Predictable Books

"Predictable books make use of rhyme, repetition of words, phrases, sentences and refrains, and such patterns as cumulative structure, repeated scenes, familiar cultural sequences, interlocking structure and turn-around plots. These stories invite children to make predictions or guesses about words, phrases, sentences, events and characters that could come next in the story."
-- Mary Jett Simpson, in Reading Resource Book (372.41 Je Parents Shelf)
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Kinds of Predictable Books

  1. Chain or Circular Story
    Plot is interlinked so that the ending leads back to the beginning.
  2. Cumulative Story
    Each time a new event occurs, all previous events in the story are repeated.
  3. Familiar Sequence
    Organized by recognizable theme, such as:
    Days of Week, etc. and Numbers
  4. Pattern Stories
    Scenes are repeated with some variation.
  5. Question and Answer
    The same or similar questions are repeated throughout the story.
  6. Repetition of Phrase
    Word order in a phrase or sentence is repeated.
  7. Rhyme
    Rhyming words, refrains, or patterns are used throughout the story.
  8. Songbooks
    Familiar songs with predictable elements, such as repetitive phrase.

Chain or Circular Story

Aardema, Verna. Why Mosquitoes Buzz in People's Ears. (398.2 Wh)

Elkins, Benjamin. Why the Sun Was Late. (398.2 Wh)

Janovitz, Marilyn. Look out, Bird! (EJ Ja)

Numeroff, Laura. If You Give a Mouse a Cookie. (EJ Nu)

Numeroff, Laura. If You Give a Moose a Muffin. (EJ Nu)

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Cumulative

Arnold, K. Knock, Knock, Teremok! (J398.2 Kn)

Bishop, Gavin. Chicken Licken. (J398.2 He)

Brisson, Pat. Benny's Pennies. (EJ Br)

Burningham, John. Mr. Gumpy's Outing. (EJ Bu)

Capucilli, Alyssa Satin. Inside a Barn in the Country. (Ej Ca)

Carle, Eric. Today Is Monday. (J784.6 Ca)

Chandra, Deborah. Miss Mabel's Table. (EJ Ch)

Cole, Henry. Jack's Garden. (EJ 635 Co)

Cole, Joanna. It's Too Noisy. (J398.2 It)

Duff, Maggie. Rum Pum Pum. (J398.2 Ru)

Dunbar, Joyce. Seven Sillies. (EJ Du)

Dunphy, Madeleine. Here Is the Southwestern Desert. (EJ 574.5 Du)

Dunphy, Madeleine. Here Is The Tropical Rain Forest. (EJ 574.5 Du)

Galdone, Paul. Little Tuppen: An Old Tale. (J398.2 Li)

Galdone, Paul. The Old Woman And Her Pig. (J398.8 Ol)

Hutchins, Pat. Little Pink Pig. (EJ Hu)

Lobel, Arnold. The Rose In My Garden. (EJ Lo)

MacDonald, Elizabeth. Mike's Kite. (EJ Ma)

McLeish, Kenneth. Chicken Licken. (J398.2 He)

Neitzel, S.The Bag I'm Taking to Grandma's (Ej Ne)

Ormerod, Jan. The Story of Chicken Licken. (J398.2 He)

Oxenbury, H. It's My Birthday (Ej Ox)

Pizer, Abigail. It's a Perfect Day. (EJ Pi)

Polacco, Patricia. In Enzo's Splendid Gardens. (EJ Po)

Sloat, Teri. The Thing That Bothered Farmer Brown. (EJ Sl)

Tolstoy, Alexei. The Great Big Enormous Turnip. (J398.2 Tu)

Waddell, Martin. The Pig In the Pond. (EJ Wa)

West, Colin. "Buzz, Buzz, Buzz," Went Bumblebee. (EJ We)

West, Colin. Have You Seen the Crocodile? (EJ We)

West, Colin. "I Don't Care!" Said the Bear. (EJ We)

West, Colin. "Not Me," Said the Monkey. (EJ We)

Zemach, Harve. The Judge. (EJ Ze)

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Familiar Sequence (days of week, months of year, etc.)

