Chil­dren’s

That’s a Mitzvah

Liz Sune­by & Diane Heiman; Lau­rel Molk, illus.
  • Review
By – June 1, 2015

Well, he is back! That love­able and wise meerkat is now deliv­er­ing a very spe­cial mes­sage of rhyme to our youngest pre-read­ers. Sune­by and Heiman have smart­ly re-envi­sioned their It’s a…It’s a …It’s a Mitz­vah for the preschool set with a new twist. Using clas­sic nurs­ery rhymes, they have cap­tured and extend­ed the essence of mitz­vah in mem­o­rable phras­es that will bring Juda­ic prin­ci­ples into the dai­ly lives of tod­dlers. The boun­cy rhythm moves you from, Mon­key see, mon­key do. Let’s be nice to some­one new” to Jack be nim­ble, Jack be quick. Take time to vis­it some­one sick.” Molk’s illus­tra­tions of these endear­ing char­ac­ters speak to all ages and every child will find their favorite. 

Spend time read­ing That’s A Mitz­vah with your chil­dren, grand­chil­dren or class and one may find that even we adults may alter our rhyming mem­o­ries for these deeply meaning­ful jew­els of Judaism. 

High­ly rec­om­mend­ed for infants, preschool­ers and ear­ly child­hood pro­grams, this book bears the seal of Ear­ly Child­hood Spir­i­tu­al­i­ty (ECS) Every Child’s Soul.

Chris­tine Maas­dam holds a Mas­ters in Human­i­ties, cer­ti­fi­ca­tions in Muse­um Stud­ies and Cul­tur­al Prop­er­ty Pro­tec­tion. She is cur­rent­ly com­plet­ing her M.L.I.S. Her inter­ests are phi­los­o­phy and the impact of art and tech­nol­o­gy on culture.

Discussion Questions