Out of the Blue

"Idioms often confuse young children because they express sentiments apart from the words' literal meanings. They can also become wonderful sources of verbal play, worlds of delight that mark a child's passage into advanced literacy.

"Out of the Blue is the latest in Vanita Oelschlager's series on idioms. It explores the meaning of these phrases through clever illustrations and often hilarious wordplay.

"Educators and parents can use this book, along with Birds of a Feather and Life is a Bowl Full of Cherries, as springboards in a child's language learning process. They are excellent resources in any Language Arts curriculum. They can also be integrated into a creative writing program where children write their own interpretation of the idioms, then segue into writing their own idioms. As another creative activity, they can formulate and design their own illustrations depicting the meaning of the idiom.

"Out of the Blue is a joy to read and play with for readers and writers of all ages!"

Cinda Dehner
National Board Certified Teacher
Library Media Specialist
Twinsburg City Schools
Twinsburg, Ohio