Poetry is perfect for any age, and today’s post introduces readers to a new series of board book poetry perfect for young readers.  Flamingos Fly and Bears are Big are just two of the four books in the “Animals Play” series by Douglas Florian (Little Bee Books, 2017).

Brightly colored illustrations by Barbara Bakos bring a sense of joyous energy to the page, easily holding the attention of the baby/toddler set.  The books can even be used as inspiration for Kindergarten and First grade writers by using the rhyming text (Bears are big. Bees are small. Shrews are short. Giraffes are tall.) to innovate new poems. Students can brainstorm a list of additional big and small, short and tall animals to come up with their own rhyming verses in the style of BEARS are BIG or one of the other books in the series.

Looking for more Douglas Florian poetry? Here are several of my favorites: Beast Feast, Lizards, Frogs, and Polliwogs, and Comets, Stars, the Moon, and Mars.