Carle, Eric. 1, 2, 3 To The Zoo: A Counting Book. New York: Trumpet Club, 1968.

This wordless picture book is fun to share with preschoolers and kindergarteners. The illustrations depict a zoo train and zoo animals. Each page has a numeral at the top and the picture has the corresponding number of animals on a train car. Along the bottom of the page the whole train is shown in miniature. The children love to identify and count the animals. They also love to watch the miniature train grow as cars are added. After the tenth car, the animals arrive at the zoo. The end pages are illustrated with repeating sets of the numerals one to ten. Eric Carle's illustrations are collages. Kids love to look at the individual pieces. Some appear to be finger painted. The children feel a connection to Eric Carle's work because they feel they could produce similar images.

Carle, Eric. The Grouchy Ladybug. Singapore: Harper Trophy, 1977.

In this story, the main character grouchily looks for someone to pick a fight with. Each potential opponent is deemed too small, however, and hour after hour, he moves on to even larger animals. He does get his comeuppance in the end. This is another of Eric Carle's beautifully illustrated books. Again the pictures are made by painting paper, then cutting and piecing to form collages. This book also features cut pages that progress in size throughout the mid-section of the book and form the shape of a whale's tail at the end. Each page has an analog clock in the upper corner.

Jonas, Ann. Splash!. New York: Mulberry Books, 1995.

A backyard pond is the scene for this story. Creatures jump or fall in the pond and then climb back out of the water. On each page children are asked to count the number of animals in the pond. The background for each page is the same with different overlay illustrations depicting the animals, girl and splashes. The kids enjoy predicting who will fall in next. The font for the word "SPLASH!" is in a different color than the rest of the text and is printed as a wave. Its size differs also. For the dragonfly the font is small, but for the cat and dog the font is larger. The kids quicklyjoin in with the "SPLASH!"

Lionni, Leo. Inch by Inch. New York: Scholastic Inc., New York, 1960.

Leo Lionni uses cut and torn paper in a collage to illustrate this 1961 Caldecott Honor book. Unlike Eric Carle's painted papers, these are patterned (tissue or wrapping paper) or colored with what looks like craypas on textured papers. The colors and textures achieved are rich and wonderful. The main character in this story is a quick thinking inchworm. He saves himself from being eaten by a robin when he explains that he is useful because he can measure things. The inchworm measures several birds throughout the book. Finally a nightingale asks him to measure her song or else she'll have him for breakfast. His solution to this problem is wonderful!

Anno, Mitsumasa. Anno's Counting Book. Mexico: Harper Trophy, 1975.

Seasons change and a village grows as this beautiful, wordless counting book progresses. The number of items pictured in the illustrations corresponds to the numeral on the page. For example the page with the numeral 1 has one: house, maple tree, pine tree, etc. When we get up to 12, we see a complete village with twelve: buildings, trees and even reindeer!

Hutchins, Pat. Changes, Changes. New York: Aladdin Paperbacks, 1973.

This is another wordless book with simple, brightly colored illustrations. A couple of wooden dolls build a house out of blocks. When it catches fire, they rearrange their blocks to form: a fire engine, boat, truck, train and finally another house. It's a wonderful book for discussing cause and effect.

Hutchins, Pat. The Doorbell Rang. New York: Scholastic Inc., 1986.

Victoria and Sam's mom has made a dozen chocolate chip cookies! They decide that they may each have six cookies, but ...the doorbell rings and in walk two friends. Throughout the book additional friends join them for their snack and each time they must redivide the dozen cookies evenly. The language is repetitive which allows the children to join in.

Saul, Carol P. Barn Cat: A Counting Book. Illustrated by Mary Azarian. New York: Little Brown and Company, 1998.

"Barn cat at the red barn door, Barn cat, what are you looking for?" (p. 1) This phrase echoes throughout the simple, enjoyable counting book, as the rhyming words escort us through the farm world of the barn cat. One grasshopper, two brown crickets, barn cat ignores all, but each beckons us to discover "what is the barn cat looking for?" Azarian's hand-colored woodcuts are vivid, and colorful making this an ideal book for storytelling to young children.Submitted by Mary Pat Connors

Clement, Rod. Counting on Frank. Milwaukee: Gareth Stevens Publishing, 1991.

