📖 Overview
Ten mice encounter a hungry snake who begins collecting them in a jar. The mice must use their wits to escape their predicament.
The book employs simple illustrations with cut-paper collage techniques in a limited color palette. The story incorporates basic counting concepts from 1-10 as the plot progresses.
The narrative touches on themes of cooperation, quick thinking, and the power of working together to overcome challenges. Its mathematical elements blend seamlessly with the story's suspenseful yet accessible plot.
👀 Reviews
Parents and teachers use this book to teach counting from 1-10 to young children. Multiple reviewers mention that kids stay engaged due to the interactive counting element and suspenseful snake character.
Readers liked:
- Clear, large numbers for counting practice
- Simple illustrations that hold children's attention
- Math connections for preschool/kindergarten lessons
- Short length suitable for bedtime reading
- Subtle lesson about cooperation
Common criticisms:
- Some found the snake character too scary for very young children
- A few noted the plot was predictable
- Limited replay value once counting is mastered
Ratings:
Goodreads: 4.08/5 (1,726 ratings)
Amazon: 4.7/5 (478 ratings)
"Perfect for teaching one-to-one correspondence," noted one teacher reviewer. Another parent commented that the book helped their child overcome a fear of counting activities through the engaging story format.
📚 Similar books
Ten Black Dots by Donald Crews
The book uses dots as counting elements that transform into different objects on each page.
One Is a Snail, Ten Is a Crab by April Pulley Sayre, Jeff Sayre Animals with different numbers of feet combine to create counting combinations from 1 to 100.
Fish Eyes by Lois Ehlert Fish swim through colorful pages while children count their gleaming eyes and spots.
Anno's Counting Book by Mitsumasa Anno Numbers from 1 to 12 build through scenes that grow more complex with each page turn.
How Many Snails? by Paul Giganti Jr., Donald Crews The text presents counting challenges using everyday objects and scenes from nature.
One Is a Snail, Ten Is a Crab by April Pulley Sayre, Jeff Sayre Animals with different numbers of feet combine to create counting combinations from 1 to 100.
Fish Eyes by Lois Ehlert Fish swim through colorful pages while children count their gleaming eyes and spots.
Anno's Counting Book by Mitsumasa Anno Numbers from 1 to 12 build through scenes that grow more complex with each page turn.
How Many Snails? by Paul Giganti Jr., Donald Crews The text presents counting challenges using everyday objects and scenes from nature.
🤔 Interesting facts
🐭 "Mouse Count" was first published in 1991 and has remained a beloved counting book for three decades.
🌟 Author Ellen Stoll Walsh creates her illustrations using cut-paper collage techniques, giving the book its distinctive, bold visual style.
🐍 The story cleverly teaches both addition and subtraction as mice are collected and then escape from the snake's jar.
📚 The book is often used in elementary math lessons to demonstrate the concept of "taking away" in a engaging, visual way.
🎨 Walsh's minimalist color palette - primarily using blues, greens, and browns - helps young readers focus on counting the white mice without visual distractions.