Commentaire descriptif
This funny book personalizes numbers and letters, led by the number 1 (“We count and measure and add and subtract!”) and the letter A (“today is Bring your Lowercase to Work Day. Here’s little a.”)
Things are reaching a hostile pitch between the two groups, when they are interrupted by “one Alligator”. Numbers and letters both claim the alligator for their own, but then two bears come along. “Bears. B!”; “2 of them. They arrived in those 3 cars.” Young readers will quickly see the pattern. They may wish to propose subsequent arrivals that would fit.
More creatures and objects crowd the pages, as numbers mount and the alphabet moves along. The illustrations combine a cartoonish 3D-rendered sensibility, created with warm painterly effects. Speech balloons and coloured type clarify the dialogue.
Somewhere around “. . .16 Pigs” and “the 17 Queens,” Number 1 and Letter A start working together. By the end of the alphabet, the two new friends stroll off, arm in arm: “Well, it’s sorted now at least;” What do you say we call it a day?”
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Pistes d'exploration
: Create a class alphabet and counting book. Choose a letter and a number, then design a page similar to one modelled in the book.
: Using an anchor chart, identify text features used by the author (e.g. speech bubbles, quotation marks, colour coding of letters and numbers, commas, exclamation marks, adjectives, nouns).
: Brainstorm ways to count the animals and characters in the book (by 1s, 2s, 5s, etc.). Discuss the benefits of knowing a variety of counting strategies.
: Reread the text using the colours: One green alligator, two brown bears, three yellow, orange and red cars, etc.
: As a group, create a personalized version of the story using classroom objects for the numbers and letters. Illustrate the letter/number pages.
: Practise counting the objects and characters.
: Start a personal picture dictionary that can be used throughout elementary school. Collect interesting new words in it.
Mots-clés
Picture book, animals, conflicts, cooperation, counting, letters, numbers
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