Eating the Alphabet

by Lois Ehlert

While teaching upper- and lowercase letters to preschoolers, Ehlert introduces fruits and vegetables from around the world. A glossary at the end provides interesting facts about each food.

Genres: Picture Books, Childrens, Food, Nutrition, Nonfiction, Storytime, Health

28 pages, Board Book

First published March 10, 1989

About the author

Lois Ehlert has created numerous inventive, celebrated, and bestselling picture books, including Chicka Chicka Boom Boom, Holey Moley, The Scraps Book, Mice, Ten Little Caterpillars, RRRalph, Lots of Spots, Boo to You!, Leaf Man, Waiting for Wings, Planting a Rainbow, Growing Vegetable Soup, and Color Zoo, which received a Caldecott Honor. She lived in Milwaukee, Wisconsin.

Reviews

[Tiffany · Rating 4 out of 5]

Just as the sub-title indicates, this is an A to Z listing of fruits and vegetables paired with water color illustrations.

The best part? Using it as a tool. For younger children: letter identification (by sight or by sound). Each food is labeled in upper as well as lower case letters. The book is a spring board for a letter game at the store, in the kitchen, etc.

For older children, make a listing of all the fruits/vegetables you have not tried, then start tasting. Our family is doing this and it's actually quite fun. The best was when they were turning their noses up at swiss chard and I was like, "You KNOW this veggie! It's in the book!" And then I showed them the picture, they recognized it, and they ate it.

[Lisa Vegan · Rating 4 out of 5]

The paintings are wonderful and I really enjoyed this book even though there’s no story at all. I kept being reminded of the book The Little Engine That Could and how good the apples and oranges looked on the book cover. I think this book could get young kids interested in eating various vegetables and fruits. The best part of the book was at the end, each fruit and vegetable has an information paragraph about: when it first grew, and where in the world it’s from, how it grows, its colors, etc. information. I actually learned some facts. It is also terrific for beginning readers because throughout the book each fruit and vegetable is spelled in both capital and small letters.

[CYIReadBooks (Claire) · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great way to introduce children to fruits and vegetables. There are several exotic ones included. I really liked the author's format. The targeted age group is 4 - 7.

[Nicole Doerr · Rating 3 out of 5]

"Eating the Alphabet: Fruits And Vegetables From A To Z" is a fun picture book. This is intended for young child from ages 1-4. The main purpose of this book is to educate children about the Alphabet while teaching them the names of many fruits and vegetables. For each letter in the book their are pictures of both veggies and fruits that start with that letter. Some letter only have one picture but some have up to six. The illustrations are bright and vibrant. I only gave this book three stars for a few reasons. Some of the fruits and veggies mentioned are not commonly known and are even hard to pronounce for older adults. Also the picture are not very clear and detailed. The best thing about this book is at the end where each fruit and veggie pictures is described. This would be the perfect book for starting a cooking lesson or a lesson about eating healthy.

[midnightfaerie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really liked this one. Lots of colorful pictures and new words of fruits and veggies to learn from A to Z. Good for preschoolers and older kids alike to expand their vocabulary. It's said that we don't even use 40% of the vocabulary we actual know, and books are the best way of doing that. Seriously, read a kids book and I'll bet you find at least one word you know, but hardly ever use. That's how the children learn. It's awesome. Great book for learning.

[Shanna Gonzalez · Rating 4 out of 5]

Eating the Alphabet is a deliciously simple artistic presentation of many fruits and vegetables, organized by the letters of the alphabet. Each fruit or vegetable is depicted in watercolor collage that is somewhat reminiscent of Eric Carle's style. The alphabet format combined with artistic constraints make for some interesting food choices: ugli fruit, jicama, and xigua are some less-familiar choices, presented right along with apples, bananas, and potatoes. Although toddlers tend to gravitate toward realistic pictures, the bright colors and appealing presentation will endear this book to them. For older readers, a glossary of foods provides a bit more information about the different foods presented.

