THE STORY OF FERDINAND: Snotting and Butting and Kicking

[Today we read THE STORY OF FERDINAND written by Munro Leaf and illustrated by Robert Lawson in 1936.  John was the only child to contribute today, because he missed discussing GROWL BEAR yesterday. I asked him to pick his favorite, and he wanted to talk about THE STORY OF FERDINAND. He actually flipped page by page through the book as he talked.]

EK John: I liked it because it had a big "O" [the first word of the book is ONCE, and the O is giant in comparison to the rest of the font] and a tall tower. And I like it because Ferdinand was eating a little grass. And I liked when all of the bulls were just butting around and stuff. And I liked when Ferdinand was walking to the cork tree. And I like it when he was just relaxing at the cork tree. And I like when his mother was going to ask if he was lonely. And I like when he said, "I'm not lonely." And I liked when the mother was just walking away. I liked this page because it marked how old he was. And I like it when he was just sitting under the tree calmly.

And I like it when they saw they could have been chosen to the bull fight. And I like it because all the men were wearing funny hats. And I liked it when all the bulls wanted to be chosen. And I liked this page because he sat on a bee. And I liked it when he had his eyes wide opened because he was sitting on a bee. And I liked it when he just jumped up because the bee just stung him. And I liked it when he was snotting and butting and kicking.

And I like when they were pulling him to the ring. And I like when they were all bringing him to the ring. And I liked when the girls had the flowers in their hair. And I liked it when they brung out everything to make them mad, and I liked everything else that they wanted to make him mad with. And I liked it because they bring out the sword and he [the matador] was smiling a lot. And I liked the one where Ferdinand just peeked out of there. And I liked it when he was walking out to the ring. And I liked it because he was just sitting around smelling the flowers. And I liked it when all the men were so mad. And I like that guy [the matador] was so sad.  And I liked it when he was going to leave the ring. And I liked it when he was just sitting under the cork tree.

I liked it in the front [cover illustration] when he was in a different color red instead of white. In the black and white pictures when they [the baby bulls] were running there was some black on the grass and they [the bulls] had some black spots on them. This was very old and I like painting in the olden days.

A Look at Picture Books Past

EK and PK children will look at picture books written at least 50 years ago today and tomorrow. Today we read Growl Bear, written and illustrated by Margot Austin and first published in 1951. This story grabbed every last child in both classes and held their attention from endpaper to endpaper. It was republished as A Friend for Growl Bear in 1999, newly illustrated by David McPhail. We read the original, with black and white illustrations.

Usually when I read a book illustrated in black and white, at some point somebody will stop me and mention the black and white illustrations and ask why they aren't done in color. Only one child mentioned the illustrations, and that was after the reading while he and I were discussing the book. Rather than lament the fact that they weren't done in color, Keegan loved them. I consider this a sign that the story completely entranced the children, and that the black and white illustrations worked perfectly with the story.

Growl Bear looks at how people (as portrayed by the animal characters) perceive one another, and how misunderstood intentions can lead to harsh and hurtful reactions.

As you read through the responses, keep in mind that when a child says he or she liked it when something bad happened to the bear, they aren't approving. They're reacting to the strong emotion within the story, and to their own emotional attachment to the bear.

EK Responses

Sophie:  I liked it because the guys hurt the bear. They were really angry and they started pushing him. They thought he was going to eat them because bears eat different animals and I liked the bear. He wanted to say, "Hey! I'm not going to hurt you. I just want a friend." He wanted to play with somebody, and they didn't because they thought he was going to bite somebody but he didn't. He just wanted a friend! He just said, "Grrrrr!" because he couldn't say anything because he's a bear and he just can't talk. And he was too little to talk.

Annalee: I liked this book because I liked Mouse.

Allison: He wanted friends.

Keegan:  I like it 'cause it's very old. What I like that's my favorite is the color -- black and white. The bear wanted a friend. Everybody was afraid of him because of his growl. He didn't know how to talk because he was very little.

