












































Georgia Journal of Literacy 
2024, Vol. 46(2), pp. 20–37  
https://doi.org/10.56887/galiteracy.139 
ISSN: 2833-7611 

   
Practitioner Article 

   
 

 

CONTACT Dr. William P. Bintz, Professor of Literacy Education; College of Education, Health, and Human Services; 
School  of  Teaching,  Learning,  and  Curriculum;  Kent  State  University,  Kent,  OH; email wbintz@kent.edu. Abbey 
Galeza, Doctoral Candidate, School of Teaching, Learning, and Curriculum; Kent State University, Kent, OH; email 
agaleza@kent.edu. 
 

From Paired Text to Blended Genres: Pairing 
Picturebooks with Poems  
 
William P. Bintz 
Kent State University, Kent, OH  

Abbey Galeza 
Kent State University, Kent, OH 

 
ABSTRACT 

This article introduces the concept of blended genres and describes a rationale for 
using blended genres to teach important topics in the English Language Arts (ELA) 
classroom. It begins with a vignette that sparked curiosity about, and the motivation 
to develop, a variety of blended genres. It describes blended genres as rooted in 
traditional notions of paired text, provides theoretical background on the benefits of 
paired text, and highlights intertextuality as one important benefit, among others. It 
shares examples of blended genres and illustrates samples of instructional 
strategies used with blended genres to support intertextuality and student learning 
on important topics in English Language Arts (ELA). It ends with concluding 
thoughts. 

KEYWORDS 

paired text; 
blended genres; 
picturebooks; 
poetry; ELA 
instruction; 
intertextuality 

 
ecently, one of us (Bill Bintz, the first author) read aloud Mr. Archimede’s Bath (Allen, 
1994) to students enrolled in a graduate class entitled Reading Across the Content Areas. 
Here is a precis: 
Mr. Archimedes likes to take baths with his friends, Kangaroo, Wombat and Goat. 
The problem is that the water in the tub always overflows and makes a mess in the 
bathroom. He suspects the problem is one of his friends. Mr. Archimedes conducts 
an experiment by filling the bathtub with water and measuring the height of the 
water with a yardstick. He orders each of his friends to individually get in and get 
out of the bathtub, watching the behavior of the water. Mr. Archimedes includes 
himself in his experiment and finds the surprising and unexpected solution to the 
problem.  

Bintz read aloud Mr. Archimede’s Bath for three reasons: (a) promote the use of picturebooks for 
teaching content area material across the curriculum, (b) demonstrate the use of picturebooks to 
teach about important science and scientists, and (c) introduce or reintroduce, students to the life, 
times, and discoveries of Archimedes, and how he used the scientific method to solve real 
problems throughout his life. 

After reading, Bintz invited students to share their understandings of the text and write 
reflections on the whole experience. All students responded positively about Mr. Archimede’s 
Bath, especially about using picturebooks to teach content area material across the curriculum. 
One response was particularly interesting.   

R 

mailto:wbintz@kent.edu
mailto:agaleza@kent.edu


Bintz & Galeza 21 
 

   
 

I never liked science very much and was always confused about the scientific 
method. However, I love this picturebook because it makes the scientific method 
understandable. It is also a good introduction to Archimedes. This picturebook 
reminded me of a poem, “Bring Back Archimedes.” It would be great to read the 
book and the poem together to students.   
Bintz shared this response with a colleague (Abbey Galeza, the second author), and the 

response caught her attention. We recognized Mr. Archimede’s Bath and “Bring Back 
Archimedes” (Smith, 2016) was a paired text. At the same time, however, we realized that this 
combination of a picturebook and a poem introduced us to a new way to develop a paired text, one 
that blends two different genres. She and I started to develop blended genres of picturebooks and 
poems based on important topics related to reading and writing, including libraries and librarians; 
letters, words, and wordplay; parts of speech; school; books; and stories. We also created 
instructional strategies that teachers can use with blended genres to help students make intertextual 
connections across texts.  

This article introduces the concept of blended genres and provides a rationale for using this 
curricular resource to teach key topics in the English Language Arts (ELA) classroom. A vignette, 
presented earlier, sparked the curiosity and motivation to explore various blended genres. The 
article defines blended genres, building on traditional ideas of paired texts, and offers a theoretical 
background on their benefits, particularly emphasizing intertextuality. It includes examples of 
blended genres; alongside instructional strategies designed to foster intertextuality and enhance 
student learning. The article concludes with final reflections on the use of blended genres in the 
classroom. 

 
Paired Text  
A blended genre is rooted in the traditional concept of a paired text. Conceptually, a paired text 
consists of two texts that are interrelated in some way, e.g. topic, theme, concept, etc. (Bintz, 2015). 
It is based on the notion that “reading is making connections between the books readers are 
currently reading and their past experiences” (Short et al., 1995, p. 358). Paired texts help readers 
“develop both an expectation for connections and strategies for making the search for connections 
more productive and wide ranging” (Short et al., 1995, p. 537). The next section identifies several 
benefits of paired texts. 
 
