Leo the Late Bloomer

Spring is a time of growth, not only for plants and flowers but for animals and especially children, too.

Teachers often report the most growth in their students between spring and the end of the school year each June. 

As parents, since the birth of our child(ren), we have learned that not all children grow and develop at the same rate. Your baby might not be babbling like your friend’s baby or your first grader may not be reading like your sister’s child. Don’t panic! Children all bloom at different times and even if it is later than most, they will make it!

At 12 months, my son still wasn’t crawling.  I had a chubby baby who would just sit and was in a hurry to go nowhere fast! Forget about walking, he hadn’t even gotten onto his knees yet.

Meanwhile, other 1-year-olds were pushing walkers around, just plain walking and even running circles around him. My son was just content to sit and watch those kids and the world go by. When he was ready, his interest in moving around his environment bloomed. By 13 ½ months he was crawling and by 14 ½ months he was walking. He made it!

"Leo the Late Bloomer" is a lion cub who can’t do anything right. He can’t eat without making a mess, he can’t talk, he can’t write and he can’t read. Leo’s father starts getting stressed, but not Leo’s mother. She is sure he will bloom when he is good and ready. 

Written by Robert Kraus and Illustrated by Jose Aruego, "Leo the Late Bloomer" is a feast for the eyes. It was published in 1971, and the illustrations are very much in the swing of 70’s art, full of bright colors and fantastic large images. 

Even if your child doesn’t quite tune into the message of the story, he or she will be completely impressed with the mesmerizing illustrations of Leo, his family, his jungle friends and the blooming flowers.

"Leo" is a great read for children 4 to 8 years old.  It has a positive message personified through Leo, the lion cub who shows that with time and patience on everyone’s part, blooming will indeed happen. When Leo finally does bloom, he shouts to his parents at the end of the story an exclamatory, “I made it!”

Whether learning to read, to write, to eat without making a mess, or passing a driving test (which took me three times), we all grow and learn in our own time. Playing the waiting game for “the big bloom” can be hard, as illustrated by Leo’s ever-present, watchful, nervous father, but Leo’s mother just knew it would happen, in time. 

Pre-school and school-aged children know when things aren’t easy for them, whether it be school, sports, learning an instrument or just developing like other children. Assuring them that they are not alone, as well as reading "Leo the Late Bloomer," you will surely keep their spirits up while waiting for the big day when they, like Leo will shout, “I made it!”