Early Book Review: Five Hiding Ostriches by Barbara Barbieri McGrath

Five Hiding Ostriches by Barbara Barbieri McGrath is currently scheduled for release on August 9 2022. Count five fast ostriches as they flee—and hide—from a lurking lion in this playful, rhyming twist on an early concepts counting book! Five ostriches run, stomp, and hide from a sneaky lion. But a surprise ending reveals that the lion is only trying to play hide-and-seek! The back of the book includes five fun facts about ostriches and an idea for a game that will inspire your little readers to get moving, too.

Five Hiding Ostriches is a fun and charmingly illustrated picturebook. I love the playfulness of it, and that information about ostriches is included in the book as well. I think the book does a good job of supporting the teaching of counting skills, entertaining readers, and encouraging further activities. This is a well rounded and engaging book that will stand up to repeat readings. 

Book Review: Skeletitos: Make Every Moment Count by Susie Jaramillo

Skeletitos: Make Every Moment Count by Susie Jaramillo is a children's picturebook that reinforces time and counting lessons with fun rhymes. The Day of the Dead themed tales carry a comedic twist for kids, encouraging them to be wary, conscious, funny and self-aware.

Skeletitos: Make Every Moment Count is a beautifully illustrated picturebook. I love that the counting rhymes are memorable and simple. The fold out pages that offer a full illustration of the rhymes are lovely and I could spend my time simply exploring these pages. The details and attitude that shine through the pages is charming.  I think that the song was simple, in the very best way, and when paired with the artwork offers an engaging book. I love that those that wish to explore further there is an app and website that allow readers to hear the song in english and spanish and continue learning with related activities.

Early Book Review: One House by Sarah MacNeill

One House is a board book by Sarah MacNeill that is currently scheduled for release on September 25 2018. Crabs with clipboards and bears who build are some of the animals who come together to build a new home for their friend. Plans are drafted, holes are dug, and construction begins!

One House is a rhyming board book with counting and bright, bold illustrations to hold the attention of the youngest readers. The illustrations are fun, with a hidden heart on each page. Not only does it reinforce counting skills, but it only touches on friendship and helping each other or working with friends toward a common goal. A sweet, bright board book that might be just the right choice for sharing with your youngest book lovers. 

Early Book Review: Outdoor Math: Fun Activities for Every Season by Emma AdBage

Outdoor Math: Fun Activities for Every Season by Emma AdBage is a book that helps parents, teachers, and children to find ways to get outside and do some math at the same time. It is currently scheduled for release on April 1 2016. The book includes twenty-two outdoor activities, organized by season. With these activities, children will learn about numeracy and arithmetic, as well as math concepts such as shapes, time, greater/less than, even and odd numbers, patterns and grids. The activities have simple-to-follow instructions and are accompanied by adorable illustrations that provide clear visual demonstrations. The natural materials required (stones, pinecones, snowballs, worms) are easy to find in many environments. Supplementary spreads introduce the numbers 1 to 10 and further explore addition/subtraction and multiplication/division, with simplified explanations and illustrated examples. There are also science lessons here, regarding the properties of nature and how things change during the four seasons. Many of the activities can be done in pairs or groups, promoting teamwork and cooperation. A list of activities in the back matter indexes the activities and categorizes them by the math skills they develop.

Outdoor Math is full of pictures and detailed instructions and suggestions for engaging children in games that can help solidify math concepts. There are some very simple games and activities for the youngest learners such as working with shapes, there were more advanced activities that included multiplication and division. I think some of the games and pictures seemed a little dated to me, like the guides my teachers and parents had when I was a kid, the ideas are still sound and would be engaging for the right children. I did like that there was a good variety of games to chose from, and some for every season. It is a useful book, one that would be a good resource to have on hand or for checking out of the library and making copies of the activities you are most likely to implement with your own children or the group you work with or care for.

Outdoor Math is a great resource for parents and teachers to have at their disposal. Using these activities they can help teach or reinforce math lesson, all while having the children playing outside and active. A win-win as far as I am concerned. 

Book Review: Have You Seen my Dragon by Steve Light

Have You Seen my Dragon by Steve Light is a picturebook that explores counting and numbers along with the fun of a search and find. In the city a small boy is searching for his friend. Readers of all ages spot the glorious beast along with a variety of big-city icons they can count. Is the dragon taking the crosstown bus, or breathing his fiery breath below a busy street? Maybe he took a taxi to the zoo or is playing with the dogs in the park. 

Have You Seen my Dragon has lovely pen and ink illustrations which results in a stylized blend of black and white page with pops of color. Searching for the dragon invites young readers to count to twenty as we spot the dragon hiding (not very well for the most part) in the daily finds of city life. I really loved the detailed artwork, and both my children could spend significant time enjoying this book. The lines and hidden details really made me smile, as did the fun counting and antics of the dragon. This book is well worth a look for the artwork alone, but it just might trick some reluctant counters to get some practice in.