The Book Shelf: From the Stratford Public Library
Splat the Cat
by Rob Scotton
40 pages
@ SPL: JP Scott

Splat was wide awake. His tail wiggled with worry. Today was his first day at Cat School and he was nervous. Would he get lost at school? Would his teacher be nice? Would he have any friends there? Just to be sure, Splat decided to take along his pet mouse, Seymour.
With Seymour hidden in his lunchbox, Splat walked to school with his mother, and met his new classmates. The morning passed quickly as his teacher, Mrs. Wimplydimple, taught the class some fascinating cat lessons. Splat relaxed. School was quite enjoyable after all!
However, when lunchtime arrived, Seymour escaped from his lunchbox and the classroom erupted as his new friends started to chase his pet mouse. Although Seymour was safely found again, Splat was terribly worried about his teacher’s reaction to the hullabaloo.
Fortunately, Mrs. Wimplydimple proved to be a patient and wise teacher who knew exactly how to handle the situation. The rest of the day was lots of fun, and the next day, Splat was as excited as he had been nervous the day before about attending school.
Rob Scotton, author of Russell the Sheep and various other picture books, takes a reassuring, light-hearted approach to some first-day-of-school jitters in this enjoyable story for young children, who may be about to begin school themselves.
** Recommended for ages 3 to 5 years.

What DO Teachers Do (after You Leave School)?
by Anne Bowen
30 pages
@ SPL: JP Bowen

Does anyone really know what teachers do when school is out for the day and students are at home trying to finish all their homework? No one doubts for a minute that teachers must spend lots of time dreaming up new assignments for their lucky students and reading dictionaries to become even smarter, but surely there’s more to their nightlife than that! What truly goes on at school in the evening hours?
Do teachers order in pizza and have a food fight with the leftovers in the cafeteria when they finish eating? Do they play basketball in the gym and rollerblade up and down the hallways? Do they swing by their toes on the playground equipment? Conduct messy, goopy science experiments that sometimes explode? Make faces in the bathroom mirrors?
What does the principal do while all of this fun is going on?
Young students, parents (and teachers) will enjoy this imaginative, wacky book. Who knew that teachers lead such exciting lives après school hours?
** Recommended for ages 4 to 7 years.

– Sally Hengeveld
librarian