Eric Carle Week: Day 3

Here's one that I just read for the first time:
"Slowly, Slowly, Slowly," Said the Sloth

First of all, I love how Eric Carle's illustrations are so him. You could recognize his stuff from a mile away. And while it is beautiful, and NOT easy artwork, it is something that children can imitate, which is one thing that makes him so popular with the little ones. This particular story is about a sloth who hangs out in his tree day and night. The other animals passing by mock him and ask him why he is so lazy. He doesn't answer for a while. And then, he announces that while he may be slow and even lackadaisical (and a whole slough of other perfect adjectives that Carle uses), he is not lazy.

There are several "teaching moments" in this story. There's the alliteration moment. The "what on earth is a sloth?" moment. The many new vocabulary words moment. The "how should we treat those who are different than us?" moment. The "let's make some watercolor pictures of our own" moment. Read it with your child and take those moments. You will both love it!