Back to School: Monkey Not Ready for Kindergarten by Marc Brown

Monkey's got a bad case of the Kindergarten jitters.

With just one week to go to the big day, those unknowns, the WHAT IFs, are worrying.

WHY DOES MONKEY NEED TO GO TO KINDERGARTEN ANYWAY?

HE ALREADY CAN COUNT TO 12, AND HE USUALLY REMEMBERS MOST OF THE ALPHABET?

But what if--he misses the bus... makes no friends.... can't locate the bathroom in time... can't stomach the lunches.... and forgets the whole alphabet?

But mom and dad reassure Monkey that he IS going to be ready.

First things first. Mom takes Monkey to pick out the perfect lunch box and promises to pack nothing with peas in it. Monkey gets a new backpack, and he and Mom and Dad read books about the first day of school.

But Monkey still does not feel ready.

THE DAY BEFORE KINDERGARTEN, MONKEY HAS A PLAYDATE WITH SOME KIDS WHO ARE GOING TO BE IN HIS CLASS.

His friends are full on enthusiasm about all the things to look forward to: The cubbies have their names painted on them! Their teacher is very nice! The playground has great slides and monkey bars. What's not to like?

And when the first day of Kindergarten dawns, Monkey is ready.

The beloved author-illustrator Marc Brown, creator of Arthur and D.W.'s aardvark adventures, takes on Kindergarten anxiety headlong by pointing out things to do to head off the worst case scenarios that new students imagine, and Monkey feel ready to handle what comes when he waves goodbye in Brown's latest, Monkey: Not Ready for Kindergarten (Alfred A. Knopf Books, 2015). Knowledge is power, and armed with information about Kindergarten, this newbie feels empowered. For more pre-Kindergarten prep, pair this one with Katie Davis' Kindergarten Rocks! (review here) or Sue Ganz-Schmitt's Planet Kindergarten (see review here.).