BOBBY'S ZOO

BOBBY'S ZOO is a cute little practice reader that is at the first grade reading level. 

Bobby looks pretty worried here.

The story is about a little boy whose house is full of animals.   And, as you can see from the cover,  Bobby looks pretty concerned about this.  The animals, however, are happy and young readers are shown all the goofy activities they are up to.

Here's a drawing of Bobby's dog begging for a
lick of ice cream from a penguin.

The coups de grâce comes when Bobby solves his problem... by opening his own private zoo!

Animals shown are:  lion, kangaroo, elephant, seal, hippo, giraffe, camel, snake, penguin, bears, parrot, mouse, zebra, tiger, and of course, Bobby's pup.

That's a nice collection of words for young readers.  The full vocabulary list follows in the next image.

BOBBIE'S ZOO is good little practice reader.  Tom Dunnington's artwork is great --he drew for Children's Highlights magazine-- and if children are stuck on a word, they only need to look at his drawings to get a hint.

This book can also do double-duty if you have younger children as there are many animals and objects that you can point to and name.

Pam~


BOBBY'S ZOO
(Rookie Reader)
by Carolyn Lunn
Illustrations by Tom Dunnington


Reading Information:
Word Count:     100
Page Count:  32
Accelerated Reading level: 1.1 / points: 0.5
AR quiz:  9304

The Three Bears by Margaret Hillert

I love! Margaret Hillert's books. The reason I'm so enthusiastic about them is that her books tell complete stories and that gives children a real sense of accomplishment when they can read them from beginning to end.


"The Three Bears" is a wonderful choice for new readers. Using just 206 words total (45 individual words) Margaret manages to tell the story amazingly well.

"Here is something.
Red, yellow, and blue.
One is big.
One is little.

Here is one for me."

This is a pattern for Goldilocks and the porridge and chairs and beds. It's got the repetition the beginners need, and yet it makes perfect sense story-wise.

I read many books from her series with my children and I highly recommend them.

THE TECHNICAL BITS:::
45 unique words

The toughest words are: yellow, something, and friend. The rest can be found in the standard Margaret Hillert list (hover here).

Pam
Somewhere in the X-burbs

The Three Bears

• Accelerated Reading level : .06
  
• Library Binding: 30 pages
• Publisher: Norwood House Press; Rev Exp edition (January 15, 2006)
• ISBN-10: 1599530260
• Take-a-Peek-Inside
  

I Like Things by Margaret Hillert

Well, if you've been looking at Margaret Hillert primers, you're probably tired of hearing about me gush about how great her little books are. But they really are good.

"I Like Things" is a fine example of one book that can be tied into other projects. It's a story about a little boy and 'collections'. It starts out which him playing with buttons. He sorts them by color and size and shape and finally makes a necklace out of them for his mother.

I like things.
Big things.
Little things.
Red and yellow
and blue things.

Look here.
Look here.
Here is something I like.
Something pretty.

Look what I can do.
Red, blue, yellow.
I can do it this way.
This is fun.

Following this he looks at a stamp collection with his father.

Oh, look.
Here are good ones.
Good ones for my book.

It is fun to do this,
but I have to work at it.
I find out things, too.
I like to do it.


More types of collecting follow -- shells, rocks, trading cards -- which makes this a very 'rich' book to have in the library because it can be tied in to so many activities. Children can be motivated to start collections --fall leaves, buttons, etc. -- and with all the sorting this book can be mixed in with a math exercise.

THE TECHNICAL BITS:::
64 unique words

The toughest words are: yellow, something, and friend. The rest can be found in the standard Margaret Hillert list (hover here).

Highly Recommend

Pam
Somewhere in the X-burbs

I Like Things

• Accelerated Reading level : 1.0
  
• Paperback: 31 pages
• Publisher: Modern Curriculum Press (January 1981)
• ISBN-10: 0813656028

I Ain't Gonna Paint No More! by Karen Beaumont

The Rousing Chorus of the Rebel Painter!

Paint and children seem to be drawn to each other, and eventually the paints wander off the paper and brush and onto the children themselves. In this energetic picture book, we meet an extreme young painter whose canvas is his own body--much to the dismay of his mother. Sung to the tune of "It Ain't Gonna Rain No More", this book is homage to the rebel painter in all of us.

