I'll admit it. I was struggling in the afternoons. Our mornings are fairly structured. Time goes quickly. We get a lot done. Circle time, word wall games, math, Scholastic News, and our reading program fill the morning. Then, about 4 hours after we started, we are all ready for a significant break.
I let the kids watch some tv while I prepare lunch. Then I let them eat lunch in front of the tv while I have some quiet time. I know it isn't perfect, but I'm human and an introvert and my sanity is important too. So we all have a mid-day break and I do use the television to make that happen. The problem was that I was having trouble finding the motivation to pull us all back together afterwards. I found excuses to delay... and delay... and delay. Then I had an ephiphany. I realized that we needed something truly fun to pull us all back together - something that made me glad to leave my little bit of solitude and something that made the children excited about turning off the television.
So now I read to the children in the afternoons. It's not a lesson. Michael isn't reading or taking turns reading. They simply get to listen to me read. I'm not feeling rushed like I often feel during the reading time that is part of our bedtime routine. If we're all enjoying it we can just keep reading. We often read for 60-90 minutes in the afternoon and we all love it. Michael calls it "Super Reading Time".
One of the purchases I indulged in with my first Scholastic Reading Club order was a Magic Tree House book set. We now are the proud owners of books 1-45. (If you want the full set, the best price per book by far is from the Scholastic Reading clubs. Any library should have these books too.) The main characters are an older brother and a younger sister who are only a year apart - just like my two. The older boy is conservative and loves books and knowledge. The younger girl is imaginative and adventurous and loves animals. I think part of the reason the children love the books so much is because they identify with Jack and Annie. Michael has even started using some of the phrases that Jack frequently uses in the books. I'm not super fond of the phrase, "Is she nuts?" but hearing him imitate Jack is pretty cute.
The stories are about two children who discover a magic tree house in the woods near their house. The tree house is filled with books. When they point to a picture in the book and wish to travel there the tree house takes them to the location (and time) of the picture in the book. So far, there are story arcs that bridge several books. In each of the first four books they discover a clue about the owner of the tree house and they meet her at the end of the fourth book. At the beginning of the fifth book they discover that the tree house's owner has a spell cast on her and they have to collect four things to break the spell. They collect those four things over the course of their adventures in the next four books and then rescue her at the end of the eighth book. We've just started it, but the story arc for books 9-12 appears to be Jack and Annie answering four riddles in order to pass the test to become "Master Librarians". The children enjoy the individual stories, but they also very much enjoy the story arcs as well and definitely keep track of the progress Jack and Annie are making towards the larger goal.
Each book is 10 chapters. In each story they travel to a new location in time or space and there is a lot of science and social studies content embedded in the books. That is a great bonus while homeschooling. We read half a book (5 chapters) each day so it takes us two days to read each book. Many of the books also have a nonfiction companion book. So, for example, the fictional story "Mummies in the Morning" has a nonfiction companion book "Mummies and Pyramids". The nonfiction books are fairly dense with a great deal of interesting information. They are written from the perspective of Jack and Annie with the story being that when they got back from Ancient Egypt they wanted to know more about it. So they went to the library, learned more about it, and wrote this book to share the information with other children. I tried the Fact Trackers on a whim. I was almost positive the reading level would just be too high for my 4 and 5 year old, but they seem to like them. So each day we read 5 chapters of the next Magic Tree house book, and then a couple chapters of a Fact Tracker book about one of the fictional books we've already read. So far we've done "Knights and Castles" and most of "Mummies and Pyramids."
Another great thing about reading this book as a series is the Magic Tree House companion website. There you can print out a passport. Each time you finish a book you can earn a passport stamp by answering three questions about the story. My children LOVE this. You can also earn passports for the Fact Tracker nonfiction companion books. The site also has a game where you can complete missions by answering questions about four different books (earning a clue for each answer) and then solving a puzzle at the end. You earn a medallion for each successfully completed mission. This part of the website fascinates my children and I would love to let them do it. Unfortunately, the missions seem to choose randomly between ALL the books. If they would limit it to just books the children have already read (ones they've earned passport stamps for) then you would be able to play the mission game and begin to earn medallions no matter how many of the books you've read. As it is, we can't really play that game at all.
"Super reading" and the Magic Tree House books have completely transformed our afternoons. Now we all look forward to the time after lunch and we come back together for some snuggly reading time on the sofa together. It has become a really special time of our homeschooling day.
Showing posts with label children's books. Show all posts
Showing posts with label children's books. Show all posts
Thursday, September 12, 2013
Friday, August 23, 2013
4 Fun Halloween Picture Books
What is it about monsters, ghosts, witches, ghouls, and goblins? My children love stories about them (as long as they're nice, and not scary). We discover them when they're out and about during the Halloween time of year, but we tend to keep them on the shelf and enjoy them year-round. Here are four of our favorites that we've been enjoying for several years now.
These are listed in no particular order of preference. Three are meant to be sung and one is just a great story.
1. The Spooky Wheels on the Bus by J. Elizabeth Mills. This is a Halloween version of The Wheels on the Bus crossed with a counting book (up to 10). It begins, "One spooky bus goes RATTLE and SHAKE, RATTLE and SHAKE, RATTLE and SHAKE. One spooky bus goes RATTLE and SHAKE, All through the town. It continues with 2 white wipers (skeleton arms), 3 black cats, 4 glowing wheels (jack o'lanterns), 5 big spiders, 6 singing mummies, 7 silly monsters, 8 wacky witches, 9 magic brooms, and 10 goofy ghosts before returning to the original lyric. The children enjoy the lyrics and love the pictures. They are not scary at all. They are full of detail. We had read / sung the book at least a dozen times before we notices that each picture gives a hint of what is to come on the next page. You can actually guess who is about to get on the bus next. All in all, it is a fun adaptation that we enjoy every time.
2. Ten Timid Ghosts by Jennifer O'Connell. I sing this book. For the life of me, I cannot think of what the tune I use is so that I can tell you. Hopefully it will just come to you as you read the book. You could also simply read the book. It is enjoyable either way. It is a countdown book. It begins with 10 and counts down to one. It begins, "Ten timid ghosts in a haunted house - A witch moved in and wanted them out." She proceeds to do a series of practical jokes on the ghosts each one scaring off another ghost. The children love searching the illustrations to figure out how the witch is pulling off her trick and if you look you can always find her. At the end, the last little ghost figures out that it was the witch all along and tells his friends and the witch gets her comeuppance in the end. It is fun to sing, the story is cute, and the illustrations are well done and add something fun to the experience of reading the story.
3. The Legend of Spookley the Square Pumpkin by Joe Troiano. This is a great story that celebrates differences. Spookley is the only square pumpkin in the pumpkin patch but that quality about him saves the day during a storm. When the farmer realized how special Spookley was he saved his seeds for the next season. The next season all the pumpkins in the patch were unique and people came from miles around to choose a special pumpkin. My retelling doesn't really do the story justice. The pictures complement the story beautifully and the story is told in a rhyme that it fun to read. Excellent book.
4. Little Goblins Ten by Pamela Jane. This is an adaptation of the song/nursery rhyme Over in the Meadow (click here to hear a lovely version sung). I've always loved the melody of this song and I've always loved singing the traditional nursery rhyme version. It is just as much fun, if not more to use the same melody while singing this book. This halloween version begins, "Over in the forest, Where the trees hide the sun, Lived a big mommy monster, And her little monster one." The song hits 9 other types of halloween monsters. The illustrations are gorgeous and not at all scary. The children love seeing the various Halloween creatures and their parents. The final page has all of the creatures together setting off to Trick or Treat.
If you liked these children's book suggestions, I have several others ranging from board books through early chapter books. Check them out.
These are listed in no particular order of preference. Three are meant to be sung and one is just a great story.
1. The Spooky Wheels on the Bus by J. Elizabeth Mills. This is a Halloween version of The Wheels on the Bus crossed with a counting book (up to 10). It begins, "One spooky bus goes RATTLE and SHAKE, RATTLE and SHAKE, RATTLE and SHAKE. One spooky bus goes RATTLE and SHAKE, All through the town. It continues with 2 white wipers (skeleton arms), 3 black cats, 4 glowing wheels (jack o'lanterns), 5 big spiders, 6 singing mummies, 7 silly monsters, 8 wacky witches, 9 magic brooms, and 10 goofy ghosts before returning to the original lyric. The children enjoy the lyrics and love the pictures. They are not scary at all. They are full of detail. We had read / sung the book at least a dozen times before we notices that each picture gives a hint of what is to come on the next page. You can actually guess who is about to get on the bus next. All in all, it is a fun adaptation that we enjoy every time.
