A Great Big Cuddle: Poems for the Very Young
- Downloads：8801
- Type：Epub+TxT+PDF+Mobi
- Create Date：2022-08-07 06:54:00
- Update Date：2025-09-06
- Status：finish
- Author：Michael Rosen
- ISBN：0763681164
- Environment：PC/Android/iPhone/iPad/Kindle
- Download
Summary
Two of the biggest names in children’s publishing， Michael Rosen and Chris Riddell， come together in a new poetry collection。
The poems in A Great Big Cuddle fizz off the page with sound and rhythm， energy and laughter， as Rosen captures in the most remarkable way what it means to be very， very young。
A child’s world with all its details and feelings – toys and games， animals and made-up creatures， likes and dislikes – is vividly conjured up in the most memorable， playful language， and Chris Riddell has produced some his most extraordinary pictures ever to bring this world to life。
It's a book that will be enjoyed by the oldest grown-up and the youngest child – and a future classic。
The poems in A Great Big Cuddle fizz off the page with sound and rhythm， energy and laughter， as Rosen captures in the most remarkable way what it means to be very， very young。
A child’s world with all its details and feelings – toys and games， animals and made-up creatures， likes and dislikes – is vividly conjured up in the most memorable， playful language， and Chris Riddell has produced some his most extraordinary pictures ever to bring this world to life。
It's a book that will be enjoyed by the oldest grown-up and the youngest child – and a future classic。
Reviews
Alana
，
Ok poems， although some are a little dark
Callie Coox
，
The poems were silly and we didn’t like them very much。
Elaine Bearden
，
Not everything resonates with me， but one of the few books that delights in the utter joy of playing with language for the very young。 Like wiggly wiggly p14 and lunchtime p25。
Annabel Peet
，
The nonsense words throughout Rosen's poems make for a very entertaining read， and Riddell's illustrations are fantastic。 The nonsense words throughout Rosen's poems make for a very entertaining read， and Riddell's illustrations are fantastic。 。。。more
Adrian
，
Lost One moment they were there and we were having funNow they've disappeared， every single one。I don't know where to go and I'm feeling rather scaredI don't know where they are， it's not as if they cared。I'm lost， I'm lost， I'm halfway up the stairsThey've only gone and left me， and nobody cares。Help me， help me， someone。 Can't you hear me shout？Isn't anybody here who can come and help me out？I'm alone and lonely and it's starting to get dark。Where is everyone？ Did they go to the Lost One moment they were there and we were having funNow they've disappeared， every single one。I don't know where to go and I'm feeling rather scaredI don't know where they are， it's not as if they cared。I'm lost， I'm lost， I'm halfway up the stairsThey've only gone and left me， and nobody cares。Help me， help me， someone。 Can't you hear me shout？Isn't anybody here who can come and help me out？I'm alone and lonely and it's starting to get dark。Where is everyone？ Did they go to the park？Are they in or out？ Did they go up to town？Do you think I should go upstairs？ Or down？I don't know， I don't know， anything at all。I'm going to sit still now and just look at the wall。If Chris Riddell writes it or illustrates it then I must track it down and own it。 Luckily we found this today in a local charity shop and I was， once again， not disappointed。 This book is an anthology of poetry which reflects the day to day issues of being a toddler。 Some are short and punchy， others， like the above， are more in-depth and moving。 All are accompanied by lavish illustrations that draw the eye and make you smile。A very enjoyable read。 4 stars。 。。。more
Miss Sarah
，
Silly an easy to read poems for early elementary students。
Suezette Given
，
Full of adorable word play， cute illustrations， and clever typography
Katisha
，
The poems are silly and funny。 The illustrations are beautiful and engaging。 This is a great book for family story time。 My favorite poems were "Lunchtime" and "Are You Listening？" because the associated illustrations made me laugh out loud。 My main criticism is this book seriously lacks diversity。 Why are there only a handful of children of color？ It is disappointing for a book published in 2015 to have exponentially more animals and creatures than children of color。 The poems are silly and funny。 The illustrations are beautiful and engaging。 This is a great book for family story time。 My favorite poems were "Lunchtime" and "Are You Listening？" because the associated illustrations made me laugh out loud。 My main criticism is this book seriously lacks diversity。 Why are there only a handful of children of color？ It is disappointing for a book published in 2015 to have exponentially more animals and creatures than children of color。 。。。more
Miranda Smith
，
