Chicka Chicka 1, 2, 3

Bill Martin Jr., Michael Sampson, and Lois Ehlert bring the same bold energy from Chicka Chicka Boom Boom to the world of numbers, and the result is a classroom staple in its own right. Numbers race to an apple tree, zero struggles to belong, and a swarm of bees shakes everything loose — until zero teams with 10 to become 100 and save the day. That zero-as-hero moment is genuinely clever, giving teachers a visual hook for place value that sticks. Parenting Magazine named it a Best Book of 2004, and U.S. classrooms have been using it ever since. For faith-focused families, there is no spiritual dimension here — it is secular through and through. And as a sequel, it mirrors its predecessor's structure closely enough that the freshness is somewhat borrowed. But as a counting book, it is excellent.