Over in the Meadow

by Olive A. Wadsworth (Rhyme by), Ezra Jack Keats

Welcome to a lush meadow bustling with activity, where one turtle digs, two fish swim, three bluebirds sing, and so on to ten fireflies that shine in the night. Keats's collage-style illustrations perfectly complement this classic Appalachian counting rhyme, which is also a popular song for toddlers.

Genres: Picture Books, Animals, Childrens, Poetry, Counting, Nature, Fiction

32 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1971

Reviews

[Calista · Rating 3 out of 5]

Ezra illustrated an old Nursery poem. I simply love the rhyming verse. Each page is an animal parent with a number of offspring that goes up from 1 to 10 and the rhyme is consistent and it really drives a rhythm home. It’s pretty cool.

The artwork is nice, but I like his later books with his character Peter better. The colors aren’t as something here, but you can see he will develop it soon.

The nephew thought this was a funny book. He also enjoyed the rhyming verse and the animals. He didn’t think it was exciting, but it was good. He gave this 3 stars too.

[J · Rating 4 out of 5]

There was another version that was done that I had read when I was a child that had slightly better illustrations although I cannot think of that one right now sadly. Otherwise this version just like the other beautifully yet somewhat abstractedly captures the animal residents of a meadow and the snapshot of a bit of their life while at the same time helping children learn how to count without forcing it down their throat.

I loved how in the illustrations each animal is focused upon and detail is given to make the meadow an even bigger place with all its beauty. Could this be what it was like for Bambi when he first entered the Meadow?

All in all a great childhood book that brings back the joy of beautiful places, happy times to be one self and learning whether you are doing something that comes natural and/or educative to the reader. All in all a winner for me....

[Rossy · Rating 1 out of 5]

I didn't care for this book, it was boring IMO.

[Grace · Rating 4 out of 5]

After reading “A Poem for Peter” it seemed appropriate to revisit some of my favorite Ezra Jack Keats books.

[Kaila · Rating 3 out of 5]

Read as part of my new job setting up Early Childhood Development/Day Care centers.

It's a counting song but I don't know the tune D:

[Denise Lauron · Rating 5 out of 5]

This a very cute counting book with beautiful illustrations. I loved how it went from morning to evening as the numbers went up.

[Luisa Knight · Rating 2 out of 5]

I think Raffi sang the song that this book is illustrated to. It's a pleasant little read.

See which counting books our family is enjoying: watch my reel!

Ages: 3 - 7

Content Considerations: nothing to note.

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[Mama Bibliosoph · Rating 5 out of 5]

There are a many versions of this traditional song in the picture book genre, but I am forever loyal to the lovely Ezra Jack Keats adaptation.

"Over in the Meadow" is a great counting song for kids who like animals. Each page features a different mother animal (sorry dads) and some number of her offspring (beginning with one and building up to ten). The mother tells them to do something (dive, bask, sing, etc.) and the little ones comply. The verses are easy, rhyming, and identical in structure. It's easy for kids to catch on.

If you don't know the tune, it's easily findable on YouTube. It's one of those songs that is a real pleasure to sing. It soothes. My children always seem calm when we read this book (and often sleepy by the end). They enjoy the melody, the variety of animals and actions, and counting the babies.

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I review books for children from the perspective of a parent of kids with autism. The review above is part of a longer post on books about singalong books: https://www.lineupthebooks.com/40-sin...

[Elizabeth]

Over in the Meadow is a departure from the expected work of Ezra Jack Keats, who is well-known for his urban settings. With the same finesse that he follows Peter around the city, beginning in the Caldecott winning The Snowy Day, Keats illustrates the meadow and it's inhabitants.

The rhyming text, based on a folk song of the same name, keeps interest high and the art, while muted, has lovely contrast and texture throughout. There is plenty for children to examine on each page. The book successfully introduces multiple animals and their habitats at a level preschoolers can enjoy, while also incorporating counting skills. Originally published in 1971 and re-issued in 1999, this book remains a valuable addition to a collection.

This book is recommended for public and primary school libraries. If the library already has another version of the story, this version makes a nice supplement. If they do not already have a version of the story, this book becomes essential.

