Rocket Ship, Solo Trip

PreS-Gr 1–The story is fictional: Rocket Ship is just a little jittery about her first time on the launchpad, launch, going into space—everything. It’s overwhelming, but an omniscient narration reminds her to “use the countdown as your cue./ You’ll see. You’ll know just what to do.” And it’s true. Rocket Ship performs her duty to get her payload, a new satellite, into space where it will take pictures of Earth below. Facts are slipped into the story of Rocket Ship’s successes, one by one, to give young children a very good idea of how to launch and set up a satellite for use: “Step three: her top hatch opens wide./ It’s Rocket’s turn to be the guide./ Station lends a helping hand/ Just like boosters did on land.” The storytelling is effective, amplified by Magoon’s simple shapes and easy-to-guess facial expressions, but detailed enough to provide a rudimentary sense of how a satellite works. A generous amount of information is dispensed in accessible terms and accompanied by friendly scenes that parallel an elementary age student’s first solo project.