These poems are special for young readers， using minimal， yet strategic， word choices that stick out to and engage the reader。 Different fun words and other nonsense words hold interesting sounds that are pleasant to your young one's ears and get them excited about rhyming too。 These poems are special for young readers， using minimal， yet strategic， word choices that stick out to and engage the reader。 Different fun words and other nonsense words hold interesting sounds that are pleasant to your young one's ears and get them excited about rhyming too。 。。。more
Emma Hunter
，
These are super fun poems for young children！ There is a variety from super funny and upbeat to slower， sweet poems。 Kids can enjoy having them read to them or reading the poems themselves。 There are also great pictures to go along with the poems！Lexile: N/AGR: N/ATrait: Sentence Fluency
Kate
，
Reading poetry with Mr 4， but this was a little bit。。。 strange？ too young？ We prefer Bananas In My Ears by the same author。
Joanna
，
I enjoyed many of the poems in this large book with fun illustrations， but some of the poems I just didn't get。 I mean， I'm not the audience they were written for so many that's part of it， but I'd like to think that I'm still very much a kid at heart and I read a lot of kids' books， so I don't think that's a full explanation。Note: This book contains poems that are also included in Giggly Wiggly。 I enjoyed many of the poems in this large book with fun illustrations， but some of the poems I just didn't get。 I mean， I'm not the audience they were written for so many that's part of it， but I'd like to think that I'm still very much a kid at heart and I read a lot of kids' books， so I don't think that's a full explanation。Note: This book contains poems that are also included in Giggly Wiggly。 。。。more
Libby H。C。
，
Loved the rhymes and illustrations。
Ella
，
Extended Reading Diary - PoetryA Great Big Cuddle: Poems for the Very YoungMichael Rosen illustrated by Cris RiddellGeneral points about the chosen anthology:This is a great poetry anthology for younger children。 Could be used in the Foundation Stage and some would be suitable for lower KS1。 There are a range of different poems in this book which differ by length and style making it a great anthology for a primary school where the children are likely to have different tastes and abilities。 The u Extended Reading Diary - PoetryA Great Big Cuddle: Poems for the Very YoungMichael Rosen illustrated by Cris RiddellGeneral points about the chosen anthology:This is a great poetry anthology for younger children。 Could be used in the Foundation Stage and some would be suitable for lower KS1。 There are a range of different poems in this book which differ by length and style making it a great anthology for a primary school where the children are likely to have different tastes and abilities。 The use of illustration and the size， font and colour of the text makes the poems even more enjoyable to read and look at。 Overall， a lovely anthology which I would definitely use with children in the earlier years of primary school。Boing！ Boing！What do I like about the poem？I really like the structure and simplicity of this poem， making it work very well for younger children or as an introduction into poetry for children with little exposure to this form of literature。 The simplicity makes it easily understandable which children may enjoy as this is not always the case with poetry。 I also really like the use of font， including size and colour， in making the last line of the poem bold and really stand out。 This not only brings attention to this line but also shows the emphasis which needs to be added to it when reading aloud。 Are there any memorable words or phrases？The poem uses two repeated phases， ‘bounce bounce’ and ‘pounce pounce’。 These phrases are very memorable as they act as the body for the poem。 Each stanza contains one of these phrases， helping to create a repeating pattern throughout。What do the phrases make me think of？When I read this poem， to me， the phrases have very positive connotations。 This is because of the words used such as ‘boing’ and ‘bounce’， making the poem seem happy and therefore enjoyable for both the reader and the audience。 The phrases also made me think of words children may use when they are playing such as ‘jump’ and ‘ball’， this will therefore not only be more relatable for the children， but will also help to reinforce this vocabulary。Is there anything significant about the shape of the poem？The poem is positioned in quite an unusual way， starting in the top left-hand corner and progressing diagonally downwards to the bottom right-hand corner。 The way that each verse is positioned encourages the reader to speed up when reading bringing purposeful tension to the poem。 There is also an effect of each verse and accompanying illustration getting closer as the poem progresses， which gives the same effect。When I look at the shape， does it help me to think about the poem in a different way？The shape of the poem helps me to see it in a progressive way with the story starting at the top corner and ending at the opposite bottom corner。 This progression could be the tiger physically growing and getting bigger， however， I interpreted it as the tiger growing in confidence from a small bouncy creature to a larger more confident one。 