Time to Sleep

Time to Sleep by Denise Fleming is a great book for home or for the classroom. It could be an outstanding book to use for a bed time story because each of the animals in the story must find their friend to tell them it is time to sleep for winter. Also this short book could be an excellent book to use in a science classroom to discuss the concept of hibernation and that is why all the animals are going to sleep. The illustrations throughout the book are amazing as well. I would recommend this book for students preschool to second or third grade.

Caldecott Honoree Denise Fleming is back with a great introduction to the concept of hibernation. Bear sees that it's time to go to sleep for the winter, and the message is passed from snails to skunks in the forest so that all are prepared for the impending season and model the idea of looking out for others. Ms. Fleming's unusual illustrations process, combining complimentary colors, stencils and cotton pulp, provide unforgettable results. Alliteration abounds, encouraging phonological awareness in the early reader. While "Sleepy Bear" by Lydia Dabcovich also explores hibernation, "Time to Sleep" remains a superior choice, due to the tremendous world Fleming builds through patterned language and evocative vocabulary, where woodchucks sigh and turtles ramble

My 3 year old loves this book for the beautiful illustrations of the animals and the forest during Autumn. However, one night after we read it a bedtime, she looked over at me and said that she liked "how all of the animals took care of each other." If she can get this simple, yet crucially important lesson from a children's book, I would say that the author has gone above and beyond her intentions.

This book is another stunning sucess for Fleming. Beautiful illustrations, which employ autumn-ish color schemes, make for a visual treat, while the story conveys a wonderful message of social responsibility. Highly recommended for bedtime as well as discussions about hibernation (all the information about each animal's hibernation behavior is accurate, and obviously researched).

This is a wonderful book to use when explaining the concept of hibernation and change of season. There is a terrific flow from page to page with a "surprise" ending that my students loved. It is a wonderful spring-board for class discussions and "acting - out" activities!