Boats Afloat (pages 24 and 25)

• Beginning at the bottom of page 25, you'll find each boat named in the poem: sailboat, kayak, canoe, raft, fireboat, motorboat, barge, tugboat, freighter, and ferry.
• Help your child touch each boat as he or she counts.

When children count the boats, they begin to understand that a number represents a specific set of objects. When they count the red boats, they divide 12 into two smaller numbers (4 that are red, 8 that are not red). For more counting fun, help your child count to find out how many kangaroos, mice, and animals are on the front cover.

*Language Development: Listening & Understanding (Understands an increasingly complex and varied vocabulary.)

*Mathematics: Number & Operations (Develops increased ability to combine, separate, and name "how many" objects.)

Little Bunny Has a Sleepover (pages 26 to 30)

• After reading the story, talk about Squirrel. What do you know about this character? How do you know? (Most of the information about Squirrel is found in the illustration.)
• Then talk about Little Bunny's feelings. How did they change? Why did they change?

In the past, it was thought that young children couldn't be empathetic. But today, researchers are discovering that they can. Talking about the feelings of story characters will help your child begin to recognize and respect the feelings of others—the foundation of kindness and compassion.

*Social & Emotional Development: Social Relationships (Able to express empathy or caring for others.)

*Literacy: Listening & Understanding (Demonstrates an increasing ability to attend to and understand stories.)

Snuggle Time Puzzles (Bonus Pages)

• Help your child use the colored borders to sort the pieces into three groups.
• The illustrations on pages 20 to 22 will help your child solve the "nighttime" puzzles.

Slippery puzzle pieces can be frustrating for young fingers. Putting the puzzle pieces on a towel or rug will make the task easier and more satisfying.

*Mathematics: Geometry & Spatial Sense (Develops increasing ability to sort objects according to one or two attributes, such as color, shape, or size.)

*Physical Health & Development: Fine-Motor Skills (Grows in hand-eye coordination by building with blocks, putting puzzles together, and using scissors.)

*Early childhood standards based on the U.S. Head Start Child Outcomes Framework.