Jean Chandler

"The Poky Little Puppy's Counting Book" is a beginning reader's counting book. The book is structured as a board book that has been cut in a rounded shape around the puppy's profile. The smooth curving shape of the book is followed by the soft chalk like colors in the illustrations. Each page contains an Arabic number from 1 to 10 with a like number of a variety of animals to match the number. The cardinal number is included in the description of what the animals are doing on each page.

I feel the book is very appropriate for a source of introducing counting to a child. The size and shape of the book are welcoming in its curved shapes and soft colors. The animals used to demonstrate the number are all animals that would be familiar to an early reader.

In the classroom the children could be encouraged to find other objects to place in groups to match a number. Since the book is about animals and outdoor activities, the teacher could arrange a field trip into a local yard or play ground to see how many different items could be “counted”.… (mere)