Carle, Eric. Today Is Monday. (J784.6 Ca)

Kraus, Robert. Come Out and Play, Little Mouse. (EJ Kr)

Sendak, Maurice. Chicken Soup With Rice. (EJ Se)

Shiefman, Vicky. Sunday Potatoes, Monday Potatoes. (EJ Sh)

Ward, Cindy. Cookie's Week. (EJ Wa)

Familiar Sequence (Numbers)

Bucknall, Caroline. One Bear All Alone. (EJ Bu)

Wood, Jakki. Moo, Moo, Brown Cow. (EJ 510 Wo)

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Pattern Story

Banks, Kate. Peter and the Talking Shoes. (EJ Ba)

Banks, Kate. Spider, Spider. (EJ Ba)

Bender, Robert. A Most Unusual Lunch. (EJ Be)

Brown, Margaret Wise. The Runaway Bunny. (EJ Br)

De Regniers, Beatrice Schenk. Going For a Walk. (EJ De)

Domanska, Janina. Little Red Hen. (J398.2 Li)

Dunbar, Joyce. Four Fierce Kittens. (EJ Du)

Dunbar, Joyce. Seven Sillies. (EJ Du)

Gag, Wanda. Millions of Cats. (EJ Ga)

Galdone, Paul. The Gingerbread Boy. (J398.2 Gi)

Galdone, Paul. Little Red Hen. (J398.2 Li)

Galdone, Paul. The Three Bears. (J398.2 Th)

Galdone, Paul. The Three Billy Goats Gruff. (J398.2 Th)

Hutchins, Pat. Little Pink Pig. (EJ Hu)

Jennings, Sharon. Jeremiah and Mrs. Ming. (Ej Je)

Kalan, Robert. Stop, Thief! (EJ Ka)

Krauss, Ruth. The Carrot Seed. (EJ Kr)

Maris, Ron. Are You There Bear? (EJ Ma)

Maris, Ron. I Wish I Could Fly. (EJ Ma)

McNaughton, C. Suddenly! (EJ Ma)

Nodset, Joan L. Who Took The Farmers Hat? (EJ No)

Patron, Susan. Dark Cloud Strong Breeze. (EJ Pa)

Wing, Natasha. Hippity Hop, Frog On Top. (EJ Wi)

Zemach, Margot. The Little Red Hen. (J398.2 Li)

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Question And Answer

Coxe, Molly. Whose Footprints? (EJ Co)

Greeley, Valerie. Where's My Share? (EJ Gr)

Guy, Ginger Foglesong. Black Crow, Black Crow. (EJ Gu)

Janovitz, Marilyn. Is it Time? (Ej JA)

Kraus, Robert. Whose Mouse Are You? (EJ Kr)

Martin, Bill. Brown Bear, Brown Bear. (EJ Ma)

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Repetition of Phrase (and repetitive phrase)

Alborough, Jez. Watch Out! Big Bro's Coming! (EJ Al)

Archambault, John & Bill Martin Jr. A Beautiful Feast for a Big King Cat. (EJ Ar)

Brown, Margaret Wise. The Important Book. (EJ Br)

Brown, Margaret Wise. Goodnight Moon. (EJ Br)

Brown, Ruth. A Dark, Dark Tale. (EJ Br)

Butler, Dorothy. A Happy Tale. (EJ Bu)

Carle, Eric. Do You Want To Be My Friend? (EJ Ca)

Carle, Eric. Have you Seen My Cat? (EJ Ca)

Coxe, Molly. Whose Footprints? (EJ Co)

Dale, Penny. Ten Out Of Bed. (EJ Da)

Day, David. King Of The Woods. (EJ Da)

De Regniers, Beatrice Schenk. Going For A Walk. (EJ De)

De Regniers, Beatrice Schenk. How Joe The Bear And Sam The Mouse Got Together. (EJ De)

Dunbar, Joyce. Four Fierce Kittens. (EJ Du)

