Monkey Puzzle

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This article does not cite any sources. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. I love the way that children learn that not all animal babies look like their parents in this story. I thought that the butterfly revealing that her children didn’t look like her was very clever. Little monkey has lost his mum but a passing butterfly tells him that she will help him to find her. The only clue that Little Monkey can give butterfly is 'She's big! Bigger than me.' Choose an animal and write a detailed description of it to help the butterfly find it straight away.

As the monkey and the butterfly continue their exploration, they eventually stumble upon the monkey's father. He affectionately calls the monkey, urging her to return home. Just as they are about to head home, the butterfly catches sight of the monkey's true mother. Reuniting with her mother fills the young monkey's heart with joy, ending her journey of discovery and separation. Look at the plants and flowers in the illustrations. Can you identify similar plants using reference books?I really enjoyed reading this book and reading it to a class of children because they seem to enjoy it and engage with the story. I would say that the most appropriate age for this book would be around 3-6 years. However, I have read it to 1 and 2 year old children and they have engaged with the it. I think it just depends on the child and if they are happy to sit and listen to a story. After a parrot is produced, Little Monkey tells butterfly that his mum 'leaps about'. Once more butterfly gets it wrong and produces a frog. 'Brown fur' is Little Monkey's next clue but the creature hanging upside down in a tree isn't his mum; 'she's not nearly so small' explains little monkey.

Monkey Puzzle or Where’s My Mom by Julia Donaldson and Axel Scheffler is full of delights for young children. You will find Julia Donaldson’s brilliant rhymes and Axel Scheffler’s wonderful illustrations along with repetition, clues, jungle animals and a great big hug. We have read it over and over again and never tire of it. If you don’t own a copy it is a great addition to your bookshelves at this time of year as Mother’s Day approaches and it is also a fantastic story to read in the Spring as an introduction to the lifecycle of a butterfly.This leads butterfly on a wild goose, or more appropriately to begin with, a wild elephant, chase. Little monkey has to tell him that it isn't his mum and he gives butterfly another clue - 'her tail coils round the trees'.

Monkey Puzzle works really well in a primary-school drama session, with the children miming the various animals.We love Julia Donaldson books in this house, they are such wonderfully imaginative stories for little ones! Look at the creatures in the story and the illustrations. Could you write a report about one of them, describing where they live and what they are like? I also continued to write “grown-up” songs and perform them in folk clubs and on the radio, and have recently released two CDs of these songs.