WHOSE HANDS ARE THESE?

Rhyming verses and illustrations of hands working give readers the opportunity to guess what community jobs people do.

“Stop and go, these hands are waving. / Catch that guy! He’s misbehaving! / These hands help us keep the peace. / Hold yours up, it’s the… // police!” The richly colored and nicely textured illustrations show a hand holding a radio, a pointing index finger, hands writing a summons, and a hand holding a stop sign. From the commonplace to those that rarely appear in picture books, the other occupations include farmer, cook, scientist, potter, news reporter, mechanic, architect, referee, and physician. The final puzzle reveals the hands of teachers, a perfect segue to the final spread, which shows a classroom full of tots dressed as community helpers before an adult audience of the same. In both the pictures showing only hands and in the full-page reveals, people of all genders, ages, and ethnicities are displayed. Backmatter includes two double-page spreads describing each of the careers—what that job entails and the education/experience needed for it.

A great addition to libraries’ and teacher’s shelves for units on community helpers.