Big Green Crocodile: Rhymes to Say and Play

A cheerful big green crocodile - laden with equally cheerful children - snakes its across the welcoming front cover of Jane Newberry and Caroline Rabei's compilation of action rhymes.

There are 16 lovely action rhymes here brilliantly illustrated by Rabei. After the privations of lockdown, this is a beautiful opportunity for close collaboration. The engagement with rhythm and rhyme is so important emotionally but also for the development of early phonological awareness, an area we need to carefully preserve given the omission of Letters and Sounds - the only SSP programme with an early phase - from the government's list of validated schemes.

Importantly too, there are suggestions for accompanying actions. I can see this being so supportive for everyone - but especially new EYFS trainees and teachers.

The topics are spot on. There's a zooming rocket, chocolate cake and jungle animals, 'Spots and Stripes'(p.6),  give opportunities to hide and say 'Boo!'. You can march and roar with monsters, go 'Wibble-wobble' with the 'Wibble-Wobble Clown' (p.10-11) and have an alliterative ride with a Brontosaurus (p.20): 'Bibb-ly bobb-ly, bib-ly bobb-ly / Brontoasurus ride./' There’s bath time and that lovely rampaging before bed captured in 'Jumping Panda' (p.26).

After all that excitement, what better than the final sleepy poem where we finally meet the crocodile (p.28): 'A great big green crocodile lay down for a nap./ I lay down beside him until he went….SNAP!/'

EYFS practitioners and children will be clamouring for this one!

Picture book / Reviewed by Alison Kelly, consultant

Suggested Reading Age 3+