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I Wish That I Had Duck Feet (Beginners Books)

I Wish That I Had Duck Feet (Beginners Books)

List Price: $8.99
Your Price: $8.09
Product Info Reviews

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Rating: 5 stars
Summary: One of the Best Childrens Books Ever
Review: "I wish I had Duck Feet" written by Theo Le Sieg, is an exceptional peice of children's literature. Not only is this book entertaining, it has a morale. Children need to understand that they are special just the way they are and this book gives an imaginative way to demonstrate that to a child. The only reason I would give this a four star rating instead of a five star rating is because the main character tends to pick on or try and find ways to bully another child. It seems though that it is out of revenge, but still I think it would have been a better book if the relationship between the two character would not have been included. Overall this book is a great read for children and I would strongly recommend it.

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: "I wish I had duck feet"
Review: "I wish I had Duck Feet" written by Theo Le Sieg, is an exceptional peice of children's literature. Not only is this book entertaining, it has a morale. Children need to understand that they are special just the way they are and this book gives an imaginative way to demonstrate that to a child. The only reason I would give this a four star rating instead of a five star rating is because the main character tends to pick on or try and find ways to bully another child. It seems though that it is out of revenge, but still I think it would have been a better book if the relationship between the two character would not have been included. Overall this book is a great read for children and I would strongly recommend it.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: This Is Wonderful!
Review: "I Wish That I Had Duck Feet" combines a whimsical text by Theo. LeSieg with the energetic illustrations of B. Tobey. The text is told in the first-person by a boy with a vivid imagination. Sample text: "I wish that I had duck feet. / And I can tell you why. / You can splash around in duck feet. / You don't have to keep them dry."

The narrator imagines himself having various animal body parts: the duck feet of the title, antlers, an elephant's nose, etc. The illustrations actually depict each fantastic leap of the boy's imagination. With each scenario, he imagines both the positive and negative aspects of the situation.

The copyright date on the book is 1965, so some aspects of it are out-of-date: there is no ethnic diversity in the all-white characters depicted, and the boy's father is shown smoking. But despite that, this book really holds up as a fun volume for younger readers.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: This Is Wonderful!
Review: I Wish I Had Duck Feet
by: Theo LeSieg

This book is perhaps the best book every written. The book is based on a little boy who desires to look like different varieties of animals. Each animal has a distinctive look about them. The boy likes to try to use what the animal does best for his own liking. This book is intriguing and very fun to read. I recommend this book to any child that is trying to distinguish the different types of animals. Great book!

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: A lesson in on-balance assessment from Theo. LeSieg
Review: If you go by the last line of "I Wish That I Had Duck Feet" then you would be inclined to think that this "I Can Read It All By Myself: Beginner Book" is about building self esteem in small children. But this book, written by Theo. LeSieg (do the last name backwards) and illustrated by B. Tobey, does two other important things as well. As is the case with any and all books from Dr. Seuss, there is an emphasis on the imagination. The young boy who wishes he had duck feet also wishes that he could have deer horns, a long tail, and several other physical features that would make him unique and special.

But the most important thing that "I Wish That I Had Duck Feet" teaches beginning readers is the value of looking at both sides of an issue. While the young boy is able to come up with lots of reasons why having duck feet would be a good thing, his mother has at least one very good reason why he would not want them. From that point on in the story the young boy comes up with both the pros and cons for each of the things for which he wishes. Not only does this make the point that kids should think things through first, but it also serves as a reminder that not everything kids wish for is worth having.

Still, the ability to see both sides of an issue is an important skill for young kids to acquire (older ones too, for that matter). Besides, parents can use the lesson from this book to good advantage. The next time your kid wishes they could have something and they tell you all the reasons why it would be a good thing to have, you can ask that they come up with reasons for the down side. If they claim they cannot come up with any you can certainly find one and tell them that since they could not come up with the pros and cons the answer is "No." However, as much fun as this can be keep in mind that if they come up with points for both sides and make the case for the pros outweighing the cons, you are pretty much obligated to grant their wish.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: A lesson in on-balance assessment from Theo. LeSieg
Review: If you go by the last line of "I Wish That I Had Duck Feet" then you would be inclined to think that this "I Can Read It All By Myself: Beginner Book" is about building self esteem in small children. But this book, written by Theo. LeSieg (do the last name backwards) and illustrated by B. Tobey, does two other important things as well. As is the case with any and all books from Dr. Seuss, there is an emphasis on the imagination. The young boy who wishes he had duck feet also wishes that he could have deer horns, a long tail, and several other physical features that would make him unique and special.

But the most important thing that "I Wish That I Had Duck Feet" teaches beginning readers is the value of looking at both sides of an issue. While the young boy is able to come up with lots of reasons why having duck feet would be a good thing, his mother has at least one very good reason why he would not want them. From that point on in the story the young boy comes up with both the pros and cons for each of the things for which he wishes. Not only does this make the point that kids should think things through first, but it also serves as a reminder that not everything kids wish for is worth having.