Benefits of Paired Text  

There are many benefits to paired text for students and teachers. For students, benefits, among 
others, include: (a) they enable students to learn about one book from the other, and reading and 
sharing understandings of paired text can contribute to learning across all subjects (Neufeld, 2005, 
p. 302), (b) they enable students to share and extend understandings of each text differently than 
if only one text had been read and discussed (Short et al., 1995, p. 537), (c) they help students to 
read one text and in the process build background knowledge for reading a second, related text 
(Soalt, 2005, p. 680), (d) they provide experiences with multiple genres and content areas, (e) they 
demonstrate how different genres provide students with different lenses for interpreting text 
(Murray, 1985, p. 122) and therefore different ways of knowing about texts (Paretti, 1999), (f) they 
highlight different text structures, specialized vocabulary, captions, diagrams, subheadings, maps, 
etc., (g) they increase vocabulary by seeing same words in different contexts, and (h) they increase 
motivation to explore topics students are not initially interested in (Soalt, 2005, p. 681). 



22 Georgia Journal of Literacy 46(2)  
 

   
 

In addition, paired have many benefits for teachers. Perhaps most importantly, paired text 
is a curricular resource that is based on a multiple-text, not a single-text (textbook), mentality. This 
mentality posits that multiple, interrelated texts help students read broadly and deeply, make 
intertextual connections between texts, and learn new information from, about, and through books.   

Paired text is also reflective of and consistent with Common Core State Standards (CCSS, 
2010). For example, while CCSS does not explicitly use the term intertextuality, the CCSS does 
provide a rationale for developing and using paired text in the classroom. One ELA standard states 
that students will “Analyze how two or more texts address similar themes or topics in order to 
build knowledge or to compare the approaches the authors take” (CCSS, 2010, p. 10). 
Operationally, paired text is a curricular resource that helps teachers at all grade levels and all 
content areas to put intertextuality into action and address this CCSS standard in the classroom at 
the same time. 

 
Intertextuality  

The process of intertextuality is one of the most important benefits of paired text. This term was 
first coined in the 1960s by Julia Kristeva (Allen, 2019) and essentially means “to weave together” 
(King-Shaver, 2005, p. 1). Since then, much professional literature continues to focus on the 
importance of intertextuality, commonly referred to as making connections between texts (Harvey 
& Goudvis, 2017).  

Intertextuality refers to the “personal connections students make between the books they 
are currently reading and their past experiences” (Short et al., 1995, p. 358). Instructionally, paired 
text is one way to put intertextuality into action in the classroom. It invites and supports students 
in making of connections across texts. In the process, students develop both an expectation for 
connections and strategies for making the search for connections more productive and wide-
ranging (Short et al., 1995, p. 537). The next section describes different ways to pair text.  

 
Ways to Pair Text 

There are many ways to develop a paired text (Bintz, 2015). One is to pair contradictory texts, two 
texts that tell the same story in contradictory ways. One example of a contradictory paired text is 
Rosa (Giovanni, 2005) and Claudette Colvin Refuses to Move (Wilkins, 2020). Another is to pair 
corresponding texts, two texts that address the same theme. One example of a corresponding paired 
text is The Case for Loving: The Fight for Interracial Marriage (Alko, 2015) and The Hello, 
Goodbye Window (Juster, 2005). Still another way is to pair companion texts, two texts that 
complement each other by addressing the same topic in a content area. One example of a 
companion paired text is Cycling: Lance Armstrong’s Impossible Ride (Sandler, 2006) and Major 
Taylor: Champion Cyclist (Cline-Ransome, 2004). These ways of pairing text are traditional in 
the sense that they consist of two texts from the same or similar genres, e.g. two narrative texts, 
two informational texts, two short stories, etc. 

Recently, however, much research has advanced the idea of the development of text sets 
using expanded, not traditional, formats of texts (Lupo et al., 2020; Tracy et al., 2017). For 
example, in addition to traditional texts like picturebooks, expanded ideas of formats include 
newspapers, cartoons, field guides, websites, tweets, blogs, songs, podcasts, poems, etc. Similarly, 
Cappiello and Dawes (2021) provide examples of linked text sets (NWESD Communications, 
2019; see also Cummins, 2017; Pytash et al., 2014). These text sets consist of non-traditional texts 
like multimodal and multi-genre texts, including, among others, digital texts, YouTube videos, 
news articles, podcasts. These kinds of non-traditional texts offer students different formats to 



Bintz & Galeza 23 
 

   
 

read, different voices to hear, and different perspectives to consider. Here, we share paired texts 
that consist of picturebooks and poetry and refer to these paired texts as blended genres. 

 
Blended Genres  
The concept of blended genres is rooted in traditional notions of paired text. Like paired text, 
blended genres consist of two texts and are used to support the process of intertextuality and 
enhance student learning. Unlike traditional paired text, blended genres consist of two texts from 
two different genres. Here, we share examples of blended genres. Because we are literacy 
educators, we developed these blended genres around several major categories associated with 
literacy. These categories include librarians and libraries; letters, words, wordplay, punctuation; 
parts of speech; school; books; and stories. We see these blended genres as a curricular resource 
that English/Language Arts teachers can use to actively engage students in learning, creating, and 
representing intertextual connections across two different genres.   

We developed these blended genres with several considerations in mind. These 
considerations included highlighting the important role of librarians and libraries; selecting 
popular topics in reading and writing like wordplay, punctuation, parts of speech; highlighting 
high-quality literature in the form of narratives and biographies and poetry for its content, rhyme, 
and rhythm; noting the power and potential to actively engage readers in the reading process and 
enable them to create intertextual connections and support new learning on a specific topic. We 
also created several instructional strategies teachers can use with these and other blended genres.  
 
Blended Genres and Instructional Strategies  

In this section, we share examples of blended genres about certain topics (Librarians and Libraries; 
Letters, Words, Wordplay, and Punctuation; Parts of Speech; Life at School; Books; and Stories)  
along with illustrated samples of instructional strategies (refer to Figures 1–6) used with blended 
genres. 
 

