The Bottom Line: This soothing lesson on where animals sleep expands the world a little more for young readers while introducing them to habits of ten river-dwelling animals.
pestyside's Full Review: Gail Langer Karwoski - River Beds: Sleeping in the...
A snooze by a stream, a treat welcomed by many, offers a chance to dream. Yet, the author asks young readers to consider the question of sleeping in a stream. What would it be like? She lets several animals from around the world respond in this children’s book, River Beds Sleeping in the World’s Rivers.
This sequel to Gail Langer Karwoski’s award-winning book Water Beds: Sleeping in the Ocean (2005 Mom’s Choice and 2007 Teacher’s Choice) takes young readers, perhaps pre-naptime readers to nine major rivers to meet ten mammals at naptime. Karwoski and the illustrator, Connie McLennan, let children glimpse some of the many ways in which mammals sleep either in or next to these rivers. We travel with a young boy that we meet on the first page and with him readers explore the homes of ten mammals.
With simple text readers see otters in a hollow tree next to the Mississippi River, beavers in the their lodge in the St. Lawrence River, pink river dolphins and a capybara snoozing in or near the Amazon River, voles in a riverbank den on the Thames River, mink under the roots of a tree next to the Danube River, river dolphins in the Indus River, Asian short-clawed otters in their den next to the Mekong River, hippos along the Nile, and a platypus under the bank of the Brisbane River. With each of these animals children (and adults) learn a little more about these animal homes and sometimes their very secret entrances.
Did you know that the river dolphins nap for seconds before waking to click and touch, rise to the surface and breathe? Did you know the hippo uses the water as a soft pillow for slumbering in the hot African sun?
Gail Langer Karwoski’s collection of brief descriptions for each animal is perfect for the ages of four to eight. Four year olds will enjoy meeting these different animals and learning how to say their names (capybara, hippopotamus) but also seeing the ways in which some animals sleep. Many at that age, unless they’ve been exposed to animals at home, just expect all animals sleep in beds much like they do. The illustrator, Connie McLennan, really makes this book valuable with her detailed images of the animal’s home and her soft watercolors.
The mink’s burrow under the roots of a tree shows the soil, rocks, and roots beneath the ground and the ice-covered water and snowy surface that surrounds it. These are quite realistic and the sleepy animals are just as adorable as our sleepy children. Quite honestly, all the yawning that the little boy did throughout the book had me ready for a nap by the end.
It’s A Sylvan Dell Publishing Book
Sylvan Dell books are winning awards hand over fist. Every time I look one of their books has garnered yet another award. There is a reason for that. They design their books for educators and for home schooling. Each book contains or has access to complete lessons that complement learning standards and goals. Experts on the book’s topic provide guidance and verify the content for accuracy of information. This book was overseen by 12 experts from places such as the Tennessee Aquarium, Chattahoochee Nature Center, Virtual Explorers, St. Louis Zoo, Australian Platypus Conservancy and more. The educational features included are
• For Creative Minds (at the back of the book) with an Adaptation Matching Activity and A River Map Activity. These can be photocopied or printed from Sylvan Dell’s website for classroom and educational use.
• An online Teaching Activity resource with 23 pages of activities in math, language arts, science, research, geography, and art. This contains guidance for before, during and after reading the book.
• Also online, reading and math quizzes
• Related websites full of resources for each animal. Many of the sites offer additional activities for kids and teachers.
• Online interviews with both the author and the illustrator, something that can appeal to the older readers in the targeted age-group.
• A chart with Lexile and Accelerated Reading levels for each of the Sylvan Dell book.
I continue to be a strong advocate for Sylvan Dell books. These consistently impress me with their quality and value. A nearly second grade girl recently spent two days at my house while her father finished a floor project. I let her explore my books and she fell in love with this book as have I and I fully expect to see teacher and parent awards given to River Beds.
This might be a perfect bedtime story as well as a classroom lesson. This concludes with an invitation to the reader to "curl up on a soft pillow, burrow under dry covers, and close your eyes. Let the rhythmic lap, lap of water lull you to sleep as you drift downstream, dreaming of rivers far and near." I wonder which animal they will dream of or pretend to be as they snooze.
My thanks to Sylvan Dell Publishing for allowing me the opportunity to provide an honest review of this book.
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