Tippy-toes, Let's Go!

Recommended for toddler-kindergarten

     I chose two books to read to my preschoolers because they both had “tippy-toe” in the title and admittedly, they both looked like cute books.  One was, Where is Tippy Toes? by Betsy Lewin, illustrator of Click, Clack, Moo fame and the other was Tippy-Toe, Chick, Go! by George Shannon.  Little did I realize how much my preschoolers would love Where is Tippy Toes?  And what’s not to like—rhyming text, big and bold, colorful illustrations, that are die cut, allowing the students to make inferences as to where they think the cat is hiding or what he mischief he is about to get into.  I asked them where they thought the cat was and they loved providing the answer. 

     Of course, I have to include a “kids say the darndest things” moment since one of my preschoolers asked me why I cut up the book.  Ha!  They all sat and listened to the book and even requested that it be read again.

     Tippy-Toe Chick, Go! by George Shannon has bright, but soft, with water color illustrations.  This story features a mother hen and her three chicks trying to get to the garden to eat their favorite snack (you’ll get an “ewwww” at the mention of potato bugs).  The only problem is that a dog stands in their way and his bark (a repetitive “Ruff-Ruff-Ruff-Ruff-Ruff!”) throughout the book scares off Hen, Big Chick, and Middle Chick.  But what about Little Chick, with her tippy-toe running?  Can she save the day?

     Two good stories, that provide a learning experience, yet are short enough that they can keep attention and be read back to back.

Lewin, B. (2010). Where is tippy-toes? New York, NY: Atheneum Books.

Shannon, G. (2003). Tippy-toe chick, go! New York, NY: Greenwillow Books.

Just Keep Walking Along

Recommended for grades PreK-2nd

If you have or educate preschoolers, kindergartners, 1^st or 2^nd graders and you don’t have the following lyrics stuck in your head, then you better listen up:

“I love my white shoes, I love my white shoes, I love my white shoes!”

That simple chorus is the hottest craze with the younger students at my school currently.  The rhythmic repetition, the singing, and the change up of one single word in the chorus have all the students nodding their heads and singing along.  The genius author behind this book, Eric Litwin, manages to teach students inference, colors, and self-control by counting with fingers the number of times one sings the chorus—1, 2, 3!. 

The picturebook is all about color and the illustrator, James Dean, does a wonderful job making each page POP.  Pete the Cat is just walking along when “Oh no!” he steps in piles of strawberries, blueberries, mud, etc. and finds his white shoes have changed colors.  Pete doesn’t get upset; instead he “kept walking along and singing his song.”  Litwin explicitly tells the audience the moral of the story, which also happens to be one of my best friend’s catch phrases, “It’s all good!”

And I’m also super excited because Eric Litwin and James Dean are coming to my school to perform for my students!  Hip-hip-HOORAY!  That’ll be a mighty fine day!

Did I mention they have a new Pete the Cat book?—Rocking in My School Shoes.  Visit the publisher’s website to download the songs and other activities associated with Pete the Cat. 

 

Litwin, E. (2010). Pete the cat: i love my white shoes. New York, NY: HarperCollins.

                (2011). Pete the cat: rocking in my school shoes. New York, NY: HarperCollins.

“Moo”ve Over Dr. Seuss

Recommended for grades PreK-1

From the author of Cloudy With A Chance of Meatballs

Judi Barrett combines numbers, rhyming, and animals in this colorfully illustrated story, I Knew Two Who Said Moo. Silliness takes over from the very beginning, with an elephant lying “on a toasted bun…playing the accordion…” Barrett makes sure that the rhyming words are in a different color from the rest of the text making them more readily identifiable. Sometimes she might get a little carried away with the rhyming, but at the same time it works because it adds to the humor of the book. We also have to remember that this is from the author who made it rain French toast with syrup.

The illustrations are brightly colored and mirror the text, making this a good choice for read aloud. In fact, kids can guess what the rhyming words are based on the numbers (the selected words rhyme with the featured number) and the clues in the illustrations. This book integrates language arts and math concepts very well.

Barrett, J. (2003). I knew two who said moo. New York, NY: Atheneum.