specialist Julie Amoroso, students in grades K-2 have been learning about the Caldecott Awards, illustrators who aspire to the award, and the mediums illustrators utilize to create picture books.

The prestigious Caldecott Medal was named in honor of Randolph Caldecott, a famous 19th century English illustrator. The Association for Library Service to Children, a division of the American Library Association, bestows the award annually to an artist of the year’s most distinguished American picture book for children.

During the lesson, the students analyzed the artwork of six 2021 nominees: Beth Ferry’s “Swashby and the Sea” (illustrated by Juana Martinez-Neal), Minh Le’s “Lift” (illustrated by Dan Santat), author and illustrator Matthew Cordell’s “Hello, Neighbor!: The Kind and Caring World of Mister Rogers,” Christian Robinson’s “You Matter” (author and illustrator), Carole Lindstrom’s “We Are Water Protectors” (illustrator Michaela Goade), and Deborah Underwood’s “Outside In” (Illustrator Cindy Derby).

The students placed their votes in a mock election for the book they believe should be the winner and watched the recorded viewing of the American Library Association’s award ceremony, announcing the 2021 winners.