The Very Hungry Caterpillar is a well-known and widely loved story. The Storybook Curriculum Guide from Read it Once Again takes this wonderful book to new destinations.

The Storybook Curriculum Guide is so thoroughly organized, with wide variety of cool activities for a range of abilities, it is difficult to imagine anyone using this and being unable to find something they like. Especially for those interested in good children's literature, this series presents materials enough for a full year and then some, should you choose to use all of the resources within the binder.

Because this binder full of plans is geared toward a classroom setting, the beginning of each section details the goals for a child or children using that section. As a homeschool mom looking to use this with my special needs preschooler (plus his neurotypical cousins), I appreciate the developmental information and orientation.

For example, the tabs within the binder are: Introduction, Speech and Language, Cognitive, Motor, Daily Living, Socialization, Music and Rhymes, Parent Letters, Paint Masters. In the Speech and Language section, goals are set forth that clearly align with age appropriate speech and language development and allow flexibility within a particular child's area of need. The same is true of the remaining tabs. The activities within are fun, thorough, and well thought out.

Each of the titles in the series comes with a Color Reproducible CD in addition to the black and white reproducibles in the binder. The cost for the single title reviewed is $50. If you or your co-op is interested in owning several of the titles, there is a package deal of nine units for $400. There are thirty titles in all in which to choose.

I think these books are probably best for co-ops or large families which might make most use of the ability to repeat and copy so much of the material. However, if you have the resources to use this with a child who needs some extra structure in reaching his or her milestones, it would definitely be money well spent.

My only caution regarding this curriculum guide is that you may not use everything provided, even if you made the unit study the center of your preschool time. The coverage is so thorough that I don't necessarily see this as a problem, just something I'd want to know before setting out.

I'm a confirmed literature junkie. As such I would enjoy having several of these available to use as we read. Other titles include: Corduroy, Goodnight Moon, Jamberry, The Little Engine That Could. What a great resource! The Very Hungry Caterpillar Storybook Curriculum Guide by the folks at Read It Once Again is amazing.

Product review by Carrie Wilbur, The Old Schoolhouse® Magazine, LLC, October 2009