The text is limited to the names of different foods (given in both capitals and lowercase letters), making it a slower read-aloud than most preschool books. Although vocabulary-based books are usually quite dull for adults to read, the unusual medium, the inclusion of exotic foods, and alphabet format make this an attractive read-aloud with some educational value.

Although the book may appeal best to toddlers, I recommend the paperback or hardback version, since the glossary is not included in the board book version.

[Nancy Kotkin · Rating 5 out of 5]

Text: 5 stars
Illustrations: 5 stars

Alphabet book presenting fruits and vegetables for each letter of the alphabet. Most letters feature more than one food, and there's even an entry for the letter X. The last few pages contain more information (i.e. pronunciation guide, classification of fruit or vegetable, where grown, how it grows, when introduced) for each of the food items mentioned within the text. Research is valuable, but young readers will be most interested in the colorful, expertly executed illustrations. Art style achieves the perfect balance between realism (so that young people can recognize the foods) and Ehlers's more iconic representations in Chicka Chicka Boom Boom.

[Kathy · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'm thinking I should make my kids try everyone of the fruits and vegetables in this book!

[Jen · Rating 5 out of 5]

I want to buy this book. It's so great!

[Annette Taylor-james · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great way to introduce fruits and vegetables to children the pictures are bold. If they do not like to eat fruit and vegetables this gives you a chance to be creative. It teaches the ABC's as well.

[Grace Noto · Rating 5 out of 5]

Title: 
Eating the Alphabet
Author: Lois Ehlert

Illustrator: Lois Ehlert

Genre:
 alphabet book
Theme(s):
 alphabet, picture book, food
Opening line/sentence “APRICOT apricot, ARTICHOKE artichoke)
Brief Book Summary Ehlert uses uppercase and lowercase letters to introduce different fruit and vegetables. Colorful illustrations of each fruit of vegetable correspond with every word. At the end of the book there is an interesting fact about each food.
Professional Recommendation/Review #1
Name of reviewer: Kathleen Karr
Name of source: CLCD
Link: http://www.clcd.com/#/bookdetail/1/0/...

Lois Ehlert’s much acclaimed picture book has gone through several reincarnations since its original publication. This latest--a lap-sized board book--is perhaps one of its best. Size itself is the factor. It is large enough so that Ehlert s evocative and colorful renderings of veggies and fruit, from avocado and asparagus to persimmon, pomegranate, and Swiss chard--and yes, even xigua and zucchini--can be properly seen and admired while propped on a parent or child s lap. Of course, it might be a tad heavy for a small toddler to drag around, but the solid-board pages will taste as sweet to any teething baby. The alphabet function is still foremost, and the name of each item pictured is printed in both upper and lower case in large, readable type--giving the truly precocious future gourmet the opportunity to learn the correct spelling for such delicacies as rutabaga and radicchio. This is definitely a win-win book.

Professional Recommendation/Review #2
With images as boldly conceived as those in her Planting a Rainbow, yet with subtly added textures that create far closer links between her art and the objects represented, Ehlert has produced an outstanding alphabet book. There are 75 fruits and vegetables here, which include the familiar as well as plenty that are mildly exotic (kumquat, radicchio). Page design is inspired, with the names printed in large type, in both upper and lower case, in an elegant face, sometimes vertically and sometimes horizontally. Notes on the species' origins and uses are appended (xigua--the only non-English entry--is the Chinese name for watermelon). A beautiful, useful book.
Name of Reviewer: Unknown
Name of Source
: Kirkus Reviews
Link to source: https://www.kirkusreviews.com/book-re... 

• Response to Two Professional Reviews
Both reviews of this book were very positive and I have to agree with them. I really enjoyed this book. I thought it was very to the point and I thought the colors and illustrations were very enjoyable. This book is educational and fun and would be a great addition to any classroom.
• 
Evaluation of Literary Elements
I thought that the literary elements of this book were somewhat limited since there were no full sentences, just single words corresponding with pictures. However, I thought the glossary at the end was interesting.
Consideration of Instructional Application
A mini lesson I could do with this book is to print out pictures of different things that start with certain letters and have the children match them up with the letters. I might extend this book after a read aloud in a writers’ workshop by assigning each student a letter and having them write as many words that start with that letter as they know and have them all share with each other once they are done.

