Review of What did you do at school today?

[Jeffrey S Brown]

[Following is a volunteer review of "What did you do at school today?" by C.C. Lacavera.]

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5 out of 5 stars

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What Did You Do at School Today? is a unique approach to adult and child communication. People of all ages have difficulty answering such a broad, open-ended question. The obviously untrue response “Nothing” is an answer to be expected, especially when the school day is no longer a novelty. This book suggests questions that guide children to provide more specific and informative answers. Inviting a child to talk about multiple subjects may help avoid frustrating “Why didn’t you tell me?”, “Because you didn’t ask!” situations. It presents the questions in an approachable way for the child and limits the number of subjects to focus on at one time. The illustrations show that answers can be imaginative and fanciful, not just factual. The questions are inquisitive, not interrogative, avoiding any demanding tone that might inhibit a child’s response. The idea is for the adult to start the journey but let the child take the lead after that. This premise seems so simple, yet many adults fail to engage at a child’s level; this book provides the opportunity to ask questions that a child can easily understand. It allows parents to expand on the day’s lessons, praise children for their accomplishments, and provide support if things don’t go so well. Including the questions to cover things like sight, smell, and touch, or the games played, the music made, and the art created promotes the idea that learning encompasses a wide range of experiences.

I do have a problem with one aspect of the book: the rhymed couplets sometimes do not scan correctly. That is, the number of words or syllables does not always match a cadence that is easy to read aloud and causes hesitation or repetition of a sentence. This is minor and easily dismissed, and it in no way detracts from this excellent and well-edited book. What Did You Do at School Today? easily earns a rating of five out of five stars, and I recommend it to anyone with young children.

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What did you do at school today?
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