Wag a Tail (edition 2007)

Wag a Tail (2007) by award-winning author and illustrator Lois Ehlert is a delightful story about a group of dog friends who wait patiently until they can run wild at the dog park. The illustrations are classic Ehlert, and have so much texture that I found myself touching each page, expecting to feel soft fur, rough construction paper, and smooth buttons. The endpapers in this book are wonderful too, and contribute to the short, rhythmic poem that tells this story of happy dogs.

In the classroom, I would use this as inspiration to start an art project about illustration using collage. It also has a nice beat to it, and would be a good story to introduce rhythm in poetry. K-3. ( )

I thought this was a pretty good book; it was very short and cute. The dogs are talking throughout the story with small sentences, but the pictures are a lot to look at. The pictures tell a lot about what's going on and I like that. There's even a section in the back that talks about the dogs in the book. I would suggest a discussion about how the author achieved the artwork. This can be a great book to teach about art and dogs. Students can use this book as inspiration to create something. I think it would make a fun activity. ( )

Children would love this story, told from the point of view of dogs. The use of bold colors and collage using buttons makes this book very appealing. It would be interesting for older students to write a paper from their own pets' perspective. ( )

Subject Area: Language Arts
Genre: Poetry
Critique/Summary
The entire story is written in a rocking rhyme and told from a dog's point of view. There are words such as, "Wig Wag Zig Zag" that provide imagery of a dog's tail wagging, but are enjoyable in and of themselves. This is an example of narrative poetry since it tells the story of a bunch of dogs at the farmer's market. Because the language rhymes and the words are short, this would be a great book for beginning readers.
(Stars for Point of View.)
Age: Primary ( )

Assorted graduates of the Bow Wow School meet at a farmers market and a dog park, where most of them remember their obedience training.