"My Truck is Stuck"

My Truck is Stuck

Written by: Kevin Lewis

Illustrated by: Daniel Kirk

Published by Hyperion Books For Children in NY in 2002

ISBN: 0-7868-0534-X

Genres: Picture Book, Concept Book

Reading Level: Grade 1

Activity Level: Kindergarten

Summary: This is such a cute book about a truck driver's truck getting stuck in a pothole on the highway. Cars and trucks of various engine sizes attempt to help the stuck truck driver out of the hole in this story. Meanwhile, several prairie dogs "help" him by decreasing the load he is carrying (by taking the driver's bones from his truck). As each vehicles comes to help the driver, the book makes a point to count how many engines are then pulling the truck in order to help children increase their familiarity with the numbers 1-5.

Response: I love that this book takes special care to point out and have children count how many engines are pulling the truck. It will certainly help them learn their numbers from one to five. I also really like that the book is written as a rhyming, somewhat rhythmic, poem because I think that makes it more interesting to younger children.

The illustrations in this book are very vibrantly-colored textured works with a good deal of detail in each one. Each of them, except for the last one, is a double-page spread, which, along with the sing-songy words of the book, make the story go very quickly.

Teaching Connections: A teacher could use this book with Kindergartners to help them increase their knowledge of rhyming words, through having the story read to them, and learn about their numbers, one through five. She would have previously drawn and colored or printed pictures of each of the vehicles in this book before she reads it to her class. Then, she would give the vehicles to a student and have him or her put that picture on the board as she read the accompanying page. Each student with a vehicle would have to count the previous vehicles until the story is completed.

What Students Learn: From this book and the coordinating activity students learn about teamwork, rhyming words, and the numbers from one to five.

Image Retrieved From: http://www.linktoafrica.com/product_images/3_30987595.jpg