Ms. MacDonald Has a Class [Hardcover]

Jan Ormerod (Illustrator)

Book Description

Publication Date: August 16, 1996 | Age Level: 5 and up | Grade Level: K and up

"Lucky are the kids in Ms. MacDonald's kindergarten, for she makes learning the joyous experience it can and should be. The rhythm and rhyme of the nursery song relate a class visit to a farm and the follow-up classroom activities that culminate in a performance for family members. The children dance and sing, plan and measure, create and clean up—whole language in a nutshell. As always Ormerod's drawings capture the personalities and animated exuberance of her characters; 24 multicultural munchkins do their kindergarten thing. . . . A winner!"—School Library Journal

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Ormerod's (Sunshine) buoyant book gives the toe-tapping refrain of "Old MacDonald Had a Farm" a bustling classroom setting and inventive, mildly tongue-twisting lyrics. After taking a field trip to a farm, Ms. MacDonald's class "makes some plans" and gets to work, with "A snip snip here and a stitch stitch there,/ Here a snip, there a stitch, everywhere a snip stitch." In constant motion, the children skip, hop, bound and dance across the busy pages, which feature a hand-rendered musical score that, like the text, sometimes sways along with the lissome kids. As teacher and students prepare to stage a show recreating the sights and sounds of their visit to the farm, the costumes, scenery and props introduce splashes of vibrant color to the otherwise pale-toned palette Ormerod uses, convincingly, to convey the relative blandness of everyday classroom life. This contrast loses its subtlety when the curtain finally goes up on the glorious pageant: a turn of the page reveals a panoply of brilliant hues as the kids, costumed as everything from cows to cabbages, spiritedly strut their stuff, alongside lyrics more true to the original song ("An oink oink here and an oink oink there,/ Here a hop, there a waddle, everywhere a quack quack"). A perfect sing-aloud for preschool and early elementary students, who won't?and this is a guarantee?be able to resist joining in. Ages 5-8.
Copyright 1996 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From School Library Journal

PreSchool-K?Lucky are the kids in Ms. MacDonald's kindergarten, for she makes learning the joyous experience it can and should be. The rhythm and rhyme of the nursery song relate a class visit to a farm and the follow-up classroom activities that culminate in a performance for family members. The children dance and sing, plan and measure, create and clean up?whole language in a nutshell. As always, Ormerod's drawings capture the personalities and animated exuberance of her characters; 24 multicultural munchkins do their kindergarten thing. Musical scores separate vignettes of action, creating pages that flow with a plethora of details and escapades to talk about and laugh over or, for those who are so inclined, to sing. A winner!?Virginia Opocensky, formerly at Lincoln City Libraries, NE
Copyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 5 and up
  
• Hardcover: 32 pages
• Publisher: Clarion Books (August 16, 1996)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0395776112
• ISBN-13: 978-0395776117
• Product Dimensions: 10.6 x 10.5 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.1 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #3,642,850 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A delightful romp through Ms. MacDonald's classroom, July 10, 2002

By A Customer

This review is from: Ms. MacDonald Has a Class (Hardcover)

With "Ms. MacDonald Has a Class," author and illustrator Jan Ormerod has taken the old classic children's tune (complete with "E-I-E-I-O" chorus) and transplanted the entire thing to a preschool or kindergarten class in which the students study animals to get ready for portraying those same animals in the school play.

The rhythm of the text follows the Old MacDonald tune, as you might imagine. What makes the book special is that the illustrations have the same gaiety and bounciness that the tune does, melding them beautifully together. Color and shape and movement abound here, all culminating in a performance before family and friends that perfectly captures the energy of children this age. This book is such fun and a big success for Ms. Ormerod--it is that rare young children's book that is quite bountifully more than the sum of its parts.