This could reflect children’s feelings about themselves in the classroom as they grow in confidence。 Does the poem have a particular form？The poem uses rhyming and repetition through the phases ‘bounce bounce’ and ‘pounce pounce’。 This creates speed as you read the poem as well as reiteration of these important words。 The lines in this poem are also very short and most of the words are repeated making it very accessible to younger children just beginning to look at poetry including those in the Foundation State and early KS1。Do you have any questions about the poem？Where does the inspiration for this poem come from？ Is it based on a real tiger as it finds its roar or is it based on a toy or even a child？Does the poem use any techniques？Apart from the use of repetition， the main techniques in this poem come from the layout and illustrations。 For this poem the illustrations are very powerful as they help to paint a picture of the tiger’s journey。 At the beginning of the poem when the phrase ‘bounce bounce’ is used， the tiger is portrayed through the illustrations as an infant who is quite unsure and anxious。 The poem then develops to use the phrase ‘pounce pounce’ in replace of ‘bounce bounce’， as this happens， the tiger is displayed by the illustrations in a much more confident and grown-up way。 The illustrations therefore help hugely with deepening the development of the poem。 What is most memorable about the poem？ How does it make you feel？For me， the most memorable part of the poem is the last line ‘ROARRRRRR！’。 This stands out because of the break in the repeated pattern which the rest of the poem followed。 The first three stanzas have only two lines， however， the last has three including the ‘ROARRRRRR！’。 This is a nice and memorable ending to the poem as it gives a clear representation of a tiger for the children。 This line is also in a different size font and different colour， this is another technique used which helps the line to stand out and be memorable。 。。。more
Zoe
，
Throughout many of these poems the author uses a range of fonts and text sizes to create emotion and effect。 I like these poems because they are effectively illustrated to support the content of the poem e。g。 the poem called I am angry， this poem provides the opportunity for children to be able to possibly relate to the poem and learn from it。 From the poem I am angry the phrases ‘wake up stones’ and ‘boil words’ are memorable to me because they create a visual image of the authors creative thou Throughout many of these poems the author uses a range of fonts and text sizes to create emotion and effect。 I like these poems because they are effectively illustrated to support the content of the poem e。g。 the poem called I am angry， this poem provides the opportunity for children to be able to possibly relate to the poem and learn from it。 From the poem I am angry the phrases ‘wake up stones’ and ‘boil words’ are memorable to me because they create a visual image of the authors creative thoughts and messages behind the words。 They also portray the emotion of anger through the text format （bold font）。 Overall a great text 。。。more
Sophie Freeman
，
Beautifully illustrated， full of humour， nonsense and word play， making poetry fun！
Shayla Ware
，
A Great Big Cuddle Poems for the Very Young is a poetry children's book for kids 1-3 years of age。 Each page in this book is a different form of poetry long poems， short poems ， rhyming poems， even animal poems。 My favorite poem is Lost on page 16 in the book。 It is about losing people and being by yourself。 I enjoyed this poem biggest it is so much different from all the others and isn't a traditional children's poem。 When we think about kids we think everything has to be happy。 I enjoy that th A Great Big Cuddle Poems for the Very Young is a poetry children's book for kids 1-3 years of age。 Each page in this book is a different form of poetry long poems， short poems ， rhyming poems， even animal poems。 My favorite poem is Lost on page 16 in the book。 It is about losing people and being by yourself。 I enjoyed this poem biggest it is so much different from all the others and isn't a traditional children's poem。 When we think about kids we think everything has to be happy。 I enjoy that this book covers a topic that most won't。 The best line in the poem is "One moment they were there and we were having fun。 Now they've disappeared， every single one。" That to me is using poetry and a platform to teach a life lesson which I really enjoyed。 The reason I gave this book a 4 out of 5 is because there are too many rhyming， repetitive poems。 They say the same two words over and over just in bigger font's and different colors。 As a teacher I would get tired of reading the poem and my students probably would not listen。 The illistrations in this book are so fitting for the book， they are colorful and beautfiul but they have a soft feel to them that goes with the cuddling theme of the book。 This book will become very appealing to young readers， they will really enjoy the rhyming poems because you can turn it into a song。 I know for my students they will love the animal counting poem。 I would use this book at home for a night time routine read a poem a night。 As a teacher I would read the poem either during circle time or right before nap time for my students。 。。。more
