Hello Ocean

Written by Pam M. Ryan

Illustrated by Mark Astrella

Grade Level: 3-5

            When you take a trip to the beach, have you ever took a moment and realized some of the little things about a beach that we normally wouldn’t notice on first glance? Or have you ever tried to use all five of your senses in one place, instead of just one or two? Well in the story, Hello Ocean written by Pam M. Ryan and illustrated by Mark Astrella, a little girl heads to the beach with her family and notices almost every single little detail it, simply using her senses.

            The story line of this book mainly about the five senses; sight, sound, touch, smell and taste but specifically in this book it is about recognizing things that relate to these senses at a day trip to the beach. For example, at first she points out what she see’s, such as bubbly waves that kiss the sand and the ocean in colors such as grey, green and blue. And the story continues in a fashion similar to this one. Once Ryan finishes a section of the story or a sense, she always ends it with the statement I love the way the ocean smells, feels, or looks for example. The author puts the words in a very intriguing fashion, where she placed many descriptive words to put the reader in a place where if they were reading the book, they would feel as if they were there at the beach, experiencing these things for themselves. With the illustrations being a big help as well.

            This book would be a good addition to a library in a classroom for third or maybe even fourth graders since although it mainly focuses on the senses, which a younger age level may be learning, the descriptiveness leads to some bigger words that younger students may not be able to comprehend. Even with this not so easy read, it is an excellent story to read to children since it teaches them to look behind the bigger picture. This story could even be turned into an assignment as to where students would go out and try to notice three things about each sense that they see, touch or feel in a destined location. Overall, the book is very organized to the point where it is not jumping around between the different senses, but strictly moving one step at a time. And even though no one is an expert on the ocean itself, I believe that Ryan’s does a good job in this short but sweet story in describing what she herself sees and feels like when she goes to the ocean. Taking the book and putting a personal spin on it, which could lead to class discussion about how students feel about the ocean or beach.

            Frameworks: RL1.7 Use illustrations and details in a story to describe its characters, settings, or events. Ask students to infer meaning and plot events through illustrations. MA.9. With prompting and support, make connections between a story or poem and one’s own experiences. RL 3.7. Explain how specific aspects of a text’s illustrations contribute to what is conveyed by the words in a story