Rebus and Rhyme: We Love Our School: A Read-Together Rebus Story by Judy Sierra

"IT'S THE FIRST DAY OF SCHOOL!"
SAID THE [FROG] IN THE POOL.

WITH [TWO] BOOKS IN HIS PACK
THAT HE WORE ON HIS BACK.
HE SAILED OFF TO SCHOOL.

The first day of school is hard, even when you have friendly [DUCK], [SNAIL], and [RABBIT] for classmates and a [TURKEY] by the name of Tom Burkey as a teacher. ABC games and blocks and artwork are fun, too, and soon the new students are settling down happily.

"THEY SANG ABOUT SHARING,
AND HELPING AND CARING.
AND EVERYONE FELT LIKE A [STAR]!"

What sets this gentle little introduction to early childhood classes apart are Judy Sierra's lively rhyming text and the frequent introduction of iconic pictures for words--FROG, GUITAR, PIE, BLOCKS, and RAINBOW, for example. Children of preschool age can already "read" pictures, symbols, and icons, and with plenty of these rebus clues scattered through the simple verse in the text, they can readily participate in the flow of meaning available on the printed page. Judy Sierra's newest, We Love Our School!: A Read-Together Rebus Story Albert A. Knopf, 2011) uses her rhyming skills to offer textual cues, while Linda Davick's stylized and simple illustrations provide the visual clues to help the early emergent reader bounce through this upbeat story.

"This is a simple but thoroughly charming little gem of a book," says Booklist, and Kirkus Reviews adds, "A comforting and empowering build-up to the big day—kindergarten (or preschool), here we come!"