[Stephanie Siren · Rating 3 out of 5]

Genre: Poetry

Format: Picture book

Awards: None

Summary:
This book describes the different number of animals that live in the meadow. The story describes each one and says what kind of sound they make. This story counts all the way up to ten. In the story, you get to see: turtles, crickets, fish, birds, muskrats, honeybees, crows, lizards, frogs, and fireflies.

Critique:
I think the illustrations in this story are great! The illustrator did a great job. I also think that the book would be great to show students how to count to ten.

Teaching prompt:
I would use this book when teaching my students how to count. I would use one to one correspondences on each page to show my students each amount.

Craft elements:
I would allow my students to write what over in the meadow, 11-20, might show.

[☼Bookish in Virginia☼ · Rating 5 out of 5]

Time Machine
5.0 out of 5 stars An Old Favorite, Well Done, May 24, 2005

There are many, many different illustrations of these verses, but Mr. Keats has certainly done an excellent job of making his book distinctive.

Whereas most of the other books have pastel, baby-style, cartoonish drawings, this book is done in a 'more mature' style, using watercolors in a darker palette. [I would direct you to the Amazon "Search Inside this book" feature but ironically it doesn't seem to be working. Instead take a look at the turtle on the back cover to get an idea.]

Five Stars. A classic rhyme with distinctive artwork. This is a book for preschoolers and kindergarteners, etc. that well may be weary of babish artwork.

[Laura · Rating 4 out of 5]

I’ve always loved this counting rhyme. It’s a great book to read to young children who are learning their numbers one through ten. Its rhythmic meters, rhyming words, and the counting of animals always makes for a fun read. This edition with illustrations by Anna Vojtech was a especially fun because each page not only showcased the appropriate number of animals on each page, but also had other hidden things for the child to find and count on each page.

Example: Over in the meadow by the old Scotch pine, lived an old mother duck and her little ducks nine.
Of course the page had nine little ducks to count in the illustration, but there are other things that the child can count nine of such as: nine trees and nine flowers. (My first grader loved finding the “hidden” objects.)

[Holly Sandefer]

This book is about a busy meadow, filled with different animals and sounds. This book can be used at any level in various ways. Counting and identifying colors and rhyming words can be used for preschool and kindergarten students. Exploring and identifying adjectives and onomatopoeias can be used in kindergarten through intermediate grades. The words are written to draw the reader into the book and the meadow.

[Robert Davis · Rating 3 out of 5]

Typically whimsical and colorful Ezra Jack Keats illustrations highlight this version of the 19th Century counting rhyme by Olive A. Wadsworth.

[Micha O'Connor · Rating 4 out of 5]

There are dozens of inceptions of this classic counting rhyme published over the years, but this one is my favorite. Keat’s collages are more realistic and less cutesy than some others, each page invoking the natural beauty of the creatures and their surroundings. Making the animals sounds and motions are especially fun for the little ones.

[Drew Graham · Rating 4 out of 5]

Various meadow creatures go about their duties in rhyming, nicely illustrated fashion.

This is a book that I missed in my childhood (though I recognized Keats's other work), but it's great that we found it to read to the kids. It's calm and relaxing, and a nice counting primer with rhyme and character and unique illustrations.

[Mary · Rating 5 out of 5]

Over in the meadow where the green grass grows ... the rhythm and counting makes it a favorite "read to me" book. I repeat myself, Ezra Jack Keats never disappoints, his illustrations make this edition absolutely perfect.

[Brooklyn Miller · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a great story to introduce rhyming. This also is a great counting rhyme. This book also talks about familiar animals in their habitat. The book incorporates so many good factors, I would recommend it.

[Melinda · Rating 4 out of 5]

We are reading the Spanish version of this book with Henry. Henry knows the numbers and some animals but learning the animal sounds, actions and names for baby animals is fun. It’s harder to feel the rhythm of a poem in a foreign language. I hope that practice will help us with that.

[Jessica · Rating 3 out of 5]

A good rhyming story about meadow animals and bugs that counts up to 10. I can’t compare this version to the original by Oliver A. Wadsworth until I read it, but this is a Blue Ribbon Book Award (1999?) so that must mean something.

What the story lacked, for me, was an ending. It just abruptly stopped when it reached 10 fireflies.

