How Do Dinosaurs Go to School? by Jane Yolen, Mark Teague (Illustrator)

School Library Journal

PreS-Gr 2
A new cast of brightly colored dinosaurs appears in this charming back-to-school story. The text's easy rhyme and rhythm will be familiar to those who have read other books in this series, and Teague's charismatic and naughty dinosaurs will continue to delight readers with their antics and exuberance. The illustration accompanying "DOES A DINOSAUR YELL?" is sure to elicit smiles as an excited Herrerasaurus leaps out of his chair proudly holding up a newly lost tooth. His teacher looks annoyed, but his classmates all turn toward him with their own gap-toothed grins. The 10 dinosaurs that appear are identified on the endpapers where each is hard at work or play. Stygimoloch using one arm to prop up his raised hand as he blurts out is also likely to draw a smile from veteran teachers. A fun read-aloud for the first day of school.-Neala Arnold, St. Francis Elementary School, MN

Kirkus Reviews

Off to school with our prehistoric pals from the popular How Do Dinosaurs . . .? series, in which familiar scenes are made riotous by the scale-skewing enormity of elementary school-student dinos. As silvasaurus rushes out the door, his human mom proffers a teeny-tiny (but life-sized to Homo sapiens) brown-bag lunch and thermos. Centrosaurus can't fit in the carpool vehicle (license plate DINOCAR), so he rides on the roof. And when Herrerasaurus loses his tooth in class, he can't help but let out a celebratory yell, and all his similarly gap-toothed schoolmates share his excitement. Once again, what readers can't see in Teague's positively pop-off-the-page paintings (tails and toes that are just too long to fit, for example) is just as important as what they can. Perfect partners for Yolen's easy rhymes, they extend the text with those oh-so-appreciated labels, plenty of wit and a well-placed wink or two. The standard-sized schoolyard and show-and-tell provide plenty of opportunities for giant lizards to be acrobatic, misbehave and generally cause a ruckus, but each of these dinosaurs earns top marks and works well with others. (Picture book. 2-7)

Product Details