At first glance, the Sesame Street book Elmo’s Alphabet by Michaela Muntean, illustrated by Richard Walz, may not seem extraordinarily blog-worthy, but I have had the pleasure of reading it aloud the many children, and it’s always a hit. One day Elmo is walking home, singing the alphabet song, when he runs into his friend Big Bird who suggests they play their alphabet game: thinking up their favorite words that begin with each letter of the alphabet. Elmo picks “airplane” for his favorite “a” word, and imagines himself as a pilot, flying high is the sky. Big Bird picks “boat” for his favorite “b” word and imagines himself in a kayak on a peaceful stream. This book offers many opportunities for children to act out what Elmo and Big Bird do on each page, while familiarizing them with the letters of the alphabet!
Alphabet
All Aboard!
All Aboard: A Traveling Alphabet by Bill Mayer is an excellent book to help teach your child not only about letters, but also ways to get around. The art is fabulous and reminds me of 1940’s era advertisements (the type George Bailey would decorate his house with). On each page you’re treated to something pertaining to methods of transportation, with a corresponding letter “hidden” within the illustration. For instance, the cover image is A for “All Aboard” and the gangplank of a ship makes up the letter. B is for bridge, arches of a bridge making up the letter. C is for cycle, half of a wheel making up the letter, and so forth. You can have fun with your child finding the letters and talking about how people travel around the world.
I Stink!
Meet a very vocal garbage truck in I Stink! by Kate and Jim McMullan. Have you ever been awoken to the sound of a garbage truck backing up to take your trash away? Good! He loves disturbing people’s sleep! And he loves to eat disgusting trash–in fact he has a whole alphabet of yucky things to eat, from A for apple cores to Z for zipped-up ziti with zucchini! He sure does smell bad, but without him we’d live on a mountain of trash! So, take trip through New York City with this boistrous representative of the Sanitation Department in I Stink!
Superhero ABC
Superhero ABC by Bob McLeod is great for geeky moms and fanboy dads, longing to introduce their children to comic book style superheroes! Each letter of the alphabet is treated to its own unique hero, and an alliterative blurb about them. For example, A is for Astro-man who “is always alert for an alien attack,” B is for Bubble Boy who “blows bubbles at bullies,” and C is for Captain Cloud who “calmly catches crooks.” My favorite by far is Power Pup who “protects pets from the pound.” The illustrations are colorful and quite detailed–in the background of Power Pup, you can see a parrot named Polly, a panting poodle, and a persian cat proclaiming “Pets are people too!” Children learning the alphabet will really like identifying the letters, especially those that spell their name!
A Is for Art
A Is for Art: An Abstract Alphabet is a great book for parents who love modern art. And also, maybe, those that hate it. But above all it’s really great for kids. When I first set eyes on this book, by Caldecott Award winner Stephen T. Johnson, I thought it had been placed in the wrong section. A child couldn’t possibly appreciate such expressionistic and conceptual paintings, collages, installations, and sculptures. Or could they? The more I looked at the pictures in the book, the more I realized how perfect it is for a child who has little to no concept of what “art” is. They have truly open minds! Read this book with your child and let them explain which pieces they like or don’t like and why. Maybe you too will see the art through new eyes. Each piece is inspired by a letter of the alphabet and also features an alliterative blurb.