A pigeon with no sense of direction fails a flight school exam, but with additional study and a teacher’s encouragement, triumphs the second time around.
Confident student pilot Hank is plunged into despair after he loses track of where to go, and to the derision of his classmates, he returns from his demonstration flight two hours late. Second time’s the charm, though, after his teacher puts a proper spin on the experience—“With hard work on your side / And a compass to guide, / To the head of the class you can soar!”—and leaves him to practice his map-reading skills. Each scene features tap-activated blinks, squawks or other small-scale effects, a text box that evaporates with a touch, and an inconspicuous menu icon. Eight easy, multiple-choice comprehension and discussion questions (“Does having a personal hardship or learning challenge mean that you can’t succeed?”) cap a thoroughly lesson-driven episode. It is illustrated with bland cartoons and written in verse so contrived that even the supplied narration sounds labored.
Well-meant but unlikely to get children, learning-challenged or otherwise, off the ground. (iPad storybook app. 6-9)
