My First Book of Numbers

Review also includeds:

My First Book of Colours, 978-1908985026

My First Book of Animals, 978-1908985033

These three small board books with a simple but effective format are just right for the younger end of the preschool years. Figure and ground are well differentiated: intensely coloured animals, people and objects are shown on dazzling white pages. All three books give opportunities for thinking and learning . My First Book of Numbers has on each page a clear number from one to ten, reinforced by the number spelt out: the pictures are interesting and witty. My First Book of Colours shows that the same colour can vary in interesting ways; the bunch of cherries to picture red includes both vibrant and darker shades and the crocodile to show green has a bottle green upper body and legs and a pale green underbelly. (This same ominously cheerful character comes up again in My First Book of Animals.) The snowman is bright white, except for the part of him that seems to be in shadow – giving scope for comment and explanation. My First Book of Animals helps children make a start in understanding how we categorise aspects of our world. Creatures are placed under headings: farm, pets, woodland, birds, insects and sea animals. It is their potential to encourage questions and observations that makes these books merit a place on the home or nursery school bookshelf.