Customer Reviews

Giant Octopuses (Pull Ahead Books)

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

 

 

I am a special education teacher in Minneapolis. I used this book with my middle school low readers. They were able to understand the easy-to-follow text about this unusual sea creature. The highly professional photos kept their interest well after the reading. I learned some things about octopuse, too. I strongly recomend this book to any teacher or parent.

Christine Zuchora-Walske's _Giant Octopuses_ is an excellent introduction to the topic, best probably for 4-6 year olds.

The excellent photography includes images of octopuses eating crabs, walking on the sea floor, and newborn octopuses.

The text is VERY basic. Sometimes there is just one sentence per page. Definitions are given as simple sentences, immediately following their use on the same page. (i.e. "Predators are animals that hunt and eat other animals.")

A little confusing is the map given near the end, with USA states unlabelled, which challenges the reader with the question "Do octopuses live near you?" While an older child may be able to identify his state or province on such a map, such a child would probably be reading a more advanced book on the octopus.

Overall, this is a good introductory text for VERY young readers, with extraordinary photographs.

ken32