[Sophia]

1. Award(s) Received: No awards for this book in particular, but Lois Ehlert is an acclaimed children’s book illustrator, who has won awards for other works.

2. Appropriate Grade Level(s): Pre-K-K

3. Summary: This book uses the beginning letters of different fruits and vegetables to teach children alphabetical order.

4. Review: This book is beautifully, vividly illustrated; the simple colors and 2-D illustrations resemble Eric Carle’s children’s book style. This book is an opportunity for children to not only learn about the letters and order alphabet, but also to identify different foods from around the world that may not be very familiar to their home or cultural background.

5. In-Class Uses: Teachers could ask students to go grocery shopping with their parents, find a fresh fruit or vegetable they are unfamiliar with, and bring it to class in a few days to identify. In class, the teacher will ask students to identify the unknown produce (or if no one in class recognizes the item, the teacher can reveal the name), and mark each item with a piece of tape and its name. The teacher could educate the class on what the food is, and how to eat it.

To adapt this project for older students in 3rd-5th grade, this activity could be taken a step further. The class could be asked to arrange the produce in alphabetical order. If the class is very large, or there is an abundance of items, the class could be split into groups of letters, and only arrange the items within that bracket (ex: the first group organizes produce beginning with letters (A-F), then a group with (G-L), etc. The teacher could carry an answer key to each group's order of items, and make it a competition to see which group correctly orders the foods first. This will test older students’ ability to categorize items in alphabetical order, because will not only need to pay attention to the first letter of a word, but also the 2nd letter, and maybe 3rd as well.

[Kyle Sweezy · Rating 4 out of 5]

1. This book has not received any awards to my knowledge, but the illustrator has received various awards in their career.

2. I would say that this book caters to grades Pre-K and higher.

3. Eating the Alphabet is an alphabetic journey regarding various fruits and vegetables. Using foods such as currants and avocados, Eating the Alphabet describes foods that younger children may not be familiar with. The book also has a glossary at the end which gives more insight about the foods presented.

4. This book is a super simple way to teach children the alphabet, names of fruits and vegetables, and even capitalization. That being said, the simplicity of this book is great for children who are just beginning to emerge into phonics instruction. I gave it four out of five stars solely due to the potential of this book becoming repetitive for children to the point where new knowledge can be rare.

5. I would use this book as an introduction to environmental print. To recap, environmental print consists of print rich examples used in the real world. If children can identify these foods in grocery stores, they are already on their way to becoming readers that can apply knowledge to the real world. I would also use this book as an introduction to the format of glossaries so children can learn how to use them for future informational texts.

[Alyssa Clark · Rating 4 out of 5]

1. Eating the Alphabet by Lois Ehlert has not won any awards.
2. I think this book is appropriate for preschool and kindergarten.
3. This book introduces children to the alphabet and different fruits and vegetables. This book presents the children with foods from around the world. From apricot to huckleberry and radishes, this book will leave students hungry for more information.
4. I like this book because it has both upper and lower case letters on each page for each word. I also like that the book is all about healthy foods. I think it is a fun and colorful way to combine the alphabet and food.
5. I could definitely use this book to talk about the alphabet in classes, but there are many other uses for this book as well. I could use this book during a food unit. I would read the book and have the students draw a few of their favorite foods from the story. Another thing I would try to do is make a big fruit salad as a class, allergies permitting, with some of the common fruits mentioned in the book. On chart paper I would list all of the fruits we would incorporate into our salad and have the students raise their hands to say which letter it starts with. I would have the students write that letter on the carpet in front of them, or in the air above their heads.

[Meredith · Rating 3 out of 5]

This alphabet book features fruits and vegetables from A to Z.

