Just one more... please!

   This afternoon right before nap, I was reading with my two-year old.  I told him we would read two books.  That quickly turned into four.  I couldn't resist when he asked for "one more book, please," and "other book, please."  So, we chose a total of four from the library bag. 
  We started with School Bus by Donald Crews.  This is the author of Freight Train, which is also a favorite in our household.  This book is very simple and talks about the routine of a school bus on a regular school day.  The buses start empty, get across town, pick up children, and drop them off at school.  It also shows the children being picked up to be brought home and ends with the buses in their "home" in the bus yard.  This book is in the following category: Hobbies and Sports - Specifically Transportation.
  We read Down by the Station by Will Hillenbrand.  I read this just as if it were a regular story book, but in my head I couldn't help but "sing" the words.  I don't know if I am really not with it, but I didn't realize there were additional verses to this song beyond the basic, "see the little puffer bellies."  If there are other verses I feel really silly since I am a music teacher.  If there are not other verses and this was just the author's adaptation of the song, then I feel a little better about myself.  This book focuses on the basic song, and has the written music on the last page, but also mentions different animals that are along the path of the train.  The conductor picks up a variety of baby animals and then takes them to the zoo where a group of children come to see and play with the animals.  I really liked that the proper names for each of the baby animals was mentioned.  This book is in the categories of: Hobbies and Sports - specifically Transportation, Animal Books, and Songs.

   Elmer's Special Day by David McKee was next in our reading this afternoon.  This book is part of the Elmer series.  My toddler found this book fun for a couple of reasons: 1) he is obsessed with elephants right now, and 2) he made his daddy a father's day card with a sponge-painted Elmer the elephant on it so it was familiar to him.  The animals in Elmer's world are preparing for the parade for Elmer's Day.  The elephants get to paint themselves in fun patterns and colors and Elmer is the only elephant who can appear in "elephant color."  The other animals want to be included in the special day and everyone gets a chance to decorate themselves in fancy colors and patterns.  This book is in the following categories: Animal Books, Friendship, and Identity/Self-Appreciation Books.


 
   The last book we read this afternoon was Little Blue and Little Yellow by Leo Lionni.  This is one of my favorites from when I was a child.  Little Blue and Little Yellow are friends that have a lot of good times together.  They have so much fun that at the end of the day they give each other a hug...resulting in a color change to green.  After some confusion among the parents, they are able to realize what has happened - - - that blue and yellow make green!  This book is a great book to introducing primary colors and how they mix to create other colors.  This book is in the categories of: Colors and Friendship.

Summer Reading!

   So, in the last post I mentioned about maybe getting another post up in the week after that post.  That didn't happen because instead my family was welcoming our new son into the family.  With all of the visitors and family that was here, not to mention changing the dynamics by adding another person to the household, it just didn't happen.
   In the last few weeks we have been reading lots and are involved in a couple of different summer reading programs.  Our county library unfortunately does not have their toddler reading program available at this time (it's supposed to be available in November... or so I have been told) like they did last summer.  This year my two-year old is "reading with the big kids."  We started this program and only are required to read one book each week.  In our house, that is definitely not a problem since we read books everyday.  One of the things that I am trying to do is encourage our two-year old to say some of the phrases in the books that he is familiar with and that we have ready probably 20 times (or more).  (We are definitely now into the phase of repeat-readings of books --- which is not a bad thing.)  Most, if not all, of the books we have documented for the first 5 weeks are already mentioned and "reviewed" on this blog in other places so I will just briefly mention them.  We have read "Green Eggs and Ham" by Dr. Seuss, "Rainbow Fish" by Marcus Pfister, "Fish is Fish" by Leo Lioni, and "It's a Small World - Color Our World."  The first week didn't need a book recorded and the focus was on the process of signing up for the program.
  The other summer reading program we are involved in this year is through a website called wegivebooks.org  This was a website that I heard about through an e-mail that I receive because I am a teacher.  This website has e-books for children available at any time.  (*Note: These do not work on iPads because it requires Flash.)  There are three different reading levels on this website that are designated by age groups: 0-3, 4-7, and 8-10.  Our focus is clearly the 0-3 age group.  Each week I receive an e-mail that links me up to the book for the week, along with a printable activity and usually some type of online game.  The books that we have read for this program so far are: "Spot Loves His Daddy," "Let's Look: Dinosaurs," "Baby Max: Sandbox," and "See How they Grow: Pony."  So far we have had a lot of fun with this reading program.  Plus, I love that there are other things to do that focus on the books that have been read.  (By the way, this is a FREE program!)
   Today we went to the library and got a new set of books to borrow.  There were a lot of people there today, probably because it is summer and it is something to do that doesn't require being out in the heat.  When we first got there my two-year old started looking around, not quite sure where to start, and then walked straight towards a book called, "My Bus" by Byron Barton.  Since he is absolutely crazy about buses right now, we had to check this one out.  This is a simple book about a bus driver that picks up cats and dogs and then takes them to various modes of transportation.  As the driver picks up the cats and dogs, he counts them.  This book also focuses on ordinal numbers up to four and I think it is great for children to hear these words to help them with sequencing.  This book is in the following categories: Hobbies and Sports - specifically transportation, Animal Books, and Counting and Numbers Books.




