An Edward Lear Alphabet illustrated by Carol Newsom

Sweet illustrations accompany Edward Lear's silly rhyming alphabet.
-Borrowed from the library.
Pair with A Was Once an Apple Pie illustrated by Suse MacDonald.

Nanette's Baguette by Mo Willems

Mr. Willems is no longer creating Elephant and Piggie books (so sad!) but he is still writing and illustrating!
Nanette's Baguette shares the story of Nanette who loves baguettes.  Her mother sends her to the bakery to "get" a baguette from Baker Juliette (see the pattern?!).  As she carries home the baguette, the aroma is irresistible so Nanette takes a nibble, then another and another . . . .
A funny ending.
Mr. Willems actually built and handcrafted the scenery out of cardboard and photographed it for the illustrations.  Amazing!
My first grader spied several sightings of pigeon in this book!
Strategies: predicting, inferring, vocab. expansion, word family-"et"
-Borrowed from the library

"Stand Back, Said the Elephant, "I'm Going to Sneeze!" by Patricia Thomas illustrated by Wallace Tripp*

When the elephant announces he is going to sneeze, the animals that inhabit the area recall the horrible things that happened to them the last time he sneezed.  Then a teeny mouse comes up with an idea to prevent the sneeze but will it really avert the sneeze?
Funny!
I love all the rhyming words within the sentences (perfect for reviewing word families and for advancing beginning readers).
*Highly recommend.
-We own this book.

Barn Storm by Charles and Debra Ghigna illustrated by Diane Greenseid*

Step into Reading -Step 2
My six year old read this aloud to me.
When a tornado descends upon a farm, it creates havoc and a silly farm!
*Highly recommend.
Strategies: cause/effect, sequencing, "ound" word family
Rhyming text
Perfect for advancing beginning readers.
Guided Reading Level: I (end of 1st grade)
Grade Level Equivalent: 2nd grade
-We own this book.

Frog on a Log? by Kes Gray illustrated by Jim Field

Cat informs frog that he must sit on a log because that is what frogs are suppose to do.  Frog, however, does not like that idea because logs are "hard and uncomfortable and give you splinters".  Cat proceeds to share on what specific animals must sit.  The animal's sitting spot rhymes with their name (cat=mat, hare=chair, mule=stool, gopher=sofa etc.) so this book can be used to reinforce rhyming and some word families.
The ending is funny!
Borrowed from the library.

Love You More Than Anything by Anna Harber Freeman illustrated by Jed Henry*

An adorable chipmunk family is featured in this picture book.  The parents share how much they love their children  by comparing it to the fun activities they all enjoy (which most children enjoy too!).
Rhyming text make this a great book to read to toddlers and preschoolers.
Recommended by Thriving Family magazine published by Focus on the Family.
*Highly recommend.
I love the end pages too!

Stick and Stone by Beth Ferry illustrated by Tom Lichtenheld

Stick and Stone are living separate lives . . . alone and lonely.  Then one day they meet when Pinecone makes fun of Stone.  Stick "sticks" up for stone and a beautiful friendship begins.
Simple, rhyming text with lots of word play!
Cute.

What This Story Needs is a Pig in a Wig by Emma J. Virjan*

A wonderful new addition to the beginning reader collection!
All the words are either sight words, easy to sound/find chunks, or supported by illustrations.
As the story builds, the words on the page are in the same word family.
Recommend this book for K-1st classroom libraries.
Hopefully Ms. Virjan will be writing more books like this one!
I read this with my preschooler and he reread it to himself several times.
**Highly, highly recommend.

Sheep Go to Sleep by Nancy Shaw illustrated by Margot Apple*

The newest addition to Ms. Shaw's sheep books!
Sheep cannot fall asleep.  Who will help them?  A loyal collie, of course!
At the end Ms. Shaw references the nursery rhyme "Little Boy Blue" so an opportunity to make a text to text connection.
A great bedtime story.
Perfect to use when teaching "long e" and word families.
*Highly recommend.

