Dogs!

by John Hutton, Doug Cenko (Illustrations)

Play and learn with dogs of all colors, shapes, and sizes!  Questions within the book provide a built-in tool for grown-ups to use while reading, encouraging little ones to expand on the story. This type of interactive reading, known as "dialogic reading," is key to developing early literacy skills.

Genres: Animals, Childrens, Dogs

14 pages, Board book

Published April 4, 2017

About the author

Dr. John S. Hutton is a pediatrician and researcher at the Cincinnati Children's Hospital Reading and Literacy Discovery Center, owner/overseer of blue manatee children’s bookstore and founder of blue manatee press. His research and advocacy interests are the influence of home reading environment and shared reading on early brain development, the health effects of screen-based media, and the creation of children's books to effectively convey infant and child health information. His research was the first to show a measurable effect of home reading exposure prior to kindergarten on brain function, using functional MRI. His Baby Unplugged and Love Baby Healthy book series have been distributed to over 1 million families nationwide, often via statewide public health initiatives. A recovering novelist, he has won awards for his writing in several genres, and attended writing workshops in Iowa City and Squaw Valley, CA. He lives with his family, dogs, cat, rabbit, fish, and a whole bunch of Bees, in Cincinnati, Ohio.

Reviews

[Alli · Rating 5 out of 5]

I won this book in a Goodreads giveaway. This is a cute and interactive board book with playful pictures. Both my 2 year old niece and 4 year old nephew really enjoyed Dogs! My nephew’s favorite part was adding to the story and my niece loved all the dog illustrations.

[Mama Bibliosoph · Rating 5 out of 5]

In Dogs! colorfully painted panel illustrations of dogs and spare, prompting text foster an interactive experience. Blanks require fill-in skills (When dogs talk, they say ____!). Questions prompt discussions (i.e. What do dogs like to do?) and the art provides some suggestions and tacting opportunities to answer those questions (i.e. pictures of dogs sleeping, playing ball, on a walk, scratching, swimming, and eating). There is also modest wordplay, basic attributes, and simple story sequencing opportunities.

While Dogs! is a board book targeted at toddlers, it will also work for many older children on the spectrum with pragmatic language delays. It's also a useful book for parents and teachers to gain practice with evidence-based read aloud techniques. The author, Dr. John Hutton, is a researcher at Cincinnati Children's Hospital's Reading & Literacy Discovery Center, and he is a proponent of dialogic reading, a technique that encourages adults to interact with children as they read. And if you're more of a cat person, the next book, Cats! releases in September 2017.

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I review books for children from the perspective of a parent of kids with autism. The review above is from a longer blog post about the best new books of 2017: http://www.lineupthebooks.com/summer-...

[Samantha · Rating 5 out of 5]

A board book about dogs that invites readers and listeners to engage in dialogic reading, a method of reading in which reader and listener discuss the story and its subjects.

I really like all the questions contained in this book. From the fill in the blank to the open ended and those that require an opinion or evoke a story, this is not your average dog book; it's one that really explores its subject at just the right level for toddlers and PreK.

Highly recommended, especially as a baby shower gift.

[Teresa · Rating 3 out of 5]

I received my copy in a giveaway here on Goodreads. My grandson is going to love it!

[Steve Kemp · Rating 5 out of 5]

My son loved it ! Won our copy in a GoodReads giveaway.

[Michelle · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved this canine board book. It's perfect for the pre-reader, too, as they can talk about the pictures with ease.

[Bailey Roy · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love the way this book is informational but also has a lot of fun interactions with dogs that owners can relate to! Super sweet illustrations as well.

[Kinsey · Rating 4 out of 5]

Colorful and cute illustrations that young children will enjoy!

Please note: I am required to mention that I won a copy of this book in a Goodreads First Reads giveaway, however; that does not effect my opinion of the book.