Monkey and Me  by Emily Gravett (of Meerkat Mail fame…OK, not fame, but it's still a cute book, too) (2008)

 Deceptively simple illustrations and lots of white space make an excellent backdrop for print awareness and letter knowledge in this cute book with a recurring refrain, "Monkey and me, Monkey and me, Monkey and me are going to see…"  Every other page spread reveals a new type of animal they are going to see, with only images of the animals and the one word (PENGUINS, ELEPHANTS, MONKEYS) on the page, perfect to differentiate between word and images and also to point out individual letters.  The chant-ish refrain is also good for audience repetition, and the animal pictures themselves offer opportunities to make sounds or act out animal motions.  

A sample caregiver message:  "pointing out words in the environment helps your child notice a difference between words and pictures - it doesn't have to just be words on a page.  If you go to the zoo this lovely, sunny weekend, you can point out words on the signs you see at each exhibit!"

- Tasha F.