By Abigail Dionne
Have you ever struggled to get a toddler to settle down for bedtime? If so, “Dinosaur’s Binkit” by Sandra Boynton is just the book for you and your child! This hilarious story follows a very simple narrative of a cartoon dinosaur searching for his beloved “binkit” while being prompted through the usual bedtime routines that a young child can relate to. This connection to the familiar and the simple, repetitive, rhyming nature of language used, combined with the colorful illustrations and interactive features, make this book a must-have for a parent of a two-year old child.
“Dinosaur’s Binkit” comes in a sturdy board book format, making it an excellent choice for a two-year old to be free to handle the book as they wish. The simple, cartoon-like illustrations are not overly busy and are predominantly comprised of primary colours with the addition of green, allowing a two-year old to easily focus and engage with this book. Children of this age group will be eager to participate in the “hands on” features of lifting flaps, opening a door, and lifting a blanket, all which reveal punchlines in the dialogue making the child an active part of the story during each read. This matches a two-year old’s need to have some power in their experiences well. It also introduces an opportunity to extend the learning by talking about the concepts of under, behind, inside, as well as colours. A parent can ask questions like, “Do you want to lift the red blanket? What’s under the bed?” or “What’s behind the brown door?”. Logistical and colour concepts can then be reinforced by the parent.
“Dinosaur’s Binkit” will teach excellent emergent literacy skills. The song-like refrain of “Dinosaur O Dinosaur” is repeated on nearly every page and will pull a two-year old child’s attention to the rhythmic language, helping a child to follow along with the remainder of each rhyme. The rhymes will promote the fun of language, increase a child’s vocabulary, and lead to a child’s better understanding of the patterns of language.
Two-year olds will relate to Dinosaur’s love of his comfort object, his binkit, and his desperation to find it before continuing his night-time routine. They will also connect to the fact that Dinosaur is being prompted by someone else to continue preparing for bed, much like a child’s daily experience with their own parent who is reading the story to them.
The simplistic narrative teaches two-year old children that things can still exist, even if you can’t see them or find them. Dinosaur never gives up searching for his binkit. This teaches children that when problems arrive, with patience and persistence, solutions can be found. This provides an opportunity for children to self-reflect on emotions. Parents can ask children how they feel when they can’t find a cherished object and how they feel when they eventually succeed in finding it. Experiencing Dinosaur finding his much-loved binkit and drifting off to sleep peacefully will help restless children settle for bed. Children will love flipping to the back cover and reciting the final lines “Good night Dinosaur. Goodnight Binkit.” before drifting off to sleep themselves.
In conclusion, this well-crafted book, although short, is jam-packed with engaging, educational, and entertaining elements that will keep parents and children coming back time and time again to delight in its humour and its reassuring, calming message. Parents will enjoy reading “Dinosaur O Dinosaur” as much as their child will love listening and participating in this beloved story!
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