Blended Genres about Librarians and Libraries. The Storyteller’s Candle (González, 
2013) is a narrative, and “Librarian” (Hopkins, 2018) is a poem. Each text focuses on the 
importance of librarians and together represent a blended genre. The Storyteller’s Candle is a dual 
language book (English and Spanish) that tells the story of Pura Belpre, a talented storyteller who 
became the first Puerto Rican librarian in the New York Public Library system. During the time 
of the Depression (1929–1935), many Puerto Rican people left their homeland and moved to New 
York City.   

One morning, on the way to school, three Puerto Rican children passed a library and wanted 
to enter. Mother explained the problem: they do not speak English, and the people inside do not 
speak Spanish. However, that afternoon, a woman named Pura Belpre came and read to their class 
in both English and Spanish. Afterward, she invited all the children to visit the public library; the 
children couldn’t wait to go! Inside, Pura Belpre lit a candle and read stories to the children. 
Afterward, she invited the children to make a wish and blow out the candle. The wish was to 
decorate the reading room to celebrate Five Kings Day, involving the community, all of whom 
heard people speaking English and Spanish at the library.   

“Librarian” is a poem about a man who opened a door and the world to those who stepped 
through it. The man was a librarian. 

Spheres of Intertextual Connections is an instructional strategy that can be used with any 
blended genre. One way to teach this strategy, along with the other strategies illustrated in this 



24 Georgia Journal of Literacy 46(2)  
 

   
 

article, can include a two-stage process: teacher demonstration and student engagement. For 
demonstration, teachers can do the following: (a) organize students in pairs or small groups of 3–
4 to support collaboration and discussion, (b) prepare and distribute a blank copy of the strategy 
to each student, (c) display a selected blended genre to students and introduce each text with a 
picturewalk or book chat, (d) demonstrate the strategy by reading aloud both texts, pausing at 
strategic times to identify and record some intertextual connections between the texts on an 
illustrated class strategy, and (e) as a culminating experience, invite student discussions on the 
paired text, reflections on the intertextual connections, questions about completing the strategy on 
their own. For engagement, teachers can follow the same procedure with a different blended genre 
but this time inviting students to identify, discuss, and record intertextual connections between the 
two texts. 

Here, we used this strategy with The Storyteller’s Candle and “The Librarian” (see Figure 
1). Similar to a Venn Diagram, this strategy illustrates three major intertextual connections: Power 
of Libraries, Potential of Libraries, and Power of Books. A fourth circle illustrates important 
differences between the texts. Table 1 in the appendix illustrates additional blended genres on a 
variety of topics and concepts about libraries and librarians. 
 
Figure 1: Spheres of Intertextual Connections 

The Storyteller's 
Candle & 

"Librarian"

Power of Librarians
Literally, both librarians 
opened a library door and 
invited people inside. 
Metaphorically, both 
librarians opened up new 
worlds for guests. 

Power of Books
Both librarians knew that 
books can change lives. They 
knew that books could lead 
guests anywhere and 
everywhere.

Differences
(1) One librarian is 
anonymous, other is famous 
Pura Belpre. (2) In "Librarian," 
location is unknown. Belpre 
was in NY Public Library. (3) 
Unlike story, "Librarian" did 
not include multicultural 
perspective. (4) Historical 
time different in story and 
poem.

Potential of Libraries
Both librarians saw the 
potential of libaries for guests 
to build community, a place 
where guests of all ages and 
backgrounds can not only 
meet new faces but also bring 
new faces to the library. 



Bintz & Galeza 25 
 

   
 

Blended Genres about Letters, Words, Wordplay, and Punctuation. Intertextual 
Connections Chart is an instructional strategy that can be used with any blended genre. Here, we 
used it with Noah Webster & His Words (Ferris, 2015) and “Dictionary” (Àmọó, 2019). Figure 2 
illustrates four intertextual connections: Main Character, Need for Dictionary, Power of 
Dictionary, Dictionary Today. Short descriptions of how texts address each connection appear 
below. Table 2 after the article illustrates additional blended genre on a variety of topics and 
concepts about letters, words, wordplay, and punctuation. 
 
Figure 2: Intertextual Connections Chart 

 
 Main Character Need for Dictionary Need for Dictionary Dictionary Today 

Text 
 

Noah Webster & 
His Words  

(Ferris, 2015) 

The main character 
is Noah Webster. 
The Webster family 
wanted Noah to be a 
farmer just like his 
father and continue 
the family tradition. 
Noah Webster, 
however, did not 
love farming, but 
loved learning and 
words throughout his 
life.  

At the time of the 
Revolutionary War in 
the United States, 
no such thing as a 
dictionary existed. 
Noah Webster 
created the first 
dictionary, the first of 
many to come. 
Webster forecasted 
that the dictionary 
would be a friend to 
all Americans. 

Noah Webster saw 
power in a 
dictionary. He saw it 
as a tool for people 
to learn, not just 
individual words, but 
also pronunciation 
and spelling of 
words, as well as 
words that have 
similar meanings.  

Noah Webster 
predicted that 
people would value 
a dictionary for 
generations to 
come. People will 
always search for 
the meaning of a 
word, as well as 
different meanings 
for the same word. 
Today, the American 
Dictionary is the 2nd 
most popular book 
printed in English. 

