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1 2 3 a Child's First Counting Book by Alison Jay
In this enchanting counting adventure, follow the dreams of a sleeping girl and meet favourite characters from fairy tales and folk stories as you journey from one to ten and back again.
Unknown Binding
First published May 1, 2007
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74 people want to read
About the author
Alison Jay
114 books49 followersAlison Jay was born in Hertfordshire, grew up in Derbyshire and studied graphic design in London where she now lives. After graduating she worked in animation for a short while but gradually started to get commissions in illustration. She works in Alkyd a quick drying oil paint on paper and sometimes adds a crackle varnish to give the work an aged appearance. She has worked in all areas of illustration including
advertising ,packaging, editorial and design. Her commission's include a 48 sheet poster for B.T, a TV commercial for Kellogg's corn flakes and has recently illustrated the new baby range of products for Crabtree and Evelyn. She has also illustrated lots of children's books including 'Picture This', 'William and the night train','The Race', 'I
took the moon for a walk', 'The Emperors new clothes, If Kisses were colours, 'ABC Alphabet', an unabridged fully illustrated version of 'Alice's
Adventures in Wonderland',Listen Listen', 'Welcome to the Zoo', 'A Child's first Counting Book', 'Today is the Birthday of the World' and 'Nursery Rhyme Rainbow'. She recently worked with Aardman Animation on the development
of a feature film and is currently working on a version of 'The Nutcracker'.
Her book 'Welcome to the Zoo' which is a wordless visit to a cage less 'animal hotel' has been selected as one of New York's Bank Street's 2009 best
books of the year.
advertising ,packaging, editorial and design. Her commission's include a 48 sheet poster for B.T, a TV commercial for Kellogg's corn flakes and has recently illustrated the new baby range of products for Crabtree and Evelyn. She has also illustrated lots of children's books including 'Picture This', 'William and the night train','The Race', 'I
took the moon for a walk', 'The Emperors new clothes, If Kisses were colours, 'ABC Alphabet', an unabridged fully illustrated version of 'Alice's
Adventures in Wonderland',Listen Listen', 'Welcome to the Zoo', 'A Child's first Counting Book', 'Today is the Birthday of the World' and 'Nursery Rhyme Rainbow'. She recently worked with Aardman Animation on the development
of a feature film and is currently working on a version of 'The Nutcracker'.
Her book 'Welcome to the Zoo' which is a wordless visit to a cage less 'animal hotel' has been selected as one of New York's Bank Street's 2009 best
books of the year.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 64 reviews
January 31, 2015
[Update: In fact, my niece at 14 months seemed to enjoy the book. Her mother reads it aloud while she points at the objects on the pages and shouts "MOON!" or whatever.]
This is a nice book. I don't know how it works didactically (that is, I don't know when babies start learning numbers, but I suspect it is younger than when they would recognize all these fairy tales, but I'm not sure) but it was very pleasant in tone and I like the illustrations, which were in the style of old-fashioned paintings on wood (like, Early American? Primitivist? Not sure what it's called).
There are lots of details so it would probably still be interesting for kids who are already numerate.
This is a nice book. I don't know how it works didactically (that is, I don't know when babies start learning numbers, but I suspect it is younger than when they would recognize all these fairy tales, but I'm not sure) but it was very pleasant in tone and I like the illustrations, which were in the style of old-fashioned paintings on wood (like, Early American? Primitivist? Not sure what it's called).
There are lots of details so it would probably still be interesting for kids who are already numerate.
May 25, 2017
each scene incorporates a classic fairy tale. lovely picture book.
June 28, 2025
A fairy tale counting book, that goes up to ten, and down to one again.
(A silly thing, but I loved the texture of the paper they used to print it!)
(A silly thing, but I loved the texture of the paper they used to print it!)
October 6, 2012
1. Genre: Counting
2. This book is about a young girl who falls asleep reading fairy tales and sees all of her favorite fairy tale characters, while dreaming about counting.
3. A. Area for comment: Connections
B. This book is fabulous in that it connects many fairy tale characters to the concept of counting. Because these characters are familiar to the little girl in the story, she is more inclined to count because it is fun and exciting. She is more likely to view numbers and counting as an activity that is enjoyable instead of something that is just academic work.
C. Examples of fairy tale characters and counting can be seen all throughout the book. I found "9 nine perfect roses" (Jay, 17-18) to be the most familiar as Beauty and the Beast was one of my favorite fairy tales when I was little. However, children should be familiar with all or most of the characters in this book. The very last page of the book defines the various characters and fairy tales from which they come.
4. I would use this book to allow students the opportunity to count while connecting the book to various fairy tales that they are familiar with. It would be interesting to use this book to prompt students to develop a new story with their favorite fairy tale character(s).
