Tide's Out - Tai Timu product reviews

We really enjoy bilingual books for children. Not only are they useful for little ones who are at a kohanga reo or kura kaupapa, but they are also great for all Kiwi kids, including those who are in mainstream education but may speak Te Reo at home. Then there are those children who are fluent but whose families may be shy of using both languages in case they get it wrong. Having both languages on the same page means there is a choice - you can use just one, or flit back and forth between both texts. It is a rewarding and very quick way to learn, and quite painless!

On face value this is just a basic counting book, but a good solid one for youngsters. The accompanying illustrations appealed to Mr Four, who counted aloud and pointed to each object. The beaches of Aotearoa New Zealand really come alive in these amazing graphics; I remember as a child finding some of the featured items and being excited when I came across a rare one. Every beach has a slightly different selection; on my beach there was plenty of seaweed and most of the shells were cockles. Occasionally there was an entire whelk, but often they were damaged and invariably the occupants were long gone.

The children recently spent some time in Akaroa; they loved flicking through the book and pointing out the things they had seen on the beach there. Mr Four was very interested in the workings of the tides, and was fascinated by the way moving waves gently nudged items in to shore as they broke. Like the children in the story, he stood in the shallows as the sea washed in over his feet, leaving tiny treasures for him to pick up.

Miss Five enjoyed learning to count in Te Reo and acquiring some new words. She already knew "moana" and all the numbers, but some of the shellfish and bird names were new to her. Not only the Maori names, but the English as well - not one of the adults knew all of them (including me). It is amazing how much everyone learns from a book that is ostensibly a very simple counting book. What a brilliant idea to use items found at the seaside to accompany the numbers. The items even have an extra dimension - a dedicated adjective to describe each one. So seaweed is salty (mataitai), driftwood is damp (makuku), mangrove seeds are smooth (maeneene), etc.

Although this is theoretically a book for preschoolers, it has much wider appeal. I enjoyed it, as did the children's parents, and all three of us learned some new words. There is a place for this book on every Kiwi bookshelf!