Wintertime - Let's Look at the Seasons Author:Ann Schweninger More like a collection of posters about winter than a coherent whole, Wintertime is a book to share bit by bit with young children rather than read at one sitting. Its strength is Schweninger's endearing clothed animal characters who take part in many winter activities. Its main weakness is that it is disjointed, switching suddenly from one ... more »topic to another with no transition. One two-page spread tells how different animals adapt to winter; the next spread gives directions for making a bird feeder with no explanation of why one might want to do so. Also, subjects are presented in a superficial manner. Winter holidays, clothing, recreation, animal tracks, and the coming of spring are all introduced in a few sentences. In addition, some concepts assume more background than most very young children have. Such sentences as "When the temperature falls below 32, dew and moisture become frost" may be lost on the intended audience. In a one-on-one situation, or with a creative teacher, this book might spark discussion and activities leading to better understandings about winter, but most collections already have many materials that will do the same. -- School Library Journal« less