DOWN ON THE FARM

The three R’s—rhythm, rhyme, and repetition—are harvested abundantly in this simple, sing-song introduction to farm animals for toddlers. Horses say “nay, nay, nay,” geese “kerplonk” and “honk, honk, honk,” and dogs on the roof go “woof, woof, woof,” presenting a straightforward peek at standard farm residents in their element. Aside from a few tiny lyrical and visual twists, it’s familiar territory that overlaps Old McDonald’s home turf with its elementary foundation of a “moo, moo, moo” roll-call structure designed to invite call-and-response participation from young listeners. Rhythmically, each four-line “verse” solidly hits its mark, creating a natural, bouncy read-aloud, particularly for preschool groups and one-on-one lap-reading interaction. Accompanying art is appropriately lighthearted and basic, if not overly simplistic due largely to heavy black outlines that give the flat images a slightly rudimentary, coloring-book quality that suits the text. (Picture book. 2-5)