November 1, 2023
PreS-Gr 1-Children will love this endearing series and learn much about some favorite animals. Information is presented via simply written sentences, generally one to three per page. A Table of Contents is a sophisticated element for this audience and, facing it in each volume is an alphabetical list of sight words found in the book. Each volume presents its featured animal's life stages, explaining growth, development, and body changes as the animal gets larger. New, boldfaced vocabulary is defined in the glossary and in context, with new words used as captions on photos: In the elephant volume, "herd" is the label on the photo of an elephant herd. The series includes excellent graphics, with "too cute" color close-ups on covers and throughout. In some full-page photos, arrows connect words to specific parts of images, e.g., in the elephant volume, an arrow points from the label "mom" to a photo of an elephant mom with her calf; other photo-arrow "connections" in that book are for "trunk" and for a calf "drinking milk." Large type and ample white space facilitate easy reading for young learners. Back matter includes pictures sharing more baby facts, a photo glossary, recommended resources for further learning, and an index. VERDICT Children will come away knowledgeable, charmed, and delighted. Highly recommended.
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