The Chick and the Duckling

by Vladimir Suteev, Mirra Ginsburg (Translator), José Aruego (Illustrator)

This charming tale, with brightly colored illustrations by Jose Aruego and Ariane Dewey, will delight small children who are discovering the world around them.

As Duckling sets off to explore the world, Chick is close behind, mimicking each of his actions. But when Duckling decides to go for a swim, his friend is in for a surprise.

Genres: Picture Books, Animals, Childrens, Fiction, Friendship, Birds, Russia

32 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1972

About the author

Vladimir Grigor'evich Suteev (Russian: Владимир Сутеев) was a Russian author, illustrator and animator who primarily wrote stories for children. He was the founder of animated cartoon industry in the USSR.

Reviews

[Marisa Ray · Rating 4 out of 5]

A good beginner reading book.

[معصومه توکلی · Rating 4 out of 5]

عنوان ترجمهٔ فارسی: جوجه مرغ و جوجه اردک

[Sara · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was one of my 4 year old son's favorite. He thought it was so funny that the chick did everything the duckling did. It was a great conversation starter to talk about not copying what everyone else is doing, because it can sometimes turn out not be so good. I would definitely read this book to children 2-5 and make it a point that you should not do something that could be dangerous, in this case, the chick can't swim but the duckling can, so he made a poor decision by copying the duckling.

[Janet · Rating 4 out of 5]

Translation by Mira Ginsburg of a story by Russian picture book author V. Suteyev copyrighted 1972 and illustrated by Jose and Ariadne Aruego.
A newly hatched ducking and chick find their similarities, but what will the their difference be?
The illustrations are done with plenty of white space so the very young will have their eyes focused on the duck and chick. And butterflies are flying through many of the illustrations. This story would pair well with Rosie’s Walk by Pat Hutchins as both have few words and the action can be seen well in the illustrations.
Have always liked the Aruego’s illustrations.

[Anna Piesyk · Rating 5 out of 5]

This story is about a chick and a duckling where the duckling is doing something and the chick is always copying him. Finally there is the part where the chick cannot do what the duckling can do and realizes they aren’t the same after all. A great book to use for comparing and contrasting characters in a story. There is also some humor tossed is at the end as a twist and it’s very enjoyable.

[Kayla · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book was a little simple. I probably would not read this out loud to a class, however, I would keep it in the class room. I could use it for individuals that had troubles reading or I could have the students read it to me.

[Donna Mork · Rating 4 out of 5]

Chick and duckling hatch out at the same time. Everything duckling does, chick wants to do, from walking, to digging, to catching butterflies. When duckling goes for a swim, chick does too, but sinks. Duckling pulls chick out and says he's going to swim again. Chick says he is not going to swim.

[Michael Fitzgerald · Rating 2 out of 5]

Weak payoff. Dull illustrations.

[Kristen Thorp · Rating 2 out of 5]

148/365

70s artistic!

[Courtney · Rating 3 out of 5]

My children absolutely adore this book. Reading literature is so important to the development of a child's mind, and I cannot think of thing I would rather do then sit down to read to them in the evenings. Imagination and growth are so vital in those so young.

[IUS F19 Hannah Pearson · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book would be good to read to kindergarten or first-grade students.

[Valeria Vlasova · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Chick and the Duckling a good tale. This tale about Duckling and Chick and how they are walking, eating, and swimming. It is a really good book for little children.

[Jj · Rating 4 out of 5]

Simple, short, colorful, and definitely one I will be using with the baby and toddler audiences. PLus, I just love the Aruego/Dewey collaborative artwork... they are always a winning combo.

[Cheryl · Rating 4 out of 5]

What a great, but simply & entreatingly told, lesson about the perils of being a copycat. If more little kids read this, might they have less trouble with cliques and self-identity in middle school?

[MQR · Rating 5 out of 5]

Be happy with who you are. LOVE!

[Meredith · Rating 2 out of 5]

A chick wants to do everything a duckling does.

The illustrations were done with pen-and-ink to create the line drawings and then overlaid with halftones. José Aruego is one my favorite childhood illustrators.