This concept book teaches the letters of the alphabet using fruits and vegetables. Like all alphabet books it struggles with some of the letters, particularly v, x, and y. What is really great is that the letters are shown in both upper and lower case, and the words corresponding to each letter are written both in all capital and all lower case letters. Since circa 90% of all text is lower case, it's actually more important to teach children the alphabet in lower case. Nevertheless, this is an area where how reading is taught hasn't caught up with the science of literacy, and most alphabet books still teach the alphabet in all caps.

Eating the Alphabet also introduces young readers to different kinds of produce, both common and rare. Unfortunately, many children don't have access to fresh fruits and vegetables at home, and their only exposure to the less common ones may come from books.

The illustrations are Lois Ehlert's distinctive collages with bright colors and bold clean lines.

This would be a great book to share with foodie babies and encourage healthy eating.

[Darlene Pasquale · Rating 3 out of 5]

1) no awards
2) appropriate grade level- pre k - 2nd grade
3) Summary - This book is almost like an extremely simplified dictionary for a child to use. It has pictures of all different types of fruits and vegetables, along with the printed words in both capital and lowercase letters. It gives a variety of food examples for each letter of the alphabet.
4) Review - This book is not very interesting, however, it would be a good tool for children who are just learning how to read or write. Even if they cannot read all of the words yet, the pictures of each kind of food will help guide their understanding. The pages have a lot of color which children might enjoy.
5) A teacher can use this book in the classroom to create class books. The students can make a book of their favorite foods by drawing pictures or cutting them out of magazines. They would then label their pictures with words. They can use the board book to look at the words and help them spell. A teacher can also use this book in a classroom to discuss healthy eating and healthy food choices. They could also bring in plastic fruits and vegetables and have children sort the fake foods into the correct category.

[Taylor Queen · Rating 4 out of 5]

“Eating the Alphabet” by Lois Ehlert is a great educational tool for young readers. This book takes you through the entire alphabet showing you pictures of healthy foods that correspond with each letter. A notable literary element is that each word is written twice, once written in all capital letters and once written in all lower case letters. Another is that the objects chosen are some that are known by young children such as banana, but there are other objects such as figs and dates that the child may not be familiar with. The decision to include all different types of fruits and vegetables is a great way to familiarize them with the readers, but it was an even better decision to display each word in the two different types of letters because the child has learned that there are upper and lower case letters. Additionally, some interesting design elements are that the illustrations are done in watercolor and that each letter of the alphabet is displayed with different images of fruits and vegetables. This is an amazing instrument for helping young readers understand the difference between upper case and lower case letters, as well as acquainting them with healthy food options.

[Cara LoPresti · Rating 5 out of 5]

1. This book has not won any awards
2. This book is appropriate for Pre-K and K
3. In this book, there are names of foods that begin with each letter of the alphabet. Each letter is shown in upper case and in lower case and has two pages each filled with food items for each specific letter.
4. This book is boring to me because I am already extremely familiar with the alphabet and the types of foods it has in it, but I really do think that it can be super helpful for students who are learning the alphabet.
5. This book would be good to use in a classroom because it helps students to associate words with pictures. Since most of the foods are foods that the student is probably familiar with, they will be able to tell what the word says without actually being able to read it. It can also be used with letter recognition because the names of the foods are present in both upper case and lower case and located where the student can match the lower case with the upper case. It can also be used to help students with letter sounds. If they know what the food is, they can figure out the initial sound and be able to figure out what the letter on that page sounds like.

[Marissa Ebert · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book has not won any awards.

"Eating the Alphabet" is appropriate for children ages 2 to 5.

In this book, the alphabet is told through different fruits and vegetables from around the world. Both the uppercase and lower case letters are shown, as well as the fruits and vegetables written out in all uppercase and all lowercase. This book also includes many different examples of food for each letter.

This is a cute book, and teaches the alphabet through the use of food. Children can learn about new foods while they learn their letters. There is no story line in this book though, and this will make it a little boring for students who already know the alphabet, or have heard this story before.

