In this magical bedtime story, the lyrical narrative echoes a Runaway Bunny-like cadence: “Does everything in the world go to sleep?” the little girl asks. In sincere and imaginative dialogue between a not-at-all sleepy child and understanding parents, the little girl decides “in a cocoon of sheets, a nest of blankets,” she is ready to sleep, warm and strong, just like a tiger. The Caldecott Honor artist Pamela Zagarenski’s rich, luminous mixed-media paintings effervesce with odd, charming details that nonsleepy children could examine for hours.
Understanding that words are read from left to right and pages are read from top to bottom
Starting to notice words that rhyme and enjoys participating in rhyming games
Retelling stories
Recognizing some of the letters of the alphabet
Starting to match letter sounds to letters (like knowing b makes a /b/ sound)
May start to recognize their name in print and other often-seen words, like those on signs
Beginning to understand that print carries a message
Your child has been hearing and studying the sounds of words for quite a while now. One of the tasks of emergent literacy is to be able to hear individual sounds, to make sounds, and to put sounds together to make words. When we start to play with the letters of our language, we can help our children learn that each letter represents a unique sound or sounds and when we put letters together, they can make different sounds. This is necessary for learning to read. Playing with the sounds of words by singing, reading rhyming books and playing word games can help your child master these letter-sound connections and put them on a path to reading success!
Click here to see a full list of milestones for your 3-year-old as well as tips and activities for you and your child!
Why did we select this book?
An easy bedtime and good night’s sleep for you and your three-year-old can feel like winning the lottery. What magic do you work to get that to happen? The child in Sleep Like a Tiger not only goes to sleep like magic, but inhabits a magical, dreamlike house. While you do not get around on wheels like these parents (although that might make chasing your three-year-old easier) you do have your habits and stories that put your child to sleep. We loved how the parents in this book cajole their child with stories of how “everything in the world” goes to sleep. The child gently absorbs these stories and mimics the animals and their cozy bedtime routines.
Related Activities
You might ask your child to also pretend they are a dog, bat, cat, snail, whale, bear, and tiger going off to sleep. Imagine other animals and how they go to sleep. Knowing that “everything in the world” goes to sleep may help your child not so feel alone at bedtime.
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