Brooke N.:  All the people didn't like him because he wanted a friend and the rabbit throwed him in the pond. He wanted a friend and nobody would let him be a friend. I liked it.

Brooke B.:  I liked it when he got hit with the nut by the squirrel. I liked it when he got pushed into the pond by the rabbit. I liked it when he was sitting on the mailbox. I liked it when Old Owl slammed the door in front of the bear's face. He thought mouse would come out and play with him so he sat on a log then he standed on his head then he laid on his back, but mouse wouldn't come. Then he hanged on a branch, and then mouse comed and the branch started to break and then he fell on his head. Then he said, "I know. Maybe the songbirds will play with me." Then he climbed up on a tree and then the songbirds flew around his head and then he got so dizzy that he fell off the tree. I liked when his friends were all standing in his front yard and then they played and played and played.

Bella: I liked it cause at the ending I liked it when they were running around the tree. They were friends.

Brady:  I liked it. He was trying to find a pal. He kept saying, "Grrrr." That means he'll bite. He wasn't really going to bite.

Allison:  I did like it. The mother was going to give cookies.

Hayden:  Him friends didn't like him because he say, "Grrrr!' 'cause he a bear.

Dev: He was grrrrring. I liked the book.

Daniel: I liked the words and I loved the baby. I didn't like the way his friends were acting. When he came up to see the rabbit he was pushing him in the river. They all did mean things to him. When he went grrrr they run away from him because they thought he was going to eat them. He couldn't say anything else because he's a baby. The owl said that you shouldn't be afraid to him because he wasn't going to eat them. The mom brought cookies out while they were all swinging. It was a happy one.

PK Responses

Emmett: I like this page because they're all playing at his house.

Mack: I liked this book because the Owl slammed the door and he opened it a little and then the bear started crying a little . . .

Eva joins in: And then he cried a lot. This is my favorite part because Owl said he couldn't talk yet and be nice.

Mack: And my else favorite part is when Owl came over into his house.

Katherine: I liked it because at the end they started to chase.

Emelyn: He was crying because Owl was so mean.

Acadia: I like the endpapers. I liked when he was waiting and waiting for the little mouse. I don't have mouses in my house. They live in little holes in your house. Do you have mouses in your house?

Me: Gee, I hope not.

Acadia: I like this one [illustration of all the little animals playing together] because his friends are not scared anymore.

Camryn:  He was sad because he wanted someone play with. Someone was doing something busy. They were folding laundry. I love this page [Mother Bear bringing cookies to Growl Bear and his friends at the end of the story] because I love it so much.

Kaitlyn: At the first page he walked with his Teddy Bear. Then he was there to Rabbit's house, to his friend Rabbit. And then he went to the mouses' house. I liked where the mouse ran away 'cause he was catching the mouse. He bunked his head and he started crying. Then he knocked on Old Owl's door again and then he said, "Grrrr!" Old Owl said, "I told you to stay away." He started crying. He went home and his friends waited and waited for him to come out and play with them. They played tag. Growl Bear was happy.

Mikayla:  The mouse ranned over there. He was chasing the mouse. The mouse was sad if the bear grabbed him in his hand. [Flips to another page.] That mommy bear chases that rabbit give him some cookies. And I like the wolf [squirrel] because he's not ascared of anything.

Summer looked through the book and pointed out her favorite illustration in which Mother Bear is bringing cookies out to the little animal friends.

More CPG Thoughts

Today we read Caldecott Honor Book The Stray Dog by Marc Simont. I asked the children to pick their favorite book we read this week to discuss.

Olivia: I like that doggy.  He is Willy.  I like Willy every time. He's my favorite pet dog. [I asked her how she felt when the dog catcher caught Willy.] That was bad! He has to go to the dog patch. So he got his leash. [The girl gave the dog catcher her hair ribbon, telling him it was Willy's leash.][Olivia points to the boy, who is removing his belt and telling the dog catcher it was Willy's collar.] He could save him!

