Early Language & Literacy /Winter 2015Professor: Sandra stockwell

Baby Animals-Metropolitan Museum of Modern

Art

By: William Lach Abrams Books for Young ReadersISBN: 978-0-8109-9457

Description:

• The Met’s ‘baby animals’ book shows various baby animals from dogs, cats to goats and bats. It has split pages with minimal words but a great short narrative. It describes how baby goats are called ‘kids’ and cats are called ‘kittens’ et cetera. It would be a great companion to a unit on Spring. I wish I had this book last year for my ELL class when we discussed spring and talked about all the different names of baby animals. The illustrations are second to none as they are taken from the MET’s collection of Leonardo da Vinci drawings to eighteenth-century Japanese netsuke and fabric illustrations. I like that it embodies a diverse set of animals. Tiger cubs, elephant calves are depicted following their mother and there is even an illustration of a human babies.

For Ages: 3-5+ (A look inside)Storyboards and games about animals (identifying) can also be incorporated into the classroom after reading this book.

Great for read-aloud / circle time

• This book would be an excellent addition to vocabulary work. It easily identifies the names of baby animals and provides beautiful pictures to accompany this.• It would be a good idea to discuss

where the pictures come from.• Not all animals depicted are

common.• Promotes ‘early interest in animals

and art’…

Illustrations are colorful and coincide with descriptions on opposite page.

Little humans are not left out!

“Little boys are also baby animals!” “Little girls are also baby animals!”

One line descriptions. . .

“Baby cows are also called calves” “Baby soon…Baby birds hatch from eggs”

I would reiterate these themes by having the students draw their own pictures of baby animals

Baby pinch:

*Goes beyond dogs and cats and lists more obscure animals. This promotes interest for further animal exploration and learning.

Works Cited:

Retrieved from: Amazon.com February 2015, http://www.amazon.com/Baby-Animals-Little-Ones-Works/dp/0810994577/ref=la_B001IYVEMK_1_2?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1423878625&sr=1-2

Lach, W. (2007). Baby animals: Little ones at play in 20 works of art. New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art :.

References:

http://www.metmuseum.org/

http://www.metmuseum.org/about-the-museum/now-at-the-met