Poem 
 

“Dictionary”  
(Àmọó, 2019) 

The main character 
is an unnamed 
person who is also a 
reader, writer, and 
lover of words.   

The main character 
sees the dictionary 
as a friend and 
“helper to all.” It is a 
friend now and will 
be a friend with 
future editions. 

The main character 
realizes the power of 
a dictionary as a 
library in and of 
itself, and a helper to 
all throughout life, 
especially in finding 
and using words that 
add richness to the 
English Language. 

The main character 
also recognizes that 
a dictionary is 
universal and will be 
valued forever 
because individuals, 
especially readers 
and writers, will also 
need and want to 
search for the 
meaning of a word.  

Blended Genres about Parts of Speech. H-Map is an instructional strategy that we used 
with Alfie the Apostrophe (Donohue, 2006) and “Apostrophe” (VanDerwater, 2021). Figure 3 
illustrates the letter H with short summaries of each text in the left and right columns and 
intertextual connections in the middle of the letter. Table 3 illustrates additional blended genres on 
various topics and concepts about parts of speech. 
  



26 Georgia Journal of Literacy 46(2)  
 

   
 

Figure 3: H-Map 

Text 
 

Alfie is an apostrophe who does not 
want to audition for the punctuation 
mark talent show, even though he 

has perfected his work with 
possessives and contractions. 

Mommy and daddy apostrophes 
convince him otherwise. At the 
show, Bud Asterisk, master of 

ceremonies, starts the show. Alfie 
competes against Hiram the 

Hyphen, question marks, 
exclamation marks dressed in 

cheerleader costumes and 
pompoms, parentheses, commas, 

and a group of periods and hyphens 
(the “Dots & Dashes.” Alfie shows a 
magic trick, making one word from 
two (won’t vs. will not). He was the 

star of the show. 

 

Poem 
 

An unnamed apostrophe speaks to 
other letters, words, and punctuation 

marks, thanking them for his 
popularity but feels the need to set 
the record straight. The record is 
that he is a sign of ownership, like 
when he hangs around with the 

letter s. He also joins little words, 
like when he makes couldn’t from 
could not. He also talks to readers 

and writers, warning them to be 
careful when they use him. 

Otherwise, he’ll create distractions. 

1. Both texts portray an apostrophe 
as a person and main character. 

2. Both are cautionary tales saying 
the apostrophe is very popular but 
often misunderstood and misused. 

3. Both texts stress the importance 
of the apostrophe for readers and 
writers. 

4. Both texts use academic 
vocabulary for uses of an 
apostrophe, e.g. possessive, 
omission of letters. 

5. Both texts use wordplay. 

 

Blended Genres about Life at School. Interwoven Connections is an instructional 
strategy that we used with A Fine, Fine School (Creech, 2003) and “Good Morning, Dear Students” 
(Nesbitt, 2005). Figure 4 illustrates four interwoven connections: Principal is Narrator, Disrupting 
the Normal, Element of Surprise, Lasting Lessons. Short descriptions of how texts address each 
connection appear above and below, respectively. Table 4 illustrates additional blended genre on 
a variety of topics and concepts about life at school. 
 
Figure 4: Interwoven Connections 

 

“Good 
Morning, 

Dear 
Students” 

Elementary school principal 
addressing all students. 

Good morning, dear 
students, please put your 
pencils down and go back 
to bed. 

Principal tells students 
today would different. They 
will spend the day playing 
outside not studying in 
class, and teachers will give 
them a rest, not a test, 

School is a place for 
learning and learning can 
be fun. 

 

Principal is Narrator Disrupting the  
Normal Element of Surprise Lasting Lessons 

A Fine, 
Fine 

School 

Elementary school principal 
addressing all students and 
teachers. 

Because everybody is 
learning so well, principal 
wants to have school all 
week, and on holidays and 
even in summer. 

Tillie, a student tells 
principal that because she 
is in school all the time, her 
dog is not learning how to 
climb trees and return 
sticks. 

School is a place for 
learning, learning can be 
fun, but school is not the 
only place learning takes 
place. 



Bintz & Galeza 27 
 

   
 

Blended Genres about Books. Identifying & Describing Intertextual Connections is an 
instructional strategy that can we used with Book (Lyon & Catalanotto, 1999) and “Adventures 
with Books” (Blumhagen, 2015). Figure 5 illustrates intertextual connections in the middle and 
short descriptions of how texts address these connections in the left and right columns, 
respectively. Table 5 illustrates additional blended genre on a variety of topics and concepts about 
books. 
 
Figure 5: Identifying & Describing Intertextual Connections 

Book 
 

 
Intertextual Connection 

 

Adventures with Books 
 

The word book appears on every 
page and is illustrated in innovative 
ways. 

Both texts focus on the importance of 
reading books 

And I can find with one good look, 
Just what I want inside a book.  

A book is a house that is all 
windows and doors. 
 
A book is a chest that keeps the 
heart’s treasure. 

Both texts use metaphors on the 
power and potential of books 

Books are ships that sail the seas, 
To lands of snow or jungle trees… 
 
Books are trains in many lands, 
Crossing hills or desert sands… 

Learn the secret passages. Turn 
pages, corners, holding your 
breath. 
 
Book, Boon, Companion 

Both texts provide perceptions of 
books as a companion, one that is 
enjoyable adventurous and providing a 
sense of wonderment for readers. 

Books are gardens, fairies, elves, 
Cowboys, and people like 
ourselves 

Dear Friend, Dear Reader, look at 
the book you have just opened. 
What is it you hold in your hand?  
 
