Tracks in the Snow

by Wong Herbert Yee

Tracks in the snow.
Tracks in the snow.
Who made the tracks?
Where do they go?

There's a mysterious set of tracks through the snow, but who do they belong to-a rabbit, a duck, a woodchuck? On this brisk day one little girl is determined to find out. So off through the woods she tramps in hopeful discovery. Where will the tracks lead her and what might she find? Come join in the search!

Genres: Picture Books, Childrens, Animals, Storytime, Nature, Fiction, Christmas

32 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2003

Reviews

[Tina Haigler · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a precious story! A little girl is on an adventure to find out what made tracks in the snow and where they did go. Apparently my brain is still in rhyming mode. I loved the poems; they had a great singsong rhythm and pensive tone, and really made me feel invested in the story. However, as much as I loved the story, the art was my favorite part; I'm honestly not sure if I've ever seen such intricate art in a children's book. It has a wonderful texture to it that reminds me of slightly pixelated pictures--in this case, a bunch of tiny dots creating adorable pictures that have a fuzzy look that you feel with your eyes, instead of your fingers. I'm so glad I picked this one up. I highly recommend it to all ages, especially when it's cold outside, and you are either longing for snow, or surrounded by it.

[Kris · Rating 4 out of 5]

A quick, adorable story with gorgeous, muted art that just has something so appealing about it.

[Alex Baugh · Rating 4 out of 5]

It's a snowy day and a young girl in a red coat has decided to trace the tracks she sees in the snow outside her house. With a refrain of "Tracks in the snow./Tracks in the snow./Who made the tracks?/Where do they go?" which kids will quickly pick up and repeat with each reading, the girl begins to eliminate who the tracks could belong to forest animal by forest animal. What a surprise when she realizes that the tracks in the snow are the ones she had made the day before while she was out playing in the snow. The story is told in a sweet rhyme and enhanced by the lovely Prismacolors on watercolor paper illustrations that give them a soft, slightly burred look that really imparts the sense of a snowy day. This was fun to read with my young readers who not only repeated the refrain, but liked naming the animals shown throughout the book. They could also see that the tracks were not made by animals, and had fun guessing whose they could be on out first reading, which didn't diminish their enjoyment at subsequent readings.

[Chance Lee · Rating 2 out of 5]

Tiny little book with illustrations that look like they were made with crayon. The textures are nice, as if everything has a fuzzy finish. The story has a simple rhyme that doesn't always work. I kind of hate myself for giggling at the phrase "tramp-stamp. u At the end, I couldn't tell if the little girl was imaginative or just stupid, but she was definitely cute.

[Andréa · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good complementary read for The Snowy Day.

[Sara Mangan]

A little girl wakes up to find tracks in the snow. She is curious and wants to find out who they belong to. The book follows her on her adventure to find "who made these tracks? Where do they go?"

This is a multicultural book because it is about a person of color.

Writing traits:
1-Voice- This is written in 1st person.
2-Sentence Fluency- The repetitive words in this story help it flow.
3- Organization- The reader wonders with every turn of the page if the child will find out who make these Tracks in the Snow.

Classroom ideas:
1- This book is a good example for students how to write in the 1st person. Easy for even a younger child to read and then emulate in their own writing.
2- This book teaches students that using repeated words can help their writing flow. What I really like about this story is young children can read it and very soon recite the repeating words. My daughter loved books like this. It could be used in a kindergarten classroom. The teacher could read it to the students and they could join in for "tracks in the snow, tracks in the snow. Who made theses tracks? Where do they go?"
3- This book could be used to teach young writers how to keep their readers engaged by adding suspense to their writing.
4- It is also a short but sweet book and young readers love being able to easily read an entire book by them selves.

Reading level:1.6

[Amber · Rating 3 out of 5]

"Tracks in the snow. Tracks in the snow. Who made the tracks? Where do they go?" Tracks in the Snow, written and illustrated by Wong Herbert Yee, is the adorable story of a child who discovers curious footprints in the snow outside of her house. She follows them in a snowy outdoor adventure to find the owner of the mysterious tracks. Where will these tracks lead her and what will she find? Is it a rabbit, a fox, a squirrel? The humorous ending of the little girl discovering that the tracks are in fact her own that she had made the day before will have young readers giggling. The illustrations look almost crayon like and add to the fluffy feeling you get from snow. The empty white backdrop is a clever way to add to the setting of the story, knowing that winter snow is all around. The repetitive phrases will have young readers vocally following along with delight in a rhythmic pattern. This book could be used to discuss seasons/winter, winter animals, and what to wear in the winter time, which are all primary grade science standards. This book could also be used in language arts lessons to compare and contrast with other winter stories such as The Mitten and The Snowy Day, etc. Recommended for ages 3-8 as a read aloud, and ages 6-8 as a reader. The repetition will help younger readers along the story and feel more confident in their reading.

