Animals Move

by Jane Whittingham

Preschoolers love baby animals, and they love to move. Celebrate both with this Toddler Tough board book perfect for an active read-aloud! Fawns leap, / Hatchlings bounce, / Porcupettes nibble, / Kittens pounce. Story time is on the move with this multilayered concept book. Preschoolers will enjoy learning fun baby animal names from baboon “infants” to kangaroo “joeys,” and they’ll revel in using their bodies to mimic the movements each animal makes. Bright photographs give a close-up look at every kitten, nestling, and foal, as well as young children who are pouncing, flapping, and racing alongside them. The rhyming text teaches young minds pattern recognition for language learning and reading readiness, and a closing spread of enriching, age-appropriate activities keeps the learning going. A lively addition to the Big, Little Concepts series by author and children’s librarian Jane Whittingham, Animals Move will have everybody wiggling and giggling through story time.  A new addition to the Big, Little Concepts series by author and children’s librarian Jane Whittingham, Animals Move will have everybody wiggling and giggling through story time. “This book works in all the ways books for littles should  engaging subject, pleasing presentation, gentle introduction of new vocabulary, lack of stereotyping, and strong construction for repeated reading and handling. There is a note to adults in the back offering several extension activities to get kids thinking and moving.” — Youth Services Book Review   ★ Starred Review

Genres: Animals, Picture Books, Storytime, Childrens, Nonfiction, Canada, Juvenile

26 pages, Board Book

Published March 14, 2023

About the author

Jane Whittingham is a picture book author, librarian, blogger and all-around book lover. She is passionate about cats, tea, sushi and travel. She is the author of Animals Move (2022), Wild About Camping (2022), Only the Trees Know (2022), Bear Has a Belly (2022), Queenie Quail Can't Keep Up (2019), A Good Day for Ducks (2018) and Wild One (2017). You can catch up with Jane at her website, www.raincitylibrarian.ca.

Reviews

[Laura · Rating 4 out of 5]

Full disclosure, I have been reading Jane Whittingham's writing for a long time. And while this may not be an essay or a longer book, this is just right for what it is intended for, which is very young children.

The photos are of both baby animals and baby humans, doing the same thing. We see porcupettes nibbling (baby porcupines) as well as a human child doing the same. There are kids of different colors, as well as a child with a walker. Kids do all sort of things that baby animals do. The kids and animals are all adorable.

Great addition to reading to kids with, and for kids to look at the pictures, and say "that's me."

A fine addition to any board book or picture book collection.

Thanks to Netgalley for making this book available for an honest review.

[Edward Sullivan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Bright color photographs of baby animals juxtaposed with images of toddler-age children.

[Madeleine · Rating 4 out of 5]

Jane Whittingham will literally always be my story time MVP. I read this to babies but I think it could easily work for toddlers too, and I love the movement tips at the end of the book.

[Olivia]

See my full review here: https://www.yabookscentral.com/animal...

ANIMALS MOVE is a delightful collection of photography for toddlers to begin understanding movement verbs. Each page features a two word phrase of an animal and a movement. This is accompanied by a picture of the animal acting out the action and a child making the same movement. For instance, on the page that says "porcupines nibble," there is a photograph of a porcupine eating some leaves next to a child eating a slice of watermelon.

What I loved: This is such a clever compilation of photographs that will appeal to young toddlers. There is much to learn with different animals and action terms. The colorful and large images are great for young minds who will love seeing real animals and children on every page. The simple phrases allow readers to explore on their own or with a caregiver. The photographs show a great diversity of both animals and children with many different skintones and abilities, which is so important for little ones.

The font is large, clear, and easy to read. The padded cover and thicker pages, which are in-between a picture and board book, will be great for toddlers to begin exploring on their own. The backmatter includes some ideas for caregivers to extend the book into additional activities, great for at home or at school.

Final verdict: With fantastic photographs and a simple premise, ANIMALS MOVE is a delightful way to introduce animals, verbs, and movement. Highly recommend for toddlers!

[Barbara · Rating 3 out of 5]

Relying on large, colorful stock photos of youngsters and baby animals, this sturdy board book features various critters, including kits, porcupettes, ducklings, and nestlings, among others, engaging in some sort of physical activity. The photos of the young animals face photos of different children who are making the same movement. Not only will readers learn the names of 15 different baby animals, but they will learn how to move and mimic the physical activities of the babies. The endpapers of this sturdy board book feature photos of the animals in block form, and the book even offers tips for parents and caregivers who want their children to become more active so that reading gives rise to movement. Not only do young animals like to move in different ways, but so do young humans. The book is tough enough to withstand multiple handling and use.

[MookNana · Rating 5 out of 5]

What an excellent book for toddlers and preschoolers! Each page features a child and baby animal in various types of movement. Not only are the photos beautiful and compelling, but the text is full of great vocabulary words, both for animal babies and for movement-centered verbs. This would be an excellent reading book for an active child as they can move along with the animals and get their wiggles out while still enjoying story time. This would also be a fantastic addition to preschool and community libraries and could be a real favorite!

Many thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review!

[Angie · Rating 5 out of 5]

This picture book, filled with real photos of animals and children contains simple text, just one noun and one verb per page, but teaches about animals and how they interact with the world around them. Additionally it helps children make connections or ideas that are similar between all living things, including themselves. I think this book would be perfect for young children or English language learners because the real pictures are so important when learning language. I would recommend this book for children ages 2-6. Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read and review this book!

