Matthew A.B.C.

by Peter Catalanotto

There are twenty-five kids in Mrs. Tuttle's kindergarten class, and they all share the same first name-Matthew. But the teacher has little trouble telling them apart, as each child has some unique feature. When a twenty-sixth child joins the class, his name, of course, is Matthew too. Luckily, he likes zippers, so he fits right in! A new boy named Matthew joins Mrs. Tuttle's class, which already has twenty-five students whose first names are Matthew and whose last names begin with every letter except Z. Mrs. Tuttle has her hands full with a class of twenty-five boys -- and to make matters worse, they're all named Matthew! Could there be room for one more Matthew? Mrs. Tuttle thinks so ... and she doesn't even have trouble figuring out which boy is which. The new Matthew fits right in with the others as readers discover that each Matthew is unique in his own special, alphabetical way.

Genres: Picture Books, Childrens, School, Storytime, Humor

32 pages, Hardcover

First published May 1, 2002

Reviews

[Joanne Roberts · Rating 3 out of 5]

Extremely unusual ABC book using boys in an elementary class with bizarre, alphabetized quirks. Lightly layered with a theme of fitting in. Not really my style, but may have kid-appeal. Definitely unique.

[Jaden Craig · Rating 4 out of 5]

Matthew A.B.C by Peter Catalanotto is about the twenty-five students in a Kindergarten classroom whose names are all the same, but last names each start with a different letter of the alphabet. The principal is unsure how the teacher keeps up with which student is which, so the teacher explains to the principal what she remembers each student by. The principal then introduces a new student to the classroom that fits in perfectly by adding the letter they were missing to their alphabetical last names. I would use this book in my future classroom to help my students further develop their phonics and alphabet knowledge. I would also use this book in my future classroom to start a discussion about how everyone is unique.

[Megan Conroy · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is definitely something that very young readers would just love. Although there really is not much of a story line or adventure, there are 25 kids in the class with the same name but have different characteristics to them based off of the first letter of their last name (a-z). This would be a fun book to teach about the alphabet and different words that are associated with those letters. The pictures in this were very fun as well. Although this seems like a book for very young kids, some of the words used in the book seem to be more advanced than these young readers would understand.

[Cheira Combs · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read this book during class and it’s one of my favorites for teaching the alphabet. It made up a fun and captivating story while teaching the alphabet. It also showed diversity and that it’s ok to be different.

[Marcy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Creative

[April · Rating 5 out of 5]

1. Rating: 5
2. A book review from Publisher's Weekly says, "What's a teacher to do when all of the students in her class have the same first name? In this offbeat alphabet book, Mrs. Tuttle has found what she believes is an easy solution. Mrs. T. distinguishes the 25 Matthews in her kindergarten by associating the first letter of each boy's last name with one of his attributes. For example, "Matthew A. is affectionate" and "Matthew G. has trouble with glue." By the penultimate page, readers have met the entire class, save for the new kid: a boy named Matthew (of course) who takes his place in the line-up right after Matthew Y. and is sporting lots of zippers. Following a fairly standard ABC-book template, each page is devoted to a letter that's featured in an upperhand corner. Throughout, Catalanotto (Emily's Art) makes a departure from his customary, portrait-flavored style and employs more playful lines and shapes in buoyantly hued watercolors. The artist's often wacky depictions of what makes each Matthew special (Matthew F. has a cat on his face; Matthew R. has freckles in the shape of a rhinoceros) offer kids plenty of laughs and, perhaps, new ways to look at their own classmates."
3. This is a super fun and comical book that uses the alphabet in a different way than most authors. It is about a teacher, Mrs. Tuttle, that has 25 students that are all named Matthew with a last name beginning with one of the letters A-Z. She has several different techniques on how to remember which Matthew is which from Matthew A. being extremely Affectionate, Matthew Q. being Queasy, and finally Matthew Z. (the new student) being full of Zippers. I would recommend this book to students in kindergarten or first grade as I think that they would have fun guessing how Mrs. Tuttle is going to remember each Matthew. Great, colorful watercolor illustrations as well!

[Stefanie Burns · Rating 3 out of 5]

Nice ABC book about a classroom where every student is named Matthew. However, they each have a different letter of the alphabet at the beginning of their last name. So there is a Matthew A., Matthew B., ... Each student happens to have something, like something, or be something that begins with their last initial. For example, Matthew A. is affectionate. My kindergarteners laughed at the illustrations and had fun guessing what the new kid's last name was and what he liked.

