Five Little Ducks
By Raffi
Review by: Laura Wood
At the beginning, the five little ducks go out over the hills and far away. Mother Duck calls to them by saying, “Quack, quack, quack, quack”. However, only four ducks return. This continues until only one duck goes out. Mother Duck calls one last time, only to have none of the five little ducks come back.
Mother Duck is so sad! She is so sad all through the fall and all through the winter. When Spring arrives, Mother Duck goes out all by herself. She calls out, “Quack, quack, quack, quack”. Surprise! All of the five little ducks come back. Except now they aren’t little anymore – they are all grown up! The five ducks come back with their own families. Mother Duck is now Grandma Duck. Two lessons can be learned from this book. One is getting children to count backwards from five to zero.
This book is also a great way to introduce the concept of emotions. Mother Duck was so sad when none of her little ducks came back. Ask your preschooler, what makes you sad? When the ducks returned with their new families, Mother Duck was happy again. Ask your kids, what makes you happy?
This book is wonderful for young toddlers and preschoolers. I recommend this book for children age 18 months and up.
