"With mournful moan and a silken tone/ Itself alone comes
ONE TROMBONE./ Gliding, sliding, high notes go low/ ONE TROMBONE is playing
SOLO." From the opening lines, filled with internal and external rhymes, it is
apparent that Zin! Zin! Zin! A Violin! will
be a fun read! This book is a creative way to introduce your little one to music and
the instruments that play it. The pictures are brightly colored sketches,
filled with swirling people, cats, and instruments. The instrument name is
always spelled out in capital letters to help draw your child's attention
to it.
You can make a game out of identifying the many different
types of instruments involved in an orchestra: trombone, trumpet, French horn,
cello, violin, flute, clarinet, oboe, bassoon, and harp. Begin by naming the
instrument and pointing to it, and gradually begin just pointing to it and
letting your little one name it. As they get better, you can begin picking the
instruments at random, instead of in order as they appear in the story. The
book also teaches the names of different music groups: solo, duo, trio,
and quartet. This is great practice and a new way to learn numbers.
My niece Emily likes to repeat all
of the new words in the book after me. She was particularly curious about the
word 'encore.' After I explained that it was a way of requesting more of
something you enjoyed, she started using it all the time - especially after
dessert! I may have opened a can of worms with this one, but I was proud of her
for using the new word correctly.
--Audra