2. This book is about a young girl who falls asleep reading fairy tales and sees all of her favorite fairy tale characters, while dreaming about counting.
3. A. Area for comment: Connections
B. This book is fabulous in that it connects many fairy tale characters to the concept of counting. Because these characters are familiar to the little girl in the story, she is more inclined to count because it is fun and exciting. She is more likely to view numbers and counting as an activity that is enjoyable instead of something that is just academic work.
C. Examples of fairy tale characters and counting can be seen all throughout the book. I found "9 nine perfect roses" (Jay, 17-18) to be the most familiar as Beauty and the Beast was one of my favorite fairy tales when I was little. However, children should be familiar with all or most of the characters in this book. The very last page of the book defines the various characters and fairy tales from which they come.
4. I would use this book to allow students the opportunity to count while connecting the book to various fairy tales that they are familiar with. It would be interesting to use this book to prompt students to develop a new story with their favorite fairy tale character(s).
June 28, 2010
Beautiful book! My daughter is going through a big fairy tale phase right now, and she loves paging through the book and pointing out which story belongs to the illustration. I love it for the story within the story - it could be used for what it is (a counting book), or to make up a story using the illustrations.
May 22, 2018
It is not a bad little children's book that takes pictures out of classic fairy tales and associates them with numbers and counting.
April 22, 2020
1 2 3: a child’s first counting book By: Alison Jay
Picture Book-Counting
No awards given
Audience: PreK-3rd
- This book fits into this category because it is a perfect example of a child’s first counting book. In this book a little girl awakens to scenes from fairy tales in which she can count familiar characters or objects from one to ten and back again. Each place she goes to in her dream increases in different animals, eggs, flowers, teeth, etc.
- One of the visual elements that stands out to me is the color of this book. The colors are strong and vivid and can evoke strong emotional connections to the students. I think it’s important in books like these for this age group that the colors and images grasp the students attention and this book does just that. The background is really cool as well because as you’re flipping through the pages it represents a different children’s story book but the little girl is in the background of every single picture.
- You could use this book individually or in a whole group setting in the classroom. I would incorporate this book if I was doing a lesson about counting and wanted to introduce what we were going to be doing in class to my students. My goal would be for my students to get the basic knowledge of counting and be able to count up to the number 10.
Picture Book-Counting
No awards given
Audience: PreK-3rd
- This book fits into this category because it is a perfect example of a child’s first counting book. In this book a little girl awakens to scenes from fairy tales in which she can count familiar characters or objects from one to ten and back again. Each place she goes to in her dream increases in different animals, eggs, flowers, teeth, etc.
- One of the visual elements that stands out to me is the color of this book. The colors are strong and vivid and can evoke strong emotional connections to the students. I think it’s important in books like these for this age group that the colors and images grasp the students attention and this book does just that. The background is really cool as well because as you’re flipping through the pages it represents a different children’s story book but the little girl is in the background of every single picture.
- You could use this book individually or in a whole group setting in the classroom. I would incorporate this book if I was doing a lesson about counting and wanted to introduce what we were going to be doing in class to my students. My goal would be for my students to get the basic knowledge of counting and be able to count up to the number 10.
September 9, 2017
1-2-3 A Child’s First Counting Book is about a little girl who is taken on a journey throughout this book all the while teaching other children to count as she goes. I think it is clever that once the book got to ten it started counting backwards all the way to one. I also thought is was great that the illustrations still showed a story even when the words pertained mostly to counting. The fact that there was more to the illustrations than just what was being counted was brilliant, as well as, the shading and coloring. This book is appealing to children because even though it is a counting book, there is still a story to be read throughout the pages. Teachers could utilize this book because they can discuss with their class the story happening within the illustrations of this story.
July 21, 2018
Counts 1 to 10 and back down to 1.
It has a fairy tale theme, so it's fun to try to identify the fairy tale for each page.
Note that on each number page, besides the indicated thing (example: 7 magic beans), you can find many other of that number on the page (7 cows, 7 ladybugs, 7 bees). So, a good question is "How many other 7s can you find?"
The illustrations have a fresco feel, which really works with the fairy tale stories.
It has a fairy tale theme, so it's fun to try to identify the fairy tale for each page.
Note that on each number page, besides the indicated thing (example: 7 magic beans), you can find many other of that number on the page (7 cows, 7 ladybugs, 7 bees). So, a good question is "How many other 7s can you find?"
The illustrations have a fresco feel, which really works with the fairy tale stories.
May 25, 2017
these illustrations are wonderful. and it's hard to find books counting down, too!
June 21, 2017
Beautiful illustrations that incorporate fairy tale elements while helping with numbers
June 6, 2020
Counts from 1 to 10 then back down to 1. The pictures reference different fairy tales
My wife likes this artist.
