CATastrophe! A story of patterns by Ann Marie Stephens illustrated by Jenn Harney

"Patterns are the foundation of which math is built. Catastrophe cleverly shows the importance of patterns as ten cats and two fish make a splash in this hilarious adventure story."

This book is a wonderful discovery and it would be perfect for your preschool collection. Catastrophe was published in 2021 and it is still available but here in Australia it is over AUS$32. I have talked about books that explore patterns in previous posts, but this book takes a very different approach. 

The cats line up to board their boat ready for their fishing expedition (after all cats love to eat fish). Their life vests form a pattern - orange green orange green orange green green green green orange. Oh no this pattern needs fixing. The cats quickly rearrange themselves and now everyone is standing in line and the pattern is perfect. In the canoe the kittens begin to row - row row meow row row row meow row meow meow. Oh no they are just going in circles. The captain tells his crew to find the core pattern - row row meow row row meow row row meow. And so their trip continues. Can they catch those fish or will their boat capsize? What a CATastrophe! Luckily they have a warm camp fire, s'mores and their cosy beds to return to - mmm purr purr mmm purr purr mmm purr purrr mmm purr purr.

Publisher blurb: Nine kittens go on an exciting boating adventure that’s a (funny) catastrophe in this playful picture book that demonstrates the key math concept of patterns. A crew of hungry kittens and their captain head to the lake to catch some dinner, but the fish have surprises in store for them. Even before the cats encounter the fish, they run into trouble. What happens when confused kitties paddle every which way? Or when they all lean in the same direction? A pattern is needed to avoid a catastrophe! Patterns are the foundation on which math is built. Using strong rhythm, clever wordplay, and countable characters, CATastrophe! is a fun read-aloud that also shows what patterns can do. Helpful backmatter will deepen readers’ understanding and challenge them to find more patterns in this book and in our world. There’s also much to find in the illustrations—including a dragonfly and worm that each appear twenty times.

Ann Marie Stephens specializes in books that explore maths concepts (see below).  At the back of this book, Catastrophe, she explains the patterns she has used in her crazy story. You can hear Ann Marie talking about her book here. 

Stephens deftly incorporates the concepts of patterns and pattern cores into her simple tale and includes an enjoyable explanatory page at the close as well as integrated seek-and-find challenges. Harney’s bright, energy-filled cartoons are a great match and maintain a fine balance of cute, color, comedy…and cats. Kirkus

Here is the website for the illustrator Jenn Harney.

Music and poetry contain examples of patterns. In poetry we can describe rhyming lines using pattern labels.

Images from: Family friendly poems

Here are some of the patterns in music:

Image source: Jooya

Other books by Ann Marie Stephens:

Wings, Waves and Webs: Patterns in Nature by Robin Mitchell Cranfield

Image from the author web page

Teachers of the preschool groups who visit the library I visit each week often ask for books about patterns. I am guessing this topic must be part of their curriculum. 

My friend from kinderbookswitheverything has a fabulous collection of books about patterns. This one is very special. 

What is a pattern? "Anything repeated in a regular way can form a pattern. A circular shape repeated again and again becomes a dotty pattern we call spots. .... This book is about patterns we can see in nature; some are big, some wild, some beautiful, in rivers and snowflakes and eggshells and clouds."

Publisher blurb: From the dots on a ladybug to the spiral on a snail, patterns in nature can be found anywhere. This simple and playful concept book introduces the littlest of readers to both math and nature while engaging their creative potential. By the end, kids will be able to identify:

• Spots and stripes
• Spirals and symmetry
• Waves and honeycombs
• And more

Simple and bright, the artwork pleases the eye as much as it invites young readers to try their hands at copying patterns in their own drawings. The end result is a thoroughly grounded introduction that takes readers a step beyond shape recognition. The final spread depicts a cheerful nature scene and encourages readers to identify as many patterns as they can. A surefire way to get children excited about observing their world. Kirkus

On the author page you will find a link to teachers notes plus other examples of pages from this book. 

Here is part of the end paper image:

I would pair this book with:

My First book of Patterns

Round by Jennifer Ward illustrated by Lisa Congdon

This book is filled with two word phrases exploring the idea of 'round'. 

Up round.

Down round.

Slow round.

Stow round.

Spotted round.

Dotted round.

Look at all the round things on the cover - nest; mushroom; dandelion; apple; snail shell; turtle and flower. The front and back end papers are also filled with round things. The bright colours on the cover are so appealing. I'd love to see this image used as wall paper for a child's bedroom.

In the library where I volunteer each week and where I borrow lots of books we had a debate about Round. Where should it live in the library?  The official catalogue service we use in NSW schools listed it as Seasons [508.2]; the CIP (Cataloging in Publication) data on the back of the title page says Fiction; or perhaps this book should live in Patterns [516.15]; or is this a book about the word 'round' and so should it go into Language Concepts [428.3]; and finally where is the best place so everyone - children and teachers will find, read and enjoy this splendid book? The decision - put with the picture books and they plan to use it in lots of displays and also they plan to share it with many teachers. 

This is a book you will love to share with a young child. There is so much to discover and so much to discuss and then, after reading this book, it would be great to go outside and find all the round things in your own street or park.

Here is the Author's note: "Roundness is found everywhere in nature but not necessarily as a perfect circle. Looking closely at the wild world, we can find roundness in the lobe of a leaf and the smoothness of a stone, in the curl of a wave and the coil of a shell. Seasons occur in a cycle of roundness, circling all around again and again; the water cycle is circular, too, as water is released from the ground and dropped from the sky over and over. Even the shapes of the planets and their orbits are round. Indeed round can be found all around us."

Kirkus suggest another book about the concept of 'round'.

Take a look at other art by Lisa Congdon. Round is her first picture book. Here is the web site for Jennifer Ward.

My first book of Patterns by Bobby and June George art by Boyoun Kim

Recently someone posted a question on a forum asking for picture books for an inquisitive three year old. Books with a rich vocabulary. I think this book would be perfect but it will also appeal to older readers - much older readers! When I received this book as a gift I showed it to a twenty-five year old who enjoyed the concept of this book and confessed to not knowing the names of some of the patterns explored in this book. She was intrigued by the beautiful book design and presentation of the concept of pattern.

In forty pages this book explores combination of lines, diamonds, circles, squares, circles and teardrops.  And then reveals patterns with names like stripes, plaid, chevron, harlequin, argyle and paisley. There are three sections to each pattern - the shape, the pattern and then a bright page showing the pattern in action. These pages are sure to lead to some good discussion and lively questions.

Take a look at the book trailer here. This book comes from two Montessori educators. I highly recommend this for children aged 1-3. Take a look at work of the illustrator Boyoun Kim.

Concepts of order, repetition, part and whole, colors, and shapes are all effortlessly introduced and applied. The page turns are perfect and will have little ones excitedly yelling out what patterns the shapes make. The Picture Book Review