2. Ten Timid Ghosts by Jennifer O'Connell. I sing this book. For the life of me, I cannot think of what the tune I use is so that I can tell you. Hopefully it will just come to you as you read the book. You could also simply read the book. It is enjoyable either way. It is a countdown book. It begins with 10 and counts down to one. It begins, "Ten timid ghosts in a haunted house - A witch moved in and wanted them out." She proceeds to do a series of practical jokes on the ghosts each one scaring off another ghost. The children love searching the illustrations to figure out how the witch is pulling off her trick and if you look you can always find her. At the end, the last little ghost figures out that it was the witch all along and tells his friends and the witch gets her comeuppance in the end. It is fun to sing, the story is cute, and the illustrations are well done and add something fun to the experience of reading the story.
3. The Legend of Spookley the Square Pumpkin by Joe Troiano. This is a great story that celebrates differences. Spookley is the only square pumpkin in the pumpkin patch but that quality about him saves the day during a storm. When the farmer realized how special Spookley was he saved his seeds for the next season. The next season all the pumpkins in the patch were unique and people came from miles around to choose a special pumpkin. My retelling doesn't really do the story justice. The pictures complement the story beautifully and the story is told in a rhyme that it fun to read. Excellent book.
4. Little Goblins Ten by Pamela Jane. This is an adaptation of the song/nursery rhyme Over in the Meadow (click here to hear a lovely version sung). I've always loved the melody of this song and I've always loved singing the traditional nursery rhyme version. It is just as much fun, if not more to use the same melody while singing this book. This halloween version begins, "Over in the forest, Where the trees hide the sun, Lived a big mommy monster, And her little monster one." The song hits 9 other types of halloween monsters. The illustrations are gorgeous and not at all scary. The children love seeing the various Halloween creatures and their parents. The final page has all of the creatures together setting off to Trick or Treat.
If you liked these children's book suggestions, I have several others ranging from board books through early chapter books. Check them out.
Friday, August 16, 2013
4 Outstanding Picture Book Variations on the Classic Gingerbread Man Tale
I always found the classic fairy tale of the gingerbread man to be a little boring growing up. It felt like just another story with a moral. Then I discovered a captivating version of the classic tale with adorable illustrations and the story written in verse. The tale became a fun one to tell and I even turned the "catch me if you can" verse repeated throughout the story into a little song. The children and I loved it and we read it weekly for several months and continue to read it at least once every couple of months two years later. I began looking for other well done variations on the tale. Not all of them were great, but I highly recommend these four. We have been reading and re-reading these four in our household for several years. The children liked them as toddlers and still love them as preschoolers.
These are listed in no particular order of preference. They are all short, simple, and sweet.
1. The Gingerbread Man by Jim Aylesworth. It's all in the telling. This is the classic story of the gingerbread man, but the rhyme and rhythm make it a pleasure to read and so much more engaging for the little ones. You'll want a great telling of the classic story for several reasons. First, you need something to compare the others to if you're doing a unit on how fairy tales are often retold in different variations. Also, the Gingerbread Girl stories I'll be talking about shortly set themselves up as direct sequels to the Gingerbread Man story often referring to what happened to the original Gingerbread Boy.
2. The Gingerbread Man Loose in the School by Laura Murray. This variation of the gingerbread man takes place in a school. He is baked by a class of children who leave for recess while they wait for him to cool. He thinks he's been abandoned and searches the school to find his class only to discover at the end that they've been searching for him as well. The illustrations are done in a comic panel format which usually irritates me, but it isn't overdone in this book. In fact there is a lot of detail and humor to be found in the illustrations and it really does add layers to the story to take the time to fully examine the illustrations. Some of the common core standards involve using illustrations to add information so this is an added bonus in the book. Like all the other gingerbread man tales I'm featuring, this one is written in rhyme and is a pleasure to read. My kids love this one too.
3. The Gingerbread Girl by Lisa Campbell Ernst. This book is so much fun. One year later, the little old man and little old woman decide to try again but this time they bake a gingerbread girl. As she bakes she overhears the old man and woman discussing what happened to her brother and she decided that she will not meet the same fate. Later in the story she ends up face to face with that fox and I still clearly remember the anticipation the children felt when they didn't know if the fox would get her. It is fun to read and sing (if you like, just make up a tune) and is a delightful twist on the gingerbread man tale. (One small caveot. The fox uses the words "airhead" and "dumber" in reference to the gingerbread girl. You could either read as is and take the opportunity to discuss why using those words is unkind, or you can simply substitute something less offensive like "silly" while reading.)
4. The Gingerbread Girl Goes Animal Crackers is a sequel to The Gingerbread Girl by Lisa Campbell Ernst. This sequel is at least as awesome as the original, possibly better although you wouldn't enjoy it as much if you hadn't read the first one. This time the gingerbread girl has been with the little old man and little old woman for a year and they give her a present - a box of animal crackers. She loves it because she's always wanted friends like her, but then the noisy mob of animal crackers runs away. The overall story structure is familiar, but the individual pages are so well done. Each page features a different animal cracker rhyme. "My legs move so fast, I'm practically flyin'. You can't catch me, I'm the wild cracker lion!" You can pause before the last word and treat it like a riddle and ask the children if they know which animal cracker the verse is about. There's an excellent balance of tension in the scene with the fox and a great resolution at the end. Outstanding book.
If you liked these children's book suggestions, I have several others ranging from board books through early chapter books. Check them out. As soon as I get a chance, I'll share 4 fun books for halloween.
These are listed in no particular order of preference. They are all short, simple, and sweet.
1. The Gingerbread Man by Jim Aylesworth. It's all in the telling. This is the classic story of the gingerbread man, but the rhyme and rhythm make it a pleasure to read and so much more engaging for the little ones. You'll want a great telling of the classic story for several reasons. First, you need something to compare the others to if you're doing a unit on how fairy tales are often retold in different variations. Also, the Gingerbread Girl stories I'll be talking about shortly set themselves up as direct sequels to the Gingerbread Man story often referring to what happened to the original Gingerbread Boy.
2. The Gingerbread Man Loose in the School by Laura Murray. This variation of the gingerbread man takes place in a school. He is baked by a class of children who leave for recess while they wait for him to cool. He thinks he's been abandoned and searches the school to find his class only to discover at the end that they've been searching for him as well. The illustrations are done in a comic panel format which usually irritates me, but it isn't overdone in this book. In fact there is a lot of detail and humor to be found in the illustrations and it really does add layers to the story to take the time to fully examine the illustrations. Some of the common core standards involve using illustrations to add information so this is an added bonus in the book. Like all the other gingerbread man tales I'm featuring, this one is written in rhyme and is a pleasure to read. My kids love this one too.
3. The Gingerbread Girl by Lisa Campbell Ernst. This book is so much fun. One year later, the little old man and little old woman decide to try again but this time they bake a gingerbread girl. As she bakes she overhears the old man and woman discussing what happened to her brother and she decided that she will not meet the same fate. Later in the story she ends up face to face with that fox and I still clearly remember the anticipation the children felt when they didn't know if the fox would get her. It is fun to read and sing (if you like, just make up a tune) and is a delightful twist on the gingerbread man tale. (One small caveot. The fox uses the words "airhead" and "dumber" in reference to the gingerbread girl. You could either read as is and take the opportunity to discuss why using those words is unkind, or you can simply substitute something less offensive like "silly" while reading.)
4. The Gingerbread Girl Goes Animal Crackers is a sequel to The Gingerbread Girl by Lisa Campbell Ernst. This sequel is at least as awesome as the original, possibly better although you wouldn't enjoy it as much if you hadn't read the first one. This time the gingerbread girl has been with the little old man and little old woman for a year and they give her a present - a box of animal crackers. She loves it because she's always wanted friends like her, but then the noisy mob of animal crackers runs away. The overall story structure is familiar, but the individual pages are so well done. Each page features a different animal cracker rhyme. "My legs move so fast, I'm practically flyin'. You can't catch me, I'm the wild cracker lion!" You can pause before the last word and treat it like a riddle and ask the children if they know which animal cracker the verse is about. There's an excellent balance of tension in the scene with the fox and a great resolution at the end. Outstanding book.
If you liked these children's book suggestions, I have several others ranging from board books through early chapter books. Check them out. As soon as I get a chance, I'll share 4 fun books for halloween.
Tuesday, August 13, 2013
Scholastic Book Clubs for Homeschool Too
I remember getting Scholastic Book club flyers as a child and poring over them for hours choosing exactly what to spend my allowance on. I remember turning in the paper form and the money to my teacher and I remember the joy of getting my little pile of books each month when they came in. It made me sad to think that my children wouldn't have that fun because our family is choosing to homeschool.
