Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ Ages: 2 – 5 years
My four-year old cannot read yet, but she has memorized every line of this book and has proudly ‘’read’’ it every night for the last five nights.
Her older brother, who is six, has delighted in teaching her how to ‘’read’’ it, and also how to perform addition to count the stacks of cats.
Since I learnt how to read and do math decades ago, I just love the cute cat pictures and the giggles that the kids give when we discuss how we would stack the cats if we had that many.
I would put all the playful ones together so that we could watch them wrestle. Mr. Six says he would sneakily stack the sleeping ones on top of each other to make a tower, and Miss Four says she will do both….
….I hope she doesn’t think we’re buying a stack of cats!
Stack the Cats is a great early reader book that introduces not only counting, but expands a child’s mind to begin thinking about simple addition. For younger kids, it’s ideal as a sit-in-your-lap and read-out-loud book!
The first thing you will notice about this book is how vibrant and cheerful the illustrations are.
‘’One cat sleeps.’’
‘’Two cats play.’’
‘’Three cats? …. STACK!’’
The text is simple, but its this simplicity that gives moment to pause and count the cats on each page.
The counting continues until the cats number 10. However, we are able to introduce simple mathematics when we get to six, as …
‘’Six cats prefer two stacks of three cats.’’
Eight cats are too many in a stack so when we get to nine cats, they agree to stack in three sets of three.
Ten cats are apparently too many, which my husband heartily agrees with every time we read this book…. Although he enjoys this book, he is NOT a cat lover.
The last page says,
‘’How will you stack the cats?’’
This page gives kids the opportunity to count up to 22 cats and discuss creative ways in which they would stack them.
I bet their answers are hilarious… I’d love to hear some of yours!
Susie Ghahremani is an award-winning illustrator and exhibiting artist. She has created a book filled with bright and cheerful cats that allows you to throw in some sneaky learning with counting and addition. Even non-cat lovers (like my husband) will enjoy the simple illustrations in this book. Kids of all ages will love them!
Stack the Cats is ideal for new readers, with a perfect amount of simple and repetitive words, plus a few additional to challenge. It introduces not only counting, but expands a child’s mind to begin thinking about simple addition.
For younger kids, it’s ideal as a sit-in-your-lap and read-out-loud book!