So our painter starts the book banned from painting by his mother after he's managed to get paint everywhere. Thus "ya ain't a-gonna paint no more!" And our youngster has the best of intentions, but just can't help himself. He finds his paints and begins to paint his entire body, bit by bit. Children can join in guessing what body part he's painting by how it rhymes with the preceding text, and they'll be able to join in the chorus very quickly. By the end of the book, the child is just about to paint a rather . . . questionable area of his body, when his mother comes home. And thus, our painter winds up back in the bathtub where he began the story.

The text is cute and the story is fun, but what really makes this book stand out is Catrow's artwork. Everything but the paints and the things the boy paints in the story is drawn in sparse grey and black pencil, with few exceptions. For the most part the background and the characters are depicted without any color added. This makes the increasing amount of color on the page very noticeable indeed The page starts off mostly white and bare, and quickly becomes alive with color as the artist goes to work dripping his paints with joy and delight and no worries of the consequences. He gets more elaborate in his decoration as he paints his body, decking his arms with ants, his hand with a smiley face, his leg to look like an Easter egg. By the very end, the visual cues show that the boy's lost all inhibitions in his work and is like some mad hatter of a painter, spraying color everywhere. And then the mother walks in, a stark contrast in her black and white, and clearly the end of such misbehavior. The artwork makes this book hilarious fun for a read aloud, and makes children of all ages itch to grab their paints.


Some parents may not like this book. I can't exactly say I blame them, since clearly our main protagonist is out of control with his painting. They may not want to encourage this kind of behavior in their own children, especially if their child's artistic expression is already exceeding boundaries. Still, I think that this is a worthwhile book, especially if you discuss with the children where paint is supposed to go. Most will agree that you aren't supposed to paint yourself! I won't guarantee there won't be a few experimenters, but that might be a reason to get some soap crayons or body paints that are washable just for that purpose.

For other entertaining story/song picture books, check out The Seals on the Bus by Lenny Hort, Five Little Monkeys Jumping on the Bed by Eileen Christelow and Down By the Station by Will Hillenbrand (our reviews).

Happy Reading! ^_^ Shanshad

I Ain't Gonna Paint No More!

• Accelerated Reading level : generic "2"
  
• Hardcover: 32 pages
• Publisher: Harcourt Children's Books (April 1, 2005)
• ISBN-10: 0152024883
• See-a-Sample
  

Detective Dinosaur (I Can Read Book 2) by James Skofield, Illus. by R.W. Alley

This is one of those books that is a bit silly (Picture Inspector Clouseau as a dinosaur talking to second graders), but at the same time also teaches in a mellow and fun way. This is a collection of three "detective stories" featuring Officer Pterodactyle, Chief Tyrannosaurus and Deputy Diplodocus. The setting is probably London at the turn of the century.

The three cases which must be solved are:

• The Case of the Missing Hat
• The Case of the Squeaking Shoe
• Night Patrol

We have three rather silly dinosaur police officers...again I am put in the mind of either Inspector Clouseau with a mixture of the Keystone Cops...trying to solve some pretty silly cases. As has been pointed out, the jokes here are pretty well worn, but for fresh ears they are quite cute and funny.

Now children of this age probably already know more dinosaur names than you or me, but the author has done a wonderful job of providing a pronunciation guide which is a no miss guide, and a good spelling guide. The kids seem to delight in pronouncing these names and that is one of the strengths of this work.

The illustrations are cute, funny and skillfully executed with plenty of mellow color. While the situations our not so able officers encounter are pretty obvious, they never the less tickle the funny bone of most children and will bring a smile or smirk to the most jaded of adult readers. The details in the illustrations are quite detailed, not only of the officers, but also the background and clothing.

Now this is not a work that I would necessarily put at the top of my "to purchase list" but it is certainly one that is worth checking out from the local library, or if available, purchasing at a nice used book store.

The text is smooth, easy to read and accompanied with the wonderful illustrations the story is well told at a level that a first or second grader can well understand and appreciate. This is also an excellent book to start the transition to chapter books for the little ones.

I like this work and do recommend it.