A book is a farm, its fields sown 
with words. Reader, you are its 
weather. Now you meet. 

Both texts use 3rd person narration to 
talk directly to the reader  

Come, let us read! For reading’s 
fun. 

 
Blended Genres about Stories. Z-Map is an instructional strategy that we used with 

James Marshall’s Cinderella (Karlin, 2001) and “Poor Cinderella” (Nesbitt, 2009). This strategy, 
like the H-Map used the letter H, uses the letter Z to illustrates intertextual connections. Figure 6 
illustrates intertextual connections in the middle of the letter Z and short summaries of each text 
above and below, respectively. Table 6 illustrates additional blended genre on a variety of topics 
and concepts about stories. 
  



28 Georgia Journal of Literacy 46(2)  
 

   
 

Figure 6: Z-Map  

Cinderella  

Cinderella has a mean stepmother who treats her differently than her two stepsisters. She was forced to work from 
morning to night. She started the fire and made meals every day, while others rested. One day, the King and 
Queen announced a ball for the prince. Cinderella was forced to make beautiful gowns for her stepsisters but was 
not allowed to go to the ball. On the night of the ball, Cinderella’s Fairy Godmother appeared and tapped 
Cinderella on her head with a magic wand. Cinderella now wore a beautiful gown, glass slippers, and a carriage 
waited to take her to the ball. She danced through the night and met the prince. In her haste to return home by 
midnight, Cinderella accidentally left one slipper at the ball. The prince found the shoe and looked for the beautiful 
girl who wore it to the ball. In the end, he found Cinderella, and they married happily ever after. 

 

“Poor Cinderella” 

Cinderella has a mean stepmother and does not allow her to see films rated PG-13, have a cell phone, notebook 
computer, and play video games. She has unfashionable clothes, no chauffeur to drive her to school, and no time 
limit for bedtime. Prince Charming announces a ball, but Cinderella has nothing to wear. She surfs the Internet to 
find things to wear. No fairy Godmother contacts her to help. Cinderella’s sister married the prince, and Cinderella 
still complains her stepmother is so mean. 

Concluding Thoughts  
We started this article with a vignette about a student who made intertextual connections between 
the picturebook Mr. Archimede’s Bath, and the poem “Bring Back Archimedes.” These 
connections sparked our curiosity and prompted new conversations about moving beyond 
traditional notions of paired text and towards developing and using blended genres in the 
classroom. We hope this article will spark some new curiosities, start some new conversations, 
and generate some new inquiry questions about the power and potential blended genres. 
 
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https://ascd.org/el/articles/the-case-for-multiple-texts
https://doi.org/10.1002/trtr.1869
https://doi.org/10.1598/RT.59.4.1
https://www.nwesd.org/ed-talks/linked-text-sets-a-strategy-for-deeper-learning/
https://scholar.lib.vt.edu/ejournals/ALAN/v42n1/pdf/pytash.pdf
https://scholar.lib.vt.edu/ejournals/ALAN/v42n1/pdf/pytash.pdf
https://doi.org/10.1598/RT.58.7.8
https://doi.org/10.1002/jaal.613
https://doi.org/10.1002/jaal.613
https://hellopoetry.com/tag/dictionary/?page=3
https://hellopoetry.com/tag/dictionary/?page=3


30 Georgia Journal of Literacy 46(2)  
 

   
 

Blumhagen, V. (2015). “Adventures with books.” Book Kids Blog. https://bookkidsblog.
wordpress.com/category/book-inspiration/ 

Cline-Ransome, L. (2004). Major Taylor: Champion cyclist (J. E. Ransome, Illus.). Atheneum 
Books. 

Creech, S. (2003). A fine, fine school (H. Bliss, Illus.). HarperCollins. 
Donohue, M. R. (2006). Alfie the apostrophe (J. Adinolfi, Illus.). Albert Whitman & Co. 
Ferris, J. C. (2015). Noah Webster and his words (V. X. Kirsch, Illus.). Clarion Books.  
Giovanni, N. (2005). Rosa (B. Collier, Illus.). Henry Holt & Co.  
González, L. (2013). The storyteller’s candle (L. Delacre, Illus.). Lee & Low Books. 
Hopkins, L. (2018). “Librarian.” In School People (E. Shi, Illus.; pp. 28–29). Wordsong. 
Juster, N. (2005). The hello, goodbye window (C. Raschka, Illus.). Scholastic. 
Karlin, B. (2001). James Marshall’s Cinderella (J. Marshall, Illus.). Puffin Books. 
Lyon, G. E., & Catalanotto, P. (1999). Book. DK Children. 
Nesbitt, K. (2009). “Poor Cinderella.” In My hippo has the hiccups: And other poems I totally 

made up (E. Long, Illus.; pp. 136–137). Sourcebooks Jabberwocky.  
Nesbitt, K. (2005). “Good morning, dear students.” Poetry Foundation. https://www.poetryfound

ation.org/poems/47154/good-morning-dear-students 
Sandler, M. (2006). Cycling: Lance Armstrong’s impossible ride. Bearport. 
Smith, D. (2016). “Bring back Archimedes.” Poetry Soup. https://www.poetrysoup.com/poem/

bring_back_archimedes_807345 
VanDerwater, A. L. (2021). “Apostrophe.” In L. B. Hopkins (Ed.), A bunch of punctuation (S. 

