What Little Hands Can Do as Told in Adorable Picture Book for Toddlers and Preschoolers

Learning about the parts of their bodies is a fun activity for our toddlers and preschoolers. Ammi-Joan Paquette's adorable picture book in a sturdy board book form My Hands Can is a fun read to learn about all the wonderful things that they can do with their hands.

Counting their hands and the fingers on their hands is an exercise in learning to count. Mixing things is done with hands. Playing on the beach and building a sand castle is done with their hands. Holding eating utensils is done with their hands. Paquette includes a multicultural illustration of a child using chopsticks to eat with. Holding hands with parents or siblings is an activity done with their hands. Sometimes hands can be used in reading when pointing to the words. Hands are important for many activities. Hands also come in all skin colors.

Sabrena Khadija contributed her talents as an illustrator for colorful illustrations in My Hands Can. The illustrations portray multicultural children with many skin colors.

My Hands Can is recommended for ages 2-5. It was published by Penguin Workshop, a division of Penguin/Random House. It has an ISBN of 978-0-593-66044-7.

Young children should be encouraged to use their hands everyday and celebrate all the ways that they can use their hands.

Teachers who teach in early childhood classrooms with toddlers and preschoolers will want to add My Hands Can to their classroom bookshelf. This adorable picture book comes in a sturdy board book form that is toddler and preschooler-proof. Young readers always enjoy learning about the parts of their bodies.

*Read My Hands Can in a story time session. Call attention to the fact that we have two hands and use this as a counting activity for counting our hands and fingers.

*Call attention to the illustration of the child eating with chopsticks. Bring in some chopsticks and other eating utensils that toddlers and preschoolers use to eat with. How would we manage without our hands? Invite children to experiment with the chopsticks and simple food items to pick up with the chopsticks.

*Encourage children to use the blocks in your block area to build something with their hands.

*Engage children in a game of "London Bridges" and holding hands while playing the game.

*Engage children in a game of catch with a large ball designed for toddlers and preschoolers. We can catch things with our hands.

*Call attention to the illustration that features hands in all types of skin colors. Engage children in looking at the different skin colors of their classmates.

*Provide construction paper in skin colors. Trace the hands of your students and cut them out to construct a wreath shape of handprints for your classroom.

*Provide crayons and markers in a variety of skin colors for children to trace their hands in an art activity.

*Use plaster of Paris to make handprints of each child for a gift for their parents. These can be decorated for many types of gifts.