Let's Meet Farmer Jed (Board Book)

Mitter, M. (2008). Let's meet farmer Jed. Pleasantville, NY: Reader's Digest Children's Books. ISBN: 0-7944-1425-7

Interest Level: Ages 5 & under
Genre: Board Book
Subjects/Themes: Nutrition, Farms, Animals, Food

Plot: Follow Farmer Jed as he goes about his daily chores on the farm.  Learn about the different crops he grows and the different livestock he takes care of.  Each scene contains one of Farmer Jed's "Healthy Eating Tips" of food and nutrition.  The bright and colorful illustrations are modeled after Fisher-Price's "Little People" toys.  The different objects in the pictures are all labeled offering a sight word learning opportunity.

Personal Thoughts: So much nutrition information stuffed into such a small board book!  All the different labeled items provide one learning opportunity, Farmer Jed's descriptions of life on the farm another, and the healthy eating tips teach children about proper nutrition.  The healthy eating tips suggest things like eating breakfast every morning, drinking lots of water, and eating lots of fruits and vegetables.

Other Books by the Author: I'm going to eat you! (2006); The 100th day of school (2003); 1, 2, 3 counting rhymes (2004);

Caterpillar Dance (Book)

Grace, W. (2004). Caterpillar dance. New York, NY: Scholastic. ISBN: 0-439-59879-6

Interest Level: Ages 3 and under
Genre: Board Book
Subjects/Themes: Stories in Rhyme, Caterpillar, Butterfly, Colors, Counting

Plot: Follow five different colored caterpillars in a leaf bed as one by one they become beautiful butterflies.  The caterpillar's fuzzy bodies are raised from the page that encourage textile exploration.  Each butterfly has a holographic foil wings for an extra illustrated enjoyment.

Personal Thoughts: A simple board book.  The repeating phrases are perfect for the intended age level.  The caterpillar bodies and foil butterfly wings are a special touch.  The rest of the illustrations are brightly drawn using simple lines and colors.  Children are introduced to color names and the number five.  Nothing special about the book but nothing terrible either.  I like that its a board book in a bigger format which provides easier handling.

Other Books by the Author: The three little fish and the big bad shark (2007); Mike's Christmas (2002); Red train (2003); Who do you see: My first taggies book (2009)
Author Website

Baby Signs (Board Book)

Allen, J. (2007). Baby signs : a baby-sized guide to speaking with sign language. New York, NY: Dial Books for Young Readers. ISBN: 978-0-8037-3193-6

Interest Level: Ages 3 & under
Genre: Board Book
Subjects/Themes: Babies, Sign Lanuage, First Words

Plot: This board book introduces young babies and toddlers to 13 different signs for some everyday concepts.  Those signs are: Milk, Water, More, All done, Diaper, Dog, Cat, It hurts, Help me, Mommy, Daddy, Book, and Sleepy.  The book suggests introducing these concepts to a child as young as six months.

Personal Thoughts: This book has soft and colorful crayon illustrations that depict a baby performing the different hand signs.  On the bottom of the page, the phrase or word is given with a written description of how to perform the sign.  Next to that is a step-by-step illustration of the hand motion.  While some of the words/phrases are standards in a baby's vocabulary (Mommy, Daddy, Milk, Sleepy), some might not be so useful depending on the household (Dog, Cat) though they are fun to sign.

Other Books by the Author: Princess Party (2009)
Author's Blog: Joy Allen's Blog

Similar Items: Baby Einstein: See and Sign with Baby [DVD] (2007); Wow First Words: Teach your baby sign language [Board Book] (2007); My First Signs by Kubler [Board Book] (2004); 

Hop! (Board Book)

Root, P. (2005). Hop! Cambridge, MA: Candlewick Press.

Interest Level: Ages 3 & under
Genre: Board Book
Subjects/Themes: Bunnies, Animals, Stories in Rhyme

Plot: Five little bunnies play in a meadow.  When they hear a strange noise they run to their hole to hide.  Afterwards they come back out to play and find some clover which they eat for lunch. 

Personal Thoughts: The five little bunnies are sweetly illustrated using a mixture of watercolors and collage techniques.  The rhymes, "Bunnies scratch and bunnies scritch.  Whiskers wiggle, noses twitch.", are short but have a nice sing-song tune.  A good introduction to some common bunny activities such as running, playing, twitching, hiding, and eating clovers.    

Author Bio and Bibliography

I Spy (Book)

Marzollo, J., & Wick, W. (1997). I Spy: Little book. New York, NY: Scholastic.

Format: Board Book
Interest Level: Baby to 3 years
Subjects/Themes: Puzzle, Board Book

Book Information: The I Spy book is based on the old children’s “I Spy with my little eye” game. The reader is prompting by riddles or lists, often written in rhyme, to find the different objects hidden within a picture. The reader is prompted to look for two items per picture with the picture of each item shown with the text making it a great vocabulary tool. This also makes it unnecessary for the child to be able to read words and yet still enjoy the book making it age appropriate. In its board book format, this series also helps a child learn to read from left to right. The left page has the text with the matching pictures while the right hand page has the picture search.

Personal Thoughts: I think these books are absolutely wonderful! The use of pictures of real objects are a fun way to help teach a child to identify different objects and their spelling.  A great choice for children developing their sight word recognition skills.

Series Info: Adapted from the I Spy Picture Book series by Jean Marzollo & Walter Wick.
Website: http://www.scholastic.com/ispy/books/index.htm (Retrieved September 5, 2010).
Similar materials: Sheppard, K. (2010). Animal I spy: What can you spot?. New York, NY: Kingfisher.