MSU Extension Child & Family Development

This book shows how babies around the world get from place to place.

BEFORE READING:

• Show the children the front of the book. Ask them to guess what the book is about?
• Ask them to tell you what the baby is doing.
• Ask them the count the coins on the front cover.

WHILE READING:

• Stop at any time if there is something you or the children would like to talk about.
• Ask them questions so that they can connect what is happening in the book to things they already know about. Try some of these ideas:
  o How does your mom or dad carry you?
  o How do you get from place to place?
  o What do you wear when you play in the snow?

AFTER READING:

• Spend some time talking about the story. Ask the children things like:
  o How were the babies carried?
  o How were the strollers different?
  o Who carried the babies in this story?

Read this book several times to the children. Hearing the same story again and again helps them learn new words and understand the ideas they hear better. Each day, pick a different activity from the back to do with the children after reading.

MATH AND SCIENCE

Read the book again with the children. Ask them to point out the babies that are being carried and the babies that are traveling on something with wheels.

THINKING SKILLS

Ask the children to tell you different ways to travel. Start by telling them how you travel to get groceries or run errands. Then, ask them how other people get from place to place.

READING READINESS

Talk about rides in a stroller, being carried in a backpack or baby carrier, and traveling in the car seat. Ask the children to tell you a story about how they travel now.

PRETEND PLAY

Make an indoor road. Using yarn or string, make a two-lane road on the floor. Use play cars or empty boxes and zoom them up and down the two lanes of the road.

ART

Have the children draw a picture of how they move. If they ride the bus, draw a picture of the bus. If they ride bikes, have them draw a picture of themselves on a bike. Remember, the picture may not look exactly like a bus or bike and that’s ok. Have the children tell you a story about their drawing.

MUSIC AND MOVEMENT

Have the children follow you in a kid conga line. When you move your hands, the children should move their hands the same way. Go around the room having them imitate your movements as they follow you. Allow them to be the leader, and imitate their motions as you follow them.

MOTOR SKILLS

Sing and act out, “The Wheels on the Bus”. Have the children pretend to get on a bus. Then start the song and act out the wheels turning, the windshield wipers wiping, etc.

For more information, visit the MSU Extension early childhood development site.