Frank, a dog, has an owner who looks at the world in terms of measuring and calculating things in unusual ways. Routine, daily activities are adventures in figuring unusual facts. But, in the end, even this strange preoccupation with measuring and calculating had its rewards. The story's plot is original, humorous, cleverly written, and easy for young children to relate to. The large colorful illustrations are comical and give a fuller understanding and appreciation of the story's characters and their relationships. It is hard to turn the pages of this book and not smile! A very entertaining book which every library and classroom should have! Submitted by Jane Pingelski

Schwartz, David M. How Much is a Million? New York: Lothrop, Lee, & Shepard Books, 1985.

Marvelosissimo, the Mathematical Magician, guides you through space and time as the abstract numbers one million, one billion, and one trillion are explained and illustrated in concrete terms and examples children can understand. A note at the end of book explains the math used to calculate each example. The concise and factual text is offset by the amusing, imaginative, and magical illustrations. This book provides a fun journey into the world of large numbers. An entertaining and instructional book worthy of any library and classroom!Submitted by Jane Pingelski

Kirk, David. Miss Spider's Tea Party. Scholastic Press, New York, 1994.

Miss Spider has a tea party but the other insects won't come. They are all scared that Miss Spider will eat them. Miss Spider finally wins the trust of the other insects when she helps a cold, wet moth. This is a rhyming text that counts from 1 to 12 as the insects run away from Miss Spider and then finally sit down to tea with her. The bright colors and expressive faces of the insects makes this a visually stimulating book. Children will be drawn in by the pictures and the rhyming text. Although the book is not truthful to the nature of spiders and the author takes liberties with the colors of the insects, it will excite children and make counting fun. Submitted by Lynn Dorwaldt

• Any of these books could be introduced to the children in the library with possible follow-up in the classroom or at the next library session. An entire bulletin board or display could be dedicated to pictures and writings related to the author or story of the week.
• 1, 2, 3 To The Zoo: A Counting Book: Look for the small animal that's hiding on every page!
• The Grouchy Ladybug
: I use this book to help teach time to the hour at the end of the kindergarten year, and then to the quarter hour in first grade.
• Splash!: I encourage my first graders to retell the story with their own illustrations and write down the subtraction and addition problems depicted in their picture. We make a class book using their illustrations and word problems. Kindergarteners use manipulatives in the water table to retell the story.
• Inch by Inch: This is a fun book to share with a class. After reading it, we use inch-square blocks, and string with marks every inch to measure the birds in the book. They usually don't want to stop, so we then measure other objects around the room.
• Anno's Counting Book: Children enjoy counting the objects and discussing the change of the seasons. The last page of the book is for parents. It explains the whole concept of number and numeration in easy to understand language. I love to send this book home with my kindergarten students so their parents understand what we're doing in math.
• Changes, Changes: I photocopy the pages and put out a tub of wooden blocks so the kids can attempt to duplicate the structures in the book. Some of them can be built vertically, but some can only be built lying down.
• The Doorbell Rang: This is a wonderful book to introduce the concept of division/multiplication at the concrete level. We use plastic cookies and divide them evenly amongst children in the classroom. Of course, we do finish with a treat of real cookies!
• Uses for Barn Cat: A Counting Book: 1. Beginning use of the "cat"alog. How would we use the catalog/and subject headings to find other cat books? Find a cat book, make a catalog record with title, author and subject. This is an idea which could be used for older children also, perhaps using more advanced "cat books" and more advanced search techniques. 2. Make a bibliography of cat books found in the media center. 3. Find non-fiction facts about caring for pets. 4. Learn insect names. 5. Reinforce counting and number concepts. 6. Connect with Annie and the Wild Animals, (Jan Brett), Millions of Cats, (Wanda Gag) or The Tale of Tom Kitten, (Beatrix Potter). Mary Pat Connors
• Promote citizenship with this Soda can tab collection activity using How Much is a Million? and Counting on Frank
: Ask children to bring in tabs from soda cans to see how much a million really is! Keep collecting until end of school year. Brainstorm on how to creatively display tabs as they are collected. Calculate or measure how many tabs can fit flat in a 3'x3' square. Then figure how many can carpet the room. Think of other unusual ways of using the tabs for calculating or measuring fun and problem solving. At end of school year turn the tabs in to an organization to help pay for life saving medical equipment. Jane Pingelski
• Discuss the different types of artwork used in these books. Painting, drawing, computer art and photography. You can discuss the basic concepts of color, line, texture and medium. Children can discuss which they like best and why. Lynn Dorwaldt