The Children’s Book Review | November 17, 2014
Two excellent installments from the Schoolies series, combining vibrant drawings and lessons on navigating school life. Both books present a range of recurring characters in the Schoolies family, from twin ladybugs Lydia and Leeza, to Spencer the Owl.
By Sarah Powell, Barbi Sido, and Natalie Boyd; Based on characters created by Ellen Crimi-Trent
Age Range: 3-7
Paperback: 28 Pages
Publisher: Priddy Books (June 11, 2013)
What to expect: School, Reassurance, Animals
In My First Day Of School, it is Spencer who is starting his first day. He is understandably nervous, so much so that he does not really want to go to school at all. After consulting with his mother, and his older brother Colby, about what he can expect to find at school, Spencer boards the bus and is relieved to see that there are others there who are, like him, nervous and excited about starting school. We follow Spencer throughout his day, where he meets Mrs. Meow, his teacher, enjoys lessons in counting and his ABCs, and has lunch in the cafeteria. He even makes friends with a squirrel, named Zippy, who races around the playground on his scooter – Spencer, in roller skates, excitedly follows. By day’s end, Spencer is sad that the day has gone by so quickly, and when he returns home his new apprehensiveness is that the school day has come to a close. He is very happy to learn that he will get to go back again tomorrow.
Add this book to your collection: My First Day Of School
By Sarah Powell, Barbi Sido, Katherine Radcliffe, and Natalie Boyd; Based on characters created by Ellen Crimi-Trent
Age Range: 3-7
Paperback: 28 Pages
Publisher: Priddy Books (June 11, 2013)
What to expect: Animals, Overcoming Shyness, School setting
In Making Friends, we meet to twin lady bugs—Leeza, and Lydia. Leeza is a loud and outgoing Schoolie, while Lydia is shy. It just so happens to be Friendship Week, a time at school when the Schoolies are learning about what it means to be a good friend. Throughout the day, students are encouraged to place notes in a Friendship Jar, to acknowledge other students who have behaved like a good friend. Lydia is immediately certain that none of these notes will be about her, since she is too shy to make friends. She can barely even whisper when she speaks to others, a fact the book interestingly renders with a small, faint font capturing her words whenever she speaks. However, as the day progresses, her kindness shows—she shares her lunch with Spencer, helps Zippy when he falls off his scooter, and gives Hayden help on the drums. Her confidence grows (and even the font rendering her voice darkens, as she learns to speak less shyly to others). At the end of the day Lydia is surprised and happy to see that the Friendship Jar is full of notes praising her kindness.
Add this book to your collection: Making Friends
The Schoolies series books were reviewed by Trevor Laurence Jockims. Follow along with our Picture Books category and articles tagged with “Friendship Books” and “School” to discover more great books for sharing with your kids.