Gordon, Jeffrie Ross. Two Badd Babies. (EJ Go)

Greeley, Valerie. Where's My Share? (EJ Gr)

Grindley, Sally. Knock, Knock! Who's There? (EJ Gr)

Guarino, Deborah. Is Your Mama A Llama? (EJ Gu)

Guy, Ginger Foglesong. Black Crow, Black Crow. (EJ Gu)

Hamsa, Bobbie. Dirty Larry. (J-ER Ha)

Hayes, Sarah. This Is The Bear And The Picnic Lunch. (EJ Ha)

Hennesy, B.G. Jake Baked The Cake. (EJ He)

Hoberman, Mary Ann. A House Is A House For Me. (EJ Ho)

Hutchins, Pat. Little Pink Pig. (EJ Hu)

Kahn, Joan. You Can't Catch Me. (EJ Ka)

Kalan, Robert. Stop, Thief! (EJ Ka)

King, Bob. Sitting On The Farm. (J784.624 Ki)

Knowles, Tizzie. No, Barnaby. (EJ Kn)

Kraus, Robert. Come Out And Play, Little Mouse . (EJ Kr)

Kraus, Robert. Where Are You Going, Little Mouse? (EJ Kr)

Krauss, Ruth. Big And Little. (EJ Kr)

Lindbergh, Reeve. There's A COW In The Road! (EJ Li)

Lockwood, Primrose and Clara Vulliamy. Cat Boy! (EJ Lo)

MacDonald, Elizabeth. Mike's Kite. (EJ Ma)

Martin, Bill. Brown Bear, Brown Bear. (EJ Ma)

McGilvray, Richard. Don't Climb Out Of The Window Tonight. (EJ Mc)

Masurel, Claire & Marie H. Henry. Good Night! (Ej Ma)

Masurel, Claire. No, No, Titus! (EJ Ma)

Most, Bernard. If The Dinosaurs Came Back. (EJ Mo)

Pizer, Abigail. It's A Perfect Day. (EJ Pi)

Pryor, Ainslie. The Baby Blue Cat Who Said No. (EJ Pr)

Rathmann, Peggy. Good Night, Gorilla. (EJ Ra)

Rogers, Paul and Emma. What's Wrong Tom? (EJ Ro)

Sawicki, Norma Jean. The Little Red House. (EJ Sa)

Sendak, Maurice. Chicken Soup With Rice. (EJ Se)

Serfozo, Mary. Who Said Red? (EJ Se)

Shannon, George. Dance Away. (EJ Sh)

Shannon, George. The Piney Woods Peddler. (EJ Sh)

Shiefman, Vicky. Sunday Potatoes, Monday Potatoes. (EJ Sh)

Sloat, Teri. The Thing That Bothered Farmer Brown (EJ Sl)

Tafuri, Nancy. Have You Seen My Duckling? (EJ Ta)

Van Laan, Nancy. A Mouse In My House. (EJ Va)

Van Laan, Nancy. Possum Come A-Knockin. (EJ Va)

Waddell, Martin. Sailor Bear. (EJ Wa)

Watanbe, Shigeo. How Do I Put It On? (EJ Wa)

West, Colin. "Buzz, Buzz, Buzz," Went Bumblebee. (EJ We)

West, Colin. Have You Seen the Crocodile? (EJ We)

West, Colin. "Hello, Great Big Bullfrog!" (EJ We)

West, Colin. I Bought My Love A Tabby Cat. (EJ We)

West, Colin. "I Don't Care!" Said the Bear. (EJ We)

West, Colin. "Not Me," Said The Monkey. (EJ We)

Wing, Natasha. Hippity Hop, Frog On Top. (EJ Wi)

Wolkstein, Diane. Step by Step. (EJ Wo)

Wong, O. From My Window (EJ Wo)

Wood, Audrey. Silly Sally. (EJ Wo)

Wood, Jakki. Moo, Moo, Brown Cow. (EJ 510 Wo)

Wylie, Joanne and David. A Big Fish Story. (J-ER Wy)

