The Going to Bed Book ~Review~

Daddy and kids enjoying The Going to Bed Book

When my daughter (now almost 6 y/o *tear*) was a baby, I really wanted to have the "bedtime routine" thingy. You know..... that song that my daughter would one day sing to her kids, that story that my son would tell his kids as he snuggles on the couch. So when I found The Going to Bed Book by Sandra Boynton, I was ecstatic. It was the perfect book for that prefect bedtime routine. We used the same board book (or chewable book as often affectionately call them) for both my daughter and my son (now almost 4). My husband and I can recite it in our sleep (and I'm pretty sure we have done that at some point!) and both of the kids have it memorized as well. Over the years we have lost the book, found the book, left it grandmas. We even left it at church and surprising it was still there the following week. We don't use it as part of our every night bedtime routine, but we still use it. So imagine my excitement when we found the The Going to Bed Book could be captured in our iPad. Ms. Boynton, if you happen to read this, thank you for writing simple, silly, and heartwarming children's books that will be enjoyed for years to come!

The Going to Bed Book

This app was my first exposure to Loud Crow Interactive and I was very impressed. I love how they created an interactive book, yet still stayed true to the board book feel of the original The Going to Bed Book. I think that the board book feel makes it even more enticing an a book app.

For those of you not familiar with the story, it is about a group of animal "friends" getting ready to go to bed and the activities they go through - take bath, brush teeth, find pajamas, etc. In this interactive book, each page presents with something different in which to interact. Some pages are just touch and see, other pages give you a clue to where to touch or what to do. My favorite page and interaction has to be what happens during the brush your teeth page...and no I'm not telling! OK, I'll give you a clue, it has something to do with turning on the hot water!

The book gives the option of having the story read to the user, compliments of "the big guy" or "I want to read it myself" which makes a nice option for all young readers. "The big guy's" voice is very pleasant and soothing, prefect for a relaxing bedtime story. The background music isn't too loud (has a in-book volume control too) and fits the story and bedtime theme well.

Additional IEP applications

I have no used this book with my students, but the interactive elements would be very engaging for them. I see this book working well with students who have physical limitation. The interactive features would work well with a couple of my students who have limited arm/hand movement. This app would be perfect when doing a unit on families or daily living skills.

Suggestions

I can't believe that I have not thought of a suggestion for this book! I usually can think of at least one thing. This book has all the aspects of an interactive book that I look for - highlighted text, read to me, and interaction with characters. After thinking long and hard, one thing that most interactive books lack, and this is no exception, is a section that would help facilitate comprehension. As a special education teacher, it would be nice to have a section to click on that would allow for questions and answers about the story. 

Even though this book has special meaning to my family, I would suggest this book to anyone who is looking for that special story to share with their young children. It is a simple read, easily memorized by all which is a great feature when you can't find the book or your toddler has deleted the app or your preschooler has hid your iPad. :-) For $2.99, this book is a must buy. If you grow to love this story as much as I do, I suggest buying a hard copy of the book because your not going to want to put your iPad in your child's memory box! You will want a hard copy for the memory box!

I have included a brief video showing this app in action. Enjoy!

Video obtained from Loud Crow Interactive website

APP INFO

developer: Loud Crow

website: http://loudcrow.com/

itunes: The Going to Bed Book

category: Books

recently updated: March 11, 2011

Other Loud Crow-Boynton Books I would recommend:

The Going to Bed Book         Blue Hat, Green Hat            Moo, Baa, La, La, La!