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*Picture book for preschoolers through 2nd graders
*Sweet, little chickadees as main characters
*Rating: Chickadees At Night is a super cute picture book, where author Bill O. Smith wonders what those little, secretive chickadees are doing. I love the creativity and illustrations, too!

Short, short summary:

Bill O. Smith asks “Where do chickadees go at night?” He goes on with a beautiful and cute poem that answers this question–wondering: “Do they climb to the clouds? Do they scrub in the showers?” He wonders if they play, such as using a spider web as a chickadee trampoline, or maybe they play hide and seek? (BY the way, there is a full two-page illustration with no words, where children can search for the chickadees playing hide and seek! So cute!) The book goes on asking questions about what chickadees do–some of them are personification if you are looking for good examples of this literary technique. Smith wonders what they do in different seasons, too. At the end of the book, he includes “Chickadee Nuggets,” which are several true facts about chickadees that answer many of the questions raised during the rest of the book. Kids will LOVE this book–my daughter LOVES birds and ADORES books, so this is a perfect combination for her.

So, what do I do with this book?

1. Why not do a KWL chart with this book? What do children know about chickadees before you begin reading this book? What do they wonder? What did they learn when you finished?

2. Assign one fact to each child in your class (or at home, let children choose which facts they want to do). Students should copy the fact and illustrate it. Bind these into your own class book or hang them on the wall for a display. For further research or older kids, let them research a different species of birds, such as cardinals, and compare/contrast cardinals and chickadees.

3. Let children answer the question: “What do chickadees do at night?” themselves–either before or after reading Bill O. Smith’s ideas. Encourage them to be as creative as possible!

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*Concept book, preschool to kindergarten
*Forest creatures as main characters
*The layout is one of the best parts of this concept book. It’s a cute idea and well executed!

Short, short summary:

Each pair of pages asks, “Who is in the forest, dark and deep?” and then there is a circle cut-out previewing the next page and animal. For example, there’s a bird, squirrel, and fox. Each animal has a page with a rhyming answer, such as: “Foxes on the prowl–creep, creep, creep.” The end talks about nocturnal animals. There’s a lot to look at and explore with this book–especially for young children.

So what do I do With This Book?

1. You can talk to young children about the forest habitat and what plants and animals they would find there. You can also ask questions like, “Would a penguin belong in this book?” You could even do a KWL (Know, Wonder, Learn) chart if you wanted to further the study of this habitat.

2. Ask children to predict what the next page will say based on the cut-out circle pictures and the predictability of the repeating text and rhyming words.

3. Talk about the difference between nocturnal and diurnal animals after reading the last page of the book. What animals do children see in the last illustration? Are all of those nocturnal animals? What does this mean?

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