Ten Little Fish: 12/03/10

My son has grown up with Audrey, Don and Bruce Wood's books. They are a family of children's book authors and illustrators. He rediscovered them on his own in first grade and has read through his school library's collection. His most recent read was Ten Little Fish by Audrey Wood and illustrated by Bruce Wood.

The book begins like most books with "ten little" in the title. There are ten fish in school and one goes away. Wash, rinse, repeat. Typically though at one, the remaining member either finds where the others have gone, as in Ten Little Lady Bugs or the other ones come back like in Ten Timid Ghosts. Ten Little Fish is different, ending instead with the last fish finding a way to start a new school of fish.

Of the Woods books I've read, Ten Little Fish is my least favorite. It's not the biology lesson that bothers me, it's more just a reaction to there being too many "Ten Little" books. I know counting books are popular with children; I see that in my own two. I know counting helps teach numeracy. But could we have eleven little? Or twenty little? Or binary little? Or something a little different? Please?

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