In this rousing read-aloud, all of insect land is abuzz with news of a big contest! The demure Damselfly Dilly — "neither clever nor frilly" — has no thoughts of winning, but she's curious to see who will. Lively verse mixes fun, fancy, and fascinating fact, while exuberant artwork virtually flies off the page.
Identifying the beginning, middle, and ending sounds in spoken words like dog or sit
Saying new words by changing the beginning sound, like changing rat to sat
Starting to match words they hear to words they see on the page
Sounding out simple words
Starting to recognize some words by sight without having to sound them out
Asking and answering who, what, where, when, why, and how questions about a story
Retelling a story in order, using words or pictures
Predicting what happens next in a story
Your child likely will learn all the letters and their sounds this year. Some combinations of letters are still tricky for children to hear but they’re learning all the time. By making these connections, your child can also start to write and decode some easy words and begin reading short books to you. Their comprehension of what’s going on in the more complex stories you are reading to them will help them understand the simple stories they can read themselves. Continuing to read to your child, even when they’re able to read, will give you both a chance to talk about more complicated books and continue the beautiful relationship you started together 5 years ago. Reading together can still be the very best part of the day for you and your child!
Click here to see a full list of milestones for your 5-year-old as well as tips and activities for you and your child!
Why did we select this book?
First, we chose this book because the illustrations were made for you in a little studio on Peaks Island, Maine, by the mighty Scott Nash. His love of insects and arachnids (spiders) shows on every page. Each spread is filled with detailed images of the secret lives of bugs. Author Carol Diggory Shields is a master of rhyme, and you and your child will delight in finding all those words that sound great together. Every new read aloud will lead you to discover a new character or a new word. Punch out the cards in the back to learn more about the real lives of these insects. Use them in a game. Can your child match the bugs on the cards to the ones on the page? Your child, like Dilly on the last page, “might be young and she might be small,” but she has grown so much because you have read to her since she was a baby! Bravo!
There is something special about knowing there are people in our state who spend their days creating and illustrating stories just so that families like yours will have wonderful books to read together.
This title was also one of 5 books included in an anthology of Maine books created exclusively for the Raising Readers program in 2005: https://www.raisingreaders.org/book/Raising-Readers-A-Collection-of-Stories-from-Maine-2005/160/
and again in 2013: https://www.raisingreaders.org/book/Raising-Readers-A-Collection-of-Stories-from-Maine/1305/
Related Activities
10 Ways to Explore The Bugliest Bug: Click to download our suggestions for simple (and fun!) activities for this favorite Raising Readers book.
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