My three year old's been struggling with the concept of maps lately (seriously, that is really hard to explain to someone!), so when I saw this on the library display I thought we'd give it a try. Henry the pig decides to draw a map of his farm and includes all the farm animals on it, to their delight. When they all climb a hill to look down on the farm and compare it to the map, everyone is alarmed that there are no animals on the farm though there are animals on the map.It worked for my son in the sense that it helped him understand the concept of a map to show how things are relative to other things (and the inclusion of Henry's actual map helped with this), but the twist at the end where the animals expect to look down on themselves and don't has confused him a bit. Maybe that concept is still too advanced for him? Or maybe it's just muddying up the waters of something he's only now understanding. Either way, he still enjoys the book and I'm glad we found something to get the map thing across. "A place for everything and everything in its place" - Henry the pig has a penchant for orderliness, so he draws a map. As he shows it to the other inhabitants of the farm, they ask to be included as well. When the map is complete, they all stand at the top of the hill to take a look. But where have the animals gone that Henry drew? A sweet, humorous story.Henry's drawings are made in a child like manner, so this would be a great story for emphasizing early writing and early literacy skills. And a natural lead in for children to make their own maps.Author/illustrator is from New Zealand.
What do You think about Henry's Map (2013)?
Cute story about mapping. Young readers will enjoy this sweet story about farm animals.
—Terra
Brenda recommended this one and I loved it. Will use it with my next mapping program.
—Lily
