A FISH TO FEED

A young tot buys a fish with her father.

This board book's narrative describes the search for a fish, but the real goal is helping little ones develop their verbal skills. A note for parents on the opening pages outlines the importance of constantly involving a toddler in conversation in order to expand their communication skills. Narrating the day’s events and replying back to toddlers' single-word responses with affirmative language is key and readily displayed in the book's narrative. A father has decided to take his daughter out to buy a fish, and the pair pokes around the store before finding the perfect pet. “Look—fish! Fish! Fish!" exclaims the enthusiastic African-American toddler (she has fabulous, wild hair). “Yes, I see the toy fish too,” replies the dad. “That’s a pretend fish to play with, not a fish to swim in our bowl.” This is a book best read by little ones that are starting to talk here and there but are still developing vocabulary and sentence structure. A similar title, Red Socks, goes one step down the developmental ladder and is aimed at those that are barely cooing.

A straightforward, informative, and joyous read for both parent and child.