Toddler/Pre- School Books Laura Alger LSIS 5505 Assignment #2 September 9, 2012

The early years and literacy…  Keifer states “Children cannot be introduced to books too soon” (p. 107), and “The young child who has the opportunity to hear and enjoy many stories is also beginning to learn to read” (p. 108).  Newman (1999) shares that “Early exposure to books and plenty of time for talk and enjoyment of the story appear, then to be key factors in the child’s acquisition of literacy” (as cited in Keifer, 2010, p. 108).  The following slides present 5 excellent children's books for toddlers and preschoolers; each book in a different category: 1. counting book, 2. picture book, 3. easy to read book, 4. bedtime book and 5. alphabet book.

1. Counting Book

1,2,3 To The Zoo Carle, E. (1982). 1, 2, 3 to the zoo. New York: Philomel Books. This book appeals to children because of the whimsical illustrations of Eric Carle. They will enjoy seeing more and more animals fill up the carts on the train, and then eventually all carts become empty once all the animals are frolicking in the zoo. It is fun for the children to find the little mouse on each page. Overall, this counting book is fun for kids to count each additional animal in the double page illustrations. This book requires no text, the story is told purely by the illustrations.

2. Picture Book

The Snowy Day  Keats, E. J. (1962). The snowy day. New York: Viking Press.  This wondrous story appeals to children because they can imagine adventure in a new blanket of snow. Children will like the calming illustrations of the simple snow scenes. Preschoolers will have fun seeing all the activities the boys is involved in: making footprints, snow angels, and a snow ball. A peaceful, magical picture book that young children will adore.

3. Rhyme book

Hop on Pop  Seuss,. (1963). Hop on Pop. New York: Beginner Books.  This book contains funny, simple, one syllable rhymes that preschoolers will find hilarious. The entertaining illustrations will captivate preschoolers and their imaginations. Confidence may increase as preschoolers use the wacky illustrations to decode the simple rhymes.  A classic that kids will love to read over and over, while being amused with rhymes and witty illustrations.

4. Bedtime story book

Goodnight Moon  Brown, M. W., & Hurd, C. (1947). Goodnight moon. New York: Harper & Brothers.  This classic bedtime book appeals to children because it presents a simple bedtime routine of a bunny saying good night to everyday items in his room. Children find it fun to locate the little white mouse hiding on most pages and noticing the changing details in illustrations. They like the predictability in the repetitive lines. This bedtime book is great to add to the bedtime routine very young children since the lulling poetry appears to be a good transition to bedtime.

5. Alphabet book

Chicka Chicka Boom Boom  Martin, B., Archambault, J., & Ehlert, L. (1989). Chicka chicka boom boom. New York: Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers.  This alphabet book appeals to young children because of the colorful, bold illustrations and the simple text. The repetitive words “Chicka Chicka Boom Boom!” is a line that kids can join in and say aloud during a re-reading. Children enjoy the fun, rhyming text and like watching the letters fall out of the tree. This is a book that most preschoolers like to read over and over. Children have fun while being exposed to upper and lower case letters.

My choice for exemplary book is…  Goodnight Moon. This book has been a loved classic since 1947 and has ‘stood the test of time!’ It has sold over 4 million copies, and makes several top 100 book lists and polls.  The details in the illustrations are wonderful: bunny’s eyes close only in the end, little mouse who hides in the illustrations eats the bowl of mush, and with each turn of the page the: clock’s hands move with each page, light becomes darker throughout the story, and moon rises a little more.  Personally, this book is dear to me as it was a nightly part of our family’s bedtime routine. My daughter enjoyed the lulling, simple, repetitive text as a toddler, and sometimes still choses it to read at night as a 6 year old!  A comforting classic!

Resources: Seussville (n.d.) Retrieved from on September 6, The official Eric Carle website (n. d.) Retrieved from carle.com/home.html on September 2, carle.com/home.html Kennedy, E. (n. d.) Chicka Chicka boom boom. Retrieved at on September 5,  Kiefer, B. Z. (2010). Charlotte Huck’s Children’s Literature, 10 th ed. New York: McGraw-Hill.  Online Computer Library Center, Inc. (n. d.). WorldCat library items search. [Library catalog]. Retrieved from on September 4,  Amazon (n. d.). Retrieved from on September 3,  Goodnight Moon (2012). Wikipedia. Retrieved from on September 5,