Look at All These Rocks! (pages 16 and 17)
- Before reading these pages, ask children to describe the rocks they see.
- After reading, give children some rocks and encourage them to describe and compare the rocks.
If you and your children collect rocks, there are many print and online resources that can help you identify the rocks you find. Your public library may have Smithsonian Handbooks: Rocks & Minerals or the Peterson First Guide to Rocks and Minerals. Here are some Web sites: www.rocksforkids.com; www.minsocam.org.
Bookmarks (page 20)
- Young children may need some help to cut the card stock. If you make a very long, thin strip, your child may be able to cut it into several shorter pieces. Cutting ribbons into smaller pieces offers more practice using scissors.
- Balloons, kites, or flowers are easy to arrange on a bookmark. But abstract designs and patterns can work just as well.
Bookmarks are delightful crafts that children can make and share as party favors, gift tags, or gifts for readers of any age.
Six Buttons (pages 26 and 27)
- Read the poem and then point to and count the buttons on the girl's coat.
- Before counting the other objects in the illustration, ask children to discuss what's happening in the scene.
There are 6 boots, mittens, hooks, pictures, flagstones, birds, and leaves in this illustration. However, there are other sets of objects. Children can count umbrellas, scarves, hats, and baskets to find objects that are not part of a set of 6. As children count the objects on these pages, they are developing a deeper understanding of the concept of numbers.