Little Rabbit Goes to School

Little Rabbit

by Harry Horse

The indomitable Little Rabbit is starting school and discovering the challenges of independence.
Today is a special day. It is Little Rabbit’s first day of school, and he has decided to bring along his favorite toy, Charlie Horse. The busy classroom is crowded with little rabbits and lots of activities. His new teacher, Mrs. Morag, seems very happy to see him and Charlie Horse―that is, until Charlie Horse disrupts story time, dances on top of the desk during music time, and jumps into the cake batter at snack time. At the end of the day, even Little Rabbit realizes that Charlie Horse may not be ready for school after all.
Harry Horse hits all the right notes in this gently humorous, reassuring story that depicts how children cope with a big transition. Young readers will identify easily with the young character’s conflicting desires for independence and reassurance.

Genres: Picture Books, School, Childrens, Animals, Humor, Back To School, Rabbits

32 pages, Hardcover

First published July 30, 2004

About the author

Harry Horse wrote and illustrated many books for children, including the popular Little Rabbit picture books and the novels The Last Polar Bears, The Last Castaways, The Last Cowboys, and The Last Gold Diggers. He was also a political cartoonist for several national newspapers in the United Kingdom.

Reviews

[Joshua · Rating 4 out of 5]

In some respects, so simple only a child could understand it.

[Tatevik · Rating 4 out of 5]

A sweet story about first day of school. I liked that I only changed one sentence in the whole book (about punishing the toy). Will definitely buy other books in the series. The illustrations are lovely - watercolor art.

[Chelsea · Rating 4 out of 5]

1. Little Rabbit Goes to School
2. This book teaches about independence
3. Little Rabbit has a hard time going to school with his toy horse named, Charlie Horse. He then learns that it's better to keep him home when he is at school. I can use use this book for children who have a hard time going to school without a certain item like their favorite blanket or toy.

[Glasdow Teacosy · Rating 3 out of 5]

This sweet li'l book has a cute story about a rabbit's first day at school. I especially enjoyed the art, which felt very old-school to me in a quaint and charming way. There's a beautiful use of colors throughout the book. Cool hues of purple and blue were used for trees to help them recede deeper into the background while a blue jumpsuit was used for Little Rabbit to help him pop out from the auburn wash used on his peers. I wish the pen & ink work on that wonderful first page continued throughout the book, but the rest of the book was much less detailed.

The story felt a bit stale to me because I have read quite a few first day of school books in my half century on Earth, but Charlie Horse's antics and Little Rabbit's mock anger were a cute twist. Somewhere out there a child will be reading about their first day of school for the first time. This book is sure to please them.

[Hanna Storey · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Little Rabbit is starting school and faces challenges that come along with it. Little Rabbit brings along with him his favorite toy, the teacher Mrs. Morag is very happy to see both him and his favorite toy walk in to the classroom. However, Little Rabbit disrupts story time in a grand fashion, stands on desks, and jumps into cake batter.
The major theme of independence is in this book as Little Rabbit faces leaving his parents for the first time.
I enjoyed reading this book as it brought back nostalgic memories of going to school and the new environment.
I would recommend reading this book along with a child when they are headed to school for the first time in order to discuss information pertaining to the first day and school in general.

[Chance Adam]

Little rabbit's first day of school and the various adventures and experiences he encounters while making new friends and learning about school life. In the classroom, ask students to imagine that they are a character in the story. Have them write a short diary entry or letter as if they were Little Rabbit, describing their first day at school. They should write about their feelings, experiences, and what they learned.

[Madeline West · Rating 4 out of 5]

An excellent book to read on the first day of school when students might be nervous and want to bring in toys from home. This book shows why they can't bring toys from home with them. It shows that they can have fun with their new sweet classmates and make new friends rather than their toys from home.

[Чі · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wow! Not bad.

[Patricia Kemp Blackmon · Rating 5 out of 5]

Little Rabbit is so excited, his first day of school has finally arrived. Against the advice of his mother he is taking Charlie Horse to school with him. He claims Charlie Horse wants to go to school. On the way to and at school Charlie Horse would not behave in class. In fact he caused so many distractions the teacher had to send him to time-out.

Little Rabbit must make a big decision of whether Charlie Horse was going to attend school with him anymore. Do you think Charlie Horse should stay home with Little Rabbit's mother rather than go to visit school and be a distraction from the children learning?

