A cumulative counting verse in which a child enumerates items in the kindergarten classroom, from the whole alphabet, A to Z, to 12 eggs for hatching. PreSchool-Grade 1-Set to the familiar tune of "The Twelve Days of Christmas," this poem enumerates a child's experiences upon entering kindergarten. The youngster begins, "On the first day of kindergarten, my teacher gave to me the whole alphabet from A to Z!" and proceeds through 5 gold stars and ends with 12 eggs for hatching. The word "kindergarten" is unavoidably awkward and practice may be in order to perfect your delivery if you choose to sing it. The real charm of this book lies in the hilarious illustrations that chronicle the harried teacher's adventures with her new students. On art day, a boy spills a big jar of green paint, one kid picks his nose in every scene, bees get loose from a display on a field trip, and on and on. The style is reminiscent of Babette Cole's work not only in the drawings but also in the sense of humor. This one will pair nicely with Joseph Slate's excellent contributions to this subject including, Miss Bindergarten Gets Ready for Kindergarten (Puffin, 2001). Linda M. Kenton, San Rafael Public Library, CA Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information, Inc. PreS-Gr. 1. Taking off from "The Twelve Days of Christmas," this uproarious picture book uses a cumulative counting verse to celebrate a kindergarten classroom, with a teacher and eight pupils busy with all kinds of learning fun--from chanting the alphabet and recognizing shapes and colors, to stringing beads and feeding pets. The clear, lively double-page spreads show groups as well as individual pupils. Kids will enjoy following the characters and seeing the roles they play: the self-absorbed girl in a frilly dress, always looking at herself; the rambunctious boy who makes trouble; the shy child clutching the teacher's skirt. What's great is that the characters' aren't stuck in their roles, and kids who look closely at the pictures, while taking pleasure in the chanting verse, will find a story about learning, messing up a lot, and sometimes changing. Hazel Rochman Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved Deborah Lee Rose has seen her own children through the exhilarating, exhausting first days of kindergarten. She is an internationally published author whose award-winning books are among the New York Public Library's 100 Books to Read and Share. She lives near San Francisco. Carey Armstrong-Ellis learned to color within the lines during kindergarten, and it has been working for her ever since. Her first book was Prudy's Problem and How She Solved It , hailed as "an impressive debut... from a breakout talent" by Publishers Weekly . She lives in Cape Neddick, ME.