As it turns out, you can participate in Scholastic Book Clubs (now called Scholastic Reading Club) as a homeschool. You simply go to the Club Sign In Page and click on the "Don't have an account? Register now" button. Choose to register as an educator and then on the next popup page after entering your basic contact information you choose "Homeschool". You'll pick the grades you're teaching (you can choose more than one) and they'll send you paper flyers, but you can also do everything online.
Right now, if you make a $25 order, they'll send you a 10 pack of books with a teacher's guide for free (the book pack will correspond to the highest grade level you picked in your profile - if you want to receive a pack for a lower grade, simply temporarily remove the higher grades from your profile and add them back in later).
They have another amazing deal going on right now too. Teachers (including homeschool teachers) can purchase packs of 24 birthday coupons for $25. The coupons can be redeemed for books from any of the flyers for books up to a $5 value. So your $25 now can be redeemed for up to $120 in books during the rest of the school year.
I just made an order where I'll be getting 104 books for about 77 cents each (yes, I went a little crazy, but the deals are often best in the first flyer of the school year. The bonus points you are earning with the current order can actually be spent on the current order if you go into checkout and then back out again to make more changes. I used the points I earned on this order to "buy" additional books which is how I got the books down to 77 cents each. Well, that and I got a lot of multi-packs that were a good bargain.
I highly recommend the book clubs. It is difficult to find books elsewhere that match Scholastic's prices and they often have exclusive softcover versions of books that are only available in hardcover everywhere else. If you avoid the few ridiculously high prices items thrown into each flyer you can easily get 7-15 books a month for about $1-$1.50 each. You can also skip a month whenever you like.
If you happen to be in a homeschool organization one person can sign up as an educator and then distribute flyers to everyone else. The other parents can sign up for parent (rather than educator) accounts and use a code given to them by the coordinator to place their orders and pay for them online.
Enjoy!
As it turns out, you can participate in Scholastic Book Clubs (now called Scholastic Reading Club) as a homeschool. You simply go to the Club Sign In Page and click on the "Don't have an account? Register now" button. Choose to register as an educator and then on the next popup page after entering your basic contact information you choose "Homeschool". You'll pick the grades you're teaching (you can choose more than one) and they'll send you paper flyers, but you can also do everything online.
Right now, if you make a $25 order, they'll send you a 10 pack of books with a teacher's guide for free (the book pack will correspond to the highest grade level you picked in your profile - if you want to receive a pack for a lower grade, simply temporarily remove the higher grades from your profile and add them back in later).
They have another amazing deal going on right now too. Teachers (including homeschool teachers) can purchase packs of 24 birthday coupons for $25. The coupons can be redeemed for books from any of the flyers for books up to a $5 value. So your $25 now can be redeemed for up to $120 in books during the rest of the school year.
I just made an order where I'll be getting 104 books for about 77 cents each (yes, I went a little crazy, but the deals are often best in the first flyer of the school year. The bonus points you are earning with the current order can actually be spent on the current order if you go into checkout and then back out again to make more changes. I used the points I earned on this order to "buy" additional books which is how I got the books down to 77 cents each. Well, that and I got a lot of multi-packs that were a good bargain.
I highly recommend the book clubs. It is difficult to find books elsewhere that match Scholastic's prices and they often have exclusive softcover versions of books that are only available in hardcover everywhere else. If you avoid the few ridiculously high prices items thrown into each flyer you can easily get 7-15 books a month for about $1-$1.50 each. You can also skip a month whenever you like.
If you happen to be in a homeschool organization one person can sign up as an educator and then distribute flyers to everyone else. The other parents can sign up for parent (rather than educator) accounts and use a code given to them by the coordinator to place their orders and pay for them online.
Enjoy!
Friday, August 9, 2013
4 Simple and Sweet Picture Books about Kittens to Read To Your Toddler
Do you have a child who loves cats or kittens in your house? These books are perfect for babies and toddlers because they are simple and sweet. However, as I was cleaning the bookshelves of my 4 and five year old children I found I wasn't quite ready to put them away yet. Sometimes you just want to read a short and sweet familiar favorite even if they've moved beyond the reading level of that particular book. These books have been favorites of my son and daughter for years.
These are listed in no particular order of preference. They are all short, simple, and sweet.
1. Hello Calico! by Karma Wilson (of Bear Wants More fame). This book is in rhyme. I always enjoy picture books written in rhyme and this one is no exception. It introduces a curious kitten and the mama who loves her and follows the kitten as she explores during the day. The illustrations are vibrant and beautiful and always catch the attention of my little ones.
2. Uh-oh, Calico! by Karma Wilson. This is a sequel to Hello Calico! This time, the kitten suffers several mishaps (spilling cream, trampling flowers, etc) and finds that her mama loves her even when she makes mistakes. The children love chiming in with "Uh-oh, Calico! and predicting how her behavior will lead to the subsequent mishap on the next page.
3. Kitty Cat, Kitty Cat, Are You Waking Up? by Bill Martin Jr (known best for Brown Bear, Brown Bear and Chicka Chicka Boom Boom). This is a gentle, sweet story of a kitten who needs to get out of bed and ready for school and yet needs gentle reminders from his mama to stay on task. Each page follows a predictable format with the mama asking a question and receiving a reply from the kitten. There's a mouse hiding in each picture and my children always adore finding the mouse and discussing what he's up to in each new situation until finally the mouse and kitten meet.
4. Kitty Cat, Kitty Cat, Are You Going to Sleep? is a sequel to Kitty Cat, Kitty Cat Are You Waking Up? by Bill Martin. This sequel is at least as sweet as the original. This time the kitten is getting ready for bed and it is his teddy bear who is tagging along through bath time, getting dressed for bed, brushing teeth, and story time. The two Kitty Cat, Kitty Cat books are some of my daughter's favorites.
If you liked these children's book suggestions, I have several others ranging from board books through early chapter books. Check them out. As soon as I get a chance, I'll share 4 truly good variations on the gingerbread boy story and 4 fun books for halloween.
These are listed in no particular order of preference. They are all short, simple, and sweet.
1. Hello Calico! by Karma Wilson (of Bear Wants More fame). This book is in rhyme. I always enjoy picture books written in rhyme and this one is no exception. It introduces a curious kitten and the mama who loves her and follows the kitten as she explores during the day. The illustrations are vibrant and beautiful and always catch the attention of my little ones.
2. Uh-oh, Calico! by Karma Wilson. This is a sequel to Hello Calico! This time, the kitten suffers several mishaps (spilling cream, trampling flowers, etc) and finds that her mama loves her even when she makes mistakes. The children love chiming in with "Uh-oh, Calico! and predicting how her behavior will lead to the subsequent mishap on the next page.
3. Kitty Cat, Kitty Cat, Are You Waking Up? by Bill Martin Jr (known best for Brown Bear, Brown Bear and Chicka Chicka Boom Boom). This is a gentle, sweet story of a kitten who needs to get out of bed and ready for school and yet needs gentle reminders from his mama to stay on task. Each page follows a predictable format with the mama asking a question and receiving a reply from the kitten. There's a mouse hiding in each picture and my children always adore finding the mouse and discussing what he's up to in each new situation until finally the mouse and kitten meet.
4. Kitty Cat, Kitty Cat, Are You Going to Sleep? is a sequel to Kitty Cat, Kitty Cat Are You Waking Up? by Bill Martin. This sequel is at least as sweet as the original. This time the kitten is getting ready for bed and it is his teddy bear who is tagging along through bath time, getting dressed for bed, brushing teeth, and story time. The two Kitty Cat, Kitty Cat books are some of my daughter's favorites.
If you liked these children's book suggestions, I have several others ranging from board books through early chapter books. Check them out. As soon as I get a chance, I'll share 4 truly good variations on the gingerbread boy story and 4 fun books for halloween.
Friday, August 2, 2013
5 Board Books to Enjoy Singing to Your Baby (or Toddler, or Preschooler)
I needed to clean out the children's bookshelves again. We had gotten to the point where they were so overstuffed that we had taken to stuffing books across the tops of the other books, piling them up on the floor, and so on. Some books I donate. I find I don't like them as much as I thought I would when I bought them. Other books the children are too old for, but I'm attached to them, so I ferret them away in a storage box to read to my grandchildren some day. All the rest, we keep. As I was doing my recent cleaning, reducing, and organizing of the children's bookshelves I found several board books that still play well around here. I love to sing, and the children love to listen so it all works out. Here are five of our favorite board books that are songs. The children loved them as babies and toddlers and they still love them today at the ages of 4 and 5.
These are listed in no particular order of preference. They are all wonderful.
