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By now the king held court from his place on the rock; Learning much from the children, like how to spell "sock". The kingdom was happy to have now a king; Just as happy as the king was to learn everything! The little boy was most noble indeed As he continued to teach the vain king to learn and to read. The king promised the boy fancy jewelry and a gold bell, But the boy turned him down and said, "Let's just learn to read and spell." from The King of Skittledeedoo What is The King of Skittledeedoo about? The King of Skittledeedoo is a very happy king and so are his people, until one day when tragedy strikes the land. The kingdom burns down to the ground. From castle to stable, there is nothing left. The king escapes the castle with nothing but a towel. His people don't recognize him without his rings, crown, and regal clothes. They put him to the test to prove his kingly worth and he fails them all! He can't even spell the simplest words such as "mother" or "Skittledeedoo". Two children in the town decide to take their king to school where he can learn the three R's, something everyone needs to know, king or not.   What is the purpose of The King of Skittledeedoo? The King of Skittledeedoo is geared for children ranging in age from three to eight, which means from non-readers to basic readers. They start out having their parents read the book with them and learn to recognize the meanings of the words from the eye-catching illustrations. Scattered throughout the book are words spelled out in the illustrations that help them to learn to spell. As they become better readers, they can start to read the book on their own, first making up the story as they look at the pictures, then recognizing that certain words have specific meanings and getting a firmer grasp of the content of the story, and finally being able to read and comprehend every word in the book without needing the beautiful illustrations as a guide. Studies have shown that children who are able to read go on to value learning and reading for the rest of their lives. Illiteracy cuts across all social and economic levels, and illiteracy is a barrier to high levels of success in life and results in low self-esteem in adults. By being exposed to books early on, children are better prepared for academic and social success. It is important to get children excited about learning and reading from the beginning, in order to prevent them from becoming illiterate as they progress through school and into life.