My wife likes this artist.
November 15, 2020
A fun picture book that incorporates classic fairy tales. Some pages are more easy to decipher than others.
June 6, 2021
A counting book with copious fairytale allusions. The art is pretty charming but it's hard to claim that this story is breaking any new ground (to the degree that it's a story at all.)
February 28, 2023
Gorgeous, especially if you pay close attention to the picture transitions from page to page.
May 5, 2024
I read it for my three-year-old son. He liked it very much. We counted together on every pages.
March 6, 2020
2. 1 2 3 A Child’s First Counting Book by: Alison Jay
Alphabet/ Counting book
No Awards
Audience: Prek-1st
-This book is categorized as a “alphabet or counting book” because this particular book focuses on a child’s first time counting. This book counts from one to ten and then goes back from ten to one.
-This book demonstrates perspective in a very unique way. This book is about a little girl who falls asleep but the story is in her dream and each place she goes to it increases in different animals,eggs,flowers, teeth, the list could go on. What makes it even more interesting is each page represents a different children's story book and the little girl is in the background of every single picture. Finally she wakes up and it is one little girl waking… This story’s perspective is the little girls dream and imaginations.
-I would incorporate this book into my classroom if we were doing a lesson about counting and want to introduce the lesson and get the kids excited about what we're learning, I would read this book to the class as a whole.
Alphabet/ Counting book
No Awards
Audience: Prek-1st
-This book is categorized as a “alphabet or counting book” because this particular book focuses on a child’s first time counting. This book counts from one to ten and then goes back from ten to one.
-This book demonstrates perspective in a very unique way. This book is about a little girl who falls asleep but the story is in her dream and each place she goes to it increases in different animals,eggs,flowers, teeth, the list could go on. What makes it even more interesting is each page represents a different children's story book and the little girl is in the background of every single picture. Finally she wakes up and it is one little girl waking… This story’s perspective is the little girls dream and imaginations.
-I would incorporate this book into my classroom if we were doing a lesson about counting and want to introduce the lesson and get the kids excited about what we're learning, I would read this book to the class as a whole.
January 30, 2023
A little girl falls asleep reading a book of nursery rhymes and dreams she is a character in many different ones. Each gorgeously illustrated nursery rhyme is cleverly done and holds a hint for the next one coming up. The rhymes lead the reader through counting from 1 to 9, and from 9 back to 1.
April 8, 2012
1 2 3 A Child's First Counting Book by Alison Jay is an imaginative book that teaches children their numbers one to nine, counting up and down. It does this against a backdrop of a girls walk through a wonderland populated by sixteen different but familiar fairy tales.
When my daughter and I read the book we took three passes through the book. The first time we read the story and counted the numbers. Along the way Harriet began to notice some of the fairy tales.
On the second time through we tried to see how many of them we could get. I think we got ten or eleven of them. They are all very cleverly worked into the illustrations and take some work to figure out.
When we finished the book the second time we noticed that the copyright page has all sixteen of the fairy tales labeled. So we decided to have a third and final go at the book to find every last one.
When my daughter and I read the book we took three passes through the book. The first time we read the story and counted the numbers. Along the way Harriet began to notice some of the fairy tales.
On the second time through we tried to see how many of them we could get. I think we got ten or eleven of them. They are all very cleverly worked into the illustrations and take some work to figure out.
When we finished the book the second time we noticed that the copyright page has all sixteen of the fairy tales labeled. So we decided to have a third and final go at the book to find every last one.
Read
June 23, 2011This book counts characters from children’s fairy tales (e.g. 3 little pigs, 4 frog princes, etc.). It is best used for kindergarten students who are first learning to count to ten. One downside to the book is that it does not have a story; it relies on students’ prior knowledge of fairy tales. However, unlike many counting books, which simply count upwards, this book counts up to 10 and then back down, showing students that counting can go in both directions. To use the book in class, it would be best to use it small group and have the students count the objects in the pictures. In addition to the picture that is labeled, there are multiple other pictures of the same number in the scene. For example, 6 (six) gingerbread men also has pictures of 6 eggs, 6 polka dots, 6 beans, and a clock hand on the number 6.
September 5, 2012
The book 1 2 3 A Child’s First Counting Book made it easy to relate the words to the pictures. I liked how once we counted up to the number ten it started to count back down to one, which shows students that counting goes in both directions. I also liked how the book took pictures from sixteen different fairytales and made it into one counting book that any kid could understand. One downside of the book using sixteen different fairytales as the pictures is there isn’t one story that students could follow. Although there is another plus to the book, the pictures are big enough that you could read out loud to the whole classroom. The book could be easily remembered to the children because of the big sun on the cover and once the children learn all the fairytales that are used, it can help them remember the fairytales as well.