This book can be used in the classroom to talk about healthy food, and to teach students that there are so many words that start with every letter of the alphabet. Many of the fruits and vegetables are not very common as well, so students may be asked to try to think of other foods that begin with certain letters of the alphabet.

[elissa · Rating 4 out of 5]

A great alphabet book, with gorgeously drawn fruits and vegetables for every letter. The big book is excellent at storytimes.

[Sunday · Rating 5 out of 5]

Rich in vocabulary that begins with each letter.

[Chet]

Looks like I'll be logging a lot more books like this going forward

[Ophelia · Rating 5 out of 5]

auntie em and i both learned some new words from this book

[Amanda Oquendo · Rating 3 out of 5]

1. Awards: None

2. Grade Level(s): Preschool - Kindergarten

3. Summary: The book “Eating the Alphabet” by Lois Ehlert is an alphabet book that connects each letter to a fruit or vegetable. Not only is this story a great way to introduce children to the different letters of the alphabet but it is also a great way to introduce them to different kinds of fruits and vegetables. At the very end there is a glossary that provides interesting facts about the fruits and vegetables in the story.

4. Review: This deliciously fun alphabet book allows children to connect the alphabet to many foods that they will see in their everyday lives. This is important because it will help them realize that everything around them begins with letters. Overall it was a wonderful book that introduced children to the alphabet while introducing them to different fruits and vegetables and I believe children will enjoy the bright illustrations.

5. In-Class Uses:
- After reading the book the children can do a follow up activity where they chose their favorite fruit or vegetable draw a picture of their favorite and write the name of it.
- The teacher can also create a graph of all the fruits and vegetables mentioned in the story and tally the children’s votes to determine which is most popular. The chart should be detailed with words and images and the beginning letter the food begins with should be bold.
- The children can pick their favorite food in general that does not have to be from the book and figure out what letter it begins with.
- The children can also use the first letter of their name and determine what food starts with the same letter.

[Michelle Rachitoff · Rating 5 out of 5]

1. Awards the book has received (if any): None
2. Appropriate grade level(s): Preschool to Kindergarten
3. Original 3-line summary: This book contains uppercase and lowercase letters. It also have includes fruits and vegetables that have the same letter. This is a great first book for students learning the alphabet and there are also some fruits and vegetables that the student could have already encountered at home or out in the grocery store with their families.
4. Original 3-line review: This is a quick and easy book for all young readers to memorize and learn to read. There are vivid illustrations of the fruits and vegetables that the students will enjoy looking at. It also includes uppercase and lowercase spelling that will help students distinguish different sizes in writing.
5. 2-3 possible in-class uses:
The students can play ABC bingo, where the teacher can show to the students a fruit/vegetable and the students will need to know what letter that object beings with in order to get bingo. There are other variation of this bingo game that can be modified depending on age.
Students can create a farmer's market and incorporate the fruits and vegetable they learned in the book. The students will have to create their own labels for the fruits and vegetable with the guidance of the teacher.
Students can also create an alphabet book using their own favorite foods and incorporate environmental print as well.

[Ashley Dam · Rating 3 out of 5]

I love that this book introduces fruit and vegetables in a fun way. this book is going through the alphabet by using upper and lower case letters. With each letter, the author introduces a type of fruit or vegetable with their name, "BLUEBERRY, blueberry." The children will begin to recognize what the difference between upper and lower case letters are. This is also a good book to allow children to try and pronounce the different and difficult types of names that are seen. I think this is an awesome book because children can start identifying what different fruit and vegetables look like. Another good aspect of it is the glossary in the back which tells what the fruit is and where it is grown. There are beautiful illustrations throughout. I don't think I would use this book in my classroom because it's very long and it's not very informational. An appropriate grade level would be prekindergarten through second grade. An activity I could accomplish with children would be identifying an uppercase or lowercase letter through plastic alphabet pieces. The teacher should sit back and see with the child gained any information about upper and lower case letters from the book and assist if needed. Another activity I could accomplish with children would be a play dough mat with upper and lowercase alphabet letters. The child would have to take play dough and mold the dough to lay on top of the letters displayed on the paper.

