Grade: K

How many pennies in a nickel? What combination of coins equals a dollar? Catchy rhymes and photographs of real money teach children about coin denominations, grouping, and counting. Coins are shown in sets with written equations so students can readily see equivalents. Adding real coins while working through this book will add real meaning to the value of money.

Marjorie is an insecure cow who wishes she had some special talent. She can’t ride a bicycle or do handstands like the other cows. Then one morning (thanks to a bunch of scheming chickens and a paintbrush), Marjorie is astonished to discover something extraordinary: shes laid an egg!

Children who are teased at school, who are shy about speaking in front of the class, or who simply see themselves as not fitting in are bound to find relief in this tale about a cow who oinks and a pig who moos. This book teaches a great lesson about accepting differences.

In Antarctica, the coldest spot on the planet, male Emperor penguins perform one of the most difficult tasks in the natural world. For two months, in the middle of winter, they take care of the eggs laid by females who are out at sea hunting for food. This book explains this phenomenon with simple, fact-filled text and beautiful blue-tinged illustrations. It is a wonderful study in natural history as well as an eye-opening lesson for students about male and female parenting roles in nature.

This Cherokee creation tale tells the story of a quarrel between the first man and woman. When the woman walks away from her husband’s harsh words, he follows, but is not able to catch up. The Sun sees how sorry the man is and tries to help by causing various berries to grow in her path. Only the sweetness of strawberries, however, has the power to stop her and allow her husband a chance to ask for forgiveness. This is how strawberries came to be, and now whenever Cherokee people eat strawberries they are reminded to be kind to one another.

The book is intended for young children, and it seeks to convey the concept of opposites through depictions of different kinds of feet. The text of The Foot Book is highly stylized, containing the rhymes, repetitions, and cadences typical of Dr. Seuss’s work.

The tale of Rumpelstiltskin is known around the world. This stunning West Indian version is told by one of today’s most distinguished storytellers, Virginia Hamilton. The Dillons’s breathtaking paintings further enhance Hamilton’s masterful tale.

“Once there was a tree . . . and she loved a little boy.” So begins a story of unforgettable perception, beautifully written and illustrated by the gifted and versatile Shel Silverstein. Every day the boy would come to the tree to eat her apples, swing from her branches, or slide down her trunk . . . and the tree was happy. But as the boy grew older he began to want more from the tree, and the tree gave and gave. This is a tender story, touched with sadness, aglow with consolation. Shel Silverstein has created a moving parable for readers of all ages that offers an affecting interpretation of the gift of giving and a serene acceptance of another’s capacity to love in return.