Not a Box by Antoinette Portis

Reviewed by Lori
Not a Box


Title: Not a Box

Author: Antoinette Portis

Perma-Bound Catalogue #: 13547

Description: To an imaginative bunny, a box is not always just a box.





Curriculum Links: 

  • Art - Lines
  • Character Education - Integrity
  • Drama
  • Reading - Transforming
  • Science - Materials
  • Social Studies - Developing a Sense of Self
  • Writing - Persuasive

Notes: 

Design: This is a lovely little book that looks just like a box!  The cover looks like kraft or box  paper.  The weight is listed on the front and the back has a couple of arrows and a notice stating "This Side Up" just like on a box.  The end papers look and feel like kraft paper and are a heavier gauge.  The red printing on the cover is the main colour used within the book making the design very sleek and simple.  The dedication is cute - "To children everywhere sitting in cardboard boxes."  Sweet!

Content and Illustrations: I loved how much is actually going on in this very simple story.  A little bunny finds a box and while being questioned - what are you doing with that box? - he repeatedly tells the audience that it's "not a box".  I love how, before the story begins, you see the bunny looking over his shoulder to see the box sitting on the side of the page, he then drags the box into the book and on the dedication page pushes the box farther into the book until on the first page he is sitting in the box.  The reader then becomes the questioner - "Why are you sitting in a box?"  The next page reveals the bunny's imagination - "It's not a box." (It's a race car).  The bunny's imagination is revealed in the red outlines around the bunny and box.  The pages alternate between the call and response of the questioner and the bunny.  The questioner sees only a bunny and box, the bunny sees so much more.  (As an aside, the bunny is actually neither male nor female).  This book has a lovely humorous and interactive quality to it.  It makes a wonderful read aloud and is a tribute to any child that loves playing with empty boxes!

Recommended Audience: Kindergarten to Grade 2
  • Excellent Read Aloud
  • Great title about using your imagination 
  • Good title to talk about reusing materials

Inquiries and Activities: 
  • Who do you think is asking the questions in this book?
  • Why does the bunny always say "it's not a box" instead of saying what he's imagining it to be?
  • Bring in a variety of boxes for the kids to play with.  What do they imagine their box to be.
  • Create a colouring page with a picture of bunny and his box.  Have the students use one colour to create a picture of what bunny is imagining, just like in the book.
  • Bring in some kraft paper and have students make their own boxes. 
  • What other materials might boxes be made of? 
  • What kind of things might be inside a box? 
  • Measure the volume of a box.  Use grid blocks to measure the length, width and height.
  • Use a box and your imagination.  Only using your body and actions can other people guess what you and your box are doing?

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