Teagan: I liked this [Kitten's First Full Moon] best because the kitty jumped in the pond. I like this one. The kitty's climbing up the tree. She's a poor kitten because she fell down to get the moon. She's trying to get that moon. She thinks it's a bowl of milk. She's trying to drink the milk. She jumped in the pond. First she went on the grass. Then she jumped in the pond. [Flips to another illustration.] The bug got in her tongue. It was funny! The firefly.

Lindsey looked very carefully at the covers of Kitten's First Full Moon and The Stray Dog. I asked if she liked the dog book best, and she just wasn't quite sure. I asked if maybe she liked the cat book best. She smiled and said, "Yes!"

Aidan C.: I liked it because I liked the bathtub one. They have a dog in it with people. The girl was scrubbing the dog. The boy was turning up the water. [Turns to Willy-in-the-dog-catcher's-net illustration.] Hey! He didn't get his tail!

Maeve: I liked this [Kitten's First Full Moon] best because he licked the bowl of milk. I liked it because he jumped in the water because he wanted to get that milk. He thought it was milk.

Aria: [Ryan is looking over Aria's shoulder at the illustration.] I like the catcher one. I like it. I like Winnie. Winnie wags her tail a lot. [I ask who Winnie is.] Winnie lives at Aria's house. I like the sun setting. [In one of the illustrations.] I like this one. [Illustration shows the dog catcher chasing the dog.] He is dead.

Ryan: No! He's just hiding.

Aria: He got caught. The girl give her ribbon. [For a leash.] The boy is just like this. [Illustration shows the boys holding up his pants because he took his belt off to use as a collar. Aria pretends to hold up her pants and laughs.]

Ryan: [Looking at the bathtub illustration in which the kids are in the tub bathing the dog.] So the kid's hair is funny! [Flips to another illustration.] Look! "Here's his leash!" [Said in a sing-song voice, as if he -- Ryan -- is the boy in the story.] He's holding up his pants so they don't fall down and bring a policeman. I like the boy the best. He chased the dog.

Julianna: My favorite part was the dog catcher trying to catch the dog. It was funny! I was trying not to laugh.

Brady D. and Bob were not in school today, so they'll contribute to next week's CPG entry.

Random CPG Literacy Note: Teagan announced that he was making end papers while tracing circles on paper in a Mickey Mouse pattern in the writing corner. These are the moments that I live for in my teaching life!

CPG Children Share Their Thoughts

On Thursday, September 24th, the CPG children read the 2005 Caldecott Medal winner Kittens First Full Moon, written and illustrated by Kevin Henkes. Because today was our first visit with Miss Mary from Project Nature, I only had enough time to discuss the book with four of my students. I'll post what the rest of the children had to say tomorrow.

 Aria: I liked the kitten one because I do like the moon and the house and the cups and the milk. I liked this one. [Illustration in which the kitten climbed a tree in an attempt to reach the moon, which it had mistaken for a bowl of milk.] The kitten got all sad and got all wet. I like all the kitties. I got Sammy and Summer and Sophie. They're kittens. I like the tree one. Her got scared. And she can't reach the moon and climb and climb. I like the house one and I like the sleep one.

Ryan:  I liked it because he saw the milk and he thought the moon was a big milk and I liked it because it looked like it was 150 milk and it was getting bigger and bigger like a snowman because he came and he saw the milk and that's why I like it. I like the part where he saw the milk and he said, "Oh! I want a milk! Oh, ya!" And I liked when he saw the milk but it wasn't. It looked like a big ice cream bowl, but it wasn't."

Aiden R.: I liked the stars. He fell right there. [Illustration in which the kitten jumped into a pond reflecting the moon, which it had mistaken for a bowl of milk.) He gets wet and he looks scared then he got home.

J.J.:  I liked this because she tried to get the moon and she climbed the tree to try to catch it, but she couldn't!

We'll continue our cat/dog theme tomorrow when we read a doggy book.

Miss Mary, by the way, read The Flying Tortoise, An Igbo Tale retold by Tololwa M. Mollel and illustrated by Barbara Spurll.

