Preschool Reads – Page 106

Book Review: When I Grow Up, by Leonid Gore (Scholastic Press, 2009)

Posted on May 23, 2013 by Rosemary Kiladitis

Recommended for ages 2-4

A little boy asks his father what he will be when he grows up, and looks at the world around him for ideas. A raindrop tells him he could be “like me” and become the fastest river; a green sprout, the tallest tree; a caterpillar, the most colorful butterfly in the meadow. As the boy paints the images he sees around him, he ultimately makes his own decision: he will be like his dad. The artwork is a simple and soothing series of acrylics and mixed media, with a single die-cut image in each spread acting as a transition to the next spread. The die cuts may not hold up to repeated use and risk tearing, but the pages are thicker than usual and may last longer than expected with gentler use. Books that illustrate relationships between fathers and sons are not as common as mothers and sons or mothers and daughters, making this a good book to offer the community.

This would be a great addition to a family read-aloud or a Father’s Day read-aloud, as it features a positive relationship between a father and son. There are great Father’s Day crafts that are easily made available, including Father’s Day picture frames using heavy paper, glue and scissors available on Enchanted Learning’s website. Children can bring pictures from home or can use pictures from old magazines. The author does not have a website, but his publisher has an author page with a biography and the ability to become a “fan”.

Preschool Reads, Toddler Reads, Uncategorized

Book Review: Thank You Bear, by Greg Foley (Viking, 2007)

Posted on May 21, 2013 by Rosemary Kiladitis

Recommended for ages 2-4

Bear finds a box that he cannot wait to share with his best friend, Mouse. On his way to Mouse, he meets other friends – a Monkey, an Owl, a Fox, an Elephant, a Squirrel and a Bunny – who criticize Bear’s gift as being too small, too ordinary, or even a better gift for someone else. Dejected, Bear is unsure whether or not his gift is worth giving, until Mouse shows him that friendship is all about gratitude. Preschoolers will appreciate this simple book on friendship and gratitude, and the joy that even the simplest gifts can bring to another. The font is a spare, typewriter-like print, and the pastel watercolor artwork, outlined with strong black lines, bring simplicity to a story that may diverge from more brightly colored books, but will stand out because of it.

This would be a great addition to a storytime on friendship and gratitude. There is the potential for a wonderful discussion about friends and giving – Shel Silverstein’s The Giving Tree would be a great companion story to this book – and the importance of saying “thank you”. Friendship is a popular storytime theme, with many songs available on children’s CDs. DLTK’s website has a friendship wreath craft made with traced handprints that can be prepared in advance and ready for attendees to assemble with help from their parents/guardians.

The author’s website has downloadable designs for Bear stationery and computer wallpaper, in addition to links to other books. Mr. Foley’s “Bear” series includes Make a Wish Bear; I Miss You Mouse; Good Luck Bear and Don’t Worry Bear, which also features his friend, Mouse.

The book received the Charlotte Zolotow Award in 2008 and was a nominee for Iowa’s Goldfinch Book Award (2011).

Preschool Reads, Toddler Reads

Book Review: Duck Sock Hop, by Jane Kohuth/illus. by Kane Porter (Dial Books for Children, 2012)

Posted on May 21, 2013 by Rosemary Kiladitis

Recommended for ages 2-4

Once a week, ducks grab a bunch of socks from the sock box and head over to dance at the sock hop. They dance and wear all sorts of fun socks that they get from the sock box. Naturally, the party gets a little out of control, but it all ends well, and the ducks get ready for the next sock hop.

The illustrations are fun; cartoon-style and outlined in black with textured with hand-printed patterns on both the socks and the ducks are interesting to look at, and younger readers get a little lesson in shapes as the story describes the exciting socks found in the sock box: socks with squares, dots, moons, cars and spoons! The story is told in rhyme and allows for a fun, movement-oriented read-aloud once the sock hop gets underway as the ducks teeter, tumble, twist and trip their way through the dance. The story font is a bold, rounded font that curves around the pictures, creating further interest.

This would be a great addition to a movement-oriented storytime. Books like Karen Katz’s Shake it Up, Baby! and Helen Oxenbury’s Clap Hands are good additions to this type of storytime. The Perry Public Library has great Move Your Body storytime suggestions, including fun songs like “Head, Shoulders Knees and Toes” and “If You’re Happy and You Know It”. The author’s website also offers Duck Sock Hop activities, including a Duck Sock Hop Kit that allows you to create your own sock hop – attendees could bring a pair of fun socks to donate to the sock box!

Preschool Reads, Toddler Reads

Book Review: If You’re a Monster and You Know It, by Rebecca & Ed Emberley (Orchard Books, 2010)

Posted on May 21, 2013 by Rosemary Kiladitis

Recommended for ages 2-5

The classic song “If You’re Happy and You Know It” gets a monster makeover from Rebecca Emberley and her father, Caldecott Award winner Ed Emberley.

Caregivers have taught toddlers and preschoolers that song, “If You’re Happy and You Know It”, for years. Rebecca and Ed Emberley put a fun, new spin on a familiar song by incorporating monsters, with all of the snorts, growls, wiggles and roars that go with them. Most children will be familiar with the tune, so slotting in new, fun, silly words and actions will be easy and exciting. The neon-bright, digitally created monsters pop off the black page backgrounds, appearing to almost pop off the page. The story font is a bright green for easy reading, but small and almost comic-like in appearance. The action words – stomp, snort, growl, wiggle, roar – are large, brightly colored, and appear to be digitally rendered along with the rest of the artwork, providing an easy prompt for children to take action.