Don Blankenship
The Ozarks

Detective Dinosaur (I Can Read Book 2)

• Accelerated Reading level : 2.8
  
• Paperback: 48 pages
• Publisher: HarperCollins (January 17, 1998)
• ISBN-10: 0064442357

The New Kid by Susan Hood

We like these "Real Kids Readers" by Millbrook Press. Their Level 1's really seem to be at the right level for beginners (whereas some other publisher's Level 1's seem like they were written for 2nd graders).

This particular book -- The New Kid -- has pictures that span two pages. On alternating pages there are two short sentences. The vocabulary is fairly simple with words like: one, class, fall, Miss, and grin. (See below for an example of text.)

He sits down with me,
with Bess, and with Lee.

The new boy is Sid.
He is silly, that kid!

What is nice about "The New Kid" is that there is actually a story. (Some readers don't have much in the way of plotline.) The presence of a story and the large, fun, photographs that show adults and children with exaggerated expressions makes this a good choice for beginning readers who still might need the occasional visual clue.


Talking Points:::
Good practice material. This book has rhyme and a plot.

Pam
Somewhere in the X-burbs

The New Kid (Real Kids Readers, Level 1)

Accelerated Reading level : .09

• Paperback: 32 pages
• Publisher: Millbrook Press (September 1, 1998)
• ISBN-10: 0761320393
• See-a-Sample
• 

Related posts for books for newbie readers:

Seuss for Noobie Readers
The Lion and the Mouse
Pigs Make Me Sneeze

The Tortoise and the Hare by Betty Miles

This little Ready-to-Read book tells the classic story of the tortoise and the hare. (If you aren't familiar with the tale, here's the Wikipedia entry.)

The book is a primer and Betty Miles does a nice job of simplifying the story so that the message is still clear, even to very young readers. The sentences are short and there is plenty of repetition so new readers get plenty of easy practice that will build their skills and confidence.

Here's a sample of what you'll find:

Hey! Look at me!
Look at me run.

I can run faster than you, Squirrel.
Faster than you, Fox.

Faster than you, Bear.
Faster than you, Mouse.
I can run faster than anyone.

As for as artwork, Paul Meisel's illustrations are kid-friendly and appealing.

Considerations:::
All-in-all this book is good choice for a primer as it provides a message as well as reading practice.

The publisher describes this book as one for children who are "Starting to Read". The Accelerated Reading folks are more precise and have determined that this version of The Tortoise and the Hare is at the 1.0 level. Essentially it is a book meant for entering first graders.

The book is a Good Read-aloud version of the classic story. Consider getting it at the library or for the home shelves if there is hand-me-down potential.

The Butter Battle Book by Dr. Seuss

Well, this is the Seuss book that riles the feathers of some adults. It's got a definite anti-war theme and deals with the consequences of a military arms escalation.

Who's at war? It's the Yooks and the Zooks. Essentially the same sorts of people, they clash over whether bread should be eaten butter side up or down. The story is told from a little boys (?) perspective and is the only Seuss book I can recall that ends on an ominous note.

"Grandpa!" I shouted. "Be careful! Oh gee!
Who's going to drop it?
Will you...? Or will he..."
"Be patient," said Grandpa. "We'll see.
We will see..."

It's hard to say whether kids pick up on these various messages. My own impression is that they won't, unless you sit and have a chat with them. They will be far too busy listing to the clever rhymes and gazing at the wild Seussian artwork.

Meant for practice reading, the Accelerated Reading designation for "The Butter Battle Book" is 3.9 which means that end of year 3rd Graders should be able to read this book themselves without getting too frustrated by words they don't know.

The "Official" Interest Level is given as Preschool thru 2nd Grade, but that makes no sense given the reading level. And personally, I would say that it's more appropriate for First thru Fourth Graders.

My own two children showed moderate interest in the book and they are currently 6 and 8; boy and girl. They requested multiple reads and the book is a pretty good read-aloud. Not amongst Seuss' best, in my opinion. It IS definitely worth a read.

Considerations :::
The Butter Battle Book has an Accelerated Reading (AR) designation of 4.6 which means that the average 4th Grader in the 6th month of school should be able to read it without getting frustrated by the vocabulary. It can be read aloud to any age.

