Caldecott Honor: What Do You Do With a Tail Like This?

What Do You Do With a Tail Like This?
by Steve Jenkins & Robin Page


2004 Caldecott Honor Book

This is a perfect book to be read by children who are interested in animals and their bodily adaptations, as well as a colorful and neatly-illustrated book to keep the interest of young children.  Personally, I could not turn the pages and read quickly enough, because I wanted to know what the use was for all the tails, eyes, ears, mouths, noses and feet, as well as what animal they belonged to.  This story is definitely not fiction as most of the children's books that I read are, but instead greatly informative and suspenseful.  (I never would have thought of a informative picture-book as being suspenseful until I read this one!) 

In a classroom setting, I would love to use this book to help children work on critical-thinking skills.  When looking at the page reading, "What would you do with ears like these?" it would provide many opportunities for children to try and guess the animal, as well as guessing the use of the body part.  Although I use the word "guess," it would be a better time to help children look at what they see in a critical way, and think their ideas through before making a hypothesis; however, it is nonetheless a great opportunity to get kids thinking about what they see!  I have read "guessing books" before to children, but never one illustrated so well and with as "kid-friendly" text as this one; I especially love the information on the skunk's tail, which is used to "warn that a stinky spray is on the way," and a chameleon's eyes are used to "look two ways at once."