Camping Out »

Mercer Mayer – writer and illustrator for Little Critter First Readers, as well as Little Critter Spectrum began writing and illustrating children’s books in 1966 and since that time, he has published over 300 titles. Open almost any of the award-winning author/illustrator’s books, and out may pop dragons, cuddly monsters, wonderful creatures, and endearing critters.

“Most of my books are about things that happened to me when I was a little kid,” says Mercer. “Now that I’m a big kid, I write about things that happen now, especially with my own children. They always help remind me of what it was like.”

Born in Little Rock, Arkansas, Mercer Mayer spent his childhood hunting lizards and snakes in the swamps near his home. During his teenage years, he attended the Honolulu Academy of Arts. He later received additional training at the Art Students League in New York City. Upon completion of his studies, he set out with pen and ink to write and illustrate a collection of children’s books, reflecting many of the adventures he experienced as a child.

Let Little Critter® take your child on a reading adventure!

Little Critter and Gator camp out in the backyard, but what are those noises? Find out what keeps scaring Little Critter and Gator?

Camping Out is an original Little Critter First Reader for children ages 3 to 6. This charming leveled reader features:

• Repetition of familiar words and sound patterns for ease of readability

• Colorful illustrations for visual cues

• Skill-based activities and a vocabulary list at the end of the book to help reinforce reading comprehension and fluency.

Our Little Critter® First Readers series is helping kids develop key reading skills! Featuring 30 titles for children ages 3 to 8, each book contains an original and engaging Little Critter story about a situation that most kids will find familiar – a trip to the zoo, a day at camp, a class outing. Young readers will enjoy these simple and attractive stories written with their reading level in mind. Check out the other titles in this series!

These stories offer more than just entertainment, they are everything a child needs to ensure reading success!

Marilyn Courtot - Children's Literature

While they don't go any farther than the back yard, Little Critter and his friend Gator are just a little frightened by all of the night sounds. Those turn out to be a cat, dog, raccoon and owl-nothing too scary. Then there is a big crunching sound and to everyone's relief, it is mom with a plate of cookies. The activities include word lists to create additional sentences, identifying all the words that start with the letter "C," an introduction to question marks and a challenge to count how many appear in the story. Kids are asked to match animals and sounds and to identify the ones that appeared in the story. There is an answer key. Unless the activity pages are copied, this book will only survive a single pass. There is an opening note to parents stating that Level 1 stories are simple and use repetitive language, and the illustrations are highly supportive. This book is based on McGraw Hill's reading programs, used in many schools. "Level 1, Grades Pre K to K."