This story is also included in the book Me Too!: Two Small Stories about Small Animals translated by Katya Arnold.

[Kristi Drake · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very cute for a young child.

[K · Rating 3 out of 5]

I agree with another reviewer who said this would be a great book to talk to young children about not copying everything someone else does. It's important to think for yourself! Fun 1970s art and simple words and story which are perfect for a brand new reader.

[Jocelyn Cervantes · Rating 4 out of 5]

I loved the overall message of this book, to be you! The chick was trying to be like the duckling in following his footsteps but in reality he is a chick not a duckling, and he has his own unique skills!

[Joey Starr · Rating 3 out of 5]

When I read this book I was wasn’t a huge fan of it but the kids I was reading it to really enjoyed it. They loved the chick and how it copied everything the duck was doing. I gave this book 3 stars because it just wasn’t my favorite book but was still enjoyable.

Guided reading: D
DRA Level: 6
Traits: presentation

[Sarah Sammis · Rating 3 out of 5]

My daughter is a beginning reader. One of the books she recently picked to read to me was The Chick and the Duckling by Mirra Ginsburg.

The book is about two eggs who hatch: a chick and a duckling. The duckling takes charge and chick wants to do everything the duckling is doing. That works fine until the duckling discovers swimming!

As the book is designed for beginning readers, it has a lot of repetition and simple, easy to sound out words. For me sitting through the story, it's pretty dull, but for Harriet it was perfect. She was able to read it and found the story (such as it is) humorous.

[Katie Jelinek · Rating 4 out of 5]

As I noticed that author Mira Ginsburg is fond of chicks and other animals as a theme within her books, i read the Chick and the Duckling which to me, was a learning about yourself kind of book. The story goes on to show the Chick as a follower, until he learnes about himself and is able to branch out and go on his own. This book would be good to use in the classroom to illustrate becoming your own individual.

[Jennifer · Rating 2 out of 5]

I would stat out by asking my students what type of animals these babies are called and what. the term for them is."what should they do about gettingte same worm?" I would continue to talk about the good sides and bad sides of competition. "What did the chick learn?" I did not like that the chick nearly drowned.

Interest Level
Grades K - 2
Reading Level
Grade level Equivalent: 1.3
Lexile® Measure: 60L
DRA: 6
Guided Reading: D

[Christina Camp · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is great for young children just learning how to read. Havng this book as a big book in the classroom makes it easy to use it as a read-aloud. Because many of the phrases in the book are repeated, the children can learn about patterns. The story is also adoorable and can teach studetns about helping one another.

[Emma · Rating 4 out of 5]

My second child really likes this, even at 13 months. She has a dominant older sibling so I think it will be a good discussion point for us later, when she understands what she's reading. Right now she stops paying attention after the duckling pulls the chick out. She's not in the self-actualisation phase yet... Damn, sorry that's a spoiler, isn't it.

[Ashlyn Barker-Salyer · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is about a duck who has a little chick that follows him around during all of his activities. This has predictable lines/phrases that young children and beginning readers will love. Unlike most predictable children's literature, this book has more of a story line which makes it more interesting for the reader.

[June · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really like this story with it's "Me too!" refrain. I also like the ending and it's message. 4/11/12

Not sure this worked for lap time, maybe I'll have to go back to Little White Duck

[Jillian Reed · Rating 2 out of 5]

A story about a duckling who tries everything and a chick who tries to immigrate everything he does until he learns that he can't swim and decides to learn from his mistake and do something he can do. Lesson of the story, learn from your experiences

[Rosi · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love the art in this book. The colors are sweet, the chick and the duckling are adorable and recognizable. The story is the right length for Susanna at 18 months, but it's not her favorite and she often doesn't make it through the whole thing.

[Courtney · Rating 3 out of 5]

My children absolutely adore this book. Reading literature is so important to the development of a child's mind, and I cannot think of thing I would rather do then sit down to read to them in the evenings. Imagination and growth are so vital in those so young.