Make Way For Ducklings by Robert McCloskey

Image retrieved from www.amazon.com.

1. BIBLIOGRAPHY

McCloskey, Robert. Make Way For Ducklings. New York: The Viking Press, 1941. ISBN 0670451495

2. PLOT SUMMARY

In this story, Mr. and Mrs. Mallard are looking for a place for Mrs. Mallard to lay her eggs. Together, they try several different locations in Boston, but none of them are suitable for babies. They finally settle in on the Charles River and build a nest there. Mrs. Mallard lays eight eggs, and when the ducklings are born they are named Jack, Kack, Lack, Mack, Nack, Ouack, Pack, and Quack. Shortly after they are born, Mr. Mallard decides to take a trip and they all plan to meet in one week at the public garden. After a week of teaching her children, Mrs. Mallard and her ducklings walk through the streets of Boston to the public garden and make quite a scene doing so. When they reach the pond in the garden, Mr. Mallard is waiting for them and they make a home there.

3. CRITICAL ANALYSIS

Mr. and Mrs. Mallard are an unlikely couple for 1941, when Make Way for Ducklings was published. Mrs. Mallard takes the lead in their decision of where to build their home, and Mr. Mallard follows her lead. Every time he saw a nice place to live, she said it was no good, and so they moved on. Mrs. Mallard is a strong-willed, confident character. She shows her confidence as a mother when she assures Mr. Mallard that she knows all about bringing up children.

This story livens up when Mrs. Mallard walks her children through the streets of Boston to meet Mr. Mallard in the public park. The reader may become anxious that Mrs. Mallard or one of her ducklings will be hurt by one of the cars or bikes, but Mrs. Mallard’s confidence calms any anxiety quickly. She is in control and marches her ducklings right through town while everyone else looks on in admiration and makes way for them. When they arrive at the public park, Mr. Mallard is waiting for them. They end up making a home in the very same park that Mrs. Mallard found unsuitable earlier in the story when she was almost hit by a bicycle there.

Robert McCloskey illustrates this book using brown-toned drawings. He uses different shades of brown to create simple drawings. It is as if he is taking us back to the far simpler days and slower times of Boston in the 1940s. The drawings are soft and calm and transport the reader to a different time.

4. REVIEW EXCERPT(S)

Caldecott Medal 1942

Top 100 Picture Books #6 by SCHOOL LIBRARY JOURNAL

From SCHOOL LIBRARY JOURNAL - “McCloskey’s attention to detail and marvelous storytelling are a magical combination.” - Heather Christensen

From The New York Times - “One of the merriest picture books ever.”

5. CONNECTIONS

Gather other Caldecott Medal books to read such as:

·       Klassen, John. This Is Not My Hat. ISBN 0763655996

·       Floca, Bryan. Locomotive. ISBN 1416994157

Gather other Robert McCloskey books to read such as:

·       Blueberries for Sal. ISBN 0670175919

·       Lentil. ISBN 0140502874

·       Homer Price. ISBN 0142404152

Have students discuss what it would be like to walk through the streets of Boston in a single file line, with their teacher as the leader, while all the traffic stops for them and people stop and stare. Write a story about this together in groups or as a class.

Robert McCloskey used shades of brown for his drawings in this book. Have students create artwork using only brown crayons or colored pencils to mimic his style.