If you could choose a mode of transportation, what would it be? Would you rather take to the sea on a ship, relax on a train, drive in a car or pedal a bicycle? Through this book, your child is able to choose the path of one of the vehicles and see where it takes them.
Since there are so many speech and language opportunities in this book, I will show you 3 pages and explain how I would elicit speech and language from each of them. Of course, it would depend on the level of your child – I would use this language with a typical developing four year old. You can simplify your language for a younger child (have them point to more of the pictures and try and repeat simple words after you – uh oh, cow, moo, ‘whee’, boat) or make it more advanced for an older child (include more higher level vocabulary words like anchor, captain, jetty, pier and ask higher level thinking questions like ‘Why do you think…’ or ‘What might happen if…’).
“Find the ship. Yes, there it is! I see a girl taking a picture. What you do think she is taking a picture of? Yes! Maybe a sheep! I wonder what the boy with the binoculars is looking at. Can you find the purple tractor? Do you think it is going fast or slow? Yes, I think slow too! There are two cars behind it. I don’t see the bike. Do you? Oh! You need to lift this flap up! There she is! I think she is going fast down the hill. Look! Her legs are out and her hair is flying. I bet she is saying, ‘Whee!’. Can you say that? Oh no! She is going to pass a bear. I hope she goes by fast! Hmm. I don’t see the train on this page. Where is it? You are right! It went through the tunnel on the last page so it must be under the ground right now. What animals do you see? Which animals are forest animals? Which animals are farm animals? Can you find the girl paddling in the canoe? She looks scared! Why do you think she feels that way? Yes! The ship is making a lot of waves. Be careful!
Here is a freebie you can print to work on sorting farm animals and forest animals! Check it out on my Teachers Pay Teachers site here! A black/white version is also available.
The ship has reached its destination. It is time for everyone to get off! What do you think they will do? I see she has a bucket. What will she do? Yes! Maybe she will join this girl and they will build a sandcastle together! Look at them; they are having a picnic. Have you ever had a picnic? What would you eat? I would have a sandwich, grapes, and of course a cupcake! Ooo but I see something else I would want for dessert. Do you see it? Yes I see an ice cream truck! I would choose a chocolate ice cream cone; what about you? What would you do if you went to the beach? Would you fly a kite like him? I would hit a beach ball with them or maybe read a book like her. Look! He is sleeping! I hope he put on sunscreen! Can you find the man in the blue car? Where do you think he is going? Which vehicle is first? Yes, the train! It just came out of the tunnel. Who is last? Yes, the girl on the bicycle. I wonder if she is going to stop and get some ice cream just like the girl in the car did.
Below is a freebie you can print to work on sorting vehicles! You can find it on my Teachers Pay Teachers site here. A black/white version is also available. How many of the vehicles can you find in the book?
The rain stopped! What sometimes appears in the sky after it rains? Yes, a rainbow! I see a lot of puddles! How many do you see? Oh no! The car and bike are all dirty – I wonder how they will get clean – what do you think? (The car goes through the car wash on the next page). Do you see what happened to the bike? Yes, the tire is flat. She will need to put air in the tire. Maybe one of the construction workers will help her. Where do you think the kids were? Yes, I think they were at school too. How do you know? Right! They are wearing backpacks. Good think they have boots on since they are splashing in the puddles! Are the other kids wearing boots? What do you think the construction workers are building? They need to be careful – he is up high! Do you know what these are called? They are called cranes. Can you guess what they do?
I have one more printable you can use to work on following directions and color identification. It is on my Teachers Pay Teachers site here.
I did not specifically address speech sounds in the above pages, but as you see, since the pages are packed full of illustrations, it should not be difficult to find pictures containing specific speech sounds that you are focusing on.
Here is a little peek inside this book!
You can find this great book over on my e-commerce site here!
I hope you enjoy reading this book with your child – it definitely is a favorite of mine (and my children!).
Language and Literacy 
Leave a comment