1. Snuggle Puppy! by Sandra Boynton. I'll be honest. I didn't like this book at all when I first bought it. I got it because I love Sandra Boynton as an author of baby board books. I got it home and didn't like reading it at all. And then I realized it was adaptation of a song from her Philadelphia Chickens album. I own both the board book and the album and they are great. As soon as I heard the song I fell in love and the children adore it too. If you just want to learn the tune to go to the song in the book, check out this YouTube video. The story/song is about a mama dog telling her puppy how she loves him.
2. Your Personal Penguin by Sandra Boynton. This is another sweet book adapted from a Sandra Boynton song. It is about a penguin who wants to be friends with a hippo and tells the hippo all the wonderful things they can do together as friends. If you scroll about halfway down this page, you can listen to the song sung by Davy Jones of The Monkees. My children love this one too. Careful, it'll get stuck in your head.
3. The Itsy Bitsy Spider written and illustrated by Iza Trapani. You'll know this tune. It is the Itsy Bitsy Spider. What I like so much about this one is that although it begins with the traditional lyrics, there are five more as well, all beautifully illustrated. It tells the story of persistence. The spider continues to try to find a place to spin her web until finally, at the end of the book, she succeeds. You can have fun finding the spider on each page and cheering her on. I have read this story and sung this song hundreds of times at this point and I still actually enjoy it.
4. Baa Baa Black Sheep written and illustrated by Iza Trapani. (The link leads to the paperback version.) This is another expanded nursery rhyme by Isa Trapani. It begins with the traditional Baa Baa Black Sheep song and is expanded another nine stanzas. The story is about a cast of animal characters asking the sheep for various items she does not have. The animals wonder why she won't share only to find she's been knitting them gifts all along. The moral of the tale is that each person shares what they have to give. The illustrations are particularly rich and add much to the tale. Once you know to look, you can see the sheep working on her gifts all throughout the story.
5. How Much Is That Doggie in the Window? written and illustrated by Iza Trapani. (The link leads to the paperback version.) This may be my favorite of the Iza Trapani expanded nursery rhymes. It is expanded by an additional 12 stanzas. It tells the story of a boy who wants to buy a doggie from the pet store, but doesn't have enough money in his piggy bank. He works all week to earn money, but during the week he also spends money while being generous to his family members. At the end of the week he realizes he doesn't have enough money for the doggie and goes to the store just to say hi to the doggie. He discovers that the doggie has been sold. When he arrives at his house after sadly walking home he finds his parents have bought him the doggie to reward his generous spirit.
I found several other groups of books I want to share (cute, kitty-themed early picture books, halloween books, and gingerbread boy variations), but this is probably enough for a first installment. Have I mentioned that I LOVE children's books?
These are listed in no particular order of preference. They are all wonderful.
1. Snuggle Puppy! by Sandra Boynton. I'll be honest. I didn't like this book at all when I first bought it. I got it because I love Sandra Boynton as an author of baby board books. I got it home and didn't like reading it at all. And then I realized it was adaptation of a song from her Philadelphia Chickens album. I own both the board book and the album and they are great. As soon as I heard the song I fell in love and the children adore it too. If you just want to learn the tune to go to the song in the book, check out this YouTube video. The story/song is about a mama dog telling her puppy how she loves him.
2. Your Personal Penguin by Sandra Boynton. This is another sweet book adapted from a Sandra Boynton song. It is about a penguin who wants to be friends with a hippo and tells the hippo all the wonderful things they can do together as friends. If you scroll about halfway down this page, you can listen to the song sung by Davy Jones of The Monkees. My children love this one too. Careful, it'll get stuck in your head.
3. The Itsy Bitsy Spider written and illustrated by Iza Trapani. You'll know this tune. It is the Itsy Bitsy Spider. What I like so much about this one is that although it begins with the traditional lyrics, there are five more as well, all beautifully illustrated. It tells the story of persistence. The spider continues to try to find a place to spin her web until finally, at the end of the book, she succeeds. You can have fun finding the spider on each page and cheering her on. I have read this story and sung this song hundreds of times at this point and I still actually enjoy it.
4. Baa Baa Black Sheep written and illustrated by Iza Trapani. (The link leads to the paperback version.) This is another expanded nursery rhyme by Isa Trapani. It begins with the traditional Baa Baa Black Sheep song and is expanded another nine stanzas. The story is about a cast of animal characters asking the sheep for various items she does not have. The animals wonder why she won't share only to find she's been knitting them gifts all along. The moral of the tale is that each person shares what they have to give. The illustrations are particularly rich and add much to the tale. Once you know to look, you can see the sheep working on her gifts all throughout the story.
5. How Much Is That Doggie in the Window? written and illustrated by Iza Trapani. (The link leads to the paperback version.) This may be my favorite of the Iza Trapani expanded nursery rhymes. It is expanded by an additional 12 stanzas. It tells the story of a boy who wants to buy a doggie from the pet store, but doesn't have enough money in his piggy bank. He works all week to earn money, but during the week he also spends money while being generous to his family members. At the end of the week he realizes he doesn't have enough money for the doggie and goes to the store just to say hi to the doggie. He discovers that the doggie has been sold. When he arrives at his house after sadly walking home he finds his parents have bought him the doggie to reward his generous spirit.
I found several other groups of books I want to share (cute, kitty-themed early picture books, halloween books, and gingerbread boy variations), but this is probably enough for a first installment. Have I mentioned that I LOVE children's books?
Sunday, October 21, 2012
Homeschooling with the Usborne Very First Reading Set
I can't believe it has been six months since I first bought the Usborne Very First Reading Boxed Set. We bought our set used on eBay because the new price of $70 seemed a little steep for a product I was buying sight unseen. To be honest, now that we've had the set for six months, I can honestly say the price is fair. The books are well conceived, designed, and made. They are a lot of fun to read with your child. There are three built in activities at the end of each book. There are also useful supplementary materials available to download for free online. These books make teaching my child to read fun for both of us. That is a lot of value in one boxed set.
We had gone through 10 of the 15 books. At book 8, the format changes from the adult and child taking turns reading pages to the child reading the entire text. Also, the books build in difficulty as you progress through the series. Michael was beginning to struggle and was having less fun. Here are some sample pages showing the difference in difficulty between the Level 1 book and the Level 10 book:
Then one day when I went to download some supplementary materials for the next book I saw that there were some new titles available in the series. They had released a second book for levels 1-7. Perfect! That was just what I needed to work with Michael. We could start over again at level 1 and work our way back up to level 7 with new books. I was very excited.
Then I realized that the new titles were only available in the UK. I searched and searched and finally found a way to order them (alibris.com). I was willing to pay new prices and shipping for these. That is how much I like them. The new books are just as nice as the original ones and they include little built-in ribbon bookmarks. Here is a picture of the inside of the back binding from one of the originals and one of the new books so you can see the change in selection.
We read both books at a level at the same time. So when I got the new books we started with Level 1 again and read Pirate Pat and Double Trouble in the same lesson. On the first lesson we read the books and do the first activity at the end of the book. Then Michael gets to put a sticker in the Activity 1 box on his progress chart. We also go through the sight word flashcards (download for free from usborne site) sorting them into the pile he knows and the pile he needs to work on. The second lesson consists of re-reading the books, doing activity #2, and working on the sight words again. The third lesson we read the books a third time, complete activity number 3 in the backs of the books and re-do the sight word cards. The fourth lesson is re-reading the books a final time, completing the downloadable worksheets and doing the sight word cards for the last time. Re-reading books is important for gaining confidence, intonation, speed, fluency, and comprehension. After the fourth lesson, we are ready to move on to the next level.
We are having the best time with this reading program and I'm looking forward to using it a second time with Ava when she's ready.
We had gone through 10 of the 15 books. At book 8, the format changes from the adult and child taking turns reading pages to the child reading the entire text. Also, the books build in difficulty as you progress through the series. Michael was beginning to struggle and was having less fun. Here are some sample pages showing the difference in difficulty between the Level 1 book and the Level 10 book:
Then one day when I went to download some supplementary materials for the next book I saw that there were some new titles available in the series. They had released a second book for levels 1-7. Perfect! That was just what I needed to work with Michael. We could start over again at level 1 and work our way back up to level 7 with new books. I was very excited.
Then I realized that the new titles were only available in the UK. I searched and searched and finally found a way to order them (alibris.com). I was willing to pay new prices and shipping for these. That is how much I like them. The new books are just as nice as the original ones and they include little built-in ribbon bookmarks. Here is a picture of the inside of the back binding from one of the originals and one of the new books so you can see the change in selection.
