The book ends with the main character ‘Me’ saying, ��That night I had a strange dream. Do you think animals have dreams?’ This is a great question to start a discussion with the class and also it could be used in Literacy with the words being omitted from the story and the Children using the illustrations as inspiration for their own text for the story. This story is a fun introduction to animals and their characteristics. It is written in the first person, with repetitive sentences. The nature of repetitiveness enables young readers to predict and engage with the story. I wrote to the zoo to send me a pet..." (That's a direct quote from the book) and then I'd pull out a different puppet from the box and bring it to life for a few seconds. It was fun to have the parents and talking kids chant the line over and over with me. And it was even more fun to see the children's excitement when a "live" animal came out of the box. Priceless. I hope you enjoy reading Dear Zoo as much as we did, and if you have any suggestions for future books, please let me know in the comments below. Let’s share the love of reading and help our children to become bookworms for life.

This wonderful collection of preschool books about the zoo presents a fantastic way to engage your little ones in the exciting world of animals. Not only will these stories entertain them, but they will also inspire curiosity and foster an early love for wildlife. Read Do You Know Hank the Hippo, and let your preschoolers act out the story with an adorable crocheted hippo toy. Two of my kids’ teachers told me that this was an amazing book last year so I bought it but hesitated because I was afraid it would be one of those sad, urban zoo stories. I was so wrong to wait to read this Newbery winning chapter book! But my daughter really loves this book. And my husband told me to lighten up, get off my high horse and "it's only a kids' book. Don't worry about it." So maybe the lift up flaps are great. And how lovely it would be to have a zoo keep sending you animals on demand. Yeah, ok, it's a fab book. Set up a zoo animals sensory bin with this kit! Filled with a mixture of textures, bright and vibrant colors, this kit will let your little one explore for hours.

Board Books

The kids fought, more interested in lunch and souvenirs than the animals, found their daddy embarrassing, and didn't bother to laugh at the daddy's attempted jokes. The family's dynamic feels troubling, but so blatantly true at the same time. The ending makes us pause and think about the relationship between animals and human beings, and the ethical questions surrounding a zoo environment. The book mostly seems to be a commentary of a normal family going to the zoo and shows no overtly obvious life lessons or guidance other than the comparisons of the characters in the story to the animals in the zoo. This is recognized by the protagonist when he dreams of swapping places with the animals in the zoo and he ponders about the reams of animals. This could instigate curiosity and is a good way to see things from another point of view. It has very good illustrations which complement the story nicely, adding to the sense of humor within. The front cover isn’t particularly bright but the wavy lines, bold simple title and family picture still make it look intriguing and hint at the slightly unusual story within. These 20+ amazing photos show the details of many zoo animals from their eyelashes to tongues, along with posing some very interesting details about many zoo residents. Great for kids ages 3+ (really, this is a cool book even for adults!) Zoo Zen: A Yoga Story for Kids was written by Kristen Fischer and illustrated by Susi Schaefer. This sweet yoga story follows a little girl named Lyla as she learns new yoga poses from her zoo animal friends. The illustrations are striking, and offer helpful tips for kids to try the poses.

This review is for Dear Zoo: Noisy Book, which I think is the best of all the many versions and formats. It begins:

Animal books for 6 - 8 year olds

But when she is forced into hiding for a thorough zoo cleaning, everyone realizes how important spiders are to the zoo ecosystem. I love this message because my kids are afraid of spiders and this picture book helps us to appreciate them. [picture book, ages 2 and up]

From board books to fiction, take a look at these fantastic zoo books for kids! Perfect for learning about animals and a visit to the zoo. In some ways, 11-year-old Whit is like an animal at the zoo where his parents work. He is homeschooled here at the zoo and doesn’t leave the premises much. When he meets “Bird Girl” who comes each day to draw the birds, he finally has the chance to talk to someone his age. And for some creative fun, take along the At the Zoo Scratch & Sketch (An Art Activity Book for Animal Lovers and Artists of All Ages) (Trace-Along Scratch and Sketch) . Your kids will love to observe and scratch/sketch the animals they see on their visit. A favorite in our house when the kids were younger was the (almost) wordless picture book Good Night, Gorilla by Peggy Rathman. A talented animal can do wondrous things with colors and circles and it thinks the zoo is the perfect place to live but the two children it befriends convince it that there is an even better place to aspire towards. [picture book, ages 2 and up]Zoo” by Anthony Browne by is really a sad picture book about going to the zoo with your family. A boy is telling the story through his perspective by reading the text but I think if you were to look at the pictures, you can see many different perspectives taken place in the book. It starts of with a each member of the family has their own portrait; similar to “Willy’s Pictures”. By looking at their facial expressions you can feel through personality coming through the pictures. The first one I noticed was the dad with a stern look on his face. Then the boy, who is the narrator, is in a calm manner while his brother is smiling a fake smile and his mother looking really sad. It’s a story about how a family goes to the zoo and when the boy who goes to sleep at night remembers a dream that he was behind bars, trapped, maybe living a life he didn’t want to. He pondered if animals could have dreams like him. The character made a connection to the animals because he feels the same way as the animals. If you’re looking for some favorite book characters, here are a few enjoyable reads about zoo visits that kids will identify with as they tour the animals — Animal Strike at the Zoo. It’s True! was written by Karma Wilson and illustrated by Margaret Spengler. In this silly story, the animals at the zoo decide to go on strike. They come up with all kinds of entertaining demands for the zookeeper. Kids will love laughing at the hilarious and imaginative illustrations of the animals. I doubt 22-month old little-AJ is thinking much about any of the above issues, but he thoroughly enjoys this book and has requested this to be read and re-read many times. Catherine of Story Snug has a wonderful suggestion. Her review is here. Supermarket Zoo by Caryl Hart