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A brief summary: This story follows a young school girl, Madeline. She almost drowns in a local river, but a dog, Genevieve, saves her life and becomes her new pet. Her and the other school girls love the dog, until one day adults from the annual inspection take Genevieve away. The teacher, Miss Clavel, finds her outside and returns her home to Madeline. Now, the other twelve school girls want a dog like Madeline, and they fight over who gets to take care of her. Miss Clavel threatens to get rid of Genevieve for good, but Genevieve ends up having puppies, so each girl now has their own dog.

Text Analysis: The main character in Madeline's Rescue is a seven year old girl who lives in Paris, France. She seems to not have contact with her parents or caregivers, as she lives at a Catholic boarding school with twelve other girls and Miss Clavel, her teacher and guardian. This book suggests that they live in the middle or upper class, based on the architecture and clothing in the illustrations and the fact that Madeline attends a private school. In addition, all of the characters are white. Madeline's living situation implies that she is an orphan, but after further research, the book never intended for Madeline to be an orphan. Instead, it seems that the expectations of children in the fifties was to receive quality education at private schools. The adults (trustees from the annual inspection) hold the power in the story, as they were strict about dogs in the school. Miss Clavel seems to be more lenient with the girls, but they are still expected to follow rules and be respectful.

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A brief summary: Jim's dog, named "Muffins", gets hit by a car and dies. He does not show up to school for a few days, so his class writes him a note and leaves it at his house. When Jim returns to school, he is upset and does not participate in class. When his classmates try to give him advice, he shuts them down and becomes angry. After days of being upset, his friend, Paul, invites him to get pizza. The pizza reminds him of Muffins, and after a few tears, Jim finally feels better.

Text Analysis: In this story, all of the students and teachers are white, except one black student and one asian student. After analyzing the book further, the back of the book states that it includes a "multi-ethnic classroom". Based on the 1984 publication date, it seems that the author was attempting to promote classroom diversity by adding two non-white characters. I believe the author intended for the main character, Jim, and the other students to represent both a child experiencing loss and children reacting to others experiencing loss. Jim feels upset and angry throughout the story, and the other children attempt to make him feel better is various ways. The relationship between the teachers and students is equivalent. The teachers are not the "boss", but rather understand their students' feelings and interests and take them into consideration.

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A brief summary: A young boy visits his Grandmother (Mammaw) every Saturday. He rides his bike through his small town, passing neighbors and his favorite spots along the way. When he arrives at Mammaw's, they eat breakfast together, mow the lawn, garden, eat lunch, and make their favorite food: teacakes. After their day, the boy rides his bike home and anticipates the next Saturday.

Text Analysis: The main character of the story (name unknown) is a young boy who seems to be in elementary school. He rides his bike alone throughout town to get to his grandmother's house, which suggests that he experiences freedom. All of the characters in this story are white, and based on the illustrations (town, clothing, cars) it implies that he lives in the upper middle class. The boy seems to not have a father, as he only interacts with his mother and grandmother. The family structure in this story focuses on the boy and the grandmother's relationship. He takes on a primary role, as he helps his grandmother with house and yard work, such as mowing the lawn and cleaning. Based on the publication date of 2004, this suggests that children were expected to help their guardians with household duties during that time. The boy does not interact with other children and spends every Saturday with his grandmother. The grandmother has the wisdom in this story, and shares that widom with the young boy.

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A brief summary: Ada is three years old and has never spoken. When she finally speaks, she asks questions such as Why? What? How? and When? Her curiosity leads her to developing traits of a scientist. She performs experiments, comes up with hypotheses, and tries to figure out where a terrible "stink" is coming from. After getting in trouble with her parents and going to the thinking chair, she continually comes up with questions about the stink. Her family then supports her scientific interests and realize what a great scientist she is. The story ends with a question about the stink: "Will they figure it out, who knows?"

Text Analysis: The main character, Ada, is a young girl who wants to become a scientist. She lives with her brother, mother, and father, and her family is black. As she gets older, she is a part of a very diverse classroom, including black students, white students, asian students, etc. The story does not mention the characters' races, they simply are. Because of the 2016 publication date, classrooms in today's society are culturally diverse. The relationship between Ada and her parents is loving and supportive. Ada takes on the primary role in the story, as her family supports her interests and encourages her to pursue them. Her parents merely act as a guide. In this text, childhood is all about exploration. The children in this text are encouraged to explore their interests and pursue their dreams. I believe the author created Ada Twist to inspire children to pursue their passions, no matter what race or gender they are. Overall, this story promotes women and african-americans in STEM without ever mentioning it.

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Children's picture books and roles in society have changed significantly over these last four decades. Common themes I noticed in these four stories were children responsibility and race. Childhood looks different throughout these stories based on their independence. In 1956's Madeline's Rescue, Madeline is not independent, but rather under the authority of her teacher and other adults with high expectations of them. In 1984's Jim's Dog Muffins, the children in the story are still expected to follow rules of adults, but the teachers work together with them. In 2004's Saturdays and Teacakes, the young boy is much more independent than the characters in the last two books. He has responsibility, but has freedoms, such as riding his bike home alone. In 2016's Ada Twist Scientist, Ada is independent and free to explore her passions. Her parents support her dreams and act as a guide, but overall Ada takes control. These picture books showcase diversity and dominant races throughout the decades. In Madeline's Rescue and Saturdays and Teacakes, all of the characters are white. In Jim's Dog Muffins, both teachers are white and most of the students are white except two. Out of an entire class of students, the author only included two diverse students. This shows that the author was attempting to be more diverse, but instead it made those students seem like outcasts. In Ada Twist Scientist, her family is black and the students in the story come from all different races and cultures. This book supports the idea that all are welcome and accepted. From the 1950s to now, it is interesting to see the change in childhood values. Childhood back then was about work and obedience. Now, childhood is about fun, exploration, and taking charge. These picture books definitely demonstrate these values.