The incomparable creative team behind We’re Going on a Bear Hunt reunite for a read-aloud comedy of misunderstandings that has all the hallmarks of a classic.
I went to the shop to get me a carrot. Oh dear! They gave me . . . . . . a parrot. Oh dear! Look what I got. Do I want that? No, I do NOT!
As a hapless boy goes from shop to shop, requesting a series of perfectly reasonable items—a hat, a coat, a cake, a chair—he finds himself thwarted at every turn, amassing instead a growing menagerie of animals who happily follow him on his errands. It’s not until he finally asks for a cup that he’s proffered a wriggly creature that solves his dilemma . . . or does it? Adding delicious momentum to Michael Rosen’s rhymes (and mastery of the page turn) are an expressive crew of animal characters rendered as only Helen Oxenbury can, making for a timeless story guaranteed to beg many repeat readings. Oh dear!---from the publisher
40 pages 978-1536235685 Ages 3-6
Keywords: shopping, misunderstandings, animals, fun, humor, rhyme, errands, 3 year old, 4 year old, 5 year old, 6 year old
*******
Serendipity has raised its head again. Yesterday it was a chain of events that led to a reading adventure, and today is it a FB memory of a 2017 conversation between some of the best teachers I have ever met because someone with a high profile but no professional knowledge was spruiking that Kindy kids should have a phonics test before they start school to determine their reading ability! Among the comments was this... " If we want our little ones to be readers they need to know the joy and wonder and fun they can have when they read or are being read to."
And lo and behold! Look what today's review is. Another instant classic from Michael Rosen and Helen Oxenbury , the team behind We're Going on a Bear Hunt and so many others. Because, unlike those others who need to get their faces on our screens, this couple do know what little ones like to read. They know it means recognisable characters doing relatable things touched with whimsy and humour; rhyme, rhythm and repetition that not only allow them to join in but predict what's going to happen; illustrations that lead the eye across the page and have cues and clues to help them tell their own story; and having an ending that makes them want to return to the beginning and read it again. And because of its riches they can even have a go by themselves, reinforcing their belief and expectation that they will be "real readers" one day.
"I went to the shop to get me a carrot. Oh dear, they gave me …. a parrot! Oh dear, look what I got! Do I want that? No I do NOT!"
And so it goes leaving lots of scope for them to ad lib and make up their own rhymes. Even the title sets the scene, because “Oh dear” suggests disappointment rather than expectation!
https://youtu.be/Ykx1Mw4CwAs?si=tynBQy-mc3ZjKaI4
Wonderful books like this do not need me to spruik their value in the reading development of our littlies. But they do need people like us to share them and share the joy of reading. Can't wait to take this to preschool!
This review can also be found here.
Recommended by: Barbara Braxton, Teacher Librarian, New South Wales AUSTRALIA
See more of her recommendations:
500 Hats http://500hats.edublogs.org/
The Bottom Shelf http://thebottomshelf.edublogs.org/
