Everything I Need to Know Before I'm Five
Through its realistic illustrations of toys from different eras, this concept book will engage children in learning about numbers from 1-20, opposites, shapes, colors, seasons, the weather, and the upper and lower case letters of the alphabet. Children will be enthralled by the large pictures, brilliant colors, and arrangements and actions of the toys. What a playful way to learn or practice everything they need to know.
Pennsylvania Center for the Book Awards
Book Activities & Discussion Ideas
The illustrations on each page of this book are large enough for children to easily point to and touch while exploring the concepts. They can count toys and trace the numerals on the number pages. Encourage them to act out or find examples of the opposites and to think of other words that are opposites. Children could trace letters and name the toys that begin with the letters. On every page, there are opportunities for children to learn new vocabulary through the many categories of toys and their actions. Ask the children to choose and tell about their favorite pages.
Encourage families to let children explore this book at their own pace. Some will want to hear you read and talk about the whole book, while others may only want to read a few sections at a time. Children will like sitting with family members and taking turns naming letters, counting, naming colors, etc., with them. They would enjoy extensions to the book such as mixing colors, finding their own toys that begin with certain letters, or counting groups of toys. Children can learn new vocabulary if families encourage them to tell about the toys and what they are doing on many of the pages.