Review: Billy the Goat Bakes
Rating: 5 out of 5
Date: 09 4, 2013
In Billy the Goat Bakes, he goes to his friend Zebra's bakery very early (bakers start early) and learns from Zebra how to bake and follow instructions. When left alone he forgets an ingredient and the bread fails and Zebra helps him to understand it is good to ask for help when learning a new skill. This is an empowering lesson for young children that might be shy or afraid to ask for help. Reading about a character that the children like doing things that are difficult for them, gives them confidence to handle new situations and have a positive role model to follow. Just telling young children they can ask questions isn't as powerful as reading it in a book. At the end of the story Zebra tells Billy's mom that he was a good student, one of the best he has ever taught to bake. More positive praise for Billy learning to follow directions and ask questions when he didn't understand.Books like this one with positive lessons are easy for teachers to use to help students learn lessons and modify behaviors in a positive manner. As a teacher, I would point out to the children I read to that Billy learned to follow directions and ask questions. Then in our next science experiment (we do at least one per week) I would point out that the children can ask questions and follow directions just like Billy in the book. Presenting learning situations to apply what they learn from a book is a good strategy to get them to learn problem-solving skills, even in preschool.