Blue Wolf Reviews

Tag: counting

  • These Little Feet

    These Little Feet

    Love, hope and pure joy exude from this story, These Little Feet. It is the desires of new parents who look at their newborn child and imagine the life he or she may have. The story lends itself to being read to the youngest child, who would be touched and shown hands, feet, eyes, and a mouth. It is a celebration of all that is wonderful about a new life being shared.

    The rhyming text is perfect for a bedtime story and the repetition of words creates a soporific effect. The author uses the figures of a mother, a grandmother, a father, and people from different cultures to show the love for their newborn baby. They imagine the places the baby’s feet will travel, the things their hands will hold, the visions their eyes will see and the things they will hear.

    The author has cleverly shown the body parts being touched by a parent and induces the copying of that movement for the reader. The montage of photos on the last page shows the different phases of growth of a child who is surrounded by loving family and friends. While the text is simple rhyme, the illustrations add colour and meaning.

    These Little Feet is a wonderful book for anyone to read.

  • Found in Sydney

    Found in Sydney

    As the title suggests, Found in Sydney is a counting book set in Sydney. It would make a great gift for a child who lived overseas, a terrific addition to any school library, or for a family going to visit Sydney. The focus is not on the numerals, but the landscape, so to begin we have a harbour side scene with 1 aeroplane coming in to land.

    Each page shows a specific place in Sydney; Taronga Zoo, Manly Beach, Bondi Beach and the Art Gallery of New South Wales, are just some of the double page spreads captured here. For each number, animals or objects are shown and the rhyming lines encourage children to count the named koalas or buildings. Interestingly, after the number 12 comes the number 100, then 1000, then a million. Wow!

    Joanne O’Callaghan obviously has a great love of Sydney and Kori Song has once again added vibrant illustrations to keep small children entertained while they count all the things they find.

    There is a reference in the front to the Dharug People who were the original inhabitants of the area. A map shows where some of the clans lived, and we are asked to “Please tread softly on our ancient land because our dreaming is forever.”

    At the back of the book there is a map of Sydney and surrounds naming all the places illustrated. It would be a great guide for a family who wished to visit this capital city, or for the curious.

  • 1, 2, BOO! A Spooky Counting Book

    1, 2, BOO! A Spooky Counting Book

    What a terrific idea to create a Spooky counting book for little ones just learning to count, for a time of year which is both a huge amount of fun and a little bit spooky as well. Naturally, as it is Halloween!

    In this hard cover, hard page book, perfect for very little people who love books, this will be a great fun read and the colourful illustrations with fun characters, join in teaching your little one how to count, along with some very spooky friends.

    We went trick or treating, with two children dressed in Halloween costumes, commences what can almost be read as a bit of a rhyme, as a well as for counting the scary wolf, or the dancing skeletons, along with boogie kings and creepy spiders.

    Bats need to have a rest in the adventure, because after all they do tend to swoop around, getting very tired and witches’ cats are definitely looking for some fun to be had. What do you think, they might think, having fun is all about?

    Bright, cheerful, funny and very interactive for your children 1, 2, Boo will make this Halloween a whole lot more spooky fun in your house.

  • Warthog

    Warthog

    ‘A warthog went a wandering’, but what he finds on his wanderings turns out to be so many wonderful things that he simply has to count each one as he goes around and about.

    He finds one scoop of yummy, runny honey which of course comes with some bees. When he gets to the pool he sees three, round, smooth pebbles which turn out to be something a little more than just pebbles.

    And so the wonderful, mystical journey continues until he finds a cave with something hiding there that makes him run, ever so quickly, home.

    Each page in this wonderful, colourful story is filled with a host of fascinating things to keep small people amused and captivated as they join Warthog on his journey as he counts the many interesting and intriguing things he discovers on his day out.

    As each number is found it comes with a cunningly disguised flap that little fingers will itch to fold back in order to discover just what is underneath each stone, behind the flowers, or behind the bushes.

    The end page in the book has each of the numbers clearly shown with the groupings of butterflies, monkeys and other characters discovered on the journey which adds a lovely touch to the conclusion of the story.

    Counting and number recognition as well as learning to count out numbers has been delightfully undertaken with this vibrant, fun tale about a little warthog out enjoying the day.

    Children and adults alike will enjoy the story and both will delight in discovering just what lies, cunningly hidden under the flap!