[Kasey · Rating 4 out of 5]

Matthew A.B.C. is a wonderful alphabet book by Peter Catalanotto that gives children a clever and catchy way to learn and remember their alphabet. In this book, Mrs. Tuttle has 25 children in her kindergarten class that are all named Matthew and the principal wonders how she tells them all apart. Each Matthew's last name starts with a different letter of the alphabet and each Matthew has a trait the corresponds with the first letter of his last name. Matthew A. for example, is extremely affectionate and Matthew B. loves Band-Aids. Each Matthew has a clever quirk that goes along with his last initial and each one is on a different page. Each page also has a very cute and funny illustration that goes along with it, making it even easier for children to remember. At the end of the book, Principal Nozzet tells Mrs. Tuttle that she has a new student and that his name is also Matthew. Conveniently, his last name starts with the letter z and he is covered in zippers.
I think this book does a fantastic job in appealing to children and finding fun ways to teach them their alphabet. It also gives them a way to learn them that isn't just rote memorization. The illustrations in this book will definitely stick with children and give them something to giggle about. This is a wonderful book and would be a perfect read aloud for a kindergarten class.

[Chelsea · Rating 5 out of 5]

I found this book to be hilarious. It is about a classroom full of boys named Matthew and the teacher remembers who is who based on their individual characteristics that corresponds to their last initial. For example, Matthew K. is "unusually fond of ketchup" and Matthew T. who is "fiercely tense". Not only is it effective in teaching children the alphabet, it keeps children's attention. I know personally, I couldn't wait to turn the page and see what ridiculous characteristic the next Matthew was identified with. My favorite is Matthew E. who "forgets how to eat." I think this would be a good book to read to kindergarteners who are learning their letters and what sounds go with each letter. I think it would be a good read aloud because of how funny it is. I think most children would find it enjoyable to read and thus holding the attention of the entire class. Also because some of the words are a little tricky such as Matthew P. who is "perpetually perplexed. The illustrations are colorful, cheerful, and very funny. They exemplify the humorous traits perfectly. I like it how each Matthew, staying true to their identity, pops up throughout the entire book. The book ends with a new student, named Matthew Z., who is covered in zippers.

[Ashley · Rating 5 out of 5]

Grade Level-2nd-3rd
Genre-Alphabet Book

Mrs. Tuttle has 25 children in her kindergarten class that are all named Matthew. The principal wants to know how she tells them apart, so she describes that Matthew A. is extremely affectionate, Matthew B. loves Band-Aids, etc. At the end of the book, the principal brings in a new student, Matthew Z. who likes zippers! I thought this alphabet book would be for older students because it had words that I thought younger students would not know. The pictures in this book help to describe each Matthew.

Activity 1: Since I felt that a theme of this book was individuality, I would have students write about something that makes them unique and share it with a small group of classmates. Their writings could be hung in the classroom so that the students feel their individuality is valued.

Activity 2: Students could each be assigned a different Matthew and write a new sentence that describes him. I would have the students read their sentence aloud to their classmates starting with Matthew A so that they could hear the whole new story. It would be fun to hear the ideas that each student had.

[KarenMLISt · Rating 2 out of 5]

Although I appreciate the theme (each student is unique despite the same first name), the target audience for this book (preK-1) will be utterly confused too often, and older kids will find it baby-ish. There is an attempt to use alliteration but not consistently which makes for confusions - sometimes I forget which letter was the point! Ex:"Matthew R. is freckled with a rhinocerous." WHAT? Even the illustration is ridiculous. Or sometimes it's just wordy without being useful or clever. Ex: "Matthew C. has friendly cowlicks." Friendly? Cowlicks? Every time I thought, maybe it's okay... I'd turn to another page that turned me off. Why did the verb or adjective have to be completely different on every page and take away from the actual word connected with the actual letter of that page? I liked the end though - cute.
Examples of other pages that made me go "Hmm?"
"Matthew O. stays outside."
"Matthew T. is fiercely tense."
"Matthew U. is completely uneven."
"Matthew W. has a very high waist."

[Brittney Griffith · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is very creative. After finding out that the Ms. Tuttle has 25 students all named Matthew, I literally laughed. I was very excited to read this book. Each Matthew has a different last initial of the alphabet A-Y. The letters did sometimes feel a little pushed to make the point. For instance for Matthew K. he is "unusually fond of ketchup" and Matthew E. "forgets how to eat". Maybe it was the face that the words the the featured letter were no more emphasized than any other words on the page, but I think at least putting more emphasis could help the reader feel less awkward about this as I did. This book is definitely a book I would want to use in all elementary grade levels. It can be used in the lower grades to focus on the alphabet and spelling. In the older grades, third through 5th, this book can be used to focus on writing and using descriptive words such as affectionate, moody, and leaks.