The Truth About Cats and Dogs

The children will discuss books with me on Monday and Wednesday this week. If you don't see a contribution by your child in the Monday discussion, look for it in the Wednesday discussion.

Our theme this week is Dogs and Cats, and the children will vote for their favorite animal on Wednesday.

On Monday, September 21, 2009 the EK and PK children read and discussed My Big Dog by Janet Stevens and Susan Stevens Crummel. The author referred to the dog and cat as "it" making it impossible to determine the animals' gender. You'll notice the children freely interchange feminine and masculine pronouns in talking about the animals, especially the cat. Most of the children referred to the dog as "he." The cat was a bit trickier for them.

EK Responses

Brady K.: I liked this book because the dog kept going, SLURP, SLURP, SLURP!

John: I liked it because it had the cat saying, "Everything's all mine!" And I liked it when the dog kept finding the cat and the dog kept slurping and the cat kept trying to get him away, get him away, get him away. And I liked it because it had when the dog kept growing bigger and bigger and BIGGER! And I liked when he was so huge. And I liked when the cat want to run away and the lady took her and the cat thought it would be a nice idea to make the girl take her home. Then she decided it wasn't so nice after all. And when she saw the CAT WANTED sign and she decided to go in there and got pushed out by a broom. And I liked when a boy picked her up but the boy and the girl were fighting over it. And I liked when he had to sleep and then it was raining. And I liked when the dog found the cat and took her home. And I liked when the cat wanted to make friends and share with the dog. And then she would share her dog, and then he licked her. And I liked when we had that voting at the end about purple and blue on the end papers. [When we previewed the book and looked at the end papers, the children couldn't agree what color the back end papers were. Some thought purple, and some thought blue. We took a vote after reading the book. Nine children voted for purple, and 4 children voted for blue.]  And I liked when they showed the light blue at here. [The front end papers.] And there's two more things I like. I liked the outside [cover] at the front. And I liked the outside [cover] of the back. Now I'm done.

Brooke B.: I liked it because when he started out as a puppy and the cat said, "My everything!" And when she said, "I let my owners pet sometimes when I feel like it." And when she said, "I'm tired. I've been up from breakfast. It's almost time for my nap!" And when said, "Here comes my owner!" I liked when she said, "Dog alert! Dog alert! Time to hide!" I liked the part when the cat got licked. And I like when she put crumbs all over the outside to get away from him, but that didn't work. Then she knew she would take him for a walk and said, "I know! I will tie him to a tree." That didn't work. That's it!

Brooke N.: I liked it because the dog found the cat and because he licked the cat. The cat felt weird. I liked it because the dog was getting big. My dog was little before so he had to have a home and we took him from the pet shop to our house. My dog is named King. He's a little bit big dog not that much.

Bella: I liked the pictures. He said that all the stuff is his. I liked the dog. I'm done.

Sophie: I liked it because the girl said, "It's my kitty." She took it from the boy.

PK Responses -- On Monday, September 21st the PK children had a special story guest -- my big lion puppet. Mr. Lion visited to model storytime etiquette such as listening without interrupting. (Mr. Lion interrupts a lot!) He also modeled responding to my questions following the reading, which I'm hoping will inspire the children to really elaborate on their own responses.

Mack: I liked it because it had a cute, little kitty. I liked it when the dog found her crying and he brought her back home. And when the kids said, "It's my kitty! No, It's my kitty!" I liked it when the kitty said, "Could we be friends?" And when the girl dressed her up like a show kitty.

Kaitlyn: I liked it because I like when the cat said, "Can we be friends?" I liked when the dog bited the cat. He was helping the cat. He was saving it. I liked the part when the cat felt very sad. I know she was very sad in this picture. Look at her face. Everything was hers, and she didn't care about the dog.

Katherine: I liked it because of the first part he told himself everything was all his. And I liked it when he hided. I think he hide under his bed, then on the desk, then in the drawer.

Camryn: I liked it because I loved the dog slobbered the cat. I loved the people trying both have the cat. I loved that part! That was funny. I loved the cat get his nails done. The person picking the cat up -- I loved that. I loved the end papers, too.

