Our Little Kitchen by Jillian Tamaki teaches young readers how community action and togetherness promote order, joy and vibrancy. The story follows a group that gets together every Wednesday to cook for the neighbourhood. They cook with ingredients they have grown from seed, and with food that has been donated. With the hodgepodge of ingredients, the team whips together a meal.
Tamaki’s illustrations show the flow of a busy but cohesive kitchen. The vibrant colours and happy faces highlight the joy and companionship this little kitchen brings the characters. Once the meal is served, the guests enjoy their dinner while sharing conversation and laughter. Readers can see the happiness in their faces while the questions “Is your body warm?” and “Is your belly full?” are being asked. The last page shows our tired but happy volunteers sipping tea and having their own dinner.
Our Little Kitchen looks and reads like a graphic novel with big, bold illustrations. The story itself is linear but uses lots of onomatopoeias. The book would be perfect for a read aloud exercise in a Grade 4 classroom. I would read the story without saying any of the “sound words” or showing the illustrations first, then I would read it a second time, showing all the pictures and including all the sound words. The class could then compare the readings and discuss how the sound words and related illustrations elevate the story.
The book could also be used as the basis for a lesson about onomatopoeias, with learners creating their own story using as many sound words as they can think of. To extend the learning, the students could illustrate the covers of their books and make sure the art conveys the sounds in their work. This follows the Language curriculum expectations elements of style (C1.5) and visual elements of texts (C1.4).
You could also use the story to help foster discussions about community action and how we can help take care of each other, healthy food, food insecurity or homelessness, or to facilitate the creation of a breakfast program or a cooking club.
The beauty of this story is its versatility. Our Little Kitchen is a joyous explosion of literacy knowledge and feel-good reading.
Alexandra Hristoff is a member of the Greater Essex County Occasional Teacher Loca