The sheep are back in a new installment of hilarious bumbling humor, as they enter a restaurant (operated by cats) and proceed to misunderstand the menu, add sugar to spinach custard, send it back, add pepper to their cake, sneeze, and upend the tables. Ejected from the restaurant, they note that the lawn looks tasty, so the story ends happily after all, as they leave tips at the front stoop and promise to return again.
The concept of sheep acting like people in the context of primary societal institutions is original and educational. It allows for plenty of humor, while giving a sideways lesson in courtesy and manners: while laughing at their ridiculous antics, children learn the appropriate way to act in a restaurant, as they see the strain this bad behavior places on the restaurant staff.
This rhythmic, rhyming story is best for toddlers and preschoolers, but it can also serve as practice for early readers, and the humor is sophisticated enough that older children will enjoy it.
Five hungry sheep go into a teashop for lunch and nothing seems to go right. They do not know what to order. They do not know how to behave. It is a disaster!
This is a perfect story for teaching the “s” and “sh” letter sounds. The sentences are short and written in rhyme making it easy for toddlers to follow. These silly sheep have more adventures in Sheep in a Jeep and Sheep on a Ship.
In this version, the sheep have decided to meet at a local tea shop for some dinner. They have so much fun that it eventually turns into a disaster. I think children find these books very funny because animals are doing things that humans do, such as going out to eat, which is a funny concept to young children. I used to really like this story when I was younger so I think other children would as well.
The trouble-prone sheep are back! This time the five sheep go to a teashop to eat. Of course, since the sheep can't read, they don't understand the menu. They slurp and burp, add pepper to their tea and cake, and generally make a big mess and are asked by the very patient wait staff to leave. Overall, the sheep are again ridiculous, the cats in the restaurant are precious, and the illustrations and rhyming text are great fun.
Sheep Out to Eat was a cute but kind of crazy book. The sheep go to this fancy restaurant and realize all they really wanted was grass instead of the fancy food. It would have saved everybody a lot of trouble if they would've realized this right from the beginning. It takes you on a rollercoaster and it's a creative book.
I love books that show consequences. This is one of them. I also love books that show people getting consequences and not getting upset, but letting it roll off their backs and returning to happiness. This is one of those books as well. Perfect for little ones.
Funny. Rhyming. It includes a message that may not have been intended, but is wonderful for a child who may get upset when told that they can't do something.
SPOILER ALERT: Sometimes others are not happy with us. Sometimes what seems like a bad thing is something that is teaching a lesson. Instead of being angry at being kicked out, they realize what they want isn't inside the shop, but outside. Instead of being grumpy and demanding their rights, they are thankful.
Note: I created this edition without the ISBN number 0395720273. When I used the number, it brought me to the wrong edition (1995). That listing also listed the author as an illustrator. The author's name does not include the middle initial on the book. I didn't notice the mistake when I saved the information. Sorry!
Sheep Out to Eat by Nancy E. Shaw, illustrated by Margot Apple shows another installment with those mischievous, bumbling sheep, who decide to visit a tea shop because they are hungry. They proceed to misunderstand the menu, add sugar to spinach custard, send it back, add pepper to their cake, sneeze, and upend the tables! Ejected from the restaurant by the cat staff, sheep note that the lawn looks tasty. They dig in, relieve their hunger, leave tips at the front stoop and promise to return again.
The chaos and havoc that occurs since sheep can't read and have no manners is very funny, and can be used to discuss etiquette and manners with young children. The text features large bold fonts, rhyme and repetition, making it a solid choice for beginning readers. This is a good read-aloud choice.
The illustrations have lots of funny details, including a sea gull that enters with the sheep, a cuckoo clock, and a sign post indicating Dinty Moor (a word play on a manufacturer of stew). Fun for all!
For ages 2 to 7, beginning readers, sheep, cats, etiquette, manners themes, fans of the Sheep, and fans of Nancy E. Shaw and Margot Apple.
1. Identifying the appropriate genre: Picture Books
2. Review/Summary: The mischievous sheep are back, and now they’re hungry! The whole flock ventures into a tea shop for treats, and it doesn’t take long for disaster to strike...
3. Rating: 5 Stars
4. Writing Trait: Sheep Out to Eat includes the following writing traits: a. Voice: The voice of the story is entertaining, contains age appropriate dialogue, grabs attention and promotes reading engagement. b. Word Choice: Words are chosen carefully and precisely; specific words are used throughout the book. c. Sentence Fluency: This book flows smoothly and has a rhythmic flow (for example: Sheep get menus. Sheep want feed. They point to words that they can't read); sentences are easy on the ear and are fun to read aloud! d. Conventions: In relation to sentence fluency, the story is easy for a reader to pick up and read.
5. Usage for Classroom Instruction: This book could be read aloud in primary level elementary school (K-2). I would use this book for classroom instruction to teach about rhyming and about manners. The rhyming is evident in reading the story and table manners could be addressed, as the sheep make a terrible mess for the waiters to clean up).
How can you pick just one of my friend Nancy Shaw's "Sheep" books? So, today's National Picture Book Month pick is Nancy Shaw's Sheep series. Nancy's silly sheep take a ride in a jeep with disastrous and funny results in her first book, "Sheep in a Jeep." Come along with these woolly wonders as they travel farther afield in, "Sheep on a Ship," then take time for a little retail therapy with them in "Sheep in a Shop." The adventures continue with "Sheep Out to Eat," "Sheep Take a Hike," and a Halloween favorite, "Sheep Trick or Treat." Nancy's final book in the Sheep series, "Sheep Blast Off," finds our sheepishly brave friends on their way to the stars! Each Sheep selection is published by Houghton Mifflin, the first coming out in 1986, with her final sheep saga hitting the shelves in 2008. Nancy's perfect rhyme and simple and exciting story lines make me laugh and smile each time I read them. Three cheers for Nancy and her sheep!
This is the first time reading one of Shaw's Sheep books. I loved it! We follow a group of sheep to "Tiddley Wink Tea Shop" where they stop to eat. Madness ensues as they add "sugar, salt and mustard" to their spinach custard and adding pepper to their tea and cake. By the end of their dining experience, which is cut short as they are asked to leave, the sheep pout but soon discover what they really wanted for lunch. The lawn!
The illustrations were great. There is such much going on but it all goes together very nicely. I loved all the details on each page. As the book progresses you can see the mess that these sheep are making.
I will definitely have this and Shaw's other Sheep books in my classroom. There are plenty of words younger students will know but there are also a few that could be used as the bigger words for the unit such as, "appetites, custard, and suddenly."
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
'Sheep Out to Eat' is a novel about five sheep that make the decision to go out to eat. However, they are not accustom to the food nor the prober etiquette that is used in the restaurant. The sheep soon came to realize that they did not need fancy food in restaurants to be happy. They more stratified being themselves and eating the grass. The major theme for this book was about what good manners are. The sheep even though they did not display good manners while eating, after they were kicked out they were very gracious and payed the waiters. Having good manners and etiquette skills are very important life lessons to learn when you are younger, because they are lessons that will stay with you for the rest of your life.