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Little School: Fun and Learning for Four-Year-Olds

Little School is a delightful children's picture book about a busy day of fun and learning for the 20 four-year-olds who attend the school. This book is perfect for the two- to four-year-old child who is starting (or going to) preschool, nursery school, or daycare. Little School was originally published in Australia. The picture book was written and illustrated by Beth Norling.

The U.S. edition was published by Kane/Miller Book Publishers.

Little School: What Makes this Book Special

While there are a lot of children's books about going to school, Little School stands out for its design and illustrations. The watercolor, pencil, and ink illustrations are done in lovely shades of violet, soft mustard, lime green and other colors not typically associated with children's books.
At the beginning of the book, there is a page with 20 watercolor pictures on it. Each shows a different child getting up in the morning, and each is labeled with the name of one of the 20 children who attends Little School. The story follows all 20 of the children through their preparations for school to a day at Little School to their return home for dinner, chores and bed.

Several pages feature little labeled watercolor pictures. One features the various modes of transportation used to get to school and one highlights school supplies and equipment. On several other pages, a scene showing all of the children in school is bordered by labeled watercolors of some of the toys they are using.

Little School: Many Different Ways to Read the Book

Because of the design, you can read this picture book in many different ways.

• You can, of course, just read it straight through, and you and your child can enjoy and discuss all of the activities shown.
• Each time you read the book, your child can select one of the 20 children pictured and follow that child's activities as you read through the book.
• Your child can also have fun finding all of the objects pictured in the little illustrations that frame the large school scenes.

Little School: Preparing Your Child for Preschool or Daycare

If your child will be attending preschool, nursery school, or daycare for the first time, you can talk about all of the things the children do at Little School in terms of what your child will be doing. The children I have read this book to have wanted to hear it again and again. That repetition can be very helpful when you are trying to reassure your child about a new experience.
Little School is filled with activity and color. Because you can concentrate on a different child at Little School each time you read it, you won't get bored reading it to your child again and again. It's a very appealing picture book. I predict that it will quickly become one of your child's favorite books.

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