48. Owl Babies by Martin Waddell

Bibliographic Citation:

Waddell, Martin. Owl Babies. Illustrated by Patrick Benson. Candlewick Press, 1996. 22 p. ISBN 978-1564029652. 

Awards/Selection Lists:

Format Examined:
Board book

Annotation:
Three little owls are left on their own while their mother goes in search of food.

Personal Reaction:
This book works through many emotions through a format that children can understand. When Owl Mother leaves the nest to search for food for her owl babies, the baby owls awaken to find that she is gone. The three owls work together to try to figure out where their other has gone, while also encouraging each other not to worry or be afraid. When all three begin to worry, they close their eyes, and wish Mother Owl would come home, and she does, which delivers a strong message to young children who worry about separation from their parents.

Age Recommendation:

I would recommend this book for children 18 months-3 years of age.

Themes/Issues:
Separation anxiety, trust, parent/child relationship, siblings 

Early Literacy Skill Value:

Letter Knowledge: 
Letter knowledge is not a direct focus of this book.

Narrative Skills: 
The opportunity for children to participate in the narration of this book is provided through modeling, as well as through familiarity of the repeated line, "I want my mommy!", which children may recite as it is recited repeatedly.

Phonological Awareness: 
Phonological awareness is not a direct focus of this book.

Print Awareness:
The text of this book is printed in varying pastel shades on the dark background of each page, calling attention to the text.

Print Motivation: 
This book makes a good choice for bedtime reading together, and also provides a positive lesson for children who may feel anxiety about separating from their parents. Children may choose this book for a parent to read again due to its positive message and cute owl illustrations.

Vocabulary:
The vocabulary in this book deals with the types of food that owls might eat, as well as descriptions of the owls' habitat in a tree in the forest.

Author/ Illustrator Website:
No official website

29. I Love You As Much... by Laura Krauss Melmed

Bibliographic Citation:

Krauss Melmed, Laura. I Love You As Much.... Illustrated by Henri Sorensen. New York, NY: Tupelo Books, 1993. 22 p. ISBN 978-0688159788.

Awards/Selection Lists:

None

Format Examined:
Board book

Annotation:

A mother expresses her love for her baby through rhyming text that compares her love to the love that different animal mothers have for their children. 

Personal Reaction:

Beautiful painted illustrations accompany a lullaby-type story that a mother shares with her baby as the baby drifts off to sleep. The text is written in rhyme that is poetry-like, and is accompanied by soft, painted illustrations that look like mini portraits on each page. This book makes a nice bedtime book for a parent to read to their child.

Age Recommendation:

I would recommend this book for children 12 months to 4 years of age.

Themes/Issues:

Bedtime, parent-child love, animals, motherhood

Early Literacy Skill Value:

Letter Knowledge: 
Letter knowledge is not a direct focus of this book.

Narrative Skills: 
Older children will be able to take part in naming the types of animals, and after hearing the story many times, should be able to help recite the rhyming text.

Phonological Awareness: 
The rhythm of the rhyming text supports phonological awareness.

Print Awareness:
The text is printed in spaces that do not take away from the illustrations; however, the font is also small, light, and ornate, making it more difficult for children to connect to the words of the story as they are read to them. 

Print Motivation: 
This book, with its sweet text and beautiful illustrations would be a book that children might choose over and over at bedtime. 

Vocabulary:
Vocabulary includes animal names, and words that each animal uses to describe their love. Young children may learn new words associated with each animal's description. 



Author/ Illustrator Website:
Author website: http://www.laurakraussmelmed.com/
No official illustrator website

28. Have You Seen My Duckling by Nancy Tafuri

Bibliographic Citation:
Tafuri, Nancy. Have You Seen My Duckling?. New York, NY: Greenwillow Books, 1996. 14 p. ISBN 978-0688148997. 

Awards/Selection Lists:
Caldecott Honor, 1985

Format Examined:
Board book

Annotation:

A mother duck thinks the she has lost one of her ducklings and searches around the pond for him. 

Personal Reaction:

The illustrations in this book are nostalgic in color and tone, which matches the familiar storyline well. The simple repetitive text on each page matches the illustrations to help tell the story. The lost duckling appears on each page; however, in the board book version of the book, he is sometimes difficult to see.