Acadia: I like it because he said everything was his. That was my favorite. And I liked when the girl was picking him up and she was bringing him home. That was my favorite. I liked this part because he runned away and then he runned out like that from the broom. And because he was sad because the rain was pouring on him. I liked it when the dog was picking him up and bringing him home. I'm done.

Arthur: I liked all of the pages. My favorite part was just like Mr. Lion's [the puppet] when the dog keeped finding the cat.

CPG Children Weigh In On Eric Carle

In addition to Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What Do You See?, Polar Bear, Polar Bear What Do You Hear? and The Very Hungry Caterpillar, the CPG children read Eric Carle's "Slowly, Slowly, Slowly," said the Sloth and My Tool Belt. The children reacted to their favorites as follows.

Olivia: The Very Hungry Caterpillar is my favorite because they turn into butterflies then they go into a cocoon and then they turn into a butterfly.

Julianna: I liked the Sloth. I liked it when he was boring. And I liked it when he was hanging upside down. And I liked this [indicates picture] with the monkey and tortoise.

Ryan:  I liked the Caterpillar best. I liked it because he ate so much food and he was green and that was my favorite color. Mom would like the red and she would say, "Ryan! I have that book!" And that's why I like it.

Brady D.: I liked the Sloth because him was keep staying right there and because the animals kept coming back and forth. I liked this one best. [Points to Yellow-Spotted River Turtle on the back end papers.]

Bob: I like the Polar Bear because I like the elephant.

Lindsey wasn't quite sure which book was her favorite. I agreed with her that when it comes to Eric Carle books, it's very hard to pick just one favorite.

Aidan C.: I like the Caterpillar one because we read it. My favorite part was when he was in the egg. If I was a hungry caterpillar, I would eat the lollipop first.

Maeve: I liked the Sloth book because of the night. [I asked Maeve which animal was her favorite, and she pointed to the anteater and the caiman. When I asked why, she pointed to the caiman's teeth and said, "Claws!]

Aiden R.:  I like the Caterpillar because it itches. Polar bears would like that story. If I was a hungry caterpillar I'd eat the watermelon and the cupcake and the candy and the lollipop and the pickle and the cheese and the cake.

Teagan:  I like Brown Bear best because I saw a bird and a bunny and a dog in there. My favorite animal was the purple cat.

Aria:  I liked My Apron because I do. I liked the pages. [Indicates end papers.]  I liked this one. [Indicates page with Aunt Elizabeth making an apron for young Eric Carle.] Her making an apron for her. I liked this one. [Indicates page with the house with the incomplete roof.]

Even More Eric

We continued exploring Eric Carle's books today when we read The Grouchy Ladybug. Once again, I asked the children to pick their favorite Eric Carle book from among those we've read thus far.

EARLY KINDERGARTEN RESPONSES

Leah: I loved The Very Hungry Caterpillar so much! I liked the food part best. I loved that. That was so silly. If I was a hungry caterpillar I would just eat three plums so I wouldn't get a tummy ache.

Brooke N.: I liked The Grouchy Ladybug because there were a lot of people who were big, but she said they were not big enough, but they were big enough. I liked the rhinoceros part because he was trying to eat him but he was too big.

Bella: I liked The Grouchy Ladybug because of the pictures with the little pages and the big pages. I liked all the clocks because the hungry ladybug did all of that. [Points at clocks.] I liked the elephant best because I saw one at the zoo.

Dev: I liked The Grouchy Ladybug because of this one. [Searches out and points at praying mantis illustration.]

Annalee: I liked The Very Hungry Caterpillar because I liked the pictures of it. If I was a hungry caterpillar I'd eat pie first and ice cream.

Arthur: I liked all of these books. My favorite was The Grouchy Ladybug because he keeps saying, "You're not big enough!" I liked that it did it like this. [Indicates the differently sized pages.] My favorite animal was the whale because it slapped the tail on the ladybug and the ladybug said, "Ah-h-h-h-h!" And then he put his tail back and that was my favorite part.