The New Red Bed by Sindy McKay illustrated by Erin Marie Mauterer

"We Both Read Level 1 Gr. K-One"
I had  never heard of this series until I spotted it at our library last week.  The parent reads one page that has longer text and then the child continues the story on the next page that contains only a few words.  If a more challenging word is included, it is always introduced in bold on the parent side.
The stories are longer so probably good for building stamina.
Colorful illustrations.
Lots of word families/rhymes.

My Nose is a Hose by Kent Salisbury*

"Pop into Phonics"
An interactive book that allows the reader to see word families.
*Highly recommend.

Ed and Ted and Ted's Dog Fred by Andy Griffiths illustrated by Terry Denton

"My Readers  Classic Stories Classic Characters"
A silly story about Ed, Ted and Fred.
Lots of "ed" words plus words like "dead/read" that are pronounced with like "ed".  Perfect for modeling cross checking and flipping the vowel sound.
Good fit for beginning readers.

A Moose That Says MOOOO by Jennifer Hamburg illustrated by Sue Truesdell

A girl imagines how animals would be like if she created her own zoo.
Silly antics (like sharks reading books, pillow fights, tap dancing) will make young readers giggle.
Rhyming text.

Zoo-Looking by Mem Fox illustrated by Candace Whitman

The illustrations are collages from painted paper torn into the desired shape.
Flora  and her father visit a zoo.  She enjoys looking at each of the animals.
I would read this book when teaching a child the "ack" word family.
Repeating text also makes this a great book for beginning readers.
Guided Reading Level: G

"Fire! Fire!" Said Mrs. McGuire by Bill Martin Jr. illustrated by Richard Egielski

A rapidly sequenced story beginning with a newscaster announcing that there was a fire downtown.  Female characters lead the way to the actual fire.
Rhyming couplets-word families-make the reading fun.
A surprise funny ending!
Warning:  I may be being oversensitive, Mrs. Votter is quite seductive (and is meant to be).  Firemen are all too eager to give her a glass of water!!
Strategies: cause/effect; sequencing
Guided Reading Level: F

One Big Pair of Underwear by Laura Gehl illustrated by Tom Lichtenheld*

Two bears argue over one big pair of underwear.  Other creatures follow, not sharing with one member of their group.  There is always one less object compared to the total number in the group.  The number of members and objects to be shared increases by one as the book progresses.
Many uses for this book:
*rhymes/word families
*reading number words
*basic subtraction (minus one)
*one opportunity to divide/equal grouping

*Highly recommend.

Sheep in a Shop by Nancy Shaw illustrated by Margot Apple

Sheep need to purchase a birthday gift but make a mess while shopping and do not have enough money to pay for their purchases.
Great for beginning readers. Rhymes.
Skills: word families; word attack strategies
Guided reading level: G

Animal Snackers by Betsy Lewin

With rhyming verses and fun illustrations, readers can learn about animals and their favorite snacks.
Great to use when learning to read and focusing on word families.
The rhymes are either couplets or follow the ABAB pattern.
The author provides more facts about each animal in the back.
Guided Reading Level: H

Bunnies on the Go by Rick Walton illustrated by Paige Miglio*

"Getting from Place to Place"
An adorable family sets off on vacation and utilizes many modes of transportation to travel from place to place.  The entire story is told in rhyme.  The author gives the reader the opportunity to guess the next mode of transportation-a hint in the illustration and the next mode rhymes with the word from  the last line.
I loved the map on the end pages that displays their journey plans.
Strategies/skills: rhyme and predicting.
Great to use in transportation unit.
*Highly recommend.

Big Chickens Fly the Coop by Leslie Helakoski illustrated by Henry Cole

Another one in the "Big Chicken" series.  The chickens long to see the farmhouse but a few scary obstacles are in their way.  Funny ending.