The Lion & the Mouse
Pinkney's Caldecott Award winning book shares one of Aesop's fables centered on simple acts of animal kindness. A lion spares a tiny mouse; the mouse rescues the lion from a poacher's trap. Told with expressive, full-page illustrations and a nearly wordless text, the story will absorb young readers in a timeless tale.
Pennsylvania Center for the Book Awards
Book Activities & Discussion Ideas
Wordless books provide a terrific chance for children to tell a tale in their own words. Ask children to 'read' The Lion and the Mouse to you, offering their version of what is happening in the book. Sometimes adults need to ask questions to help draw children to the details of the story. If children need help, plan a question to ask on each page. At the heart of this story is the idea that somebody little can help somebody big. After children have read the story, talk about kindness and how it can come back to you. Ask the children if they ever did something nice for somebody who did something nice back.
Talk with families about the importance of visual literacy. Model reading the pictures in The Lion and the Mouse aloud. Share other wordless books with families that they can practice reading together.