Wylie, Joanne and David. A More Or Less Fish Story. (J-ER Wy)

Zamorano, Ana. Let's Eat! (Ej Za)

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Rhyme

Ackerman, Karen. This Old House. (EJ Ac)

Adlerman, Daniel. Africa Calling : Nighttime Falling (Ej Ad)

Archambault, John And Bill Martin Jr. A beautiful Feast For A Big King Cat. (EJ Ar)

Brooke, Leslie. Johnny Crow's Garden. (EJ Br)

Capucilli, Alyssa Satin. Inside a Barn in the Country. (Ej Ca)

Carlstrom, Nancy White. Rise and Shine. (EJ Ca)

Chandra, Deborah. Miss Mabel's Table. (EJ Ch)

Dunbar, Joyce. Four Fierce Kittens. (EJ Du)

Fleming, Denise. Barnyard Banter. (EJ 636 Fl)

Florian, Douglas. A Beach Day. (EJ Fl)

Florian, Douglas. A Summer Day. (EJ Fl)

Florian, Douglas. A Winter Day. (EJ Fl)

Gag, Wanda. The ABC Bunny. (EJ 411 Ga)

Guarino, Deborah. Is Your Mama A Llama? (EJ Gu)

Hayes, Sarah. This Is The Bear And The Picnic Lunch. (EJ Ha)

Hennessy, B.G. Jake Baked The Cake. (EJ He)

Hoberman, Mary Ann. A House Is A House For Me. (EJ Ho)

Jaques, F. There Once Was a Puffin (EJ Ja)

Janovitz, Marilyn. Is it Time? (Ej Ja)

Leuck, L. Sun is Falling, Night is Calling (EJ Le)

Levine, Abby. You Push, I Ride. (EJ Le)

Lindbergh, Reeve. There's A COW In The Road. (EJ Li)

Mandel, Peter. Red Cat, White Cat. (EJ 428.1 Ma)

Marzollo, J. Sun Song (EJ Ma)

Patron, Susan. Dark Cloud Strong Breeze. (EJ Pa)

Pomerantz, Charlotte. Flap Your Wings and Try. (EJ Po)

Punnett, Dick. Our Brat Cat. (EJ Pu)

Robinson, M. The Zoo at Night (EJ Ro)

Samton, Sheila White. Beside The Bay. (EJ Sa)

Shaw, Nancy. Sheep in a Shop. (EJ Sh)

Shaw, Nancy. Sheep on a Ship. (EJ Sh)

Siebert, Diane. Train Song. (EJ Si)

Sloat, Teri. The Thing That Bothered Farmer Brown (EJ Sl)

Stickland, Paul. One Bear, One Dog. (EJ St)

Wahl, J. Cats and Robbers (EJ Wa)

Weiss, Nicki. Sun Sand Sea Sail. (EJ We)

Wellington, M. Night House Bright House (Ej We)

West, Colin. I Bought My Love A Tabby Cat. (EJ We)

Winthrop, Elizabeth. Shoes. (EJ Wi)

Wood, Audrey. Silly Sally. (EJ Wo)

Zemach, Harve. The Judge. (EJ Ze)

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Songbook

Emberley, Barbara. One Wide River To Cross. (EJ Em)

Hoffman, Hilde. The Green Grass Grows All Around. (J784.4 Gr)

Keats, Ezra Jack. Over In The Meadow. (EJ Ke)

King, Bob. Sitting on The Farm. (J784.624 Tu)

Langstaff, John M. Over In The Meadow. (J784.4 La)

Langstaff, John M. Soldier, Soldier, Won't You Marry Me? (J784.4 La)

Turner, Gwenda. Over On The Farm. (J784.4 Tu)

Zuromskis, Diane. The Farmer In The Dell. (J784.4 Fa)

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Compiled by Virginia Richey, MCPL Children's Dept. Head
Copyright 1996. Copies of this publication may be made and distributed in any medium for non-commercial purposes provided that this notice and credit information remain intact.