We read both books at a level at the same time. So when I got the new books we started with Level 1 again and read Pirate Pat and Double Trouble in the same lesson. On the first lesson we read the books and do the first activity at the end of the book. Then Michael gets to put a sticker in the Activity 1 box on his progress chart. We also go through the sight word flashcards (download for free from usborne site) sorting them into the pile he knows and the pile he needs to work on. The second lesson consists of re-reading the books, doing activity #2, and working on the sight words again. The third lesson we read the books a third time, complete activity number 3 in the backs of the books and re-do the sight word cards. The fourth lesson is re-reading the books a final time, completing the downloadable worksheets and doing the sight word cards for the last time. Re-reading books is important for gaining confidence, intonation, speed, fluency, and comprehension. After the fourth lesson, we are ready to move on to the next level.
We are having the best time with this reading program and I'm looking forward to using it a second time with Ava when she's ready.
Wednesday, September 12, 2012
The Gruffalo Book and Film Adaptation: A Review
The Gruffalo - The Book
I believe I've mentioned before that The Gruffalo, by Julia Donaldson is one of our favorite children's books. It is available in both paperback and hardback, but my favorite version is a non-abridged board book. It is durable for multiple readings with small children.
The story is about a mouse taking a walk through the woods who uses his wits to convince three predators (fox, owl, and snake) to let him go or risk the wrath of his friend the "gruffalo". The gruffalo, the mouse believes, is a creature entirely of his own imagination so he is surprised to encounter a real gruffalo later in the book. The gruffalo is also looking to make a snack of the mouse and the mouse uses his wits again to outsmart the gruffalo.
The story is written in rhyme and is a lot of fun to read out loud. The story begins and ends peacefully with a happy mouse walking alone in the woods. It is a great read and I highly recommend it.
The Gruffalo - The Move Adaptation
I seriously cannot think of a better adaptation of children literature. This 30 minute film is extraordinary. The animation is exquisite. The voice actors are perfect. The writers that did the adaptation worked magic. Everything in the original story is there and yet they added so many layers. Through a combination of good writing, animated facial expressions, and outstanding voice acting you can actually see the mouse coming up with his story to the fox including how he comes up with the name "gruffalo" for his imaginary monster. And that is just one tiny example of what this film adaptation does to enrich the book. I put it on for the children and they were entranced for the full show through the end of the credits. My husband wandered in from the kitchen and sat with us through the entire showing because it was just that good.
The only caveat I have is that is might be scary for the youngest or more timid viewers. The predators are a little scary as is the gruffalo. Overall though, the film comes no where close to crossing any lines there, but I felt I should mention it. My kids were scared a little, but in the good way.
Seriously, this was absolutely the best adaptation of a picture book I have ever seen. I honestly think that it might be better than the book and that feels a bit like sacrilege to say out loud. You can pick this short film up for less than $8 on Amazon. It would be a crime to miss out at that price. You can get the board book and the movie for a little less than $15.
The Gruffalo - The Extras
Go to www.gruffalo.com for a nice set of online games. There are also 13 free downloadable printables to go along with the story (mixed in with printables for other stories by the same author). These are great activities to do with a young child at home, as a homeschooling literature activity, as a language activity in a speech room, or with an entire class in a school.
The combination of the book, film adaptation, and free online resources is pretty powerful.
Saturday, June 16, 2012
I fell in love with a tree... (A Story of a Quest)
It all started with a children's book.
The children and I were heading to check out at the library and Ava spotted one last book attractively displayed on an endcap. It showed a little girl in a green dress with a crown of pink flowers in her hair swinging from a tree full of pink flowers. She snatched it up and added it to our pile.
Later that week, when we finally got around to reading A Tree for Emmy by Mary Ann Rodman. It turned out to be a pretty sweet picture book about a girl who loves the mimosa tree in her grandmother's field and so asks for one of her own for her birthday. She and her parents found it difficult to find one and finally end up with a baby sapling from the ground below her grandmother's tree.
As I was driving around town, I began to notice beautiful fern-like trees with gorgeous pink blossoms. There's one on the drive to my parents' house. There's another on the way to the school where Ava has speech. After reading A Tree for Emmy I realized they were probably mimosa trees. I also quite liked them. Once I became aware of them I saw them everywhere. Driving around town with the family, my conversation with my husband would be peppered with interjections of "Mimosa!" accompanied by a pointing finger. On the train at Six Flags, I spotted and pointed out several. Taking the children to their private speech therapist, I noticed a gorgeous specimen across the street. Michael and I walked over to look at it close up while Ava was having her turn. I'm sure it had been there the entire year and a half we've been driving there, but only now did I notice it.
As we were driving home from Six Flags I decided to see if I could just buy one. Enough with the love from afar, I wanted to just get one. I had already decided earlier this spring that I wanted to get a flowering tree and hadn't quite decided which one yet. Now I was sure. I began searching online vendors. Of course, the abrupt decision to buy one ruined the anniversary (next week - 8 years) surprise my husband had been planning. That was sad, but now we would get to choose one together.
There are pink varieties (the most common), white varieties, and a dark pink (flame) variety. (Go here for oh so pretty pictures of flame mimosas.) Looking at pictures online I decided that the flame variety was the most striking one. Only one online vendor carries it right now. It doesn't ship until fall. And it is rather pricey. So, I decided to look for it locally. We visited and called several nurseries and none had what we wanted. I went back to the online vendor and searching for a coupon code stumbled across hundreds of very passionate negative reviews about this particular nursery so we decided against ordering from them. As it turns out, A Tree for Emmy was right about it being difficult to get your hands on a mimosa tree.
Then I remembered how Emmy got hers. One night, after dinner, our family went on a baby mimosa hunt. We drove and parked by the mimosa tree near my parents' house. It was on a common ground so I thought we could look for some babies growing under the tree. We brought buckets and little gardening spades just in case we might find a baby tree to dig up. The children were quite excited about going on a quest for baby mimosas.
Isn't the tree amazing? We nicknamed it "Mama Mimosa". But no baby mimosas were growing under it.
Then I looked down the hill and spotted three more mimosa trees growing on the banks of the dry creekbed.
I was determined to try everything to find some baby mimosas. But did you see that hill? And the rocks? The children thought all those rocks looked like a lot of fun. I thought dragging two small children down that hill carrying buckets and gardening tools sounded like a recipe for disaster. One one hand, I really wanted to search for some baby mimosas. On the other hand, I like my children healthy with no broken bones and no head injuries. Fortunately, just then a friendly neighbor passed by walking her dog. Hearing of our quest, she offered to let us go through her backyard down some steps to the creekbed.
To make this long story slightly shorter...
We found 11 seedlings. They had sprouted in a shallow patch of eroded soil in the creek bed. They had managed to grow in less than an inch of dirt over gravel and rocks. They would have been washed away with the next hard rain. We brought them home and potted them. To the best of my minimal gardening ability I am pampering them. (Please don't die, please don't die!) And now I have my very own mimosa. Well, to be more specific, I have eleven mimosas.
According to internet research the mimosa tree has as average lifespan of 10-20 years and grows to a height of 20-40 feet. So 1-4 feet of growth per year. How many years is that until blooms? Of course, I'll have eleven trees by then and what on earth will I do with eleven of them?
The end.
PS: If anyone has a flame mimosa tree near them and would be willing to collect some seed pods and mail them to me in the fall I would be forever grateful.
The children and I were heading to check out at the library and Ava spotted one last book attractively displayed on an endcap. It showed a little girl in a green dress with a crown of pink flowers in her hair swinging from a tree full of pink flowers. She snatched it up and added it to our pile.
Later that week, when we finally got around to reading A Tree for Emmy by Mary Ann Rodman. It turned out to be a pretty sweet picture book about a girl who loves the mimosa tree in her grandmother's field and so asks for one of her own for her birthday. She and her parents found it difficult to find one and finally end up with a baby sapling from the ground below her grandmother's tree.
As I was driving around town, I began to notice beautiful fern-like trees with gorgeous pink blossoms. There's one on the drive to my parents' house. There's another on the way to the school where Ava has speech. After reading A Tree for Emmy I realized they were probably mimosa trees. I also quite liked them. Once I became aware of them I saw them everywhere. Driving around town with the family, my conversation with my husband would be peppered with interjections of "Mimosa!" accompanied by a pointing finger. On the train at Six Flags, I spotted and pointed out several. Taking the children to their private speech therapist, I noticed a gorgeous specimen across the street. Michael and I walked over to look at it close up while Ava was having her turn. I'm sure it had been there the entire year and a half we've been driving there, but only now did I notice it.
