Customer Reviews

The Alphabet Tree (Turtleback School & Library Binding Edition)

5 star:		(8)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

The Alphabet Tree is a wonderful spring board book to help emergent readers understand the importance of putting letters together to create words. I have used this book as an addition to other ABC books at the beginning of the school year for 1st grade children. They were excited and immediatly suggested ways that they could make words. Our classroom now has our own "Alphabet Tree" that the children put together. This is an excellent teaching tool.

Leo Lionni captures every child's attention in his story about the alphabet tree. Learning the written language can seem overwhelming to a small child, but the The Alphabet Tree helps my students understand the writing process. It gives every child the confidence to become a writer.

This book touches beyond the basics of letters forming words, and those words making sentences. More importantly, it shows us that all things must work together to obtain harmony. This book is an excellent example of teamwork, and without it, these letters and words could not have done or accomplished anything on their own. What an example to teach our youth of America. I highly recommend this book for everyone.

I first discovered this book 35 years ago as a student teacher. I was thrilled to discover that it is back in print. Leo Lionni demonstrates for the young learner that letters make words and words make sentences. This book is especially useful in a classroom where phonemic spelling is encouraged. I recommend The Alphabet Tree to every Kindergarten teacher.

Leo Lionni's tale of how letters can get together to make words and then move on to even bigger things is nicely told. He reminds us all that the process of learning to read and write is complex and multi layered. It can lead to a wonderful things.

I must say that I am one of those that fully believe that Leo Lionni was a genius; certainly one of the leading masters of his craft. This author consistently turned out book after book for young children and any reader would be hard pressed to find a children's author with produced such consistency of quality, skill and ability to transform what at times are complex ideas and concepts into delightful parables which not only entertain, but more importantly teach.

As one reviewer here Amazon has pointed out, this is a perfect work to use during that transitional period between learning the alphabet and then placing the learned letters and their sound in a way to create words, then sentences, and finally and most importantly, ideas. We as adults fully realize the mighty power of the written word and it is a good thing to teach children this fact at a very early age.

In this story we have a tree; The Alphabet Tree to be exact. Each leaf has a letter of the alphabet clinging to it. These letters are having a fine time enjoying the sun, clinging to their leafs, and indeed leading a very happy life hopping form leaf to leaf, even to the highest twigs. Life is good for the letters!

Mother Nature, being what she is, is a bit unpredictable, and suddenly a light breeze pops up. This breeze frightens the letters but nothing like it does when the breeze becomes a full gale! The leaves are scrabbled and some even blown off the tree. This is not good. Mass confusion reigns.

As the storm dies down the confused leaves huddle together in a pack and the bewildered and frightened letters do not know what to do. But all is not lost. Suddenly a strangely colored little bee-like bug shows up; the word-bug! This little guy explains to them that my getting back on their leaves and this time getting back into a certain order, they can spell words and that this will make them much stronger standing together like that. Of course the little letters give this a try and are delighted with the results. They are stronger!

Suddenly we have leaf after leaf with words; cat, leaf, earth, big, peace, wind, twig and so on. In a normal story this would be the end, but not so with a work from Lionni. Suddenly along comes a delightful purple caterpillar who points out that the letters (now words) can be even stronger if they place themselves in a correct order and make sentences. Powerful stuff here, as the reader will find!

The art work in this little book is excellent. It is very detailed, colorful, striking yet keeping a whimsical aspect to it that is wonderful.

As it so happens I have seen this "tree/leaf" method used in class rooms on two different occasions; both in first grade class rooms. The kids have a blast with it, moving letters and leaves around the structure the teacher has created. I think there is actually a commercial product out there now using this premise, but the ones I saw had been built by the teacher.

This is a wonderful little book that not only teaches a valuable lesson in cooperation but also is a great method of teaching word building.

Like so many of Leo Lionni's books, this one is bound to become a classic, if indeed it has not already reached that status.

Don Blankenship
The Ozarks

This is not my first go-to book to read to my daughter, but she insists every time. I am glad I bought it.

I bought this book because it seemed like a great educational book for my special ed students struggling with basic literacy concepts. I love how Lionni begins with single letters, and then puts 2 or 3 together to create words - great teachable moment. Then, the words are put together to create sentences. There are countless related activities that can be done with this book, as simple as identifying single letters on the leaves, or getting a little more complicated by having kids go through the whole process of letter to word, word to sentence, sentences to meaningful paragraph.

The only thing I wasn't crazy about was the somewhat political message at the end. Not that I'm opposed to author's including their moral beliefs into their works, it just felt a little out of place with the rest of the book, and I find it a little difficult to weave into my teaching objectives while working with primary aged kids. That's just my opinion as a teacher of literacy basics, though. If my objective were to teach my students or children a kind of life lesson, I might enjoy it a little more.

I loved this book. Wait till you get to the last page. Only a "kid at heart" would think that line up.

As a pre-school teacher, I found the book a good way to explain how letters make words, words, make sentences, and the message at the end....is always needed. I got it for my grandson.....and he loved it. judie Carr