Ballet School

K-Gr 3–A group of children arrive at the ballet studio ready to learn. They warm up, practice the moves from Sleeping Beauty, and conclude with a lesson on the importance of bowing to the audience. Bouder, a principal dancer with the New York City Ballet, provides a thorough introductory, interactive guide for novice ballerinas. Each page is broken into sections, showing the students demonstrating moves with arrows for direction. There are also definitions of ballet terms, with illustrated close-ups of hands and feet. Some readers may have trouble with the pronunciation of some terms, as there is not a phonetic guide, but the images will allow readers to follow the moves with ease. The children in the book include male and female students, as well as kids from different ethnic and racial backgrounds. The faces of the children in the class showcase a range of emotions and feelings (hesitation, concentration, worry), reminding young readers that any skill or activity takes practice.