[Maexo♡ · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was such a cute wintery story. I liked the plot a lot. I have never seen this sort of drawing style before where it's slightly blurry or pixel-like; I wasn't a fan of it but appreciated the art form. I also liked how the story is a bit of a mystery, I wanted to know who made the tracks in the snow too! The addition of little animals as the little girl wanders through snow-covered hills was very winter wonderland-like too.

[Sheri · Rating 4 out of 5]

A quiet book as the snow falls quietly around the main character in his journey to find where the tracks come from and go. At the end of this story the mystery is solved. Story is quiet and ends with the mystery solved.

[Mortisha Cassavetes · Rating 5 out of 5]

Such a cute story of a little girl who finds some tracks in the snow outside her house and follows them to find out who left them. Delightful illustrations make this a wonderful winter book for kids of all ages. We loved it and I highly recommend it.

[Nadina · Rating 3 out of 5]

Cute enough story, probably good for younger reader's. The illustrations were a little hard to decipher, at first glance when I flipped through the book wothout reading the text I did not notice that the girl was following footsteps in the snow.

[Kimberly · Rating 3 out of 5]

A sweet little winter story.

[Annie · Rating 2 out of 5]

The illustrations are lovely, and I like the simple story line. But there were too many lines that didn’t quite scan for my taste.

[Rosa Cline · Rating 4 out of 5]

sweet book of a child venturing out in the snow to see where the footprints go and who made them. A simple but sweet book

[Tami Ritchey · Rating 5 out of 5]

Super cute book with clues throughout to help you guess who made the tracks in the snow.

[Danette · Rating 3 out of 5]

3/30/20 Read with Julia #covidreader

[Jessie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Pretty good rhythm with a fun kind of repetition and resolution, with lots of animals showing up along the way.

[Alyssa Gudenburr · Rating 3 out of 5]

A very small picture book. Not good for storytime.

[Lauren · Rating 4 out of 5]

A cute, short rhyming story of a girl exploring tracks in the snow. Who made them? A sweet way to make little ones think about wintery sights around them.

[Diana · Rating 3 out of 5]

The rhythm and flow is just right for K readers.

[Kailina · Rating 4 out of 5]

A great story for little ones that encourages them to observe what's in the world around them and engage in inquiry about what they see.

[Samantha Penrose · Rating 4 out of 5]

This story is about a little girl who looks out the window and see tracks in the snow. She bundles up and heads out to find out "who made the tracks?" and "where do they go?".
This book has beautiful illustrations of the little girl enjoying the snowy woodlands around her house. The pictures give a great opportunity to ask your child questions about what they see as there are different animals scampering around through out the story. The text includes lots of rhyme and repitition.
Its an excellent read with a cute suprise ending!

[Yadira · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book goes on a journey with a little girl who follows some tracks in the snow and she is exploring to see who has made them and where they lead to. This is a good book to follow up with a lesson about discover and exploration. You can also talk about winter and the types of animals that are around during this time.

[Susan · Rating 4 out of 5]

This rhythmic book is sure to be a story time favorite with the kindergarten and younger set. The soft, whimsical illustrations, simple rhythmic text and hint of mystery as a little girl follows some tracks in the snow trying to figure out who made them will delight audiences. Great piece for snowy day reading or to introduce animals in winter or the concept of tracking.

[Kelly Triplett · Rating 4 out of 5]

A good choice for a winter read. There isn't an obvious lesson taught, but a discussion about discovery/ exploring could be enhanced with this story. Would be acceptable to read to children even in the upper elementary grades.

[Sarah · Rating 3 out of 5]

A girl follows tracks in the snow to discover who they belong to, finding that they are her own tracks left the day before.

The book is too small to use in storytime, but would be good for one on one sharing, or for an early reader.

[Heather · Rating 5 out of 5]

We love this book! It's small and perfect for little people. The illustrations are beautiful and really pull you into the story.

[Janet · Rating 3 out of 5]

Nice cozy little story; child wonders who made the tracks in the snow.
Small format, best one on one.

[Katharine · Rating 3 out of 5]

Very cute, short, simple winter story for preschoolers.

[Emily · Rating 3 out of 5]

Reading & Writing Workshop - Leaving Tracks in the Snow, writing notes, highlighting, and underlining as we read. Shows metacognition.