That Is Not a Good Idea!

A sly fox invites a mother chicken out for the day. The little chickens think that might not be a good idea. Don't say they didn't warn him!

visual literacy story time??

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Jesse said, "That is really disturbing! Why would you read that to me?!"

He's got a valid point...someone does get cooked in the end :-/

Not my favorite by Mr. Willems, but I thought the twist was a little funny.

I really love basically anything by Mo Williams. I think he is a modern genius. In regards to this book I love that the text is formed like a silent film. It makes for great read-alongs with children. It also reads as a morality tale with a great twist at the end to make it fun and not scary

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anymore. In the classroom it can start a lesson on either safety with strangers or on silent films and melodrama. (The latter might be with older students).

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This book was hilarious! I totally didn’t expect the surprise ending! It was so good it’s hard to write about it without first stating that there is a SPOILER ALERT! so stop reading if you want to check out this book for yourself because its that good! Anyways I love the presentation of the

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book as a silent movie. I think that the presentation is an incredibly original concept to children’s books. I love the baby geese that interrupt and say “That is NOT a good idea!” and all along they were not warning the mother goose, but the big bad fox who was trying to trick her to come over to dinner to eat her! Great read!

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This book is meant to look like a silent film. It has a twist ending that is really amusing.

I love the silent movie format. I could also see it easily making a good readers theater or short play with a small group of children.

I was immediately attracted to the “silent movie” design style of presenting the prose on the stylized black frame, and only after reading it did I realize the cover illustration looks like the baby geese are watching a period film. Clever! The style automatically added to the drama of the

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story. I appreciated that there was more detail and period (Victorian?) style than in the “Elephant and Piggie books.” The scenes of the city, the kitchen, and the forest were all quite playful. Although the story is a variation of a common one, it is very fresh. The language is simple but it doesn’t talk down to kids. It has plenty of repetition to help early readers. This is one of those books that is so fun to read aloud in a “ham it up” fashion.

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This hilarious fractured fairytale/modern fantasy opens with a fox eyeing a goose -DINNER! He asks her to go for a stroll with him and she agrees... However, a voice of warning appears out of a small chick stating - "that is NOT a good idea." The fox and goose agree upon the fact that one key

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ingredient is missing from their soup... "YOU!" the goose shouts to the fox. She pushes him in the pot and begins to cook him. The little chicks appear once more to state that they "DID try to warn him." The final page shows Mother Goose and all her children sitting down to eat soup.

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The cover didn't interest my boys too much but once we got into the book they absolutely loved it. The best part is this story teaches a valuable lesson on avoiding strangers.your kids will be wanting you to retread this one countless times a day.

Willems creates another fun and entertaining book for young students to enjoy. The art is detailed in the background yet the characters are very cartoon-looking. The text is on a classic background that is plain black with a white motif which makes the story exciting since the art and text are

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separated. This story is fun especially since the reader is led to think the chicken is in danger! I certainly didn't see that twist and was entertained the whole time!

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Cute story, accessible to struggling or younger readers. The nice big print is a plus as well as the cute illustrations. The surprise ending is a hoot!

Another example of kids knowing better when a mother goose is invited to dinner by a hungry looking fox.

That is NOT a Good Idea is a story about a fox trying to woo a duck into the forest to his house for dinner. The duck appears clueless for the whole story but then ends up triumphing in the end. I thought this was a cute little story, that has a design that makes it look like an old timey silent

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film. The key literary element in this book is repetition. Reading it, you can start to pick up on the rhythm of the story. It would be good for early readers to practice picking up on some early elements of foreshadowing.

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Someone returned this yesterday so I snatched it up and checked it out myself. It was terrific, but I've come to expect no less from Mo.

Another Willems hit! A teachable story revolving around a fox and a goose. Easy to read and a good teachable lesson.

I love Mo Willems books! They are so engaging for children. During read-aloud, the children think they know what is happening and love to chime in with the "That is NOT a good idea!" Love the surprise ending. I would use this for prediction, character traits, and text-to-text connections (other

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books about tricky foxes.)

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This book is a modern fantasy about a duck and a fox who take a walk together into the fox's kitchen. As the fox shortly learns this was a poor choice. This book has a surprising ending, making readers think about their expectations and how they perceive the world.

This beginning reader book is about a "sly" Fox who is trying to trick this goose into coming to his house to be eaten, when really it is the goose who is doing the tricking and in turn, things don't end well for the fox... The art and style of the book makes for a very entertaining and suspenseful

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story. It also has quite a bit of humor to go along with it which comes mostly from the young chicks who are able to see this whole situation play out and comment with "that is not a good idea!" This would be a great classroom book to get the kids engaged in the story and participate in it. If they've read it before they'll know what happens at the end and will be anticipating it the whole time, which is exciting for them.

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This book is funny and loved by kids.
It is great for read-alouds because the children enjoy responding to questions about the text. My issue with the book is its lack of purpose or essential understanding.

The cover didn't interest my boys too much but once we got into the book they absolutely loved it. The best part is this story teaches a valuable lesson on avoiding strangers.your kids will be wanting you to retread this one countless times a day.

Loved the role reversal here! The goose goes with the wolf to try to turn her into a soup but he ends up in the pot instead. There's awesome picture references that hark back to old school films before there was sound and the chicks as warning device offers a fun repeating refrain.

Even the storytime adults laugh out loud!

The sharp look of this book resembles silent film panels. A worried and manic little chick chimes in throughout the story to humorous effect. Young readers will love the twist at the end of the story.