Picture Book: My Heart Is Like a Zoo by Michael Hall

Anonymous — Sun, 20 Feb 2011 03:47:00 GMT

I was immediately endeared to My Heart Is Like a Zoo (ages 4-10) by Michael Hall. Each lovable animal in the "zoo" expresses a different aspect of the speaker’s love. The book begins with the following poetic verse:

My heart is like a zoo—

eager as a beaver,

steady as a yak

hopeful as a hungry heron

fishing for a snack…

The same framework is used until the end when the tired zookeeper (small boy) cuddles up in bed with all his animals surrounding him. Using die cut shapes (primarily hearts), a menagerie of animals is created---from the sea, the land, and the air. My Heart Is Like a Zoo is versatile enough that it can be used for teachable moments from early childhood to elementary school.

Younger children can…

§ identify circles, rectangles, triangles, and squares

§ count the number of hearts (or other shapes) that make up each animal

§ name colors

§ identify animals

§ connect to a zoo or animal unit

Older children can…

§ recognize sound devices like rhyme and alliteration

§ recognize similes (and practice creating their own)

§ identify adjectives and nouns (parts of speech)

§ classify animals into groups—sea, land, and air

§ distinguish fantasy from fact

§ create animals using various shapes similar to the illustrations

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Picture Book: My Heart Is Like a Zoo by Michael Hall