Hoot and Peep by Lita Judge: Perfect for Storytime, Ages 0-3

“Schweeepty peep!” 

This is the noise a little owl named Peep makes. Her older brother, Hoot, is much wiser. Here, he imparts his only wisdom.

“‘No, no, no! It goes like this, Peeps. First, we are owls. We say Hooo. Second, we ALWAYS say Hooo. Lastly, we ONLY say Hooo'.” 

Peep just can’t seem to get the hang of it. She peeps, coos, and echoes the ringing bell, “ding dong bong!” Hoot seems to be stuck in his ways: “The problem with Peep, thought Hoot, is she wont listen to my owly wisdom.” Peep thinks that Hoot’s problem is that “he doesn’t believe in singing about the mystery of things.”

Lita Judge’s absolutely adorable illustrations and cute owl calls will fill your heart, and will have your child making owl noises before bedtime. Hoot and Peep is a sibling story, but is a great book for any little one. It is the perfect read to demonstrate teamwork, cooperation, and considering others points of view, even from a young age! 

Will Hoot learn to love Peep’s singing? And will Peep ever act like a true owl? Pick up this book to find out. 

The Benefits of Reading Aloud

At the Bank Street College of Education lately, we've been talking a lot about what we hope a parent and young child will gain from the experience of reading aloud together. Bears in Beds by Shirley Parenteau, illustrated by David Walker, provides a strong launch point for a positive experience.

from Bears in Beds 

Here are three main ways to connect with the toddler in your life through sharing a book (and this one in particular):

1. Closeness. Sit close together with the child either on your lap or with your arm around him or her, so the child both feels secure and also keeps the focus on the book.
2. Prediction. Read the title, author's and artist's names on the cover. You might start by asking, "What do you think the book will be about?" Or my favorite, "What do you see?" There are no wrong answers. Your response to whatever the child answers might be, "Let's see!" 
3. Interaction. In this book, there are different elements you can ask your toddler to focus on. There are five bears; you might count them together. Size and color are two other elements that come into play (Big Brown Bear, Yellow Bear, etc.). The bears read a story together. "Do you know what it is?" you might ask your child. And finally, some of the sounds in the night frighten the bears. You could ask, "What can you do if you get scared?"

Reading together is an opportunity for closeness and conversation, to send your child to sleep with a sense of comfort and safety.

Bedtime Buddies

How often have we walked in on a toddler who’s acting out a familiar scene? She might be showing a friend how to throw a ball using the same pointers you showed her, or explaining to her doll how to share with her friends (after receiving the same advice herself). Sleepyhead by Karma Wilson, illustrated by John Segal, encourages that same kind of role-playing—a tool that helps a child process his day and, in this case, to drift off to sleep.

We see the kitten hero instructing her teddy, Sleepyhead, to brush his teeth just as we presume her own parents instructed her to do. Then we watch her anticipate Sleepyhead’s stall tactics: “We’ve hugged our hugs…. You’ve drunk your drink.” Still, Sleepyhead asks for “one more.” It’s a gentle humor that arises from recognizing one’s own behavior and being able to laugh at oneself.

At the same time, the rhyme and the nursery-hued art (in the imagined scenes of the kitten carrying a drink in a boat to Sleepyhead as he rides on the back of a swordfish, or brings a book to the teddy high atop a giraffe) are soothing enough to have a lulling effect. And because the book, first published in 2006, is now in a board book edition, you may send it off with your toddler to naptime or bedtime. It’s durable enough to sleep on, drool on or be tossed across a crib.

Don’t be surprised if, when you check in on your toddler, you hear a quiet “Sleepyhead, Sleepyhead. Now close your eyes, my Sleepyhead” wafting from the nursery.