Great for having books on historical figures. The illustrations were nice to look at and i'm sure children will enjoy the repetition. It also won a Caldecott medal.

Bill “Bojangles” Robinson a famous tap dancer makes his way through his town. Dancing past many people and places, bringing joy everywhere. A lovely short story about African American tap dancer Bill Robinson. The illustration shoes movement and joy on each page. I enjoyed the rhyme and repetition, I believe young children would enjoy this as well. ( )

This Coretta Scott King Award lives up to it's hype. I love the repetitive nature of this book and the multicultural relevance. I love how after every phrase, it says "rap a tap tap--think of that!" which makes it predictable and entertaining! The illustrations are also very fun because the contrast of the images are complimented by a solid background. The illustrations show great movement in a unique 2-D way. I really like the fact that it is easy to read while learning about a key historical figure. ( )

While I listened to this book I paid special attention to the illustrations because of the award this book won. I definitely can see why it won. I like this book because it says and shows that dancing is a form of art too just like painting or music. I think younger students would like this book because of the sound affects the teacher could make while reading and maybe they could join in. I noticed a repeated sentence structure and rhyming and it worked well in this book and parallel with the same dances the character did. It's typical for the main characters name to be said in the beginning and that's how I usually prefer it but I actually like that Bojangle wasn't said until the end here. It builds suspense and gave the author a chance to build his character before introducing him. ( )

This joyful book is about a famous tap dancer, Bojangles. He brings happiness and joy for all people throughout the streets through his tap dancing eventually becoming famous. With his catchy phrase on every page, " Rap a tap tap" you can describe the sound that tap shoes make! ( )

RAP A TAP TAP is a book based on Bill Bojangles who was a famous tap dancer. The book tells the story of how Bill uses tap dancing in the streets to bring excitement and to make people happy. I like this book because it tells a true story of someone who had a positive impact on a community. I also like that this book shows diversity by focusing on an African American community. By putting the phrase RAP A TAP TAP on every page is a great way to describe tap dancing but is also very catchy and will help students to remember the book/story. ( )

Leo & Diane DIllon tell a the story of Bojangles in this beautifully illustrated picture book. It follows a man as he dances all around the city. A happy book for a classroom read aloud. The children enjoyed saying in verse "think of that!" at the end of each page. A great book for interactive read alouds. ( )

The illustrations pop out of the pages. The fluidity of Mr. Bojangles tap dancing has action and movement, that only a very good artist can show. Wonderful rhyming text in a poetic fluid motion accents the beauty of action and storyline of this incredible book!

Highly recommended!!! ( )

I've read this book to my class along with the CD and my kids loved it. It is very interactive and is a great way to teach kids about repetition. With each page it ended with "rap a tap tap- think of that" and before the book was finished the children were reading along with me. Another subject that could be introduced is music and you can talk about rhythm and the many ways it can be created. Mr. Bojangles created rhythm by tap dancing .The illustrations on the page were detailed and it felt like the young man was dancing off the page. Very good read. ( )

This book is a story of the life of Bojangles, a famous tap dancer. The story shows Bojangles dancing through town, bringing joy to people, and eventually gaining fame from his talents. This is a fun story that can introduce rhyme, provide history about dance and the great depression era, and inspire children to pursue their passions.

I liked this book for three reasons. First, the illustrations really enhanced the book. You could really see the movement and it was very easy to picture Bojangles tap dancing. The pictures helped the story come to life. Second, I liked the characters. It was based off a true story.You could see Bojangles fun and bright personality through the book. He brought joy everywhere he went with his amazing tap dancing. Finally, I liked the language of the book. After every page, the book said, "Rap a tap tap, think of that!" I liked this repetitive line. It also shows onomatopoeia because "Rap a tap tap" sound like tap dancing. It tied in with the story and made it more interesting. ( )

This book is about a man who loved to dance so much that since he danced all the time and every where he went. He then slowly gained a lot of fame in the music world. This book is about one of the highest payed black dancers in Hollywood during this time called Bill "Bojangles Robinson, and a little bit how he became a big star during the time of the depression.

