By: Brian P. Cleary
Publisher: Millbrook Press
Publication Date: August 2010
ISBN: 978-0822578802
Reviewed by: Deb Fowler
Review Date: September 2010
You can see patterns all around you if you look closely or, for example, when you try counting in a certain pattern called “skip counting.” The zany looking cat on roller blades pointing to an easel in the front of the book will tell you that a pattern is “A repeating arrangement of numbers, colors, shapes, or other items.” This cat has an ugly looking pattern on his shirt, but that is not the kind of pattern we are taking a look at in this book. Once you see how a pattern repeats itself, you can soon figure out what will be next. Take for example, you can see on one page a red circle, green square, red circle, green square, red circle, and a green square. Can you tell what kind of shape will be next?
If you guessed that a red circle was next, you would be . . . correct! It can be very easy to predict because “Once you catch on, you can guess exactly what’s next.” These crazy CATegorical cats will help you learn all about patterns in a fun and easy way with their handy, dandy rhymes. You’ll get to take a look at colors, shapes, numbers and other things. For example as you watch the painter cat work on a black and white checkered floor you can easily see that “The pattern on this kitchen floor is white, then black, then white. / If this design is followed, then the floor will turn out right.” A-B-A-B-A-B . . . it is easy to see that patterns can be fun AND predictable!
If you want to introduce your child or students to the concept of patterning, the CATegorical cats will show you how. Patterning is a classification skill that children learn at a young age. In this book we see simple patterns, but by the end we are looking at the more sophisticated patterns we find in skip counting. The CATegorical cats make it a lot of fun to learn how patterns work with their ingenious way of making somewhat boring concepts fun and exciting. You can count on the artwork in each of the CATegorical books to be colorful, zany, and scrumpdillyiciously fun every time you spot those cats.
Quill says: If you’ve ever taken a look at a “Math is CATegorical” book, you know you’ll be adding this one to the others in the series!