Awards: New York Times Notable Book of the Year

HUMBUG RABBIT by Lorna Balian

Lorna Balian is, in my opinion, one of the best writers and illustrators of children’s books we have. She is extremely prolific, and each book she creates in a little jewel within itself. Humbug Rabbit, of all her books, is my favorite. Even though this work presents itself and is perceived as an Easter Story, it is so much more, and can be read year around and still be enjoyed by all.

This particular work, Humbug Rabbit is actually two stories in one. We have the “top story” of a Granny getting ready to color Easter Eggs for her grandchildren when they visit on Easter morning. Secondly, we have the “bottom story” of a family of rabbits who live under Granny’s house, and I mean way under, getting ready for Easter. The children in the family of rabbits are convinced that their father is actually the Easter Bunny, and talk and deny as he may, he cannot convince his family differently.

This is a sweat story, but, just as importantly, it is a well told story and the author’s keen sense of humor shines through on each and every page. You, the adult, will actually find yourself laughing out loud. This is a story that not only will the children love, and they do love it, but it is one that adults can appreciate also. It is very, very well crafted. There is a myriad of characters; Granny, the rabbit family, a “devilish cat,” a mouse, (good grief, don’t forget the mouse!), chickens and (now this is important) the actual Easter Eggs!

Even though the story is well written and an absolute delight, it almost holds a secondary position to the wonderful illustrations by Lorna Balian. She has used a rather unique method of telling two tales in one and illustrating it as such. As the story unfolds telling of Granny and the chickens, et al on top of the ground, the bottom half of each page tells the story of the rabbits in their underground home under Granny’s house. The two stories run parallel. I cannot say enough about the art work in this one. At first glance one might feel that the illustrations are simple…no, no, no! With each reading of this work you will find more and more details here and there that you did not see in previous readings. Small birds, nests, rocks, roots, decorations, old buildings, critters, and yes, eggs! Each picture, and these pictures cover two pages, is executed perfectly and the artist has done wonder with colors and blends. Even though these are illustrations for children, the reader has a feel that they are actually a part of the two world represented here. It just does not get better than this!

This work has been kid, parent, grandparent and teacher tested since at least 1974 and is still around and still enjoyed as much today as when it was first published. Endorsements do not get much better than this. If you buy one book for your child this year, I do recommend that you give close thought to making this one that one. This work is suitable for those children between the ages of three and 101.

Considerations :::
The Accelerated Reading (ATOS) level for this book is 3.3 which means that it is a practice reader for the average 3rd Grader in the 3rd month of school. Humbug Rabbit may be read to anyone. (Teachers and school librarians can help assess what level children are comfortable reading at.)

Back to School is Cool! by Jim Jinkins

We borrowed this book from the library and my son (6 years old) loves it. In fact, he drags it to bed every night so we can read it, and he drags it downstairs every morning so he can look at it before school -- and I don't know of a better recommendation than that.

If you aren't already familiar with the television series and books, you should know that the principal characters are Pinky, her little brother Tyler, “Mr. Guinea Pig” (the family pet), and the 'word of the day'. I say the-word-of-the-day is a character because a big deal is made about introducing this word, and a lot of hoopla ensues whenever the word is used. On the television series there's a dramatic pause and ta-da horns are blown. In the book attention and fun is created by the use of funky large print.

As a mom, I love the party atmosphere and the effort that is made to make large-and-impressive words understandable and less intimidating. And I've found that my two kids absorb the definitions and begin using those words pretty quickly.

In “Back to School Is Cool”, Tyler is 'apprehensive' about his first day at school. To demonstrate that all the newness of school is nothing to worry about, Pinky tells Tyler a story about the worst school day imaginable. One where it's Picture Day and everyone has 'bad hair'. Pinky shows Tyler how she and her school mates worked past their apprehension, and how that led them to have a good day. And that he can do the same.

RATING ::: Extremely Good
This book is fun and educational. (Whoo-hoo!) Good Read-Aloud. The artwork is a combination of colorful drawings and pictures, with conversation bubbles and a variety of fonts that 'keep it lively'!

AR (Accelerated Reading/ATOS) level is 2.9