Mary and Her Little Lamb

Traditional Literature

Who would of guessed the poem "Mary had a Little Lamb" is a true story! This book is about a girl named Mary who nurses a baby lamb back to health. The lamb follows her everywhere, even to school! Mary's teacher Mr.Roulstone is so amused by the lamb that he writes down the famous poem for her on a piece of paper, and thus the song is created. This book offers beautiful illustrations and would be great to open up a lesson on poetry!

Title: Mary and Her Little Lamb
Author/Illustrator: Will Moses
Publisher/Date: Philomel Books 2011
ISBN: 978-0-399-25154-2
Rating: 4 out of 5

The Boy Who Cried Wolf

Traditional Literature

A young shepherd boy, bored of his shepherding duties, decided to teach the sheep some new tricks. When this fails to provoke any kind of fun, he makes up a lie that a wolf is after his sheep. The village people come to his aid, but find no wolf in sight. When the wolfs finally come, will the townspeople believe him? This timeless fable tells the moral about how if you are labeled a liar, no one will actually believe you when you tell the truth. Cleverly told in picture book format, Hennessy use of repetitive words helps emergent readers. I would give this a 5 out of 5.

Title: The Boy Who Cried Wolf
Author: B.G. Hennessy
Illustrator: Boris Kulikov
Publisher/Date: Simon & Schuster 2006
ISBN: 0-689-87433-2
Rating: 5 out of 5

Who Will Be My Friends?

Beginning Readers

Freddy is a new kid in town and is looking to make some friends. He likes his new house and finds the mailman and police officer to be friendly, but too busy to play. It's not until Freddy goes to the park to play ball when he meets some kids his age playing too! It tells a cute story and uses fundamentals like repetitive phrases to help beginning readers, especially preschool-grade 1. This would be a great find for a child that may be experiencing a move and the awkwardness that comes with making friends at first!

Title: Who Will Be My Friends?
Author/Illustrator: Syd Hoff
Publisher/Date: HarperCollins 1985
ISBN: 0-06-444072-9
Rating: 4 out of 5

The 100th Day of School

Beginning Readers

This book is all about the fun that children get to have on their 100th day of school. They count to 100, learn 100 words for a spelling bee, draw a snake 100 inches long, and so on! I really enjoyed this book because it rhymed and incorporated the aspect of math and counting, which will help children at this age learn. Particularly great choice for, what else, but the 100th day of school for children especially kindergarten-grade 2.


Title: The 100th Day of School
Author: Angela Shelf Medearis
Illustrator: Joan Holub
Publisher/Date: Cartwheel Books 1996
ISBN: 0-590-25944-X
Rating: 5 out of 5

Oliver

Beginning Readers

Oliver's dream of becoming a dancing elephant comes to a halt when the circus owner says that he doesn't need any more elephants. So he wanders the streets asking to be in the zoo, a house pet, and a slide for the children at the local park. Just when he thought he had no purpose, someone in the distant notices his dancing and his dream comes true! The story is very simple and the illustrations add to the text. This charming elephant would be a perfect fit for any beginning reader, especially preschool-grade 1.

Title: Oliver
Author/Illustrator: Syd Hoff
Publisher/Date: HarperCollins 2000
ISBN: 0-06-444272-1
Rating: 3 out of 5

Mama Says: A Book of Love for Mothers and Sons

Picture Books

Mothers from all around the world with different cultures share one thing in common- love for their sons. On every page is a mother and son from a different ethnic background, teaching a lesson, and has the corresponding language of the character in the illustration. The illustrations themselves are breathtaking- full of color and really represent the style of that particular culture. There are two pictures depicted on every page, one with the mother and son doing various things together and one with the mother looking on as the boy does the lesson that the mother is trying to teach. This would be a great book to teach children about different cultures, therefore I would give it a 5 out of 5.

Title: Mama Says: A Book of Love for Mothers and Sons
Author: Rob D. Walker
Illustrator: Leo & Diane Dillon
Publisher/Date: Blue Sky Press 2009
ISBN: 0-439-93208-4
Rating: 5 out of 5

Grandfather's Journey

Picture Books

This Caldecott gold medal winner is a bittersweet story about Say's grandfather longing for both his village of Japan and his new home in California. It is symbolic of a child's love for their grandparents and how they too share similar experiences as they grow up. The illustrations are done in watercolor and truly capture the audience. I feel as though this story would be better appreciated by older children or adults. I would rate it a 3 out of 5.

Title: Grandfather's Journey
Author/Illustrator: Allen Say
Publisher/Date: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt 1993
ISBN: 0-395-57035-2
Rating: 3 out of 5