In the Small, Small Pond (Caldecott Honor Book)

I like Denise Fleming's In the Small, Small Pond because she brings back memories now of when I was a young child and was learning to read. I can remember this particular book and it's wonderful illustrations. To look at her pictures and read the action words on each page is like really being there. I can imagine the sound of a firefly's wings hovering and the sight of minnows rushing away when something disturbs the water. Her choice in words and pictures together, make this book very easy to understand and hard to forget. I like Fleming's work in The Small, Small Pond because she bases her picture book from a frog's perspective. I think this is a wonderful idea for younger children. It may answer a child's questions about, "What are animals thinking?" This type of response is good for children because it stimulates the mind into wandering, why? Denise puts such a large amount of time in effort into what she does to prepare for a story as well as what she does to make the illustrations come alive. Her careful planning and creative ideas make her books very insightful. I think Fleming contributes to children's education very well. She shows areas such as science and nature in her books. I believe that since she puts so much time and effort into her planning, then authentically contributes to a child's education. In children's literature, she opens the door for imagination. Her illustrations are done by pulp-painting and she is very willing to give ideas and instructions on how to do them yourself. I think this idea is great because it can be inspiration to children who want to be writers or illustrators. She shows there is more to illustrating a story than simply throwing together words and matching them with pencil and crayon drawings. Her creativity is what keeps children interested. Good books invite children to play with new language, give excellent reference points for future understanding and might even open windows to other cultures. I believe that this book fits two of those criteria. In the Small, Small Pond shows young children how other animals prepare for the winter. Children could look at this book and then maybe compare it to some of the animals that are around their homes and remember what Fleming said about tadpoles, minnows and frogs then make connections. Another strong point that Fleming hits is a new way to say some of the words that children might hear every day. When the frog leaps into the water and makes a "splash", a child might think of what a "splash" sounds like. At the same time, a heron "plunges" into the water and then children can compare what a "splash" and a "plunge" sound like either in their head or sound it out. Fleming also allows children to use their imagination. A reader is allowed to see what it's like from a frog's point of view. He travels from the shores of the pond to under the water to learn about what each animal does for preparation for winter. As you can see, I love Fleming's In a Small, Small Pond and recommend it to any lower grades elementary classroom library, or even your own child's library at home!

Children, including mine, love the movie "The Lion King,"a movie about 'the circle of life' of lions on the Pridelands. Being very popular with children, they emulate, or like to think of themselves as Mufasa, or Nala, or Timone...and that includes my children. Now we have a book,"In the Small, Small, Pond" by Denise Fleming that takes a frog through 'the circle of life'. With simple and easy rhymes, children can explore this water world. My children, 3 and 2 years of age, as Mufasa and Nala, love to go, with Angie and daddy as leaders, down to the waterhole-a real scene in the Lion King movie-to see the frog, birds, fish, and friends. I highly recommend this book for its ability to hold the reader and the audience.

Denise Fleming’s In the Small, Small Pond gives readers get a glimpse of life among the animals living in a small pond as the seasons change. A child – who could be either a boy or a girl – watches life in a small pond change throughout the seasons. Beginning in the spring, tadpoles wiggle and jiggle and baby geese waddle and wade; as the seasons progress, we see turtles doze, minnows scatter, muskrats stack, and finally, a frog – a presence throughout the book – burrow under the mud as winter sets in, waiting for spring.

The artwork uses color to take readers through the seasons: the bright greens and yellows of spring, the blue and green laziness of a hot summer day, the brown and yellow of fall setting in, and the cool blues and whites of the winter. Ms. Fleming gives life to her story by using collages created by poured cotton pulp through hand-cut stencils onto handmade paper, giving her illustrations a beautiful, handmade feel that will attract the attention of children and adult audiences. The rhythm of the rhyming text will appeal to young readers. The text is bold and black, with few words to a page; more often than not, the text blends with the background, but this is a book meant to be read-aloud; this will not be a distraction to participants. This is a companion book to the author’s In The Tall, Tall Grass, which uses the same type of artwork and storytelling.

The language was short, sweet and very descriptive for toddlers. Easy to expound upon.

Beautiful pictures but surprisingly very few words not really a story

Wonderful book with some lesser-known pond creatures (muskrat, heron, etc.). We paired it with a sensory bin to learn about pond life.

Great book. My two year old, 4 year old and 7 year old all enjoy it. We look for the frog on every page.