This is a darling story! The illustrations depict the story so children can interpret the story even if they can not read. Little ones will relate to antics of Little Rabbit's and Charlie Horse's characters. This is a perfect relaxing read-to-me bedtime story, which should leave the child with sweet dreams of little rabbits.

There are lessons to be learned from this story like, mothers know best, be considerate of others, sharing is good when making new friends, always follow the rules and school is fun.

I highly recommend this book.

I rated this book a 5 out of 5.

Disclosure: I received a copy of this book from Peachtree Publishers for review. I was in no way compensated for this review.

[Patricia Kemp Blackmon · Rating 5 out of 5]

Little Rabbit is so excited, his first day of school has finally arrived. Against the advice of his mother he is taking Charlie Horse to school with him. He claims Charlie Horse wants to go to school. On the way to and at school Charlie Horse would not behave in class. In fact he caused so many distractions the teacher had to send him to time-out.

Little Rabbit must make a big decision of whether Charlie Horse was going to attend school with him anymore. Do you think Charlie Horse should stay home with Little Rabbit's mother rather than go to visit school and be a distraction from the children learning?

This is a darling story! The illustrations depict the story so children can interpret the story even if they can not read. Little ones will relate to antics of Little Rabbit's and Charlie Horse's characters. This is a perfect relaxing read-to-me bedtime story, which should leave the child with sweet dreams of little rabbits.

There are lessons to be learned from this story like, mothers know best, be considerate of others, sharing is good when making new friends, always follow the rules and school is fun.

I highly recommend this book.

I rated this book a 5 out of 5.

Disclosure: I received a copy of this book from Peachtree Publishers for review. I was in no way compensated for this review.

[ACS Book-finder · Rating 5 out of 5]

Author and Illustrator Harry horse has created more than thirty books for children including other Little Rabbit books. In Little Rabbit Goes to School we find an enchanting tale that rings true in many households each and every year as the first day of school approaches - especially for a child's very first day of school.

Little Rabbit is excited about his first day of school but insists he take along "Charlie Horse" his favorite toy. Once in the school with all the other little bunnies, Charlie Horse seems to get into all sorts of mischief making life utterly miserable for Little Rabbit and Miss Morag the teacher.

Little Rabbit learns about being a friend and having a friend. This is a good addition to any school library no matter how many other "back to school" or "first day of school" books you have on hand. It is also a good choice for parents who have a child entering school that wants to take along a favorite toy. I recommend Little Rabbit Goes to School highly.

DISCLOSURE: A complimentary review copy was provided by Peachtree Publishers in exchange for our honest review. No compensation was provided for this review.

[Devi Henn]

This story is about Little Rabbit who goes to school for the first time, however, he wants to bring Charlie Horse his horse that he brings with him wherever he goes. He ends up being distracted by Charlie Horse all throughout his first day of school. Charlie Horse gets into trouble, but the teacher tries to keep him away from the other rabbits. Little Rabbit does not want the other rabbits playing with Charlie Horse either, and then gets lost when going on a nature walk with the class, but eventually finds his way back. He goes home to tell him mom and dad all about his fun day, and new friends, but then tells his mom that he can't wait to go to school tomorrow, but that Charlie Horse should stay home because he is too naughty.
Students could be asked if there was a certain time that they held onto for a long time? What made it a special time? Do they still have it?
A grand conversation could also be had about what happened when Little Rabbit allowed others to play with Charlie Horse? This theme could be about breaking out of their shell and meeting new people.

[Caitlin W. · Rating 4 out of 5]

Little Rabbit Goes to School is a silly tale that can be a starting point for discussions about taking responsibility for one's actions. The story is about Little Rabbit's first day of school, and he insists on taking his little wooden toy, Charlie Horse, with him. Throughout the day, he does several things that are bad, but even the narration pins the blame on Charlie Horse. "Next they made little cakes. But Charlie Horse was naughty and jumped into the cake batter." However, the illustration clearly shows Little Bunny tossing the toy into the batter. The dissonance between how things are described and what is actually happening is amusing, and the art is detailed and colorful. The characters look like they might be stuffed animals come to life. Of course, Little Bunny learns the error of his ways by the end of the book, and decides to leave Charlie Horse at home with his mother for the next day, saying, "He's too naughty for school." Recommended for grades K-2.