As we were driving home from Six Flags I decided to see if I could just buy one. Enough with the love from afar, I wanted to just get one. I had already decided earlier this spring that I wanted to get a flowering tree and hadn't quite decided which one yet. Now I was sure. I began searching online vendors. Of course, the abrupt decision to buy one ruined the anniversary (next week - 8 years) surprise my husband had been planning. That was sad, but now we would get to choose one together.
There are pink varieties (the most common), white varieties, and a dark pink (flame) variety. (Go here for oh so pretty pictures of flame mimosas.) Looking at pictures online I decided that the flame variety was the most striking one. Only one online vendor carries it right now. It doesn't ship until fall. And it is rather pricey. So, I decided to look for it locally. We visited and called several nurseries and none had what we wanted. I went back to the online vendor and searching for a coupon code stumbled across hundreds of very passionate negative reviews about this particular nursery so we decided against ordering from them. As it turns out, A Tree for Emmy was right about it being difficult to get your hands on a mimosa tree.
Then I remembered how Emmy got hers. One night, after dinner, our family went on a baby mimosa hunt. We drove and parked by the mimosa tree near my parents' house. It was on a common ground so I thought we could look for some babies growing under the tree. We brought buckets and little gardening spades just in case we might find a baby tree to dig up. The children were quite excited about going on a quest for baby mimosas.
Isn't the tree amazing? We nicknamed it "Mama Mimosa". But no baby mimosas were growing under it.
Then I looked down the hill and spotted three more mimosa trees growing on the banks of the dry creekbed.
I was determined to try everything to find some baby mimosas. But did you see that hill? And the rocks? The children thought all those rocks looked like a lot of fun. I thought dragging two small children down that hill carrying buckets and gardening tools sounded like a recipe for disaster. One one hand, I really wanted to search for some baby mimosas. On the other hand, I like my children healthy with no broken bones and no head injuries. Fortunately, just then a friendly neighbor passed by walking her dog. Hearing of our quest, she offered to let us go through her backyard down some steps to the creekbed.
To make this long story slightly shorter...
We found 11 seedlings. They had sprouted in a shallow patch of eroded soil in the creek bed. They had managed to grow in less than an inch of dirt over gravel and rocks. They would have been washed away with the next hard rain. We brought them home and potted them. To the best of my minimal gardening ability I am pampering them. (Please don't die, please don't die!) And now I have my very own mimosa. Well, to be more specific, I have eleven mimosas.
According to internet research the mimosa tree has as average lifespan of 10-20 years and grows to a height of 20-40 feet. So 1-4 feet of growth per year. How many years is that until blooms? Of course, I'll have eleven trees by then and what on earth will I do with eleven of them?
The end.
PS: If anyone has a flame mimosa tree near them and would be willing to collect some seed pods and mail them to me in the fall I would be forever grateful.
Saturday, May 19, 2012
Catwings by Ursula K. Le Guin: A Series Review
The children and I have just finished an enchanting series of chapter books. The books are lovely and I will not be able to do them justice but I had to try.
Books written for children are a mixed bag. Some of them aren't very good, to be honest. Others are entertaining, beautifully illustrated, sweet, fun, or all of those. Almost all of them are written for children though. What I mean by that, is that in addition to the content of the book being directed at children, the prose is modified for children as well. Vocabulary is simplified, sentences are shorter and less complex. Effort is made to make the prose engaging for children. Often the modifications are necessary, appropriate, and well done. Some of my absolute favorite children books use rhythm and rhyme to make the text fun to read and listen to.
These books are different. The prose is exquisite. I feel like I'm reading a classic - or poetry and yet, somehow, the stories are still accessible to even very young children. Here is a short excerpt from the first book to illustrate: "So the children's wings were the least of Mrs. Tabby's worries. She washed those silky wings every day, along with chins and paws and tails, and wondered about them now and then, but she worked too hard finding food and bringing up the family to think much about things she didn't understand. But when the huge dog chased little Harriet and cornered her behind the garbage can, lunging at her with open, white-toothed jaws, and Harriet with one desperate mew flew straight up into the air and over the dog's staring head and lighted on a rooftop - then Mrs. Tabby understood."
Every two or three pages, there are beautiful, delicate, detailed illustrations that bring the story to life and help keep little ones engaged in the story. These books entranced my 3 and 4 year old children - a boy and a girl. They entranced my husband and I. I imagine that a young independent reader (1st-3rd grade) would enjoy them as well. Even a middle or high school reader could become addicted to this series.
The books are fantasies in the sense that they are about four kittens who were born with wings. Other than that fact, though, the books take place in the perfectly ordinary settings of a city and the countryside. While appropriate in content for even very young children, they are not all sweetness and light. The kittens encounter hunger, fatigue, injury, and the danger of discovery by humans. These topics are integrated seamlessly into the stories and are part of what make the stories so engaging for the children.
The first book in the series is Catwings by Ursula K. Le Guin and illustrated by S. D. Schindler. Four winged kittens are born to a perfectly ordinary alley cat under a dumpster in the city. When the kittens are old enough to fly the mother sends them away to find a better place to live in the country. Eventually the kittens find a better home.
The second book in the series is Catwings Return. Two of the catwings decide to return to the city to visit their mother only to find her missing and the old alley being demolished by the humans. They discover a lost black, winged kitten who needs to be rescued.
The third book in the series is Wonderful Alexander and the Catwings. The youngest catwing makes a new friend and although she helps him in the beginning, he is able to help her in the end.
The final book in the series is Jane on Her Own. The youngest kitten goes off on her own in search of adventure. She learns some lessons before finding just the right place to settle.
I cannot recommend this series of books enough. They are a perfect read-aloud introduction to early chapter books for young children. The books are five short chapters each with enough illustrations to keep children used to picture books interested. These books could even be read over the course of a few weeks in 5-10 minutes per therapy session. Use them as a "reward" for good therapy behavior and know that they are perfect for increasing listening comprehension, expanding vocabulary, and exposure to advanced syntax at the same time.
Bottom line: Highly recommended.
Books written for children are a mixed bag. Some of them aren't very good, to be honest. Others are entertaining, beautifully illustrated, sweet, fun, or all of those. Almost all of them are written for children though. What I mean by that, is that in addition to the content of the book being directed at children, the prose is modified for children as well. Vocabulary is simplified, sentences are shorter and less complex. Effort is made to make the prose engaging for children. Often the modifications are necessary, appropriate, and well done. Some of my absolute favorite children books use rhythm and rhyme to make the text fun to read and listen to.
These books are different. The prose is exquisite. I feel like I'm reading a classic - or poetry and yet, somehow, the stories are still accessible to even very young children. Here is a short excerpt from the first book to illustrate: "So the children's wings were the least of Mrs. Tabby's worries. She washed those silky wings every day, along with chins and paws and tails, and wondered about them now and then, but she worked too hard finding food and bringing up the family to think much about things she didn't understand. But when the huge dog chased little Harriet and cornered her behind the garbage can, lunging at her with open, white-toothed jaws, and Harriet with one desperate mew flew straight up into the air and over the dog's staring head and lighted on a rooftop - then Mrs. Tabby understood."
Every two or three pages, there are beautiful, delicate, detailed illustrations that bring the story to life and help keep little ones engaged in the story. These books entranced my 3 and 4 year old children - a boy and a girl. They entranced my husband and I. I imagine that a young independent reader (1st-3rd grade) would enjoy them as well. Even a middle or high school reader could become addicted to this series.
The books are fantasies in the sense that they are about four kittens who were born with wings. Other than that fact, though, the books take place in the perfectly ordinary settings of a city and the countryside. While appropriate in content for even very young children, they are not all sweetness and light. The kittens encounter hunger, fatigue, injury, and the danger of discovery by humans. These topics are integrated seamlessly into the stories and are part of what make the stories so engaging for the children.
The first book in the series is Catwings by Ursula K. Le Guin and illustrated by S. D. Schindler. Four winged kittens are born to a perfectly ordinary alley cat under a dumpster in the city. When the kittens are old enough to fly the mother sends them away to find a better place to live in the country. Eventually the kittens find a better home.
The second book in the series is Catwings Return. Two of the catwings decide to return to the city to visit their mother only to find her missing and the old alley being demolished by the humans. They discover a lost black, winged kitten who needs to be rescued.
The third book in the series is Wonderful Alexander and the Catwings. The youngest catwing makes a new friend and although she helps him in the beginning, he is able to help her in the end.
The final book in the series is Jane on Her Own. The youngest kitten goes off on her own in search of adventure. She learns some lessons before finding just the right place to settle.
I cannot recommend this series of books enough. They are a perfect read-aloud introduction to early chapter books for young children. The books are five short chapters each with enough illustrations to keep children used to picture books interested. These books could even be read over the course of a few weeks in 5-10 minutes per therapy session. Use them as a "reward" for good therapy behavior and know that they are perfect for increasing listening comprehension, expanding vocabulary, and exposure to advanced syntax at the same time.
