Caldecott & Newbery Awards

Caldecott Awards are given to some of the most prestigious picture books in the United States. The Caldacott Medal was named in honor of an English illustrator, Randolph Caldecott. Books are judged by committees who choose what they consider to be the best books published each year. The medal was designed in 1937 and has the winners name and date engraved on the back.
The following is the criteria for a Caldecott Award as stated by Wikipidia ©:
Criteria for the award
• The book must be published in English in the United States during the preceding year.
• The illustrations must be original work.
• The artist must be a citizen or resident of the United States.
• The book must be considered for the artistic technique employed; pictorial interpretation of story; appropriateness of style of illustration to the story; delineation of plot, theme, characters, setting mood or information through the pictures; and recognition of a child audience
• The book must display respect for children's understandings, abilities, and appreciations.
• The book must be a self-contained entity, not dependent on other media for its enjoyment.


The Newbery Medal has been given since 1922. The Newberry Honor award has been handed out to books that have received runner up since 1971.
The following is the criteria for a Newbery Award as stated by Wikipidia ©:
Criteria for award• The book must be published in English in the United States the previous year.
• The author must be a citizen or resident of the United States.
• The book must be considered for its theme, presentation (clarity, accuracy and organization), plot, characters, setting, and style.
• The book must relate to a child audience.
• The book must contribute to literature.
• The book must stand alone and not as a part of a multimedia presentation.

While both the Caldecott and Newbery Award Criteria have a lot in common one main difference would be that the Caldecott Award focuses on picture books. Artistic technique is an important part of the judgment of books nominated for the Caldecott award while Newberry books need not have pictures. Personally, I do not believe that either award is more prestigious than the other. It is especially impressive when you find an author who is also gifted with the ability to illustrate his/her own books.

Stargirl by Jerry Spinelli

Stargirl, written by Jerry Spinelli is a Newberry Honor Book about a new tenth grader at high school named Stargirl Caraway. Everyone stares at Stargirl because she is dressed quite differently than the rest of the students and she sits at a table alone at lunch and does not even seem to notice that everyone is staring at her. She is very unique and lives in the moment not thinking about what others will say or think of her, which is particularly unusual for a high school student. Stargirl is friendly to everyone and people begin to like her until she begins cheering for the other team at a ball game. The school then begins to have a continuous losing streak in which they blame her for. Leo Borlock is fascinated with Stargirl and he continues to like her even though the rest of the school has begun to shun her. Leo soon finds that he will have to choose between her and his other friends. He tries to change her only to find that he is not sure that he really wants her to be like everyone else. Stargirl is a very colorful character and her actions will surprise you throughout the book!

Bud, Not Buddy by Christopher Paul Curtis

Bud, Not Buddy by Christopher Paul Curtis is a Corretta Scott King Award Winner. Curtis is also the author of The Watson's Go to Birmingham-1963 which also won him many awards. The author bases the book on a young orphan named Bud during the Great Depression. Bud's mother passed away when he was six years old and he is moved from foster home to foster home with no luck in finding anyone who really cares for him. Bud packs a suitcase with clues that he thinks will lead him to his father. He finally reaches the man that he believes to be his father only to find out how mean and scary the older man is. Bud soon discovers, along with the man he thinks to be his father, that he has stumbled upon his grandfather who did not even know that his mother had passed away (she had ran away from home as a teenager). Bud knows that after his grandfather has some time to heal that he will have a home with people who love him. This book is difficult to put down and sure to bring joy to the reader!

So You Want to Be President? by Judith St. George

So You Want to Be President by Judith St. George is a Caldecott Medal Book. This book is really neat to read to younger children, especially around election time. I personally like it because it packs in so much history about many of the presidents. It also has funny and fun facts about some of our past presidents! At the end of the book it tells some facts about each president (as a reference). This particular version needs to be updated to include the current president; it is a revised version so this makes me think that the author will update the book in the future (if she hasn't already).

Judith St. George is the author of more than forty books, ranging from mysteries to histories. Her children's books have earned her several awards.

If your child enjoyed this book here are a few other books that are written by George that they may also enjoy; So You Want to Be an Inventor and The Ghost, The White House, and Me.

OLIVIA by Ian Falconer

Olivia is a very cute book written by Ian Falconer. This is the author's first children's book. Falconer is an illustrator who lives in New York City. This book does not have an overall theme or moral but is more of a snapshot into the life of the piglet Olivia. She lives with her mother, father, brother, dog, and cat. She is a strong willed "little girl (uhm...or shall I say piglet?)" with a vibrant personality. This Caldecott Medal Winner is sure to be a success with your little girl!

If you like the first book written by Ian Falconer there are more in this series based on none other than....OLIVIA!

Hoot by Carl Hiaasen

Hoot is a Newberry Award Winner and a great book to read with older elementary students. I read this book with my sixth grade reading students. The students really enjoyed the book. Pre-teen students love to debate and share their opinions and this book opens itself to those opportunities. It also loans itself to discussing some environmental issues (which can tie into science).

A young boy named Roy moves from Montana to a new town with his mom and dad. He is not very happy about the situation because he is being picked on during the bus ride to school by a bully named Dana. While Dana has Roy's face pushed up against the window Roy sees a young boy running down the block with no shoes on. Roy's curiosity runs wild and he makes it his goal to find out about the boy and why he has never seen him at school. Roy soon meets a very strong willed young lady named Beatrice. Beatrice begins to slowly unravel the mystery behind the boy that Roy was so curious about. Roy finds himself getting into a lot of trouble by trying to help the shoeless boy. Much of the drama that unfolds throughout the book has to do with a new Pancake House that is being built in an area where owls are burrowing.

If you enjoy this book you may also enjoy Flush, another book written by Carl Hiaasen.

There Was An Old Lady Who Swallowed a Fly by Simms Taback

Simms Taback, the author, lives in the Catskill Mountains in New York State. There was An Old Lady Who Swallowed a Fly is a nursery rhyme that Taback turned into a brightly illustrated children's book. This book went on to become a Caldecott Honor book.

One reason that this book is so neat to read with young children is because of the repetitiveness and sequence that it offers. Each time the old lady swallows something it is so that it can catch the previous thing that she has swallowed. It is also a neat way for younger children to look at some basics of the food chain, so not only can this book be used for english to demonstrate repetition, but it can also be used in science!

Here are a few other books by Simms Taback that you and your child might enjoy reading together:
City Animals andJoseph Had a Little Overcoat

Click, Clack, Moo Cows That Type by Doreen Cronin

Click, Clack, Moo Cows That Type is a Caldecott Honor Book that is written by Doreen Cronin and illustrated by Betsy Lewin. This book is the authors first picture book. She later wrote Duck for President which is also a book that I enjoy reading to young students (especially around election time).

The book begins telling the reader about Farmer Browns problem. His cows like to type and all day long he hears "Click, clack, moo." The farm animals begin typing requests of Farmer Brown and leaving them on the barn door. One request is for electric blankets because the animals type that the barn is very cold at night. They also leave notes telling him that they are closed for the day (no milk, no eggs)! Farmer brown wises up to their tricks and the story ends with a funny note from the ducks.

If you enjoy this story the Caldecott Honor Winner also has a few other children's stories that you may want to check out such as:
Giggle, Giggle, Quack; Wiggle; A Busy Day at the Farm; and Stretch, just to name a few.