Hayden: I liked Brown, Bear, Brown Bear best. I liked the goldfish because it's yellow because I love yellow. I liked the duck because I love yellow a lot, because the ducky is gold and the goldfish is gold.

Brooke B.: I liked The Grouchy Ladybug because when he said, "No, you're not too big!" I liked the hyena best because it reminds me of Izzy. She really likes hyenas and she's my best friend.

Allison: I liked The Grouchy Ladybug because it had a ladybug in it. I liked the skunk best because it's in the book.

John: I liked The Grouchy Ladybug because the nice ladybug offered, but the ladybug said, "Hey, you! You want to fight?" But she said, "Aw, you're not big enough!" And I liked it because it had when the ladybug said to the tail on the whale, "Hey you! You want to fight?" And the tail gave her a big slap. And I liked it because it had the house and the lighthouse. And I liked it because when the ladybug met the wasp and he showed it his big stinger. And I liked when that animal [points to stag beetle] showed him his big claws. And I liked when the mantis wanted to fight and he said, "If you insist." And I liked the bird because I knew it was going to eat the ladybug. I liked the lobster because he opened his claws and I knew he was going to snap him in his claws. And I liked the skunk because he lifted his tail and I knew he was going to release a stinky smell at the ladybug. And I liked that the snake was going to eat the squirrel and the ladybug for his breakfast. And I liked the hyena because he laughed and he was going to eat him. And I liked the gorilla because he was beating his chest and he was going to punch him. And I liked the rhinoceros because he was lowering his horn and he was going to run into him and then he said, "Oh, you're not big enough!" And I liked the elephant and he was showing his tusk and his trunk a long way out. And I liked the whale because he said nothing and I thought that the ladybug was going to run into the water going up out of the whale. And when he said, "Hey, you! You want to fight?" and the flipper said nothing. And when he asked the fin to fight the fin said nothing. And I liked when the ladybug spoke to the whale's tail and said, "Hey, you! You want to fight?" and the tail gave him a big slap and he was flying over where he started and he got to eat some aphids. And then I liked it because the ladybug said, "You're welcome." And I liked that the leaf said, "Thank you!" And I liked the fireflies were dancing around the moon and I liked the moon and I liked the stars. And I liked the green grass at the beginning and at the end. I think Eric Carle wrote nice books. I think he does his art in not a fast way, but in a slow way. I like that art best.

PREKINDERGARTEN RESPONSES

Christel: I liked The Grouchy Ladybug because he said, "You're not big enough!" I liked when the whale flipped the Grouchy Ladybug into the sky. And I liked this part when the lobster tried to bite him. And the skunk looked like he was going to spray. And the snake looked like he was going to eat the ladybug. And I liked this one [hyena] when he looked like he was going to bite the ladybug. And I liked the gorilla! [Christel then turns to the last double-page spread in which the ladybugs share the remaining aphids.] This is my favorite part because he let him share the bugs! And I'm all done!

Brady L.: I like Polar Bear, Polar Bear because it has animals. I like the hippopotamus best.

Camryn: I liked The Very Hungry Caterpillar because it's my favorite. I have some caterpillars in my yard. Their backs go up and down. [Points to caterpillar on cover.] I like his back. I love his ears, too! [Points to caterpillar's antennae.] If I was a hungry caterpillar I would eat the cake and ice cream first.

Mack: I have caterpillars in my yard, you know. My mom found one and she was very colorful and she had a red head and she was so soft and she had little antlers sticking out and she had the legs that she could climb.

Emelyn: [Popping briefly into the conversation.] Miss Murphy! I liked Brown Bear.

Kaitlyn: I liked the Ladybug book and the Caterpillar book. [The rest of Kaitlyn's commentary relates to the Ladybug book.] I liked the nice one and the grouchy one, because the grouchy one said, "Hey! You want to fight?" The nice one said, "Why don't we share?" And they didn't share. I liked that one [sparrow] because he thinked the bird was too big, but it was too small, but it was really big. That one [elephant] was definitely big. He talked to that one [whale's fin] but it wouldn't talk. I liked that it ended up back where he started.

