Fall Reading 2013 Big Cat, Small Cat and Dog Number 1, Dog Number 10

This rhyming text by Ami Rubinger shows examples of opposites. It starts with the cats in the title, one big and one small. The next two are short and ... The pattern of alternating between a page where both opposites are named, then leaving the end of the next rhyme to fill in gets the reader involved quickly. The cats are very bright and colorful and will hold the attention of young readers.  Art enthusiasts might also be interested in the fact that they are computer-generated illustrations.

It would work well in a language arts lesson on opposites for  the primary grades.

This simple counting book with rhyming text is also by Ami Rubinger. The dogs are introduced one at a time and each one tells something about himself or herself. "Playing chase is so much fun! My name's Rover. I'm dog number ..." The number is always left for the reader to fill in. When the story reaches ten, the cats from Big Cat, Small Cat appear and count off by twos. Then together with the dogs, they make a group of twenty. Readers who enjoyed calling out the missing words and the vibrant computer-generated art in Big Cat, Small Cat will find this book just as amusing.

It would work well as a read-aloud for math lessons dealing with counting by ones or twos, or even a quick introduction to addition with the final sum of dogs and cats.

I read an e-book of each story provided by the publisher through NetGalley.

         

Here is a link to the publisher's website.