Bloch, Illus.; pp. 8–9). Wordsong.  
Wilkins, E. J. (2020). Claudette Colvin refuses to move: Courageous kid of the Civil Rights 

Movement. Capstone Press. 
  

https://bookkidsblog.wordpress.com/category/book-inspiration/
https://bookkidsblog.wordpress.com/category/book-inspiration/
https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poems/47154/good-morning-dear-students
https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poems/47154/good-morning-dear-students
https://www.poetrysoup.com/poem/bring_back_archimedes_807345
https://www.poetrysoup.com/poem/bring_back_archimedes_807345


Bintz & Galeza 31 
 

   
 

Table 1: Libraries and Librarians 

Title Author Copyright Genre 

Schomburg: The Man Who Built a Library Carole Boston Weatherford 2019 Biography 

“The Prologue” Carole Boston Weatherford 2019 Poem 

Library on Wheels: Mary Lemist Titcomb and 
America’s First Bookmobile Sharlee Glenn 2018 Biography 

“The Bookmobile” Kay Umland 1952 Poem 

The Librarian of Basra: A True Story from Iraq Jeanette Winter 2006 Biography 

“Hearing of Alia Muhammed Baker’s Stroke” Philip Metres 2014 Poem 

Planting Stories: The Life of  
Librarian and Storyteller Pura Belpre Anika Denise 2019 Biography 

“Librarian” Lee Bennett Hopkins 2018 Poem 

The Book Woman Heather Henson 2008 Historical 
fiction 

“Portrait of a Pack Horse Librarian” Allison C. Rollins 2020 Poem 

Library Lil Suzanne Williams 1997 Fiction 

“In the Library” Charles Simic 2008 Poem 

Waiting for the Biblioburro Monica Brown 2011 Fiction 

“Poem-Mobiles” J. Patrick Lewis 2014 Poem 

The Boy Who Was Raised by Librarians Carla Morris 2007 Fiction 

“Branch Library” Edward Hirsch 2003 Poem 

Bats at the Library Brain Lies 2008 Fiction 

‘Don’t Go into the Library” Alberto Rios 2017 Poem 

Tomas and the Library Lady Pat Mora 1997 Fiction 

“My First Memory (Of Librarians)” Nikki Giovanni 2007 Poem 

Library Lion Michelle Knudsen 2006 Fiction 

“Don’t Go Into the Library” Alberto Rios 2017 Poem 

The Library Sarah Stewart 1995 Fiction 

“Because of Libraries We Can Say These 
Things” Naomi Shihab Nye 1998 Poem 

Splat the Cat and the Late Library Book Rob Scotton 2016 Fiction 

“OVERDUES” Shel Silverstein 2002 Poem 

Richard Wright and the Library Card William Miller 1997 Fiction 

“Library Card” Olivia D Michaels 2003 Poem 

Poetree Shauna LaVoy Reynolds 2019 Fiction 

“The Buffalo in the Library” Brod Bagert 2002 Poem 

A Library Nikki Giovanni 2022 Fiction 

“Library Poem” Julia Donaldson 2015 Poem 



32 Georgia Journal of Literacy 46(2)  
 

   
 

The Library Book Michael L. Mark 2017 Fiction 

“Books! Books!” Jordan Hetrick 2015 Poem 

 
Table 2: Letters, Words, and Wordplay 

Title Author Copyright Genre 

A River of Words: The Story of William 
Carlos Williams Jennifer Bryant 2008 Biography 

“Words” Gunadevi Rajaratnam 2022 Poem 

Noah Webster: Weaver of Words Pegi Deitz Shea 2021 Biography 

“My Dictionary” Carl D’Souza 2021 Poem 

Enormous Smallness: A Story of E.E. 
Cummings Matthew Burgess 2015 Biography 

“To E.E. Cummings” Brian P. Cleary 2004 Poem 

The Right Word: Roget and His Thesaurus Jenn and Jennifer Bryant 2014 Biography 

“Thesaurus-saurus” Charlie Brown 2023 Poem 

Stacey’s Extraordinary Words Stacy Abrams 2021 Autobiography 

“The Power of Words” Omkar Atale 2014 Poem 

Ann and Nan Are Anagrams: A Mixed-Up 
Word Dilemma Mark Shulman 2013 Fiction 

“The Tot and the Elder” Olin & Billy Foblioso 2014 Poem 

The Keeper of Wild Words Brooke Smith 2020 Fiction 

“Reflections” Lynne C. Fadden 2002 Poem 

Eating the Alphabet Lois Ehlert 1989 Fiction 

“Eating Alphabet Soup” J. Patrick Lewis 2014 Poem 

Tongue Twisters for Kids Riley Weber 2016 Humor; fiction 

“Toucan Can-Can” Kenn Nesbitt 2022 Poem 

Word Play Adam Lehrhaupt 2017 Humor; fiction 

“The Parts of Speech” Unknown 2017 Poem 

 
Table 3: Parts of Speech 

Title Author Copyright Genre 

Twenty-Odd Ducks: Why Every Punctuation 
Mark Counts Lynne Truss 2008 Informational 

“In a World of Punctuation” Lucy H. 2014 Poem 

Punctuation Takes a Vacation Robin Pulver 2004 Fiction 

“It’sFunToLeaveTheSpacesOut” Kenn Nesbitt 2012 Poem 

If You Were a Period Nick Healy 2009 Informational 

“Period” (In A Bunch of Punctuation) Jane Yolen 2021 Poem 



Bintz & Galeza 33 
 

   
 

