Ten, Nine, Eight

This book invites the reader(s) to count down to bedtime, along with a little Black child in a yellow nightgown and their warm, caring father. A black cat prowls through most illustrations (first seen curled up with stuffed animals), and "seven" is for shoes lined up under the crib - the cat has made off with one of the shoes, leaving half a pair. Echoing Goodnight Moon, the carpet is red and the wallpaper is green.

A classic for lots of good reasons. Valuable for diversity of 'race' and of gender roles (yes, still, we unfortunately don't always see this representation). But universally sweet & charming. Even children who have mastered counting to ten find it very soothing to count backwards towards sleep.

Great early counting book. A very simple concept book that appeals to babies. It goes through numbers one through ten in decreasing order counting down things that are familiar in a child's room. It's a great book to read before bed and is a sort of count down to bedtime for kids. The images are colorful and interesting.

Bright, engaging illustrations make this book a fun read! The basic concept is count down to bedtime, so the way in which it is demonstrated is very cute. It reminds me alot of "Goodnight Moon". The fun bedtime routine is seen as warm and loving, creating a sense that the child is happy and content--even though she is going to bed!

The book begins with the number ten and from there works all the way down to zero. Its a great way teach young kids to count from one to ten and even backwards. I love how the end of pages in pairs rhymes. So the pages that start with Ten and Nine rhyme and so on. I feel that written this way keeps the interest of the reader and for children i think they'll like the rhythm the book is written in.

This was a cute book! My students wanted to read it twice in a row! This book shows a countdown to bedtime for a young child. It highlights the nightly routine the family goes through in order to make the child comfortable before bed. Going to bed can be a struggle for some children and routines can be very instrumental in making that process easier.

This book is a counting picture book. It centers around an African American father and daughter at bedtime. It counts down from 10 to 1. It begins with “10 small toes all washed and warm” and proceeds through numbers of toys, windows, shoes, etc. It ends with “1 big girl all ready for bed”. Lots of affection is shown by the kissing hugging, and holding between the father and daughter.

I thought this book was very cute. I really liked how the artist attempted to realistically portray the image of African Americans instead of drawing generic characters simply colored brown. Their facial features are very realistic. There is no real implication or explanation of their own culture but the artist shows lots of affection between the show more father and daughter. The pictures are also very bright and they keep the reader’s attention. I like how the book was simple and counted backward instead of the typical 1-10.

Classroom Extension Ideas:
1. The class can write their own counting picture book. They can draw their own pictures or cut them out of magazines. The books can be read to class and kept in the reading area to enjoy independently.
2. The class can play a slightly different version of Bingo. Instead of matching number to number, the class will have to match photos to numbers. For example, if the teacher says “3 buttons” the children would have to find the square with a photo of 3 buttons and place a bingo marker with the number 3 written on it. show less