Guess the Baby - Hardcover

French, Simon

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0618259899 ISBN 13: 9780618259892

Publisher: Clarion Books, 2002

Synopsis

After Sam’s baby brother visits Mr. Judd’s class, all the children bring their baby pictures to school and have a good time guessing which is whose. But there’s still one picture left over. . . . It’s Mr. Judd! Now the children can imagine their teacher as a baby (complete with mustache). The idea that everyone starts out as a baby—and that babies and kids become grownups—is conveyed with a light touch in this sprightly school story, which acknowledges young children’s fascination with babies and with the idea that even the most revered grownups used to wear diapers. Readers will want to play “Guess the Baby” in their own classrooms.

About this title

About the Author

Simon French has written several award-winning books for children. He has been a kindergarten teacher for many years, and he lives in Austrailia.

Donna Rawlins is an illustrator, author, book designer, editor, and book packager. She lives in Australia.

From Publishers Weekly

A class of young schoolchildren learns a spirited lesson about growing up, creatively delivered by Australian author French, a former kindergarten teacher with an insightful grasp of this age group's questioning minds. When Sam brings his infant brother to school for Show and Tell, the teacher, Mr. Judd, reminds the incredulous class that they, too, were once babies. The students bring in their baby pictures and create a photo gallery, rendered in endearing detail by Rawlins (My Place), and then engage in a game of who's who, matching the baby to the classmate ("We guessed Sacha, because he still has the same smile. And Mara, because her hair is as orange as oranges"). Rawlins offers visual clues-Tess wears her hair the same way she did as an infant; Braydon bares his belly, just as he does in his baby photo-and Mr. Judd gives hints for the "tricky ones." But one photograph remains a mystery-who is that sailor-suited cutie? When the class realizes it's Mr. Judd, the children plunge into a pastel-colored reverie, imagining their mustachioed teacher as a baby (complete with facial hair). The children's excitement about this revelation ("Mr. Judd used to eat mushy food,"; "Mr. Judd used to have yucky diapers") drives home French's simple message that "even grownups were babies once." For every child who's ever asked the question, "Was I a baby?" this book is a delightful answer. Ages 4-6.
Copyright 2002 Reed Business Information, Inc.

About this edition

• Publisher: Clarion Books
• Publication date: 2002
• ISBN 10: 0618259899
• ISBN 13: 9780618259892
• Binding: Hardcover
• Number of pages: 32
• Illustrator: Rawlins Donna