“Have no fear, little fish,”
Said the Cat in the Hat.
“These Things are good Things.”
And he gave them a pat.“They are tame. Oh, so tame!
They have come here to play.
They will give you some fun
On this wet, wet, wet day.”
For my money, The Cat in the Hat is still one of the best for doing daily practice with an early reader. My six-year-old is past Bob Books, but he can get frustrated if he has to read too many big words.
Dr. Seuss did a great job here not only of writing a charming story that adults can enjoy along with their kids, but also of using bite-sized words that early readers can handle. Just look at the quote above: only one word in the eight lines is more than a single syllable. That’s perfect for helping my six-year-old gain confidence while he starts to move on to bigger words, and it gives the book a playfully choppy rhythm that suits the story.
Also, the book is 60 pages long. We started out doing two spreads a day, then moved to three, so that was good for more than ten days of reading practice before I have to choose what to read next.
Saints and Children Gathered 