I had previously heard the word Bojangles, originally thinking it was some form of a derogatory word. This book definitely cleared that up for me. The book is about a man that was known for his tap dancing. The illustrations in the book alone tell the story of Bojangles. Even to someone who doesn't know what tap dancing is, they could clearly see that it is a dance involving the movement of your feet. The book has the repetitive phrase “Rap a tap tap -- think of that" on every page. Aside from that, every other page rhymes and reads somewhat like a poem. If I were to read out loud to a class, I would read the longer parts of the book to the class and have the students repeat the repetitive phrase to keep them engaged in the reading. According to the time frame of Bojangles life, he was alive around the times of segregation, but the illustrator decided to keep the characters and pictures very diverse and integrated. Overall, the book was very interesting. ( )

discuss the man bojangles and how he goes around town dancing and making people happy.
repetitive phrasing book.
6 books

The best part of the illustrations is the movement, you can see shadows of Bojangles legs moving as he rap a tap tap throughout the city. On one page you can even see a cat's tails moving back and forth. Every character drawn has expressions of joy or awe on each page. Children would enjoy joining in on saying the repeated refrains, "Rap a tap tap- think of that" Not to mention Bojangles is a real person so kids can be introduce to African American History. ( )

I would use this book probably in 2nd grade. It can be used to teach them repetition and repeating phrases. It can also be used as a guided reading. The one liners in this book with the repeating phrases provide a short and simple guided reading to see how a student in the 2nd or 3rd grade can read. ( )

Great illustrations and a fairly good story. Could be sung, has a refrain younger children might enjoy. ( )

This books is a good book as an educator to read to your students. The rhythmic flow, the vibrant colors and pictures, and the various techniques used. This book makes a great real aloud book to get students actively involved in the reading with the use of repeated phrases. Even though this is the biography of the life of one of the best tap dancers of any time, it relies on the earlier presented qualities to make it more effective. This book would as be well when teaching a lesson in language arts on onomatopoeia. This book is clearly made to engage children, while enlightening them on Bill "Bojangles" Robinson. ( )

Leo and Diane Dillon’s book is about the famous tap dancer Bill “Bojangles” Robinson and about how he tap danced everywhere he went. This book shows Robinson’s love for dancing and how his talent made people happy everywhere he went. ( )

Rap a Tap Tap is an illustrated adaptation of world renowned tap dancer Billy Bo Jangles. The story is ideal for ages k-3 as it has beautiful illustrations and contains choral repetition on each page in the phrase of "Rap a tap tap, think of that". This repetition could be used to engage students, allowing them to chant each repetition. It also allows for students to create rhythmic patterns or actions to accompany the phrase. The story would also be able to be used in History lessons highlighted the way Whites treated the Blacks in the early 1900's also the Civil Rights movement. ( )

This is a story about a man who was known for dancing as he walked down the street. The repeating phrase in the book is, "rap a tap tap - think of that!" The amazing part about this book is the artwork. On every page that has the repeating phrase the author has shadows by the mans feet that make the man's feet appear to be moving. I think this really brings ths story to life and helps the reader digest the type of dancing the man is doing. The really interesting part about it is that no one else appears to be moving, but only Bojangles. ( )

A man named Bojangles loves to dance. He dances in the streets, by people who lived in the poor part of town, and by people who were rich. Throughout the book the phrase "Rap a tap tap - think of that" is repeated. This repeated phrase helps to create a rhythm in the book and makes it enjoyable to read. Bill "Bojangles" Robinson's dancing made him famous and he is known all over the world as the greatest tap dancer of all time. This Coretta Scott King Award winning book includes illustrations that make the reader feel as though he or she is dancing with Bojangles. The illustrations depict different people of the town where Bojangles dances which helps to show the diversity of the town. ( )

I would read this book in a first or second grade classroom, but it could also be used with older grades when talking about the Great Depression. It could be a good way to get students talking and engaged about the subject. It isn't a particularly happy subject, obviously, so having a positive connection could help students engage in the lesson. Also, it encourages a higher level of thinking. Asking questions about why this book would have been of importance can start good conversation. ( )

1st/2nd grade
This would be good for students that love jazz or music in general. ( )

This book is about the famous tap dancer, Bill "Bojangles" Robinson. The book has a sentence on each page about Bojangles dancing down the street and through parts of town and each sentence is followed by "rap a tap tap, think of that" or something similar. The illustrations looked as though they were thin pieces of paper (in the shape of people and other things) that were then placed on the pages. Bojangles is described as a very cheerful, happy man that brings joy to almost everyone who he passes. The book is set in the 1920s or 30s, when there was still a lot of racism and class differentiation. There is one page that shows a white man amongst some others of color, who is turning away from Bojangles in disgust. I think this would be a fun book for younger kids to read, but due to the drawings, which show the class distinctions, this book would be really good to read with other grade levels, 4th and up to discuss these class differences. ( )