   Another book that we checked out and read today is, "I Love Trucks!"  This is also a very simple picture book that talks about the various kinds of trucks that can be seen on the road.  While the illustrations in this one are not amazing, I liked them because they were simple enough for toddlers to view without getting overwhelmed.  This book is in the category of: Hobbies and Sports - specifically transportation.  (You can see we have a running theme so far with this set of books, which wasn't done intentionally on my part, but possibly that of my toddler.)

   Just had to mention too, that my husband thought it was great that every time my son pulled a book off the shelf that he really liked that he sat right down on the floor, opened the book, and began looking at the pictures.  I suppose that is the teacher in both of us coming out --- getting excited that our son is willing to drop anything and everything to read a good book!

   We have 11 or 12 books that we borrowed this time and I am going to try really hard to get them all posted...no guarantees that it will happen in a super-timely manner, though.

Lots to Catch Up On and a New Addition!

Things have been so busy and crazy around here.  Looking at the date of my last post, I now realize partially why I haven't been very good about posting.  Back towards the middle October I found out I was pregnant with our second child.  This pregnancy has been fine and hasn't given me much trouble, but it is very different being pregnant with a toddler running around!  Recently my husband and my mom had the opportunity to take son to the library (which we haven't done in months, due to just being busy).  They picked out quite a few books so this is going to be a bit of a longer post.  However, the main focus of this post is on three books that focus on becoming an older sibling in anticipation for the baby that will be joining us sometime in the next couple of weeks (assuming he is a timely child).

1)  I'm a Big Brother by Joanna Cole
This was one of my favorite of the big sibling books that was picked out.  It talks about how the older sibling can help with the new baby.  The words in this were written simply enough that my son was a focused listener, but they also meant something to him.  This book is in the categories of: family and independence/growing-up.


2)  I'm a New Big Brother by Nora Gaydos
This was also a very nice approach to becoming an older sibling.  This one actually focused on the idea that big brother also gets some special alone time with Mommy and Daddy, but that the family has now grown bigger and includes one other person.  This book was a great reminder to me that I will very shortly have two children who will equally need their own time with Mommy and Daddy, as well as time spent together and helping as a whole family.  This book is also in the categories: Family and Independence/Growing-Up.


3)  There's Going to Be a Baby by John Burningham and Helen Oxenbury
Unfortunately, this was my least favorite of the new sibling books that had been checked out.  This is a mix of a wordless picture book and a regular children's book with words.  The illustrations in this book seemed a bit odd to me.  I did like that this book takes on the idea of a conversation between mother and child, but it seemed a little bit negative at times.  Also, the end of this book doesn't actually show the new baby has arrived, but it does have the child's grandfather bringing him in to see the new baby.  Definitely not my favorite and probably not one we will read again, although it did focus on becoming a new sibling.  This books is also in the categories: Family and Independence/Growing-Up.



4) Bear's New Friend by Karma Wilson and Jane Chapman
This book is part of the Bear Snores On series.  This book is a sweet way of introducing children to the idea of accepting new friends, despite the fact that their characteristics might include being really shy.  This book brings in all of Bear's animal friends and they all learn to welcome the new friend withe ease.  This book is in the categories of: Animal Books and Friendship.







5)  Meeow and the Little Chairs by Sebastien Braun
At first glance at this book, I thought it was very odd but the saying is definitely true to not judge a book by its cover.  It was very cute and focused on a cat that gets all of his friends together to line up chairs in train formation.  Apparently, my son was lining up the small chairs at the library when they went together and the librarian found this book for him and said it was perfect.  It is in fact, quite fitting for my son who loves making trains out of chairs, blocks, and anything else he can manage to make look like a train.  The different friends are animals and their names are the sound that they make.  Each friend has a different color chair and they each play a special part in the train.  There is one page where Meeow has something in his backpack which is a bell for the sound effects on the train, but I love the fact that my son says it is a corndog.  (To be fair, the handle does sort of look like a corndog when that is the only part you can see.)  This book is in the following categories: Animal Books, Colors, Sound Exploration, and Friendship.



There are more books from this session to the library, but I will catch up on those in a couple of days.  Maybe now that it is summer time again and I am not working, maybe I will be able to keep up on this better.... we will see how becoming a family of four affects me, too!

Seeing Double

Last night we read one of my favorite books from when I was a kid.  We read, Alexander and the Wind-Up Mouse by Leo Lionni.  This was a book that we found at the Friends of the Library Book Sale from this weekend.  In this book with pictures made from different textures of paper, Alexander runs into a wind-up mouse.  Alexander wants to be just like Willy the Wind-Up Mouse because Willy is loved by a young girl.  On the other hand, Alexander gets screamed at and chased by brooms.  Alexander tries his hardest to be just like Willy until he discovers that Willy was thrown out with the old toys.  He changes his mind and decides he wants Willy to be a real mouse so that he could have a friend.  This is a very sweet book and my son seemed to really enjoy it.  This is a little more wordy than he is used to, but he loved looking at the pictures in this book while he listened to me read.  This book is in the categories of: Animal Books, Friendship, and Identity/Self-Appreciation.