Arthur: [Popping into the conversation.] Why did they put the clocks on the ladybug book?

Miss Murphy: Eric Carle used the clocks to take us through the whole day with the ladybug. The clocks let us see what time the ladybug met up with each animal.

Mack: I really like the Polar Bear book because the polar bear saw the lion. All the kids dressed up like the animals. I like Eric Carle's drawing about the ladybug. I like the caterpillar one because I like his green eyes. I like his legs. This one isn't attached.

Let's Get Started!

The first three books we're reading at Hogarth this year are Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What Do You See? and Polar Bear, Polar Bear, What Do You Hear? written by Bill Martin, Jr. and illustrated by Eric Carle, and The Very Hungry Caterpillar written and illustrated by Eric Carle. In our class discussions following the readings, we looked at Carle's illustrations and noted that the endpapers of the Bear books were illustrated with stripe patterns, and the endpapers of the Caterpillar book was illustrated with a dot pattern. References to stripes or dots within the children's comments relate back to that discussion.

In order to get the book discussion ball rolling, I asked each child to pick his or her favorite from among these books and talk about what made that book so appealing. If this didn't prompt a big response, I followed up with questions specific to their favorite book. If they picked either Bear book, I asked which animal depicted in the book was their favorite. If they picked the Caterpillar book, I asked which food they'd eat first if they were a hungry caterpillar.

I'll be posting the children's responses each day this week until all the kids have participated. Here's what some of the children had to say today.

EARLY KINDERGARTEN RESPONSES

Keegan: My favorite was Polar Bear. I liked the front cover. My favorite animal was the peacock because of his spots, and I never seen a peacock.

John: I liked them all because I liked when the zoo keeper came to feed the walrus in Polar Bear and because all of the kids were dressing up like animals. I like Brown Bear because the class was looking at the teacher and the teacher was looking at the fish and looking at the kids. I like The Very Hungry Caterpillar because of Monday, Tuesday and all of that stuff when they flipped over and there kept being more and more food. The Caterpillar one is my very favorite. I liked the way Eric Carle did the end papers. One had dots and one had stripes facing up and one had stripes going sideways.

Daniel: I liked the Caterpillar one best because it had the folds in the paper. I liked it when the caterpillar was a baby and I liked the part where it was a butterfly. It was really pretty.

Brady K.: I liked Brown Bear best because I liked the stripes on the end. My favorite animal was the purple cat because he's purple!

Sophie: I liked Brown Bear best because the teacher was reading the book about animals to the kids. My favorite animal was the purple cat because of the purple. I like purple.

(Note: Neither Brady nor Sophie heard the other one's purple cat preference. Mack in PK also referred to the purple cat. Obviously, this is a very appealing illustration.)

PREKINDERGARTEN RESPONSES

Kaitlyn: I liked the Caterpillar because it was super hungry and he ate too much and he had a stomach ache. If I was a hungry caterpillar I'd eat the apple first.

Katherine: I liked the Polar Bear book because it has a polar bear and I liked the stripes. I liked the zebra.

Eva: I liked the Caterpillar best because it ate a leaf up and then had a tummy ache, that's why. I liked the part where the caterpillar ate up all the food. If I was a hungry caterpillar I'd eat a leaf first.

Emmett: I liked Brown Bear best because it had a goldfish and a yellow duck.

Mack: I liked Brown Bear best because it had the kitten. It was purple. I liked that one. And she was licking her elbow. Meow! Meow! Meow! I can do the sound of her. That made me laugh.

Emelyn: I liked the Caterpillar because it was silly when you said the moon was an egg!

Summer: I liked Brown Bear. My favorite animal was the blue horse and I liked the goldfish.

Acadia: I liked the Caterpillar because I got it at home and it's my favorite book. I like the colors of the circles. If I was a hungry caterpillar I'd eat the pickle.