"Green Eggs and Ham" is a wonderful book for beginning readers. There are just 50 different words in the entire book, of which many are eith...more"Green Eggs and Ham" is a wonderful book for beginning readers. There are just 50 different words in the entire book, of which many are either sight words or rhyming pairs. The fact that there is a lot of repetition in the story also helps out the beginning reader.
The story is about Sam-I-Am trying to get an unnamed character to try some “green eggs and ham”. The unnamed character refuses to eat it and claims that he does not like it. Sam-I-Am is incredibly persistent and eventually convinces him to at least try it. The story ends with the unnamed character trying the dish, finding out that he indeed does like green eggs and ham, and finally thanking Sam-I-Am for encouraging him to try it.
The reason why I only gave this story 4 stars is based on the moral of the story. On one hand, I think that it is important for people to have the courage to try new things. On the other hand, I’m not much of a fan of peer pressure. When reading this story to young students, I try to focus on simple fact of trying new food, such as brussels sprouts (which I happen to love). Hopefully, students won’t automatically focus on the peer pressure aspect. Just imagine if “green eggs and ham” was a code for a type of drug and then re-read the story. Yikes! However, if you just focus on the surface meaning and the fact that it is a great book for beginning readers to read on their own, then this book is fantastic addition to a classroom library.
On a personal note, I LOVE the edition I have of this book! It’s actually a very LARGE edition that is about 1 and ½ feet tall and spiral bound. There is no barcode because it is a promotional copy that I got from working in a bookstore. On the back cover, there is even a section for “in-store activities”. I LOVE it!!
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This book is one of those quintessential books that every child should experience growing up.
As the title suggests, the majority of this ...moreThis book is one of those quintessential books that every child should experience growing up.
As the title suggests, the majority of this book is about a very hungry caterpillar who eats and eats and eats. However, there is much more to this book. The first theme deals with the life cycle of caterpillars. The story begins with a single egg from which a tiny caterpillar hatches. The caterpillar has an ever increasing appetite and eats more and more each day. When he can't eat anymore, he builds a cocoon where he stays for 2 weeks during his transformation. He finally eats his way out of the cocoon and spreads his new wings as a butterfly. This is a terrific way to introduce the wonder of science to young children. This book can be used as a springboard for parents and teachers to start a discussion of life cycles of various animals.
The concepts of counting and days of the week are also included in this book. The caterpillar is born on a Sunday, starts eating on Monday, and eats more and more food each day of the week until finally eating a leaf on the following Sunday. Since each day of the week is clearly represented, this book can help children learn the order of the days. Each weekday also showcases an increasing number; i.e. Monday shows 1 apple, Tuesday shows 2 pears, and so on. Children love counting out the pictures on each page and can even locate where the corresponding number word is in the text as they progress in ability.
Personally, I've always loved this book. The illustrations are adorable and incorporate bright vibrant colors in a mixed media form that is purely Eric Carle. The thicker and varying sizes of pages with hole punches invite the reader to truly experience and enjoy the book in a physical manner. Even though the caterpillar is not personified, it is still lovable and full of life. Whenever people are looking for a classic picture book to add to a child's new bookshelf, I always ask if "The Very Hungry Caterpillar" is already on the shelf or not.
On a personal note, I LOVE my copy of this book because I was lucky enough to have attended a book signing of Eric Carle where he signed my book AND drew a little caterpillar next to his name!!! =D(less)
I was in love with this book as soon as I laid eyes on it.
The book is about a curious boy who is at the beach with his family when he dis...moreI was in love with this book as soon as I laid eyes on it.
The book is about a curious boy who is at the beach with his family when he discovers an old underwater box camera washed up on the shore. He then examines it and takes it to the local one-hour photo lab where he gets the old 120mm film developed. The pictures he gets back are unbelievably fantastic. He also discovers a tradition linked with the camera that he takes part in. After sharing in the magic of the camera, he then returns it to the ocean. The story ends in a little girl in a different part of the world finding the camera.
First of all, I have to explain that I love photography, especially old film cameras that I sort of collect. I'm always looking for picture books that include photography of some sort and so this book was love at first sight. Not only does this book focus on photography, but it gives the camera a magical, time-enduring, and dream-like feel.
I also love the fact that the story is wordless. It really demonstrates the saying that "a picture is worth a thousand words." The story flawlessly flows without words and yet contains an infinite amount of detail on each picture that could keep someone looking at a single page for a long time and still find new details to discuss. Teachers of any grade level could use this book and have students write their own story based on the pictures. Only the complexity of the stories differing between grade level.
The more subtle themes and ideas contained the the story are also worth mentioning. The boy in the story is exploring his world from even before the title page. That interest in the world around you is a great idea to instill in others. He also is very respectful. When finding the camera, he makes sure that it didn't belong to anyone else on the beach by even going to the life guard. After discovering the tradition of the camera, he decides to keep it going instead of being selfish and keeping the camera. The story is full of discovery, responsibility, magic, tradition, and ultimately hope. I love it! (less)
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