Age Recommendation:
I would recommend this book for children 2-5 years of age.

Themes/Issues:

Family, getting lost, pond animals

Early Literacy Skill Value:

Letter Knowledge: 
Letter knowledge is not a direct focus of this book. 

Narrative Skills: 
The repetitive text encourages young children to take part in telling the story.

Phonological Awareness: 
Phonological awareness is not a direct focus of this book.

Print Awareness:
The phrase, "Have you seen my duckling?", is repeated in a simple, black font  throughout the book, drawing attention to the text on the pages.

Print Motivation: 
The simplicity of the story work in conjunction with the colorful illustrations of different looking pond animals to hold the attention of young children. The book's heartfelt storyline is also one that will have young children wanting to read this book again and again.

Vocabulary:
The word "duckling" may be a new word for young children. Different types of birds that may also be unfamiliar are represented in the illustrations, which may be identified by the reader.



Author/ Illustrator Website:
www.nancytafuri.com 

27. It Looked Like Spilt Milk by Charles G. Shaw

Bibliographic Citation:
Shaw, Charles G. It Looked Like Spilt Milk. New York, NY: HarperFestival, 1993. 13 p. ISBN 978-0694004911.

Awards/Selection Lists:

None

Format Examined:
Board book

Annotation:

Something that "looked like spilt milk" changes into different shapes on each page of the book, until it is discovered to be a cloud. 

Personal Reaction:

This classic book combines repetition, prediction, and shape recognition in the form of simple white text and shapes printed on blue pages. The repeated line, "but it wasn't" leads from one possible shape into the next object until it is revealed to be a cloud. Children are invited into the narration of the story through making predictions about what the shape will become.   

Age Recommendation:
I would recommend this book for children 2-4 years of age.

Themes/Issues:

Shapes, repetition, prediction

Early Literacy Skill Value:

Letter Knowledge: 
Letter knowledge is not a direct focus of this book.

Narrative Skills: 
Children are encouraged to participate in the narration of the story through predicting shapes and what they think the white object on the page actually is.

Phonological Awareness: 
Phonological awareness is not a direct focus of this book.

Print Awareness:
The text is printed in a simple, white font with a dark blue background that calls attention to the words on the page as they connect to the illustrations.

Print Motivation: 
The simplicity of the text and illustrations make this a story that children will want to repeat, and even read on their own, as they learn the shapes represented in the book.

Vocabulary:
The vocabulary represented in the story is based on the different shapes represented by the "spilt milk". 

Author/ Illustrator Website:
http://charlesgreenshaw.com/

20. I Went Walking by Sue Williams

Bibliographic Citation:
Williams, Sue. I Went Walking. Illustrated by Julie Vivas. New York, NY: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Books, 1996. 30 p. ISBN   978-0152007717. 

Awards/Selection Lists:

1990 American Library Assn. Notable Children's Book

Format Examined:
Board book

Annotation:
A young child goes walking and sees various animals along the way in this rhyming book for young children.

Personal Reaction:
Rhyming text and colorful illustrations invite children to participate in this book through predicting which animals a young child will meet along the way during a walk. In the end, all of the animals appear together. Different colors are used to describe the animals, encouraging children to help describe each animal and its color.

Age Recommendation:
I would recommend this book for children 2-4 years of age.

Themes/Issues:
Animals, colors, prediction, repetition, rhyming 

Early Literacy Skill Value:

Letter Knowledge: 
Letter knowledge is not a direct focus of this book.

Narrative Skills: 
Children are encouraged to participate in the narration of the story through predicting animals that are described.

Phonological Awareness: 
Phonological awareness is not a direct focus of this book.

Print Awareness:
The words of the story appear in large, black print, accompanying the illustrations on each page. The words on the page foster print awareness through connecting directly to the illustrations on the page.

Print Motivation: 
Rhyming and repetition describe animals and invite children to predict animals. The predictable text creates a fun format which children will enjoy reading many times. As children become familiar with the text, they will be able to recite the words themselves.

Vocabulary:

Descriptive color words are incorporated into the story in a way that children have to focus to verbally put together with the animal names (such as "yellow dog", "red cow", green duck").

Author/ Illustrator Website:
No author website

No illustrator website