[RachelH. Hughes · Rating 4 out of 5]

Matthew A.B.C. is about a teacher who has 25 students all named Matthew. The principal wonders how the teacher can tell them apart, but she says it is easy. She relates their last initial to something they like or do. For example, Matthew A. is extremely affectionate and Matthew G. has trouble with glue. The pictures enhance the book wonderfully by showing each Matthew and what he is doing. They are very colorful and humorous to young children. I think children would really enjoy figuring out which Matthew they relate to most. The book ends with a new student: Matthew Z. He has a lot of zippers and children would enjoy guessing what Matthew Z. likes. I would definitely use this book as a read aloud to a kindergarten class. It is easy for young students to understand and it helps teach the alphabet.

[Leta Huffman · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was simply a alphabet book but it was hilarious and very creative. All of the kids in this teacher's class have the name matthew. Each Matthew has a different letter of the alphabet for their last name, and she remembers each student's last name initial by their personality. Many of them cracked me up. For example, my favorites were:

-"Matthew E. forgets how to eat." -So she remembered Matthew E-eat- It has a picture of him putting the spoon to his forehead. :)
- "Matthew L. leaks."- With a picture of snot running out of his nose.
-"Matthew N. is nearly naked." -A picture of a little boy with underwear and a cape.

[Aymee Knight · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book did a great job of showing the reader the different letters of the alphabet while also using words that started with the letter being discussed. I think that using a word that starts with that specific letter is a good way to teach children a word for each letter of the alphabet. The illustrations went along well with the letter of the alphabet being discussed. I love that in the pictures each Matthew displayed a different noun or adjective that matched what Mrs. Tuttle had to say about him.

[Marianne · Rating 4 out of 5]

Matthew A.B.C by Peter Catalanotto is an ABC book. It is appropriate for pre-k through first grade students. The book is an ABC book, but it includes lots of rich tier-2 words such as perpetually perplexed, incognito, and affectionate. The words used to represent each letter of the alphabet are more complex than A for apple.

Each illustration does a great job of illustrating the text on the page. The characters in the book represent a variety of backgrounds and cultural groups. There are no negative stereotypes of the represented groups.

[Ariel · Rating 3 out of 5]

"Matthew A.B.C." introduces the alphabet by showing how all the boys who share the same name have a different description that starts with a letter in the alphabet. I like that this book shows how though people may share the same name there are different characteristics of our self that make us different from the rest. This book also is a different fun way to represent the different letters of the alphabet. One negative aspect about the picture book is some of the illustrations are not very appealing.

[Amy Seto · Rating 5 out of 5]

Mrs. Tuttle is a teacher with 25 children in her class all named Matthew. How does she tell them apart? Matthew A. is extremely affectionate and Matthew B. simply adores bandaids and…so on through to Matthew Y. who only yodels. And what happens at the end of the book? Mrs. Tuttle gets another student in her class, can you guess his name?

Full Review Picture-Book-a-Day: http://picturebookaday.blogspot.com/2...

[Mary · Rating 5 out of 5]

This alphabet book is very unusual and interesting. A teacher has an entire classroom full of Matthews! Luckily, they all have last names that begin with different letters of the alphabet, and they each have characteristics that go along with those letters, so it is easy for the teacher to tell them apart. This book is full of new vocabulary and onomatopoeia. Great for kids learning about their alphabet!

[Sandra Vicars · Rating 3 out of 5]

How unusual! Mrs. Tuttle has a class of 25 students whose first names are all Matthew! Each has a unique attribute, one for each letter of the alphabet. But aren’t there 26 letters? A new student arrives! This is a great story to talk about differences. The story contains quite a few vocabulary words, such as cowlicks and incognito. The pictures are colorful and detailed.

[Lisa · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is an absolutely hilarious book that also happens to teach kids ABCs. Its a favorite in our house and has been read many, many times. Matthew F, with the cat on his face is our absolute favorite:)

[Joy Myers · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is a great way to go through the alphabet and hear the different sounds that each letter makes. It is also great to point out that all students are different and even if they have the same name, there is something about them that makes them special.

[Hira · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fun Picture Book

[Dana · Rating 2 out of 5]

kinda strange....

[Judith · Rating 4 out of 5]

Awww, if you know plenty of Matts, then this is a story for you!

[Shallowreader VaVeros · Rating 5 out of 5]

The best alphabet book I've read. A teacher has a classroom where every kid is called Matthew. They are differentiated by their surname. Funny illustrations and great words.

[Katie Fitzgerald · Rating 3 out of 5]

Read at After School Story Time on 5/10/12:
http://storytimesecrets.blogspot.com/...

[Michael D. · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great book for the first day of school in a Pre-k or Kindegarten classroom which focuses upon acceptance of others- social development.

[Courtney Mekkes · Rating 5 out of 5]

hilarious and goes through ABC's

[Matthew · Rating 4 out of 5]

I liked the goofy humor of this story and as a teacher I really liked the idea of 25 kids with the same name. While 25 would be unimaginable, I've seen classes with 3 or 4 and it's tough.