Watch and Read: Martha Speaks…and Kids Read

Now in its fourth season, this animated TV series starring the chatty canine first introduced in Susan Meddaugh’s beloved Martha Speaks (Houghton, 1992) continues to entertain children and enhance their vocabularies. Like the original picture book and its follow ups, the show, which airs on PBS Kids and is produced by WGBH Boston and Studio B Productions, features a family pet with an extraordinary ability.

Accidentally fed alphabet soup, Martha is given the power of speech and never hesitates speak her mind to anyone and everyone. The self-assured, smart, and ever-loyal pooch enthusiastically shares adventures with her best friend Helen, a shy and artistic girl. Able to communicate with humans and critters alike, Martha also interacts with the rest of the Lorraine family, Helen’s friends and neighbors, and a cast of animal characters who inhabit Wagstaff City. Presenting two stories in each episode, the show’s educational goal is to teach kids new words and increase oral vocabulary, building a familiarity with language that will ultimately facilitate learning to read and help to create competent readers.

Kids can visit the Martha Speaks website for an array of fun-to-play and easy-to-manipulate games that amuse youngsters while emphasizing new vocabulary. For example, in “Make the Band,” kids choose instruments to play the melody and rhythm, pick a canine vocalist, and make their own recording while becoming familiar with words that describe music. Using “Martha’s Rhyme Time” machine, children can select from different sets of words (unfamiliar terms are defined aloud) to create rhyming couplets, choose a stage setting, listen to Martha perform the poem aloud, and then print out their creations. “Switcheroo” introduces words like “swap” or “mix” by challenging kids to put back together mixed-up cards featuring images of dogs and characters in colorful costumes. Martha fans can also view video clips and full episodes and print out coloring and activity sheets.

Adults can visit the “Parents & Teachers” site for tips and activities designed to help children get the most out of their viewing experience. In “The Experts Speak” section, four literacy authorities discuss the importance of teaching vocabulary and how educators can integrate instruction into their lessons. Teachers may also be interested in the “Martha Speaks Reading Buddies Program,” a curriculum developed to accompany the series that pairs kindergarten and upper-level elementary students to “develop their self-esteem and social skills, and enhance their love of books and reading.” All of the necessary materials (including a detailed how-to for teachers) are available on the site for downloading and printing along with links for viewing the highlighted episodes.

Book Tie-ins

Houghton Mifflin Harcourt’s handsome lineup of Martha Speaks titles extends the show’s efforts to build skills and enthusiasm for reading. Colorful covers featuring images of the amiable animated protagonist grab the eye of series fans, and the books are all based on TV show teleplays and illustrated throughout with crisply reproduced, sky-bright cartoon artwork. From picture books to easy chapter books, the offerings represent a variety of formats with text geared toward youngsters of different ages and reading abilities. Martha devotees will enjoy re-visiting familiar characters and plots and watching the action unfold on the pages.

Consider adding the newest “Martha Speaks” adventures to your collection. In Purrfect Friends (PreS-Gr 2), a picture book perfect for sharing aloud, the canine is ready to welcome a new pet from the shelter to the neighborhood, until she discovers that it’s a kitten. Despite her initial reaction (“YIKES!”), the kindhearted Martha soon learns a lesson about discriminating against others and making friends. Ideal for longtime fans or youngsters who have just discovered the show, the book opens with a comic-book-style recap of how Martha acquired her unique ability and features a smooth-reading narrative and large-size cartoon images attractively laid out on the pages.

Two “Level’ 2″ beginning readers (K-Gr 2) incorporate simple dialogue, straightforward vocabulary, brief sentences, and lots of humor. In Good Luck, Martha, things start to go wrong after the pooch walks under a ladder; Martha believes that she is cursed, until her ever-patient owner sets her straight about silly superstitions. When Helen misses out on winning an art contest, the loving canine is determined to cheer her up, and Martha Bakes a Cake…doggie style. Both texts are supported by vibrant cartoon artwork that visually conveys the events described, adds additional details, and keeps the action moving quickly. Dialogue balloons scattered throughout highlight some of Martha’s lively comments. Emerging readers already knowledgeable about the characters and their antics will be encouraged to persevere right up to the satisfying final pages.

Two beginning chapter books (Gr 1-4), written in Martha’s buoyant first-person narrative, delve more deeply into the adventures of the dog and her friends. In Space Dogs, Helen and her buddy T.D. must create projects about the solar system for a class assignment, and Martha soon finds herself starring in an intergalactic comic book. Martha and Helen both learn that The Show Must Go On when they are each faced with taking on stage roles that challenge their abilities and ultimately allow them to shine. Clearly written and filled with Martha’s particular dog’s-eye-view of events and endearing brand of humor, the tales are presented in fast-reading chapters attractively illustrated with full- and double-page cartoon artwork and smaller inset images. The volumes begin with a two-page spread introducing the main characters, and end with a glossary of terminology featured in the tale and related activities that encourage creativity and pretend play.

Introduce kids who love the TV show to the source material. Packed with Meddaugh’s warm-hued cartoon artwork and delightfully lighthearted storytelling, Martha Speaks Story Time Collection (201; PreS-Gr 4) gathers together into a single volume the author’s first adventure and five follow-up titles: Martha Calling (1994), Martha Blah Blah (1996), Martha Walks the Dog (1998), Martha and Skits (2000), and Perfectly Martha (2004; all HMH). Each full-length book is showcased in its entirety and differentiated by its own sherbet-colored margin. The collection begins with a preface by the author, who introduces the real-life Martha and how Meddaugh came up with the idea for the character (along with family photos). This all-in-one volume is affordable for libraries and a true treat for Martha fans.

Publication Information

BARSS, Karen, adapt. Martha Speaks: Purrfect Friends. Tr $12.99. ISBN 978-0-547-68125-2; pap. $3.99. ISBN 978-0-547-68123-8.

_____. Martha Speaks: Good Luck, Martha. Tr $12.99. ISBN 978-0-547-57657-2; pap. $3.99. ISBN 978-0-547-57658-9.

_____. Martha Speaks: Martha Bakes a Cake. Tr $12.99. ISBN 978-0-547-68102-3; pap. $3.99. ISBN 978-0-547-68113-9.

WHITE, Jamie, adapt. Martha Speaks: Space Dogs. Tr $14.99. ISBN 978-0-547-68119-1; pap. $5.99. ISBN 978-0-547-68118-4.

_____. Martha Speaks: The Show Must Go On. Tr $14.99. ISBN 978-0-547-69145-0; pap. $5.99. ISBN 978-0-547-69147-3.

ea vol: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt. 2012.

MEDDAUGH, Susan. Martha Speaks Story Time Collection. illus. by author. Houghton Mifflin. 2011. Tr $10.99. ISBN 978-0-547-57967-2.

This article originally appeared in the newsletter Extra Helping. Go here to subscribe.

This article was featured in School Library Journal's Extra Helping enewsletter. Subscribe today to have more articles like this delivered to your inbox for free.