J is for Just Me and My Dad: Library Notes

 

Mercer Mayer wrote one of the first books that my eldest son read independently.  I still can feel my joy as he accomplished this milestone so it etched the book series in my heart as a result.  I have read them with many other early readers since then. There is a whole series of Lil Critter books at different reading levels but they all focus on being suitable for early readers.  They use high frequency words with phonetic spellings along with rhyming patterns to help simplify the text.  They also use motivating themes that young children can relate to: like what they do with their dad.

The book is short and sweet yet full of concepts so it can be read as a simple book or expanded on for a rich discussion and series of related activities.  These books demonstrate that things do not always go according to plan.  It is sometimes because the child doesn't have the skills needed and sometimes just because life happens and we have to accept that.  It is a straightforward story for a child reading it but there are a lot of subtleties that others can pick up on that can provoke conversations.  For example, this book focuses on a camping trip and the events bring up questions such as: How do you look for a good place to set up camp when you are in the home place of various animals?  Who in the forest listens in when you tell a ghost story at night?  What happens when a bear eats your fish?  Can you think of  alternatives for food?

If you have children who are interested in camping, and/or have had a camping trip experience, they will have a lot to share as they read along with the book.  The story will inspire some ideas that include the usual camping themed ideas relating to canoes, forest animals, bears, campfires, tent activities and fishing to name a few.  Perhaps you can build a tent fort and pull in some stuffed animals to listen along with you as you read the book!

There is a hidden friend to find in Mercer Mayer's books.  I spy a spider and a grasshopper on each page  in this book.  Be sure to find them as you go along and have fun expanding on ideas with this book!  When your child(ren) become familiar with the text, pause for them to fill in the missing words, whether by memory of the text or by reading.  Putting events in order, finding rhyming words and identifying key vocabulary are additional activities that can be meaningfully completed with this series of books.  Make the most of your library times with the child(ren) in your life!



  

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