Marcel with a Splash

Marcel was born with webbed toes and an extra chromosome in this tender exploration of a child’s life with Down syndrome.

When Marcel is born, the first thing the midwife notices is his webbed toes. Otherwise, he eats, he sleeps, he eats again, just like any baby. And then the doctors start to notice Marcel’s almond-shaped eyes, weak muscle tone and unusually shaped ears. They come to a conclusion: Marcel has Down syndrome. Marcel’s parents don’t know what to do with this medical terminology, so they bury it in the bottom of the garden, where it can grow in its own time and they can keep an eye on it.

But Marcel doesn’t care about words yet. He grows and learns, taking to life like a fish in water. In many ways, Marcel is just like any child. He loves to laugh, be silly with his friends and go swimming during summer vacation.

Marcel with a Splash goes beyond medical terms and the accompanying prejudices to discover Marcel himself. Inspired in part by her experiences as the mother of a child with Down syndrome, artist and author Julia Sørensen takes us on a poetic stroll between naps, chromosomes and tall grass, through Marcel’s beautiful, ordinary life.

Key Text Features

illustrations

Correlates to the Common Core States Standards in English Language Arts:

CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.K.4

Ask and answer questions about unknown words in a text.

CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.K.7

With prompting and support, describe the relationship between illustrations and the story in which they appear (e.g., what moment in a story an illustration depicts).

CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.1.1

Ask and answer questions about key details in a text.