This would be a great interactive read-aloud for toddlers and preschoolers alike, especially for a fun Halloween storytime. There could be a mask-making workshop before the storytime, where participants can color in blank printouts and create their own monsters that will stomp and roar and twitch their tails during the reading. Ed Emberley’s website offers printable mask activities and other October activities that would work with a Halloween read-aloud. There are many fingerplays and songs to be sung during a Halloween storytime; plus, the book comes with a link to a free, downloadable version of the song from the Scholastic website that can be played for a full-on monster dance party.

The authors have further resources on their websites (http://www.rebeccaemberley.com/, http://www.edemberley.com/pages/main.aspx) for more printable, downloadable activities.

The book has received several accolades, including nomination for the Grand Canyon Reader Award and the Building Block Picture Book Award, and designation as an IRA Children’s Choice.

Preschool Reads, Toddler Reads

Book Review: In the Small, Small Pond by Denise Fleming (Henry Holt & Company, 1993)

Posted on May 16, 2013 by Rosemary Kiladitis

Recommended for ages 2-4

Denise Fleming’s In the Small, Small Pond gives readers get a glimpse of life among the animals living in a small pond as the seasons change. A child – who could be either a boy or a girl – watches life in a small pond change throughout the seasons. Beginning in the spring, tadpoles wiggle and jiggle and baby geese waddle and wade; as the seasons progress, we see turtles doze, minnows scatter, muskrats stack, and finally, a frog – a presence throughout the book – burrow under the mud as winter sets in, waiting for spring.

The artwork uses color to take readers through the seasons: the bright greens and yellows of spring, the blue and green laziness of a hot summer day, the brown and yellow of fall setting in, and the cool blues and whites of the winter. Ms. Fleming gives life to her story by using collages created by poured cotton pulp through hand-cut stencils onto handmade paper, giving her illustrations a beautiful, handmade feel that will attract the attention of children and adult audiences. The rhythm of the rhyming text will appeal to young readers. The text is bold and black, with few words to a page; more often than not, the text blends with the background, but this is a book meant to be read-aloud; this will not be a distraction to participants. This is a companion book to the author’s In The Tall, Tall Grass, which uses the same type of artwork and storytelling.

In the Small, Small Pond received Caldecott Honors in 1994 and a Child Study Children’s Book Committee award in 1995.

The book would be a great addition to a read-aloud on seasons or it can be part of a read-aloud on pond life: frogs, birds, fish, or turtles, for instance. There are many ideas on seasonal read-alouds and read-alouds related to pond animals on the Web that can be used for free. The author’s website offers a printable “finish the picture” coloring page where children can create their own pond scene, and there is also a match-up game for older audiences where the children match the animal with the verb (i.e., geese waddle, turtles doze).

Preschool Reads, Toddler Reads

Book Review: How Do You Sleep, by Louise Bonnet-Rampersaud (Marshall Cavendish Children, 2005)

Posted on May 16, 2013 by Rosemary Kiladitis

Recommended for ages 2-4

Different animals answer the question of how they sleep in rhyme. Children conclude the story by describing how they sleep.

This is a rhyming story about how different creatures sleep, ranging from birds to frogs to human children. The pace is soothing and repetitive: one spread asks the question, “How do you sleep?” and a different animal answers on the next. The realistic pictures of animals (and children) are rendered in oil paintings, and makes for a read-aloud that will keep viewers and listeners interested with the large and small details: the flowers on the branches where a bird sits; the mouse sitting on a bell hook in the pig sty; the cozy bed the children sit in, listening to their father read them a bedtime story. The font is a larger version of a standard one, similar to Times Roman, but it does not need to capture the reader here – the story is in the pictures. There is a board book version of this available for younger audiences.

This is a great story to build on for a bedtime read-aloud. Encourage audiences to wear their favorite pajamas and bring a beloved toy. There are bedtime songs like Twinkle Twinkle Little Star and Star Light, Star Bright that would work well here.

The author does not appear to have her own website, but her publisher offers a link to her other book and offers the chance to sign up for updates.

Preschool Reads, Toddler Reads

Book Review: Is Everyone Ready for Fun? by Jan Thomas (Beach Lane Books, 2011)

Posted on May 13, 2013 by Rosemary Kiladitis

Recommended for ages 2-5

A group of rowdy cows want to have fun on a chicken’s sofa. The chicken does not share their enthusiasm.

The repetitive story follows three cows who want to have fun – jumping, dancing, wiggling fun – on Chicken’s sofa. Chicken is not at all happy about this. Reminiscent of another Jan Thomas’ story, “What Will Fat Cat Sit On?”, the cartoon illustrations use exaggerated expressions for the cows and the Chicken. The colors are bright but not overwhelming; the page backgrounds are either bright blue, green, or lime green, and the characters are boldly outlined in black. The story begins and ends with the endpapers, and Thomas uses the margins to denote offscreen action, most notably when the Chicken’s head appears to look in on the madness. Communicated in speech bubbles, the text allows young readers and listeners to imagine different voices for each of the speakers – and allows the storytime reader to affect different voices during the reading.

The book allows for a great deal of interactivity and falls into a comfortable pattern that younger readers and listeners can catch on to right away. The title phrase – “Is everyone ready for fun?” begins the series, followed by the Chicken’s protest, the cows’ latest attack on the sofa, and the Chicken’s growing aggravation. Storytime participants can get up and jump, dance, and wiggle along.

The author’s website offers links to other books and printable activities, several of which include recognizable characters from Is Everyone Ready for Fun? The activities can enhance a storytime, as can farm animal-related songs and fingerplays.