Mo Willems "Cat the Cat Series"

Cat the Cat... a wonderful new series for beginning readers!

Willems, Mo.
Cat the Cat, Who is That?
February 2010.
HarperCollins Publishers.
Review copy provided courtesy of publisher.

Cat the Cat introduces herself to young readers in this first title in the new series, Cat the Cat, by Mo Willem. Large, simple text with repetitive phrases and illustrations that provide simple context clues for the youngest of readers will have young children taking ownership of the book, eager to read to you! One phrase is repeated numerous times, Cat the Cat, who is that?! This particular phrase, once recognized by children, will allow them the knowledge that by looking at the pictures on the following page, they can pretty much guess who is next to come!

I loved these titles so much, I took my galley copies (provided from a friend) and bound them with yarn, offering them to my preschoolers for one of their prize choices at our classroom "Behavior Bucks Store." One little girl snatched it up quickly and was absolutely thrilled! If this is any indication of how much of a hit it will be, I'll keep it handy for the start of next school year!

Willems, Mo.
Let's Say Hi to Friends Who Fly!
February 2010.
HarperCollins Publishers.
Review copy provided courtesy of publisher.

Similar to Cat the Cat, Who is That?, Let's Say Hi to Friends Who Fly! takes the youngest of readers on an adventure, while allowing them ample exposure to literature in a way that enables them in their reading ability! Cat the Cat is once again this star of this book, as she introduces readers to her friends in an attempt to discover who can and can not fly, using the repetitive phrase, Can you fly...? As each friend is introduced, readers can easily complete the question by simply looking to the illustrations for context clues (such a bit part of early reading skills)! Along with the use of context clues for beginning readers, children will also likely pick up on the flying sounds/movements made by Cat's various friends, as they will probably be familiar with the buzzing of a bee, the flapping wings of a bird, the quaint flutter of a bat's wings, and even the zooming of an airplane!

I can't wait to use these books with my preschoolers who are on the brink of reading!

Learning/Reading Activities:

• Mo Willems has put together a downloaded activity packet to go along with the Cat the Cat series of books. You can download the activity packet here. It is full of wonderful ideas!
• He has also provided a spot on his website for children to play games related to the stories! Children can play memory, take a picture search, color Cat the Cat, and even learn different animal sounds. All of those games/activities can be located by clicking here!
  

If you're interested in finding out more information about any of the books reviewed or if you'd like to purchase the books, click the cover image for a link to Amazon.com. I am an Amazon Affiliate, so any purchases you make after clicking these images will result in my receiving a small percentage of the sale price!