The back cover of the book says “this classic Appalachian counting rhyme will have young readers counting and recounting their way across the meadow, from turtles to fireflies, from one to ten.”

“Blue Ribbons are chosen annually by BCCB reviewers and represent what they believe to be outstanding examples of fiction, nonfiction, and picture books for youth. The full list is available on the BCCB website.”

[Marc Pagliuca · Rating 3 out of 5]

There’s a lot happening in this meadow that doesn’t sound like it’s actually in the meadow.

[Cheryl]

I just can't accept a book that implies such nonsense as frog mothers raising their children. Nice art by Keats, though, of course. LFL find.

[Julie · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of the few picture books I remember owning as a child, which is part of the reason Keats has long been my favorite illustrator. I'm sure that as a toddler, I loved the lilting, memorable rhyme, based on the original version attributed to Olive A. Wadsworth; as an adult, it is the vivid colors that I adore. The style is recognizably Keats's, even if there are none of the children we've come to love from books like Peter's Chair, The Snowy Day, and A Letter to Amy. But the gorgeous hues of blue and purple and yellow, and especially the last scene with the mother firefly and her little flies ten, are what struck me again and again as I re-read it today. Just perfect.

[Pamela · Rating 4 out of 5]

"Over in the Meadow" by Ezra Jack Keats was a really nice read to go over with my daughter...the pictures in the book worked very well with the text, and the rhyming of the text made for a very effective sound for my daughter. I believe it helps young readers starting out if they have that "sing-song" effect with their words, helping them relate more words to each other along the way.
As a parent, I really enjoyed the fact that this book was educational - it helped my daughter with her numbers. As we went through the book, each page ascended to the next number...1, 2, 3...to 10, and each picture showed the items in that corresponding number. I thought that was good for the author to do that...especially since the book is geared more toward young children.
Overall, I just really like Keats' books. Period.
I give it 4 stars.

[Alyssa Clark · Rating 4 out of 5]

1. Over in the Meadow has not been awards any honors.
2. I think this book is appropriate for PreK to first grade.
3. This books brings a popular song to life through text and beautiful images. Through counting, the reader is taken on a journey in a meadow to meet different animals. Starting with one digging turtle and ending with ten fireflies shining, the readers experience a fun way to count.
4. I think this is a great book to have students read along and sing along aloud with you. There is a lot of elementary education involved, but it is also just a fun read. I also really love the rhymes.
5. I would use this book to get children singing and developing phonemic awareness with the rhyming words. I could also use it in preschool classes to develop counting skills and reinforce it at the kindergarten level.

[Hannah Heitman]

Over in the Meadow: A Counting Rhyme is another great counting book for young students new to counting numbers. This is a great book for students who are interested in animals with the beautiful animal illustrations by Anna Vojtech. In the book the reader will be counting the various parent animals and offspring animals Vojtech drew. A teacher may find this book useful if they have students who take an interest in animals and are being introduced to counting numbers. This is a great read-aloud book where the class can count out the animals in the book together and point to each animal while counting together. This book could also be used in a discussion about various types of animals that young students may not know exist in the world.

[Dominic Cifuni · Rating 4 out of 5]

Wadsworth uses a counting rhyme/ chant that children would be sure to follow along with. She incorporates many different animals increasing in number to provide a learning experience. Vivisd and engaging colors and images make the pictures jump off the page. As "one turtle digs, two fish swim, three bluebirds sing, and so on to ten fireflies that shine in the night". I would split the class into pairs/ small groups, and have them act out and recite these chants. They could even make up their own counting rhymes.

[Mary · Rating 3 out of 5]

Over in the Meadow is a counting book for children. It had a rhyme scheme and some interesting sentence structure, as well as, a lot of repetition. The purpose of this book is to teach kids how to count and about different kinds of animals. I didn't enjoy this book as much as I remember I did. It just wasn't interesting. There was no plot, the pictures were dull, and the book overall just wasn't intriguing, which is why I gave this book 3 stars.

[Paula · Rating 5 out of 5]

A favorite from when I was little! The cadence and rhythm in every line is on point.

[Melissa Namba · Rating 3 out of 5]

illustrations to go along with the nursery rhyme. it was cute, but nothing exciting.