Using literature in language teaching is common practice, but the potential of picturebooks as a multimodal form of children’s literature in early language learning tends to be underestimated. Sharing two picturebook read-alouds, I will demonstrate how careful teacher mediation can help children make sense of the inter-animation of pictures, words and the gaps between. My aim is to show how meaningful language use can be coupled with critical thinking for an age-appropriate learning experience.