Puppies! Puppies! Puppies!

K-Gr 3—Martha, the beloved dog from Susan Meddaugh's popular picture-book series, gained the power of speech from an errant bowl of alphabet soup. Its letters travelled to her brain instead of her stomach, and Martha's been talking nonstop ever since. In the animated series, Martha not only speaks, she tackles some pretty sophisticated vocabulary. Each episode introduces viewers to at least 10 new words: paleontologist, morose, wormhole, and dejected. Subsequent installments use the freshly introduced vocabulary within the context of a story line so kids continue to hear these words in conversation. A brief review follows each two-episode sequence. The six episodes are approximately 15 minutes each, and with such aggressive goals for vocabulary-sharing within the storytelling, the pacing feels a bit frantic at times. The technique is nonetheless effective in promoting kids' word knowledge. Pop the disc into a computer to access printable materials, including resources for parents, coloring pages, and activities. An enjoyable and watchable, if frenetic, cartoon for cerebral kids.—Jennifer Verbrugge, State Library Services, Roseville, MN