This beloved tale of a young boy and his Christmas Eve adventure is one that I cherish and since the holidays are well on their way I decided to my make The Polar Express the subject of this blog entry.
Every year, my seventeen year old son tries to convince me (or threatens to) tell his younger sister that Santa Claus does not exist. My daughter is ten years old and to the disbelief of her brother (and some of her peers), she still believes in Santa Claus and because of her, I believe in him too.
The Polar Express written and illustrated by Chris Van Allsburg is on the list as one of my all-time favorite picture books. I have read it many times in my life and each time is just as magical as the last. The pictures are like vivid live-action photographs that give me the feeling that I am on that train with all of those excited children, on the way to see Santa. Van Allsburgs' use of light and shadow along and deep, rich earth tones gives lots of texture and depth to the setting. It is amazing to me that Van Allsburg has the ability to make the main character in the book just as special as the famous Santa Claus, even though his name is not revealed. In a way, this gives the reader the freedom to put themselves in the 'pajamas' of that special little boy and the other children on the train.
I believe the true message of this story is that the beautiful thing about childhood is the innocence and belief in the things that bring true joy in a child's life. As we get older, our logical minds take over which leads us to only believe in things that we can see and touch. I believe that this process slowly but surely kills our imagination and love for anything magical.
I hope that this Christmas my daughter will still be able to hear that silver bell that Santa gave her along with this wonderful book many years ago. It will be a sad day when she can't hear it anymore. Hopefully, that doesn't happen any time soon.
Reflective Reading
- Have you ever been or traveled on a train?
- What was it like? Where did you go?
- What was your favorite part about the journey?
- If you could go to the North Pole what would you want to see first?
- If Santa picked you to receive the first present of Christmas, what would you ask for?
Active Reading
- Using construction paper, scissors and crayons have each child create a train car (a cut out stencil would be great and cut down on time). Have each child draw a picture of themselves looking out the window of their train car. Hang the cars front to back on a bulletin board specifically assigned for holiday recognition. The teachers car could be the engine with he/she drawn as the conductor. This would make a lovely display for the holidays!
- Have the children write their own story about their adventure on a train. Let them know that it doesn't have to be about going to visit Santa in the North Pole. Their train could go anywhere they want like outer space or travel back in time. Give the children the freedom to write their story based on whatever holiday is special to their family's traditions then if they like, have them share the stories with the class. This will give the children to get to know each other better.
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