[Emily Cappiello · Rating 4 out of 5]

“Eating the Alphabet Fruits & Vegetables from A to Z” by Lois Ehlert; published by Harcourt Brace & Company; San Diego, New York and London; copyright 1989.

1. Awards the book has received: This book has not received any awards.

2. Appropriate grade level(s): This book is appropriate for children from Preschool- Kindergarten.

3. Summary: This book goes through the alphabet and addresses all of the different fruits and vegetables that begin with the letter they are talking about. There are also illustrations to depict the fruit of vegetable to go along with the word. The words are written in both capital and lowercase letters. It also teaches about all of the mentioned fruits and vegetables at the end of the book.

4. Review: This book is great for younger kids to practice using their sounds to go along with the starting letter of each fruit or vegetable. I really like how the word is repeated twice, it gives the students a chance to repeat and practice with each word.

5. Uses in the classroom:
• Students as an entire group can think of another category and words that go with each letter for that category.
• They can find different things in the classroom for each letter.
They can have a fruit and vegetable picnic with what was mentioned in the book.

[Kim Pietrobono · Rating 4 out of 5]

Award(s): N/A

Grade: Preschool-1st grade

Summary: This alphabet book teaches upper and lowercase letters to young children in a fun and engaging way by writing the entire book about fruits and vegetables. Each piece is about a different fruit or vegetable and features the words in all capitals and all lowercase (ex. Aa: APRICOT, apricot). There are colorful and vivid pictures of each piece of produce as well as interesting facts about each food at the end of the book.

Review: I think this book would be a great addition to a classroom as it has a variety of potential uses. Students can enjoy some colorful pictures, new words to expand their vocabulary, and practice distinguishing between capital and lowercase letters. I also like that the book features foods from all over the world, which helps to create unity and understanding.

In Class Use: Students can choose any thing (noun) that they want to write about. They will draw a picture of it, write the letter that it starts with in uppercase and lowercase, and then the whole word in upper and lowercase (Ex. Cat→ Cc: CAT, cat). Another activity that the book can be used for is practicing penmanship and lettering. Students will have to copy the words corresponding to each letter for the entire alphabet.

[Ashley · Rating 5 out of 5]

Grade level: Preschool- Kindergarten
Awards: None
Summary: Eating the Alphabet by Lois Ehlert is a great book for young readers who are learning the alphabet. Each page focuses on a letter from A-Z, and provides pictures of fruits and vegetables that coincide with that letter. Each letter is presented as an upper and lower case, which begins to teach the young readers the basics of spelling. Lois Ehlert even placed a detailed glossary at the back of the book describing each fruit and vegetable that was mentioned.
Review: I loved this book because it makes learning the alphabet fun. What child does not want to learn about food? Lois Ehlert provides brightly colored images in her story that would grab any child's attention. This book would be a great beginning alphabet book for any young reader.
Classroom uses: This book could be used in the classroom to teach students about upper and lower case letters. It could also be used in other subjects such as social studies or science. This book could also spark a classroom discussion on healthy eating and staying healthy.

[Jessica · Rating 4 out of 5]

1. This book has not received any awards to date.
2. This book is appropriate for preschool to kindergarten.
3. The book goes through every alphabet starting with “a” and ending with “z”. Each letter lists at least one fruit or vegetable that starts with the first corresponding letter. Each letter is accompanied by pictures of the fruit or vegetable for that letter.
4. I enjoyed the fact that the author went in depth with each letter to describe a variety of fruits and vegetables. Some of the fruits and vegetables were not common foods students would know, which makes it a great topic to open up as a class discussion. I also enjoyed that each illustration was bright, yet simple enough to show children what each fruit looks like.
5. Three in-class uses for this book:
-Have students share their favorite fruit or vegetable and why
-Pick a letter and have students think of a different fruit or vegetable that also starts with the same letter
-Teach children the difference between fruit and vegetables and how we can categorize them