Wee Sing Musical Bible Book

Title: Old Macdonald Had a Farm
Author: Pam Adams
Illustrator: Pam Adams
Genre: Pattern/Predictable book
Theme(s): Animal Sounds, Farms, Folk Songs, Songs and Music, Children's Stories
Opening line/sentence: "Old Macdonald had a farm, Ee I Ee I O! And on this farm he had a dog, Ee I Ee I O!"
Brief Book Summary: Everyone knows this story of Old Macdonald and his farm. This book had detailed illustrations and follows the song that students grow up knowing.
Professional Recommendation/Review #1: Karen Leggett (Children's Literature)
Teachers often bemoan the loss of interest in nursery rhymes because they have traditionally been one of the earliest listening and learning experiences for children. They prepare youngsters for the notions of pattern and rhyme. They are often repetitive, which is both comforting and instructive. They are usually silly, adding an element of humor that makes reading fun. Now some of the favorite nursery rhymes and songs have become small board books with holes, each with a different illustrator. In this case, each hole shows a new animal on the farm. The sound each animal makes shows through the hole on the left side of the page. The illustrations are colorful and crowd onto each page without much attention to proportion, but they are fun and will appeal to the newest young book lovers. The final page with all the animals is quite a busy, colorful scene of barnyard confusion. Part of the "Board Books with Holes" series. 2001, Child's Play, $5.99. Ages 3 mo. to 3.
(PUBLISHER: Child's Play $5.99., PUBLISHED: 2001(Child's Play $5.99., PUBLISHED: 2001))
Professional Recommendation/Review #2: Amazon: From the Publisher
- Promotes fine motor development as child manipulates variety of shapes on the pages. - Designed for child to interact with book in a physical way. - Uses vocabulary to communicate animal sounds (Old Macdonald) (sensory perception) - Involves use of rhymes and patterns which repeat throughout the books (patterns are excellent for children as they are very easy to memorize so the child very quickly can master these books.) - Incorporates music as most of these books are also songs. - Provides opportunities for developing sequencing skills as child attempts to remember sequence of animals, insects and birds. - Demonstrates print is meaningful as text matches illustrations. - Helps child gain confidence and raise his/her self-esteem - the feeling of "I can do it". --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.
Response to Two Professional Reviews: The first reviewer talks about how the illustrations are a bit different. Each new animal is shown in a keyhole! The second reviewer discusses how this book can be a song and looks at music being important in the classroom.
Evaluation of Literary Elements: The keyhole concept of peeking at the farm animals and their sounds is a good way to isolate the animals if the students are learning them for the first time. Since the text is a nursery rhyme and a song it reads very easily with a rhyme scheme. Also in this edition of the book Old Macdonald seems to be dressed in Scottish-like dress. This would provide a cultural aspect to the classroom.
Consideration of Instructional Application: Much like traditional nursery rhymes this is a song that many children have memorized. I would use it with PK-K students as a part of a memorization plan to memorize different songs and nursery rhymes. Song books also help introduce reading to children, so having this book and books like it in a classroom library will help students to realize that they can read this because they know all the words!