[Heidi · Rating 4 out of 5]

Little Rabbit is excited to be heading off for his first day of school. He's so excited that he takes his favorite toy, Charlie Horse, with him. Unfortunately, this quickly turns out to be a bad idea as 'Charlie Horse' keeps getting him in trouble. He encourages Little Rabbit to eat his lunch early, to disrupt story time, make a mess of the cake batter, and getting lost on the nature walk. Can Little Rabbit find a way back to his class or change Charlie Horse's behavior? There is so much here that is reminiscent of childhood, especially the blaming someone else for one's own behavior. I like the idea of using this book to help children learn to take responsibility for their own actions. But it's also just a cute story on it's own and a great introduction to the idea of school.

[Brenda · Rating 4 out of 5]

It is Little Rabbit's first day of school and he decides to bring his favorite toy Charlie Horse. Charlie Horse keeps causing problems and the teacher encourages Little Rabbit to put the horse in time out. At first Little Rabbit distances himself from the other rabbits at school but when he has no lunch the others share. Slowly Little Rabbit begins to open up to the other children and by the end of the day he decides that on the next day of school Charlie Horse will stay home. There are beautiful watercolor illustrations in this book. I feel the message will appeal to young children who are fearful of starting school and the adults are very excepting and caring.

[Nicole Bell]

I listened to this book as it was being read by an adult to ELL students. The students found two things very confusing. At one point a line in the text reads: “I won’t” cried Little Rabbit. The student said “Cried?” “Yes cried” said the adult. The students didn’t know that “cried” also means “shouted”. Throughout the text it is implied that Little Rabbit’s toy horse operates under its own will. The students did not understand how this could occur. The story even ends with Little Rabbit saying “He’s [the toy horse is] too naughty for school.” This story is similar to Peter Rabbit in that Little Rabbit also loses a shoe and his coat.

[Lauren Sharp]

Picture Book Number 12
I read this book in class for the presentations we did for milestones. This book followed a rabbit through his first day at school where he didn't want to let go of his stuffed animal. The rabbit ends of finding friends, having fun, and not needing his stuffed animal at school anymore. It is a great book to help students see how to break out of their shell and embrace their surroundings.

[Miriam Garcia · Rating 4 out of 5]

A good book to read at the begining of a school year. Most apporpriate for kindergarten. It's a cute book about a bunnies first day of school. The little bunny brings along his favorite toy to school but it keeps getting him in trouble. You could talk to your class about why we don't bring toys to class.

[Judy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Judging from the cover, I thought this might be too traditional for my taste and possibly a bit lame. I was wrong. It is traditional, in all the best ways. It is a classic. It's a most beautifully told and illustrated story with so much to enjoy on every page. I wish I had a wee one to read it to.

Masterful.

[Chris Aldrich · Rating 4 out of 5]

Read when it showed up in my Little Free Library.

A cute little story with some great illustrations. Little Rabbit goes to school and insists on taking a toy, but it turns out that the toy was "too naughty" to be going to school...

Great for parents with kids that want to take toys with them everywhere.

[Little Free Library #8424 · Rating 4 out of 5]

Read when it showed up in my Little Free Library.

A cute little story with some great illustrations. Little Rabbit goes to school and insists on taking a toy, but it turns out that the toy was "too naughty" to be going to school...

Great for parents with kids that want to take toys with them everywhere.

[Sarah · Rating 3 out of 5]

Cute tale in which little rabbit's success on his first day of school is hampered by his favorite toy, Charlie Horse, who gets him in all sorts of trouble. Illustrations and writing style is reminiscent of Peter Rabbit.

[Leslie · Rating 3 out of 5]

My three year old son enjoyed this book, so I gave it three stars. I probably would have only given it two stars. I think there are better books out there about children starting school. I didn't care for the overall message of the book.

[Lindsay Monson]

This little rabbit goes to school and brings his horse. He gets distracted by this horse and gets him in and out of trouble. A good activity for kids is to have them decide if Charlie Horse is the naughty one or if Little Rabbit is pulling strings because of the scary situations he's in.

[KLB Barsotti · Rating 4 out of 5]

Excellent illustration and composition. A book with its heart in the right place.

[Meredith · Rating 4 out of 5]

Little Rabbit is adorable, and the story is fun. The kids did not get it, though. They liked it, but they didn't entirely get it.

[Gail · Rating 3 out of 5]

A good book to read in September for back to school.

[Dawn · Rating 3 out of 5]

I love Harry Horse's illustrations!

[Kelly · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a longer story than Abby will normally sit through but she really liked this one.

[Linda · Rating 3 out of 5]

The small illustrations do not make this ideal for a shared storytime, but the story is a funny approach to the first day of school jitters!