Still, the ability to see both sides of an issue is an important skill for young kids to acquire (older ones too, for that matter). Besides, parents can use the lesson from this book to good advantage. The next time your kid wishes they could have something and they tell you all the reasons why it would be a good thing to have, you can ask that they come up with reasons for the down side. If they claim they cannot come up with any you can certainly find one and tell them that since they could not come up with the pros and cons the answer is "No." However, as much fun as this can be keep in mind that if they come up with points for both sides and make the case for the pros outweighing the cons, you are pretty much obligated to grant their wish.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: My Daughter's Favorite
Review: My daughter now 14 years old used to request this book nightly when she was much younger. Recently, I asked her for a book recommendation for a coworker and she recommended this. I had forgotten we used to read it but somehow she remembered and cited it as her all time favorite - quite a testimonial!

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: I Wish That I Had Duck Feet
Review: One of my children's all-time favorites. I first read it to my daughter when she was 2 and she insisted I read it to her several times a day. This went on for months. I then began leaving off the last word of every other sentence and as I pointed to it, she "read" it from memory. I credit this book with helping to give her a love for reading. By the time she was 4 she could read it on her own (not just memorized). I recently asked my 10-year-old son to list his favorite books from his early childhood and this one was at the top of the list. I think the zaniness of imagining having duck feet or antlers really appeals to a child. As a teacher, I also use this book with older children who are having trouble with reading.

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: I wish that I had Duck Feet
Review: The book "I Wish that I had Duck Feet" was a good book because of several reasons. The Three reasons are it's short, it's easy to read, and it's got good pictures. The first reason why "I Wish that I had Duck Feet" was a good book is because it is easy to read. It is easy to read because it's a little kids book and the words are big and easy to see. It is also easy to read because it doesn't have very many words on one page. The second reason why this book it good is because it's short. I like short books because they don't look very small letters like big novels have. It is also a small page book, because there are not very many words on the page. The last reason why I liked the book"I Wish that I had Duck Feet" is because it had good pictures. There wasn't a page on the book that didn't have a picture; The book showed all kinds of different pictures because it had stuff like deer antlers on the kid and a well spout, and a long tail for jump-rope. In conclusion there is no way a person can have Duck Feet, or deer antlers, or a long tail becasue every human is normal and it doesn't talk about realistic people, that is why little kids like the book.

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: I wish that I had Duck Feet
Review: This book clearly deserves more than five stars for being one of the most helpful and interesting children's books of all time!

Children have powerful imaginations, and this book provides an outstanding model for helping them to learn how to use their imaginations in more useful ways. In addition, the story is so interesting and compelling that they will be drawn into wanting to reread it often. As a result, they will begin to memorize the sentences . . . and thus have the foundation for identifying the words that go along with their recollections.

Unlike many children's books, this one would also be appealing to adult literacy students.

The illustrations are particularly good for making the boy's (and your child's) imagination come to life.

The book begins with the boy waddling around on duck feet.

"You can splash around in duck feet.

You don't have to keep them dry.

No more shoes!"

". . . very good to have them when I play." This is illustrated with the boy getting thules in a pond while ducks swim by.

"BUT . . . My mother would not like them." She would not like the wet mess in her clean house.

From this sequence, you can see how the book is structured. The child imagines some new feature attached to his body. He then thinks about the advantages of that new feature. Next, he considers the drawbacks. Having looked at both, he goes on to decide whether to keep the feature or not. This is a method that many geniuses have used throughout history to make their great breakthroughs. Sharing this method is a wonderful gift to give your child!

Then, the boy goes on to repeat the process.

"SO . . . If I can't have duck feet,

I'll have something else instead . . .

. . . two horns up on my head."

He tries on "a long, long tail," "a nose just like an elephant's," and "ALL THOSE THINGS!" The last he calls a "Which-What-Who."

Then the story teaches its final lesson:

"AND SO . . . I think there are some things I do not wish to be."

"And that is why

I think that I

just wish to be like ME."

The final illustration shows all of the appendages discussed in the book in a garbage can.

An obvious application of the book is to encourage your child to come up with her or his own ideas for changing the body, discussing benefits and drawbacks, and deciding whether the change would be a beneficial one over all. You can have tremendous fun with that one, while teaching Benjamin Franklin's favorite method for making decisions. He would list all of the pros and cons of something on a piece of paper, and then decide what do do. Millions still use this process.

I especially like the way the book helps the child come to appreciate what he or she already has. Few books of imagination leave a child feeling more satisfied with herself or himself. That's a very nice touch.

If you find that your child is sensitive about some feature (glasses, being diminutive, a large nose, or whatever), you can use this book's structure in a different way. You can encourage your child to find as many advantages as possible to overbalance the disadvantages that have already been noticed, and to be glad about that feature. That perspective would be a great gift to your child!

See potential all around you . . . then seize the opportunities that truly make sense!


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