Learning & Development: Book choice
Wednesday, February 27, 2008
Is This My Nose?
illustrated by Georgie Birkett
Red Fox, boardbook £4.99
On each spread there is a question ('Can you find ...?') and answer ('Yes, you can!'), alongside an animal and child pointing to their eyes, nose, ears, mouth or chin. At the end, there is a fold-out mirror (much clearer than most 'mirrors' that appear in such books), and a call of 'Let's play again!'
Good use of colour, and Georgie Birkett's wonderful illustrations make this little book a success. Pictures of real fabrics are cut in to create the children's clothes, adding a variety of textures and patterns that work well alongside the simple but endearing illustrations of the animals and children's faces.
No More Dummy For Piggy
by Bernette Ford and Sam William
Boxer Books, hardback £9.99
Crafty little Ducky uses a game of peek-a-boo to make Piggy drop both his dummies and then distract him from his feelings of loss. Another lovely and sensitive story in the Ducky and Piggy series.
The Little Rabbit Who Liked to Say Moo
by Jonathan Allen
Boxer Books, hardback £11.99
Rabbit moos because he likes the sound. Calf hears him and the two discover that they both like to 'baa'. Lamb hears them and the three decide to 'oink'. Piglet hears them and the four agree that 'hee-haw' is a good sound, and so it goes until eventually, they agree that they like their own noise best. Except for Rabbit, that is - his favourite sound is 'WOOF'.
The language and format of this story are as old as children's tales themselves, but it is still a winning combination and one that children never tire of, offering great opportunities for storytelling and for children to moo and baa and quack all the way through.
The Very Greedy Bee
written by Steve Smallman and illustrated by Jack Tickle
Little Tiger Press, £5.99
Teamwork should be the name of the game for industrious bees, but this greedy little bee won't share his nectar with anyone. Faced with a meadow full of juicy flowers, he munches his way through so many that he becomes too fat to fly. Only with the kindness of some fireflies he meets does he find his way home to the hive and learn his lesson.