Hannah Jane
，
This is a book of poems for the silly-hearted souls who love nonsensical words and ideas。 It's also wonderful for storytime。 I chose my three favorites and added a few movements to each poem to make them more interactive。 It's a very imaginative， fun book to read aloud and share with others。 This is a book of poems for the silly-hearted souls who love nonsensical words and ideas。 It's also wonderful for storytime。 I chose my three favorites and added a few movements to each poem to make them more interactive。 It's a very imaginative， fun book to read aloud and share with others。 。。。more
Dalton Collins
，
I enjoyed this book and think the poems are fit for very young children。 These illustrations have an imaginative appeal with many original creature creations。 The poems follow a goodnight theme so I feel it would be excellent for parents to read to their young children before bed。
John of Canada
，
Four stars for the artwork，three for the poems。Chris Riddell is the best。
Tina
，
Magpies review
Emily Lisowski
，
A big book filled with poetry for kids。 Really great and colorful illustrations which keep your attention。 A lot of different and nonsense types of poetry are included for the kids who like silly books。
Rachel Slocombe
，
I picked this up in the library so I could have a look at the illustrations but my children love it so much I need to buy a copy to keep。 I've had it for a week and have read it through at least ten times and their favourites more。The poems are simple， rhythmic and rhyming; perfect for toddlers and the illustrations are beautiful。 I picked this up in the library so I could have a look at the illustrations but my children love it so much I need to buy a copy to keep。 I've had it for a week and have read it through at least ten times and their favourites more。The poems are simple， rhythmic and rhyming; perfect for toddlers and the illustrations are beautiful。 。。。more
Spike's Place
，
Click here to place a hold at the Stow-Munroe Falls Public Library Click here to place a hold at the Stow-Munroe Falls Public Library 。。。more
Anna Louise
，
Not sure if entirely finished it
Jodie
，
Reading the Carnegie and Kate Greenaway shortlists。 Cute illustrations and a great fun book for young reluctant readers。 4/5 Stars。Fav Image: Reading the Carnegie and Kate Greenaway shortlists。 Cute illustrations and a great fun book for young reluctant readers。 4/5 Stars。Fav Image: 。。。more
Jacqueline Materna
，
Title: A Great Big Cuddle: Poems for the Very Young Tongue Author: Michael RosenIllustrator: Chris RiddellGenre: Poems Theme（s）: animals， life skills， emotions， season， growing up， etc。 Opening line/sentence: From the poem， Tippy-Tappy“Tippy-tappyTippy-tappyTap， tap， tap。”Brief Book Summary:Michael Rosen takes the classic rhythmic sounds， beats， and vibes from traditional poetry and revamps them to create fun， positive， and entertaining poems for children of all ages to enjoy reading and recitin Title: A Great Big Cuddle: Poems for the Very Young Tongue Author: Michael RosenIllustrator: Chris RiddellGenre: Poems Theme（s）: animals， life skills， emotions， season， growing up， etc。 Opening line/sentence: From the poem， Tippy-Tappy“Tippy-tappyTippy-tappyTap， tap， tap。”Brief Book Summary:Michael Rosen takes the classic rhythmic sounds， beats， and vibes from traditional poetry and revamps them to create fun， positive， and entertaining poems for children of all ages to enjoy reading and reciting。 The rhyming of words and phrases contained within these are similar to Dr。 Seuss but capture the imagination that is upheld with Shel Silverstein。 The silliness of the poems， along with Chris Riddell’s impeccable illustrations go hand-in-hand in completely creating some interactive texts that can be used individually， in groups， or with an entire room of people at once。 Professional Recommendation/Review #1:Sarah Hunter （Booklist， Sep。 15， 2015 （Vol。 112， No。 2）） Nonsense words and jaunty rhymes pack the oversize pages of this beautifully illustrated collection of poems。 Rosen s playful verses steer clear of storytelling， instead focusing on sounds that are fun to say aloud， such as Pippy-peppy / Pippy-peppy / Pep， pep pep or Bumba / Ya-bumba / Bumba-bumba-rumba。 Plainly printed on a page， the lines might lack energy， but， luckily， each rhythmic poem is laid out in bright， large fonts， sometimes on swirling lines， to fill each crisp， white page。 Riddell s hefty， softly colored pencil-and-watercolor illustrations render both realistic toddlers and anthropomorphic animals with hugely expressive faces and gestures， which help to ground the sometimes-absurd verses in recognizable emotions。 Lost， for instance， features a small， morose-looking mouse a fitting complement to the poem about feeling lonely and left behind。 