[Amy Oberts · Rating 4 out of 5]

Jbrary review: retrieved from https://jbrary.com/2022-favourite-sto...
"In this energetic photographic journey through animal movements, kids are shown side-by-side in similar actions. With only two words per page, you can read this to any age group, especially those needing to get their wiggles out. I like to stand up and get the kids to mimic each animal. A much-needed Story Time hit filled with real-life photographs!"

Publication Date: 2022
Format: Padded board book; cardstock-like pages
Elements: Simple, rhyming text in bold typeface; vivid photographs
Connection/Topics: Movement; animals, children; making comparisons

[Cheriee Weichel · Rating 4 out of 5]

I had fun reading this book with my two year old granddaughter. After admiring the endpapers full of mother and baby animals, she looked at the pages just long enough to see what the action was and proceeded to show me how she could do it.
Each two page spread shows an infant animal doing something beside a human child doing the same action. Each spread has two words like, Calves swim, Porcupines nibble.
We both enjoyed this book a lot, but I would suggest you don't try reading it just before bed....

[bjneary · Rating 5 out of 5]

Including all kinds of animals - pets, farm animals and wild animals, Jane Whittingham gives beautiful photographs on heavy sturdy pages with the many things kids do and animals do such as a little girl is swimming underwater with a corresponding photograph on the right with a baby whale---CALVES SWIM, Children and adults will learn the FUN Baby animal names from the familiar to the strange (echnidas are spiny anteaters, did you know that? their babies are PUGGLES). So take your time and enjoy the many different animal babies rhyming with the way children MOVE. Highly recommended!

[Beth · Rating 4 out of 5]

2022 Cybils Board Book finalist

Great pictures. The idea is to have a big picture of an adorable baby animal moving, and then a slightly smaller picture of a little kid doing the same motion. The pages are extra sturdy paper rather than cardboard, so toddlers can read by themselves. I liked the opening and closing pages which showed animal families and gave the words for the baby of that type. I didn't like the box on the back extolling the educational virtues of the book. Humph.

[Jennifer · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a simple book with no story line. It's a collection of pictures of baby animals doing a specific movement (cuddling, jumping, nibbling, etc.). Next to each picture of an animal, there's a picture of a kid (lots of diversity!) doing that same action movement. Great for toddler or baby story time to get the kids interacting by copying the animal in the book. They might even learn the names of a few baby animals as well!

[Raquel Oliveira De Aguiar · Rating 3 out of 5]

Book give important tips and guide parents/educator through the best ways to use it. focus on developing the pillars of child development, emphasizing movements. Great option to introduce kids that are not familiar with Storytime. It is also a good option when children are feeling wiggle and too energized.
Pros:
- use photos of real animals
- Pluralism
- Guide for parents and educators.

[Deb (Readerbuzz) Nance · Rating 4 out of 5]

Featured in this board book are a big variety of ways animals can move. The text is very simple. Each photo of an animal moving is complemented with a photo of a human child moving in the same way. The photos are big and the animals pictured in the photos are compelling. A child couldn't resist trying out each of the animal moves for him/herself.

[Tompkins County Public Library Youth Services]

Kelly’s Thoughts: Beautiful, sturdy book for toddlers and preschoolers to early elementary age about baby animals and how they move, which gives readers opportunities to move themselves. Also, there’s a great resource for caregivers about how to incorporate more movement, imagination and play into your child’s life at the end of the book!

[Beth · Rating 3 out of 5]

Bright colorful book with lots of animals. This book uses photos to show the movement of the various animals. Children can pretend to be these animals and copy the movements of these animals. Nice rhyming text that will keep children engaged. Great book for storytime.

[Gabrielle Stoller · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love using this book in Babytime.

It has inclusive pictures of babies at all developmental levels.
It has real pictures of both babies and animals

This one is about movement. It's going to be quite frequent in my repertoire!

[parth shah · Rating 4 out of 5]

A delightful amount of silly! very nice pictures. I can see a lot of kids and parents loving it :) A great way to introduce animals and importance of physical activity without being serious. p.s.: always great to see some disability representation. :)

[Binxie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fantastic photographs of animals and kids moving. This book includes some not so common animals with the correct term for their infants to learn. If you want to plan an active animal storytime, this should work perfectly.

[Elizabeth · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is strong because the photography and the vocabulary are both outstanding. The reader learns the words for the babies of different species. There are so many things to converse about when sharing this delightful book.

[Lisa Day · Rating 3 out of 5]

What a cute book, which showcases baby animals and cute kids making the same moves.

[Alexis · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love the photographs of kids next to baby animals! The use of the baby animal names is fun too. A great book on the benefits of moving.

Thank you Pajama presss!

[SamSamSam · Rating 5 out of 5]

Yes. YES. YEEEESSSSSSS! The representation! The beautiful photos! The vocabulary! The opportunities for movement! This will be making an appearance in next week's storytime :)

[DW · Rating 5 out of 5]

Adorable little book with great literacy values and a helpful section at the end for parents.

[Marcie]

Love the endpapers and photographs of animals and their young.

[Maeghan Nutmeg Librarian · Rating 3 out of 5]

Fun to learn new names for baby animals, but wow, what a mouthful!

[Beverly · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent photographs portray children aping the movements of the animal in the photo across the page from them.

[Ali · Rating 5 out of 5]

I especially liked the activity guide and the legend identifying which animal babies were the babies of which adults.

[Jen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Each page introduces a photo of a baby animal moving, and a photo of a child moving in a similar way. A great way to learn baby animal names and get some wiggles out!

[Michelle · Rating 5 out of 5]

Learn new and familiar names for baby animals and move along with them.
There's a hatchling, a porcupette, a foal, and more!
A fun board book to read together. A must-have for all libraries!