Izzy has been reviewing “Order! Order” by Nigel Tetley. This book contains four fun stories that each help children learn, develop understanding and consolidate early mathematical concepts such as cardinal numbers, ordinal numbers and days of the week.
The book is bright and colourful so Izzy couldn’t wait to read it. It is illustrated by Simon Goodway.
In the first humorous rhyming story, “The Penguin Race”, ten penguins set out to race but one by one each one each drops out for various reasons- will any penguin manage to complete the race?
Izzy first counted the cute cartoon penguins in the picture, “One, two, three etc” which was (unbeknown to her) reinforcing her cardinal numbers.
There were ten penguins!
In the story we find out what happens to each penguin- “The first one…” meaning Izzy was consolidating reading and learning her ordinal numbers (first, second, third and up to tenth).
As Izzy is slightly older than the recommended age of the book (up to five years) she differentiated it accordingly (as kids tend to do naturally in learning I find). Before turning each page she also counted down each time to find out how many penguins were left each time- “Now there are eight!“
She enjoyed the story and cheered at the end when the tenth penguin won the race! “He came first!” Learning could be extended here by making a “1st” rosette for the winning penguin.
The second story “Animal Antics” tells of funny capers that different animals get up to on each subsequent day of the week in a series of rhyming couplets. “On Monday…” and so on. Izzy had great fun spinning around just like Dizzy Daisy Duck! Older kids can have days of the week cards and practice putting them in order.
Poor “Little Lucy Ladybird” loses each of her spots in the wind. Again Izzy counted the spots in the picture. This amusing story continues to tell us what happens to each spot in sequence, “The first spot…” and so on, which helps younger children to consolidate their ordinal numbers.
Finally, in “Handy Fingers”, children are taught the ordinal numbers and ways to remember each number name. “One finger can…” Izzy enjoyed making all the finger actions.
“Order! Order!” is recommended for Foundation Stage children up to five years and for parents and teachers to read to and with children. However Izzy is 6 and still enjoyed the book and I feel she benefited by learning to read and recognise these key number skills so it’s definitely still relevant for all KS1 pupils who enjoy picture books. This is an enjoyable and entertaining book with the added bonus that young kids are subliminally learning early maths concepts which can easily be expanded upon.
About the author
Since qualifying as a Religious Studies teacher in 1989, Nigel Tetley has worked in a variety of schools, spanning middle and secondary age groups in both the State and independent sectors. At the beginning of his teaching career he also spent a year in Greece teaching English. In 2001, he started writing children’s poetry at the suggestion of a colleague. He is also the author of Two Fat Cows, The Grumpy Crocodile and When the Bees Flew in For Breakfast.
“Order! Order!” is available from Amazon, recommended retail price £7.99.
We were sent a copy of “Order! Order!” for the purposes of review. All opinions are our own. This post contains affiliate links.
Sounds a delight and fun
Always GOOD to have recommendations