The Father Who Had 10 Children by Benedicte Guettier

Every day the father who has 10 children gets up and makes breakfast for them. He helps them get dressed, takes them to school, and goes to work himself. Then he picks them up, gives them a bath, makes dinner for them, and puts them to bed. One night he builds a boat and, leaving the children with their grandma, sails off. But after one day he misses them and comes back. He picks up his 10 children, and they all sail off in the boat.

• Read the title of the book on the cover while pointing to each word. Say the title together as you point to each word. Have the child point to the father. Then count the 10 children together.

Reading the Story for the First Time

• Read the story, moving your finger under the words as you read.
• Give the child enough time to look at each of the pictures. If the child is interested, you can keep counting the children, the dishes, clothing, and so on as you read.

Reading the Book Again and Again

• Each time you read The Father Who Had 10 Children, leave more of the "reading" or retelling to the child. Give open-ended prompts on each page. For example, ask: What is happening in this picture? Where are the children?
• Give prompts about objects or activities in the pictures. What is on the table? (There are ten cups, one spoon, and two loaves of bread.) Use your finger to point to what you are asking about. Evaluate the child's response. Expand it by giving more information. Ask the child to repeat the answer. If he or she needs help in answering a question, ask that question again the next time you read the book. Good words to ask about are listed in the vocabulary section below. Be sure to talk about objects and actions the child brings up, too.
• You may wish to discuss the prompts shown below.

Building Literacy

• Use the words and the pictures in this book to start the child talking about how he or she gets dressed, eats breakfast, goes to school, and performs other parts of his or her daily routine.

Excerpted from Read Together, Talk Together, the Pearson Early Childhood research-based program that makes reading aloud even more effective!