Bottom line: Highly recommended.
Saturday, April 28, 2012
Website Recommendation: daddyread.com
If you're looking for an annotated list of recommended books to read to your children DaddyRead is a great place to find it. The website has informational articles on how to read to your kids, but the heart of the site is annotated lists of books to read aloud to children separated by recommended ages. There are lists of picture books for infants through second grade. There are lists of recommended read-aloud chapter books for preschool through third grade and up. There's even a list of recommended chapter books for reluctant readers.
I started with the list of read-aloud chapter books for preschoolers and reserved five of the recommended books from our local library. We started Moongobble: Dragon of Doom today. Michael is loving it. It makes Ava a bit wiggly, but as long as she's allowed to wander the room a bit she follows along too. The chapters are short and have a couple of black and white illustrations per chapter. We've finished 5 of 13 chapters. The book is the first in a series so we'll know where to go next if the children enjoy this first one all the way through.
I started with the list of read-aloud chapter books for preschoolers and reserved five of the recommended books from our local library. We started Moongobble: Dragon of Doom today. Michael is loving it. It makes Ava a bit wiggly, but as long as she's allowed to wander the room a bit she follows along too. The chapters are short and have a couple of black and white illustrations per chapter. We've finished 5 of 13 chapters. The book is the first in a series so we'll know where to go next if the children enjoy this first one all the way through.
Saturday, April 21, 2012
Seven Favorite Read-Alouds
Here are seven of our favorite read-aloud bedtime (and naptime) stories in this house. These are all books we own and have read and enjoyed many, many times.
These are listed in no particular order of preference. They are all wonderful.
1. Barn Dance! by Bill Martin Jr. and John Archambault of Chicka Chicka Boom Boom fame. I love this story. The rhythm of the verse is infectious, the illustrations are beautiful, and the story speaks to curiosity and adventure. Anyone with a bit of bluegrass or country in their background will particularly enjoy the animal square dance at the heart of the story.
2. The Gingerbread Girl by Lisa Campbell Ernst. I love reading this as a sequel to The Gingerbread Man (Read the Gingerbread Man first!). This story picks up some time after the poor end of the Gingerbread Man with the old couple's second attempt at making a gingerbread cookie. This time things turn out differently. The story is such fun to read. My children are delighted every time I pull it out. One small warning - it has an unfortunate use of words ("dumb", "airhead") when the fox first meets the gingerbread girl and I choose to switch those words for "silly" when I read it to my children. I would definitely NOT let that stop you from picking up this book.
3. The Gingerbread Man by Jim Aylesworth and Barbara McClintock. This, by far, is my favorite telling of the gingerbread man tale. The rhythm and rhyme are perfectly written so that this is incredibly fun to read and to listen to. The verse repeats many times during the telling of the story and my children love to chime in and tell the story along with me.
4. The Clock Struck One: A Time-Telling Tale by Trudy Harris. This is a creative extension of the nursery rhyme/song Hickory Dickory Dock. The book is fun to read (sing) and enjoyed by both parent and child. As a bonus, if you take only a few seconds to show the kids, they will learn how to tell time to the hour.
5. The Gruffalo by Julia Donaldson. This book is a tale of a clever mouse taking a walk through the woods avoiding predators using his wits and telling a tall tale about an imaginary creature called a gruffalo. Imagine his surprise when he runs into the gruffalo and needs to quickly use his wits again to avoid becoming the gruffalo's meal. The rhythm and rhyme make this book fun to read and the story is interesting enough to hold up to repeated readings. There is just enough scary to make the children enjoy pretending to be afraid without actually scaring them. I also enjoy watching the children come to understand just why the mouse's tricks worked.
6. Stuck in the Mud by Jane Clarke. This book tells, in rhyme, the story of a mother hen trying to get her chick out of the mud. She becomes stuck and then her would be rescuer becomes stuck. And then the next and the next until the entire barnyard is stuck in the mud. The book is fun to read and the twist at the end always gets a giggle. It also happens to be a great book for working on final consonant deletion.
7. Egg-napped! by Marisa Montes. This is a tale of what happens when Gabbler the goose and his wife find their beloved egg missing and all the forest animals try to help them get it back. Again, it is the rhyme that makes this book so much fun to read. The story is full of fun, adventure, a bit of suspense and danger, and a satisfying ending.
Does anyone have some favorites of their own to share? I'm always looking for great new books to read with the kids.
These are listed in no particular order of preference. They are all wonderful.
1. Barn Dance! by Bill Martin Jr. and John Archambault of Chicka Chicka Boom Boom fame. I love this story. The rhythm of the verse is infectious, the illustrations are beautiful, and the story speaks to curiosity and adventure. Anyone with a bit of bluegrass or country in their background will particularly enjoy the animal square dance at the heart of the story.
2. The Gingerbread Girl by Lisa Campbell Ernst. I love reading this as a sequel to The Gingerbread Man (Read the Gingerbread Man first!). This story picks up some time after the poor end of the Gingerbread Man with the old couple's second attempt at making a gingerbread cookie. This time things turn out differently. The story is such fun to read. My children are delighted every time I pull it out. One small warning - it has an unfortunate use of words ("dumb", "airhead") when the fox first meets the gingerbread girl and I choose to switch those words for "silly" when I read it to my children. I would definitely NOT let that stop you from picking up this book.
3. The Gingerbread Man by Jim Aylesworth and Barbara McClintock. This, by far, is my favorite telling of the gingerbread man tale. The rhythm and rhyme are perfectly written so that this is incredibly fun to read and to listen to. The verse repeats many times during the telling of the story and my children love to chime in and tell the story along with me.
4. The Clock Struck One: A Time-Telling Tale by Trudy Harris. This is a creative extension of the nursery rhyme/song Hickory Dickory Dock. The book is fun to read (sing) and enjoyed by both parent and child. As a bonus, if you take only a few seconds to show the kids, they will learn how to tell time to the hour.
5. The Gruffalo by Julia Donaldson. This book is a tale of a clever mouse taking a walk through the woods avoiding predators using his wits and telling a tall tale about an imaginary creature called a gruffalo. Imagine his surprise when he runs into the gruffalo and needs to quickly use his wits again to avoid becoming the gruffalo's meal. The rhythm and rhyme make this book fun to read and the story is interesting enough to hold up to repeated readings. There is just enough scary to make the children enjoy pretending to be afraid without actually scaring them. I also enjoy watching the children come to understand just why the mouse's tricks worked.
6. Stuck in the Mud by Jane Clarke. This book tells, in rhyme, the story of a mother hen trying to get her chick out of the mud. She becomes stuck and then her would be rescuer becomes stuck. And then the next and the next until the entire barnyard is stuck in the mud. The book is fun to read and the twist at the end always gets a giggle. It also happens to be a great book for working on final consonant deletion.
7. Egg-napped! by Marisa Montes. This is a tale of what happens when Gabbler the goose and his wife find their beloved egg missing and all the forest animals try to help them get it back. Again, it is the rhyme that makes this book so much fun to read. The story is full of fun, adventure, a bit of suspense and danger, and a satisfying ending.
Does anyone have some favorites of their own to share? I'm always looking for great new books to read with the kids.
Tuesday, August 2, 2011
Children's Picture Book Review - Goodnight, Goodnight Construction Site
I wanted to share this picture book with you. Goodnight, Goodnight, Construction Site written by Sherri Duskey Rinker and illustrated by Tom Lichtenheld is a wonderful read. The gentle rhymes tell a delightful bedtime story. The story takes you through the last job of the day for Crane Truck, Cement Mixer, Dump Truck, Bulldozer, and Excavator and then puts each truck to sleep. The illustrations are beautiful and the details in the pictures provide discussion material independent from the story. Both my three year old son and my two year old daughter love this book and join me in whispering, "Goodnight" to each truck in turn. This book is a treasure.
Thursday, April 28, 2011
Illustrated Early Chapter Books
First, I just have to say that I wrote this post twice. The first time I wrote it I walked away without saving (always a mistake, I know) and came back to find the computer had mysteriously rebooted and it was gone. After crying a bit and wallowing in self pity I decided that I liked the post enough to try to recreate it. The second time I wrote it I saved about 30 times - every time a child interrupted me. And without further ado, here is version 2.0.