Exclamation Mark  Amy Krouse Rosenthal 2013 Fiction 

“!!!!!!!!-SUPERHERO KABOOM-!!!!!!!!!” (In 
A Bunch of Punctuation)  Julie Larios 2021 Poem 

Question Marks Say “What?” Michael Dahl 2019 Informational 

“Questions Marks” (In A Bunch of 
Punctuation) Lee Bennett Hopkins 2021 Poem 

Eats, Shoots & Leaves: Why Commas 
Really Do Make a Difference Lynne Truss 2006 Informational 

“Stop Awhile” Brian P. Cleary 2004 Poem 

Greedy Apostrophe: A Cautionary Tale Jan Carr 2009 Fiction 

“Apostrophe” Amy Ludwig Vanderwater 2021 Poem 

The Girl’s Like Spaghetti: Why You Can’t 
Manage Without Apostrophes! Lynne Truss 2007 Humor; fiction 

“Apostrophe” (In A Bunch of Punctuation) Amy Ludwig VanDerwater 2021 Poem 

Code Blue – Calling All Capitals! Pamela Hall 2009 Fiction 

“Sisters” Lucille Clifton 2003 Poem 

Silent Letters Loud and Clear  Robin Pulver 2008 Fiction 

“Silent Letters” Magiclight 2016 Poem 

Parts of Speech for Kids Erin Jacobs 2014 Informational 

“Parts of Speech” Mark Hurlin Shelton 2017 Poem 

Pre- and Re-, Mis- and Dis-: What is a 
Prefix? Brian P. Cleary 2015 Informational 

“POEMSICLE” Shel Silverstein 1981 Poem 

There Is a Tribe of Kids Lane Smith 2016 Fiction 

“Collective Nouns” Gregory H. Wlodarski 2021 Poem 

Nouns and Verbs Have a Field Day Robin Pulver 2006 Fiction 

“Signs” John Frank 2015 Poem 

Merry-Go-Round: A Book about Nouns Ruth Heller 1990 Informational 

“The Grammar Lesson”  Steve Kowit 2003 Poem 

Fantastic! Wow! And Unreal! A Book 
about Interjections and Conjunctions Ruth Heller 1998 Informational 

“Sentenced”  Vionet 2020 Poem 

Find Your Function at Conjunction 
Junction Pamela Hall 2009 Fiction 

“Conjunction” Justin Reamer 2013 Poem 

Under, Over, By the Clover: What is a 
Preposition? Brian P. Cleary 2002 Informational 

“Tire Attire” Hannah Borke 2017 Poem 

Many Luscious Lollipops: A Book about 
Adjectives Ruth Heller 1989 Informational; 

nonfiction 

“Life’s About The Adjectives” Michael Benton 2007 Poem 

Up, Up and Away: A Book about Adverbs Ruth Heller 1991 Informational 



34 Georgia Journal of Literacy 46(2)  
 

   
 

“Silently” Josie Whitehead  Poem 

Kites Sail High: A Book about Verbs Ruth Heller 1988 Informational 

“At the Seaside”  Robert Louis Stevenson 1947 Poem 

Things that are most in the world Judi Barrett 1998 Fiction 

“Superlatives” Nae Ayson 2015 Poem 

Chips and Cheese and Nana’s Knees: 
What is Alliteration Brian P. Cleary 2017 Informational 

“Zzzzz”  Kenn Nesbitt 2001 Poem 

Dear Deer: A Book of Homophones Gene Baretta 2007 Informational 

“Here Me Write” Babu 2016 Poem 

 
Table 4: School 

Title Author Copyright Genre 

First Grade Takes a Test  Miriam Cohen 2006 Fiction 

“The Test” Harrison 1993 Poem 

The King of Kindergarten Derrick Barnes 2019 Fiction 

“A Kindergarten Song” (in Muse) Carrie Williams Clifford 2006 Poem 

Miss Malarkey’s Field Trip Judy Finchler 2006 Fiction 

“We Had a Field Trip Yesterday” Jack Prelutsky 2012 Poem 

I Didn’t Do My Homework Because… Davide Cali 2014 Fiction 

“I Tried to Do My Homework” Kenn Nesbitt 2018 Poem 

Field-Trip Fiasco Julie Danneberg 2015 Fiction 

And then a Flaming Pterodactyl Ate “My 
Homework” Evelyn Swartz 2021 Poem 

PECAN’S Spelling Bee Championship Roger James 2021 Fiction 

“The Spelling Bee” Rowe 2016 Poem 

First Day Jitters Julie Danneberg 2000 Fiction 

“Jitter Glitters” Krissy Miner  Poem 

Last Day Blues Julie Danneberg 2000 Fiction 

“Teacher Blues” LYSS 2019 Poem 

Angela Anachonda: School is a Necessary 
Evil Kent Redeker 2001 Fiction 

“Sick” Shel Silverstein 1970 Poem 

Little Yellow Bus  Erin Guendelsberger 2022 Fiction 

“The Yellow School Bus”  Betty Hermelee 2019 Poem 

Walking to School Ethel Turner 1989 Fiction 

“Let’s Walk to School” Wigan Council No date Poem 

Big Test Jitters Julie Danneberg 2020 Fiction 



Bintz & Galeza 35 
 

   
 