Elsewhere， Rosen and Riddell pair a page-filling drawing of a clumsy elephant with the line， Don’t squash your bun， Doris。 Preschoolers probably won’t sit still for the entire collection at once， but individual selections are likely to get them moving to the lively beat。Professional Recommendation/Review #2:Kirkus （Kirkus Reviews， August 15， 2015 （Vol。 83， No。 16）） Short poems and accompanying illustrations make up this word-format poetry anthology for little ones。 Thirty-five poems run the gamut from high-spirited wordplay for very young listeners （"Kippy-cuppy / Kippy-cuppy / Cup， cup， cup"） to relatively more complex ideas （"I'm a very， very， very slow train / And I'm very， very late again"）。 Some poems validate the strong emotions all children feel at some time， such as "I Don't Want，" "I Am Hungry，" and "I Am Angry，" while others nestle into their private worlds: "You fell off the table / And landed on your head。 / I picked you up / And put you to bed，" with the accompanying illustration showing a teddy bear tucked into bed。 Riddell's fluid watercolor-and-pencil illustrations bring a grace to each poem， no matter what its subject， and he depicts many ethnicities of children （in addition to animals and non-scary monsters）。 The text changes size and color with each page and often within the poem itself， a fine detail in this well-designed book。 Some poems are strange （"Why did the man bend down low？ / Why did the man eat some snow？"）， reflecting the bemusement very small children feel at the doings of adults。 The poem titled "Don't Squash" shows an elephant who's just stepped on something that may be a jelly doughnut， but the red ooze it splatters may provoke more than a few questions。 Despite （or perhaps because of） the odd bits， this book successfully celebrates the private， gleeful， imaginative world of toddlersResponse to Two Professional Reviews:Both of these reviews focus on the positives that are contained within this book， such as playfulness， the illustrations， as well as life skills and lesson that can be picked up from reading and really engaging with these poems。 Hunter and the Kirkus reviewer both hit on the impact that the different sizes， colors， textures， and placements of the words have on the book。 They explain how they make them more entertaining and intriguing for not only young children but also visually appealing to adults。 I think they both did a great job capturing the purpose of this book and is a good example to use when introducing poetry to children。 As a child， poetry was not my favorite thing to learn， read， or construct， but this book shows how fun poems can be and the impact that they can have on an individual。 Evaluation of Literary Elements:As this is a book compiled of different poems， it doesn’t follow the ways of a typical picture or even chapter book。 Each poem is individual and unique to itself， as it does not follow the same character in each one， but instead， introduces and explains the life or a moment that this new character is facing。 I think that the uniqueness of each poem and how they are not connected with one another tells its own little story in itself， which makes it more fun and interesting for a child。 They won’t get bored because with each new page it’s something new and exciting。 Consideration of Instructional Application:Due to the variety and number of poems within this book， an activity for the children to engage in is selecting a poem out of the book and analyzing it through finding the rhyming words within their selected poem and explaining how the two sound alike。 For example， children with the rhyming words 'feet' and 'street' can explain that it is the double 'e' that makes this sound which causes the two words to sound similar to one another。 Following this， the teacher could construct rhyming cards that show a large picture of an object， as well as three small pictures at the bottom with only one being a word that rhymes with the larger picture。 Through using clothespins to identify the rhyming words， the children could have fun learning and complete these rhyme cards in their free time or as a designated task if they finish an activity early。 。。。more
Taylor Kundel-Gower
，
I didn't love all of these poems， but the ones I did like， I REALLY liked （my favorites were Don't Squash， I Am Angry， and Inside Out）。 Plus， the illustrations are to die for。 I didn't love all of these poems， but the ones I did like， I REALLY liked （my favorites were Don't Squash， I Am Angry， and Inside Out）。 Plus， the illustrations are to die for。 。。。more
Kelsi Watts
，
This is a great book that can be used to instill poems into young children's lives at such an early age。 It is a great read that has such educational value。 I love it and will make it available in my kindergarten classroom。 I would even use it as a read aloud。 I give it a 5 out of 5 。 This is a great book that can be used to instill poems into young children's lives at such an early age。 It is a great read that has such educational value。 I love it and will make it available in my kindergarten classroom。 I would even use it as a read aloud。 I give it a 5 out of 5 。 。。。more
Melany
，