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Duck, Truck!

Between 12 and 18 months of age babies begin to show a sense of funny. What tickles their olecranon process? The unexpected. According to The Hawaii Developmental Charts (1993), at this age babies begin to laugh at incongruities. Imagine you and your toddler in the kitchen. The telephone rings. Instead of answering your cell, you pick up a banana, "Hello?" Toddlers will laugh at that.

Truck Duck (2004), a 26-page board book by Michael Rex, delivers loads of laughs and belly quacks. It is ideal for 18-month-old boys because of their love of trucks and all things that go vrooom in the night. Each two-page spread pictures an animal (or fish or bug) in a vehicle. Each scene is labeled with a rhyming, two-word phrase- cab crab, plow cow, tug bug. Rex's illustrations make you smile. His pairings are zany. These creatures love their ride! Point and label as you read and you'll bolster baby's word learning.

Related books for your read-aloud stack include My Truck is Stuck! (2006) by Kevin Lewis, illustrated by Daniel Kirk; One Duck Stuck (2001) by Phyllis Root, illustrated by Jane Chapman; and Sheep in a Jeep (1997) by Nancy E. Shaw, illustrated by Margot Apple.

Between 9 and 12 months of age babies start throwing. Duck! Read more about your tike's funny bone here.


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