You start with a baby who looks at the pictures in picture books for about five seconds before wanting to chew on the book. Ideally, you end up with a young child who enjoys listening to chapter books. How do you get from point A to point B? (I'm just talking about listening to books here, not the child reading the books for him or herself.) In my mind I think of the progression as something like this:
Picture books are plentiful, beautiful, and easy to find and enjoy. Picture books are an interesting genre because they can be very simple and very complex. Some picture books have no words at all, and some are actually written at a fifth or sixth grade reading comprehension level. You can read picture books to children forever. You just need to start simple and gradually get more complex.
Early readers are also pretty easy to find. Step into Reading is a early reader program that goes through four steps in increasing difficulty. I Can Read is also a early reader program that has four levels. The Frog and Toad books are actually I Can Read books Level Two. I highly recommend any of Arnold Lobel's books as great early readers. The thing about early readers is that they are typically a single story or the books are broken into chapters but each chapter tells a different story. In the Frog and Toad books, for example, all the stories are about the same two characters, but the stories can be read in any order.
There are many early chapter book series. Magic Tree House is one of the most popular. These books are longer, often around ten chapters long. They are also much more sparsely illustrated than picture books or early readers. There are usually only one or two illustrations per chapter. It is a big jump, particularly if you are trying to transition to chapter books with a preschooler, from early readers to early chapter books. They just still need the pictures.
That's why I started looking for illustrated early chapter books. They were much harder to find than I expected. (There are a few, like the Magic School Bus series, that I'm not discussing here because they are just deal with topics that are not right for a preschooler. I need something that works for a preschooler, not just a grade school aged child.) Here are five series I found that are illustrated early chapter book series that would be interesting to a preschooler.
That's it. That's all I could find. If you know of any other series that meet my criteria of an illustrated early chapter book series that would appeal to preschoolers, please let me know. I'd absolutely love to find more. Otherwise, enjoy the ones I have found. I hope you like them. Let me know if you read them.
You start with a baby who looks at the pictures in picture books for about five seconds before wanting to chew on the book. Ideally, you end up with a young child who enjoys listening to chapter books. How do you get from point A to point B? (I'm just talking about listening to books here, not the child reading the books for him or herself.) In my mind I think of the progression as something like this:
- Picture Books
- Early Readers: These are books with multiple chapters, but each chapter is a separate story. Examples include the Frog and Toad series by Arnold Lobel and the Little Bear series by Elsa Holmelund Minarik.
- Illustrated Early Chapter Books: These are books with multiple chapters that tell a single story. They are illustrated on every page.
- Early Chapter Books: These are books with multiple chapters that tell a single story. There are usually only one or two illustrations per chapter. An example is the Magic Tree House series by Mary Pope Osborne.
Picture books are plentiful, beautiful, and easy to find and enjoy. Picture books are an interesting genre because they can be very simple and very complex. Some picture books have no words at all, and some are actually written at a fifth or sixth grade reading comprehension level. You can read picture books to children forever. You just need to start simple and gradually get more complex.
Early readers are also pretty easy to find. Step into Reading is a early reader program that goes through four steps in increasing difficulty. I Can Read is also a early reader program that has four levels. The Frog and Toad books are actually I Can Read books Level Two. I highly recommend any of Arnold Lobel's books as great early readers. The thing about early readers is that they are typically a single story or the books are broken into chapters but each chapter tells a different story. In the Frog and Toad books, for example, all the stories are about the same two characters, but the stories can be read in any order.
There are many early chapter book series. Magic Tree House is one of the most popular. These books are longer, often around ten chapters long. They are also much more sparsely illustrated than picture books or early readers. There are usually only one or two illustrations per chapter. It is a big jump, particularly if you are trying to transition to chapter books with a preschooler, from early readers to early chapter books. They just still need the pictures.
That's why I started looking for illustrated early chapter books. They were much harder to find than I expected. (There are a few, like the Magic School Bus series, that I'm not discussing here because they are just deal with topics that are not right for a preschooler. I need something that works for a preschooler, not just a grade school aged child.) Here are five series I found that are illustrated early chapter book series that would be interesting to a preschooler.
- Mr. Putter and Tabby by Cynthia Rylant: This series is about an elderly gentleman named Mr. Putter and his cat Tabby. They have many adventures, often with their neighbor Mrs. Teaberry and her dog Zeke. The adventures are often simple, but the stories are sweet, the relationships are genuine, and the mishaps of the characters make Michael laugh out loud. They paint a porch, fly a (model) airplane, go on a train ride, bake a cake, in addition to many other activities. We've read almost all of these books and have enjoyed every one. There are three or four chapters in each book and each page has a full color illustration. These books are a great transition from early readers to early chapter books.
- Cowgirl Kate and Cocoa by Erica Silverman: This series is about a young cowgirl on a working cattle ranch and her talking horse Cocoa. The books are beautifully illustrated on each page and the stories are accessible for a preschooler. These books are also usually four chapters long. I thought that the cowgirl and ranch theme might turn him off, but Michael enjoyed these and looked forward to the next one.
- Henry and Mudge by Cynthia Rylant: This is another series by Cynthia Rylant. This one is about a boy and his really big dog named Mudge. Again, the pair have really simple adventures. One story is about a mud puddle, another is about camping, a third is about catching a cold. Somehow, even though the main character is a boy, Michael likes the Mr. Putter and Tabby series more, but this one is still a great illustrated chapter book series. These books are also usually three or four chapters each and are illustrated on every page.
- Mercy Watson by Kate DiCamillo: These are books about a pig and her misadventures. The books are beautifully illustrated and extremely well reviewed. These books are longer, around 8-10 chapters each. We read a couple of these and then abandoned the series. I think that the jump in length was a little too hard and the content was just a little too old. It's close though, and fits the criteria of an illustrated early chapter book so I wanted to mention it just in case it works for you. We'll revisit them in a few months.
- Flat Stanley by Jeff Brown: This series is about a young boy who became flat (only one inch thick) when a bulletin board fell on him. He has a series of adventures and solves mysteries as only he can, because he is flat. This series is a little higher level for two reasons. The books are longer, around 9-11 chapters each. The illustrations are not on every single page, and the illustrations are black and white line drawings rather than full color illustrations. We have only read two of these so far, but Michael seems to like them and the stories are able to appeal to him as a preschooler so I'm including the series in this list. Definitely try the other ones first though. They are more appropriate.
That's it. That's all I could find. If you know of any other series that meet my criteria of an illustrated early chapter book series that would appeal to preschoolers, please let me know. I'd absolutely love to find more. Otherwise, enjoy the ones I have found. I hope you like them. Let me know if you read them.
Tuesday, April 19, 2011
Favorite Children's Picture Books
I love reading with my children and I love children's books. I loved them as a child. I loved them as a teacher and Speech-Language Pathologist. And I love them as a parent. I will read to my children whenever they ask. At minimum we read before nap and bedtime. I wanted to share a couple of my favorite children's series and authors with you.
I'm going to stop there for now. I'll do more another time. Do any of you have favorite children's picture books you'd like to share?
Iza Trapani
Iza Trapani takes classic nursery rhymes and adds extra verses to make the rhyme into a story. The Itsy Bitsy Spider tries to climb several things in addition to the water spout before finally succeeding in spinning her web. A family of bears is taking a boat trip down the river in Row, Row, Row Your Boat. In How Much is that Doggie in the Window a boy tries to earn the money to buy himself the dog he admires in the pet store window. In I'm a Little Teapot the teapot takes some children on an imaginary journey around the world. These are just a few of Iza Trapani's books. Her books are often available in both board book and paperback. I personally prefer the size and durability of the board books for reading with a young child in my lap. These books have a lot of longevity too. I've been reading them to Michael since he was a baby. When he was a baby he just liked the songs. When he was a toddler he still enjoyed the songs and he also loved the pictures and paid some attention to the stories. Now, approaching 3 1/2, he's noticing all of the details (and there are many) in the pictures and loves the extra verses in the stories. The books have grown with him. It's hard to choose, but these are our favorites:
I'm a Little Teapot
The Itsy Bitsy Spider
How Much is That Doggie in the Window?
Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star
Baa Baa Black Sheep
The Itsy Bitsy Spider
How Much is That Doggie in the Window?
Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star
Baa Baa Black Sheep
Karma Wilson
Karma Wilson has written a lot of children's books, but we love two series in particular. The first is for younger children and are board books. We've only read two of the series although there are at least four. It is a series about a kitten named Calico. The books have a wonderful rhythm and the adventures of the mischievous kitten really appeal to the kids. The second series is about a bear and his group of forest friends and is a really wonderful series of books. We have all of them and they are great. They are fun to read, the illustrations are wonderful and the stories are sweet. They appeal to both my toddler and my preschooler. I'm going to list both Calico books and our four favorites out of the six Bear books currently available.
I'm going to stop there for now. I'll do more another time. Do any of you have favorite children's picture books you'd like to share?
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
