Ten Black Dots - Now in Board Book Format!

A favorite of mine, now in board book format! Totally adding this to my literacy book bag collection for my preschoolers!

Crews, Donald.
Ten Black Dots.
June 2010.
HarperCollins.
Review copy provided courtesy of publisher.

Author Donald Crews presents an interesting question to children in Ten Black Dots,

What can you do with ten black dots?

As readers gradually practice counting to ten, they see what can be done with the amount of black dots that represent that numeral. For instance,

One dot can make a sun or a moon when day is done.
Five dots can make buttons on a coat or the portholes of a boat.
Nine dots can make toy soldiers standing in rank or the pennies in your piggy bank.

The book is perfect to use with children who are beginning to learn how to count and make a one-to-one correspondence between a number and an object. Add the concept to rhyming text and engaging pictures, and you have the winner of Ten Black Dots! This is seriously, one of my favorite children's counting books and I have every intent of sharing it with my students in their take-home literacy book bags this year!

Learning/Reading Activity:

• Download the worksheet found here. Have your child use his/her crayons/markers and ten black dot stickers and see what they can make with ten black dots! A sample can be found below!

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!

School Bus Safety Week

This week is set aside to focus attention on school bus safety - from the standpoint of the bus drivers, students and the motoring public. Annually, the third full week of October (October 18-23, 2009), starting on Sunday. For more information, visit:
National Association for Pupil Transportation.
-The Teacher's Calendar, 2008-2009

Pulver, Robin.
Axle Annie and the Speed Grump.
2005.
Dial Books for Young Readers.
Source: Borrowed copy from local library

Summary from Barnes & Noble:

Axle Annie, Burskyville's best, most beloved school bus driver, has a big problem, and that problem has a name: Rush Hotfoot. Rush is an absolute menace -- always in both a hurry and a bad mood, driving full blast down the street. He even ignores the bus's stop-sign arm! But if anybody can tame the speed grump, Annie can. With hilarious illustrations and tons of kid-appeal, this companion to the original Axle Annie is sure to make readers giggle and cheer for the kind of superhero they might see every day.

So... I'm thinking this book is probably more appropriate for parents as far as "bus safety" is concerned! While kids will definitely enjoy the somewhat rhyming text and funny story, parents are the real ones learning a lesson here - to be cautious of school buses and to obey the rules in their presence! It's definitely a great book to put out on display in the library throughout the school-year in an effort to be sure children who ride the bus are safe when boarding and departing! The book would also be appropriate for bus safety week, because it could be used as a springboard for a discussion about bus safety rules for children after discussing bus safety for adults!

Crews, Donald.
School Bus.
1984.
Greenwillow Books.
Source: Borrowed from local library

Summary from Barnes & Noble:

Follows the progress of school buses as they take children to school and bring them home again.

This book would be perfect for first year school children who will be riding the bus for the first time. It's doesn't make mention of any bus safety rules, but it would make for a perfect introduction to youngsters about riding the bus. From there, you could easily use this book to discuss bus safety!

Bus Safety Games:

• School Bus Safety Fill in the Blank Game
• School Bus Connect-the-Dots
• School Bus Safety - Good Idea, Bad Idea
• School Bus Word Search
• School Bus Safety - Painting Game
• School Bus Safety - Crossing the Street in the Right Order

Bus Safety Worksheets (PreK-Grade 2)

• Waiting for the Bus (page 12)
• Correct Way to Approach the Bus (page 15)
• Boarding the Bus (page 18)
• Behaving on the Bus (page 21)
• Teaching Drivers of Other Cars What to Do (page 26)
• Dropping and Retrieving Papers - Connect the Dots (page 35)

Bus Safety Worksheets (Grades 3-5):

• True or False: Bus Safety Rules (page 57)
• "Cool" or "Uncool" Bus Behaviors (page 53)
• Glad Bus, Sad Bus (page 49)
• Fill in the Blank (page46)
• ABC's of Bus Safety (page 43)
• Leaving the Bus - Always or Never (page 65)
• Reordering Bus Departure (page 68)
• Dropping and Retrieving Paper (page 71)
  

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.