Are the Dinosaurs Dead, Dad? by Julie Middleton (England)Illustrated by Russell Ayto (England)
Published by Peachtree Publishers 2012 (Great Britain) 2013 (United States)
Are the Dinosaurs Dead, Dad? is a fun children's picture book that shows that parents should listen to their kids every once in awhile. Dave and his dad go to a museum to see The Amazing Dinosaur Exhibition. As they travel through the exhibition, Dave falls a bit behind his dad and sees the true nature of the dinosaurs. The dinosaurs appear dead as his dad pass by, but right after Dave passes by them, they come to life and try to play with Dave. He continues to ask if it is possible for the dinosaurs to do these things, and every time his dad dismisses his thoughts telling him that it is just his imagination. At the end of the story, Dave proves to his father that he is right about the dinosaurs being alive as a dinosaur roars and knock them off their feet.
The illustrations are more abstract and dramatic, but they are very colorful. The big book would be a great read aloud because of the fun illustrations. The repeated language would make this a good book for younger readers. However, it does include some difficult vocabulary that would make it a better story for a read aloud.
This story would fit in well with a lesson on listening to others and what they are saying. It could also be utilized for a unit on punctuation and quotation marks because those are prevalent in the story. If you were doing a lesson on dinosaurs and science, it would be a great introduction piece.
I would recommend this book to Kindergarten through Second grade classrooms. Students would enjoy the storyline because the child is right as opposed to the parent, and the illustrations are different.
Middleton, J., & Ayto, R. (2013). Are the dinosaurs dead, Dad?.