February 22, 2016
Upon first view you see that there is a bordered cover with a sun on the front cover and a moon on the back cover. There is an incredible amount of detail in each illustration. Then, the front flap offers a preview into the book while the back flap gives information about the book and the author. The endpages are solid yellow and there is no copyright page. This counting book shows the adventure of a little girl as she goes off into a fairytale world all while teaching the reader how to count. Each illustration has a lot of wonderful detail and the story is really told through the pictures. Each picture is in it's own square border with the words and number underneath along the bottom. I feel that this is a good book to use to keep children interested with the fairytale and also learning with the numbers.
January 6, 2009
This is a counting book based on fairy tales. There must be 20 different traditional stories represented as this girl dreams her way from one to twenty and back. My daughter (4) and I loved this book. At first when I read it she just watched while I counted the different things on the page. Then once we realized the different fun layers to this book we read it again and again to find the cute little clues the illustrations give you about what's coming next. Also, and I'm not going to give this book ALL the credit, but she did have a major breakthrough on math and counting at about the same time we read it. So, who knows?
December 31, 2011
My picture book project is at an end today and this is a good book to end with. I picked it up for my granddaughter who is 1 1/2 and she loves it. She keeps asking to read the sun book because there is a big sun on the cover. It is a lovely counting book that will grow with her as she begins to learn her fairy tales. It starts with one little girl going to sleep and progresses to ten and then back to one little girl waking up. The pages in between all have fairy tale characters - three pigs, six gingrerbread men, seven dwarfs. The illustrations are colorful and quite unusual. A super addition to a young child's counting book collection!
March 3, 2015
Much like Patrick Rothfuss's books from the Kingkiller Chronicles, the author does a great job of working fairy tales into the narrative through both subtle and obvious ways. Luckily, they wrapped this up quickly instead of pausing the countdown to share some side stories about other integers, unlike Rothfuss.
(I kid, I understand and agree with his logic for writing the side stories before Doors of Stone)
(I kid, I understand and agree with his logic for writing the side stories before Doors of Stone)
January 12, 2008
My choice for Caldecott for 2008. What first seems like a simple counting books becomes much more interesting as the reader realizes that a magical goose is taking a sleeping young girl to places from nursery rhymes and fairy tales. Within each page the reader can look for characters or images from the tales and rhymes. Kids will have a great time finding all the many numbered things on each spread. They will also enjoy looking for the picture hints of the next destination. The crackled subdued colored illustrations pages give the feel of timeless traditional tales.
May 3, 2016
I first picked out this book for my son because he is working on remembering numbers and how to count, but also because I love Alison Jay’s crackled illustrations. This book features a young girl who falls asleep and dreams she is in the world of fairy tales, and starts counting things like “three little pigs” and “seven magic beans”. The pictures are interesting enough to entertain the kids and the parents reading it to them. The back of the book features a page that lists all the fairy tales featured throughout the story. Recommended for ages 2-6, 4 stars.
October 30, 2007
Describing this as a child's first counting book is a mistake--this is not something that would interest very small children. And I don't like the art technique with the cracking.It's not attractive, just distracting and makes this even less young child friendly.
That said, older children (preschool and early elementary) will enjoy identifying fairy tale characters and objects in the sets of objects to count on each page.
That said, older children (preschool and early elementary) will enjoy identifying fairy tale characters and objects in the sets of objects to count on each page.
February 23, 2010
This story counts its way through familiar fairy tales - a golden goose with two soaring wings, three little pigs, etc. It counts up to 10 and then back down again.
I picked this one up, again, because of the nice big sunshine cover art. I enjoyed the pictures inside quite a bit, and a page at the back shows the tales each drawing refers to.
Recommended for ages 4-8. I would think it could be introduced sooner.
I picked this one up, again, because of the nice big sunshine cover art. I enjoyed the pictures inside quite a bit, and a page at the back shows the tales each drawing refers to.
Recommended for ages 4-8. I would think it could be introduced sooner.
March 6, 2014
A sleeping girl dreams of classic story lines involving numbers: the three pigs, the seven beans for a magic beanstalk, four frog princes, etc. This book counts one to ten and then back again.
The illustrations in this book were vibrant yet muted by an overlay of the look of crackled paint. Those fine details seemed to lend age to the illustrations and helped the reader go back in time. Classic stories simplified to entice young readers: what a perfect compliment to a simple book.
The illustrations in this book were vibrant yet muted by an overlay of the look of crackled paint. Those fine details seemed to lend age to the illustrations and helped the reader go back in time. Classic stories simplified to entice young readers: what a perfect compliment to a simple book.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 64 reviews