“Exam Stress” Lovewell No date Poem 

Thank you, Mr. Falker  Patricia Polacco 1998 Fiction 

“Hero in the Classroom” Susan T. Apaarejo 2009 Poem 

The Recess Queen  Alexis O’ Neill 2002 Fiction 

“All I Ask” Caitlyn Dwyer 2015 Poem 

A Day at Damp Camp  George Ella Lyon 1996 Fiction 

“Summer Camp Souvenirs” Richard Thomas 2019 Poem 

Rondo in C Paul Fleischman 1988 Fiction 

“Audition” Hope Anita Smith 2016 Poem 

 
Table 5: Books 

Title Author Copyright Genre 

Wild About Books Judy Sierra 2004 Fiction 

“Books to the Ceiling” Arnold Lobel 2015 Poem 

Bookie the Book Loving Bear Sonica Ellis 2021 Fiction 

“I Love to Read the Books” Mohit Chahal 2013 Poem 

The Incredible Book Eating Boy Oliver Jeffers 2006 Fiction 

“How to Eat a Poem” Eve Merriam 1990 Poem 

A Child of Books Oliver Jeffers 2016 Fiction 

“Invitation” Shel Silverstein 1974 Poem 

Miss Brooks Loves Books! Barbara Bottner 2010 Fiction 

“Adventures with Books” Velda Blumhgaen No date Poem 

The World That Loved Books Stephen Parlato 2008 Fiction 

“There is a Land” Leland B. Jacobs 1990 Poem 

The Important Book Margaret Wise Brown 1977 Fiction 

“The Secret Song” Margaret Wise Brown 1952 Poem 

A Story for Bear Dennis Haseley 2002 Fiction 

“Good Books”  Guest 2014 Poem 

You Read to Me and I’ll Read to You Mary Ann Hoberman 2006 Fiction 

“Read to Me” Jane Yolen 1987 Poem 

Read for Me, Mama  Vashanti Rahaman 1997 Fiction 

“Read to Me” Jane Yolen 1987 Poem 

The Magic Bookmark Iraklis Lampadariou 2016 Fiction 

“I Am a Bookmark” Ryan O’Rourke 2017 Poem 

Look, a Book! Libby Gleeson 2017 Fiction 

“Adventure” Anonymous No date Poem 



36 Georgia Journal of Literacy 46(2)  
 

   
 

The Reader Amy Hest 2012 Fiction 

“Storyboat”  Bobbi Katz 2013 Poem 

 
Table 6: Stories 

Title Author Copyright Genre 

Finding Winnie: The True Story of the 
World’s Famous Bear Lindsay Mattick 2015 Nonfiction 

“Pooh Bear” Elisabeth 2018 Poem 

Earmuffs for Everyone: How Chester 
Greenwood Became Known as the 
Inventor of Earmuffs 

Meghan McCarthy 2015 Biography 

“I Sing the Earmuff Electric” Mary Fons 2013 Poem 

The Marvelous Thing That Came from a 
Spring Gilbert Ford 2016 Biography 

“Slinky” Ima Ryma 2013 Poem 

The Boy Who Thought Outside the Box: 
The Story of Video Game Inventor Ralph 
Baer 

Marcie Wessels 2020 Biography 

“The Games in My Room” Kenn Nesbitt 2018 Poem 

Mighty Jackie: The Strike-Out Queen Marissa Moss 2004 Biography 

“Take Me Out To The Ballgame” Jack Norworth 1993 Poem 

Bill, the Boy Wonder: The Secret Co-
Creator of Batman Marc Tyler Nobleman 2012 Biography 

“Batman” Jan Allison 2015 Poem 

Silver Packages: An Appalachian 
Christmas Story Cynthia Rylant 1987 Fiction 

“Appalachia with Love” Andrew Welsh 2020 Poem 

Kate and the Beanstalk Mary Pope Osborne 2005 Fiction 

“Jack and the Beanstalk” Summer Song 2006 Poem 

Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs: A Tale 
from the Brothers Grimm Grimm & Grimm 1987 Fiction 

“Snow White: The Anti-Fairytale” Emily Reid 2013 Poem 

Little Red Writing  Joan Holub 2016 Fiction 

“Little Red Riding Hood & the Wolf”  Roald Dahl 2009 Poem 

Goodnight iPAD: a Parody for the Next 
Generation Ann Droyd 2011 Fiction 

“The Dragon of Death” Jack Prelutsky 1993 Poem 

The Wretched Stone Chris Van Allsburg 1991 Fiction 

“Too Much TV!” Roann Mendriq 2015 Poem 

The Widow’s Broom Chris Van Allsburg 2018 Fiction 

“The Witch Who Lost Her Broom!!!” Prarthana Gururaj 2023 Poem 



Bintz & Galeza 37 
 

   
 

Playing Right Field Willy Welch 1995 Fiction 

“The Right Fielder” Tom Lakin 2021 Poem 

 
 
Received: February 18, 2024 | Accepted: August 5, 2024 | Published: November 15, 2024 


	Paired Text
	Benefits of Paired Text
	Intertextuality
	Ways to Pair Text

	Blended Genres
	Blended Genres and Instructional Strategies
	Figure 1: Spheres of Intertextual Connections
	Figure 2: Intertextual Connections Chart
	Figure 3: H-Map
	Figure 4: Interwoven Connections
	Figure 5: Identifying & Describing Intertextual Connections
	Figure 6: Z-Map


	Concluding Thoughts
	References
	Literature Cited
	Table 1: Libraries and Librarians
	Table 2: Letters, Words, and Wordplay
	Table 3: Parts of Speech
	Table 4: School
	Table 5: Books
	Table 6: Stories