Talking all the time!

   My son has really started to talk more and express himself more in the last couple of weeks.  He is even talking while we are reading to him and he in now getting to the point where he repeats some of the words that are read to him. 
   Yesterday after nap my husband read him one of our latest picks from the library, Toot! by Kirsten Hall.  Because my son has really been into trains lately, we chose this book.  It is not the mainstream train character, which we also love, but it is still very sweet.  This book focuses on a little red train that saves the day because of his size.  Throughout the book there are various train sounds, such as "clickety-clack" and "choo-choo."  As we read the different sounds, my son would also try and say the sounds.  This book was such a hit after nap time that I also read it to him right before bedtime.  This book is in the categories of: Sound Exploration and Hobbies and Sports.

     Last night we also read Belly Button Book by Sandra Boynton.  This is such a cute book and focuses on a little hippo who calls his belly button his "bee bo."  As we read this book, my son was saying "bee bo" and attempting to say "belly button."  We also found his belly button and then he wanted to find Mommy's belly button.  Then when I would ask him where his belly button was, he lifted up his shirt and looked down at his belly button.  This book is in the following categories: Body Parts and Bath Time and Animal Books.

     The last book we read last night was Let's Go, Froggy! by Jonathan London.  My son LOVES to say "Let's go!" because it usually means that he gets to go outside and get in the car and then of course go somewhere.  This is the perfect book for my son because almost every other page says, "Let's go, Froggy!"  After I had read those words then my son would also say those words.  I especially love the Froggy series of books because I remember reading them as a child and reading them to my younger sister and using silly voices.  When the parents in the book say, "Frrrroooooggggy!" we always thought that was the funniest thing ever.  Well as I read that part of the book, my son was completely captivated by the sounds that came together to create the words of the book.  Froggy and his dad attempt to go on a bike ride and a picnic, but by the time they get everything they need they end up riding into the sunset...after they have their picnic in the front yard.  This book is in the following categories: Hobbies and Sports, Sound Exploration, Animal Books, Family, and Independence/Growing-Up.


It is clear that the time we spend reading with our son has already started to help his vocabulary and language skills!  Happy reading!

Big Bag of Books

So now that I have just received the e-mail notice saying all of those books we borrowed are due this week, I decided I had better post about the fun times we have had reading all of these books! I apologize in advance for the longer post this time, but if I don't do them all today they won't make it up here before I return the books.  The books this time will be posted in order of favorites, at least what I think my son deemed to be the "favorites."
 1.  Look at Me, I'm a Robot By Sebastien Braun - This was a very interactive book.  In each page there were spots cut out for both eyes and one spot for the nose as well.  As you read the book and it introduces the different kinds of robots, then you hold the book up to your face so that you can act like a robot.  My son thought this was probably one of the best things ever and thought it was REALLY funny when Mommy was the robot.  Such a great book to read and play with!  This book is in the following categories: Fine-Motor Skills, Lift-the-Flap and Touch-and-Feel, Sound Exploration, and Hobbies and Sports.

2.   Do Donkeys Dance? By Melanie Walsh - This is a very silly book that asks a question with each page and then answers it.  Some of the questions include "Do pigs buzz around flowers?", "Do chickens swim underwater?", and "Can a ladybug stand on one leg?".  As you turn the pages, you find out that "No [pigs don't buzz around flowers], bees buzz around flowers.  This was a book that my son was able to help me read, being that one of his favorite words right now is "no."  I could tell that he really enjoyed saying part of the book, even though he may not completely understand why he was saying his favorite word.  There is a little surprise question at the end, which I have to admit did trick me initially.  This book is in the following category: Animal Books.





3.  The Fire Engine Book Illustrated by Tibor Gergely.  This book does not have a specific author, but it is in the Little Golden Treasures series of books.  This one focuses a lot on the sounds that are heard at a fire station and how the fire fighters get ready to put out a fire.  The illustrations are really clear and colorful.  This is in the category of: Sound Exploration.

4.  Away We Go! By Chieu Anh Urban - This book covers a lot of material in about 20 pages.  Each page has a shape cut-out that is the focus shape of that page.  The use of combined shapes creates vehicles of all sorts and then the reader has to find the focus shape.  My son's favorite page, of course, was the train page and he liked to stick his finger in the square shape cut-out on the page.  This book is very colorful and could actually be used to teach or reinforce color learning.  This is also great for shapes or counting.  The other option, short of just reading it, is to focus on the vehicles and modes of transportation in the book.  This book is in the following categories: Colors, Counting and Numbers Books, Hobbies and Sports, and Lift-the-Flap and Touch-and-Feel.

  5.  Stomp! By Jeanne Willis and Paul Howard - Sadly, this did not make the top 3 favorites for my son.  I think that this was one of my favorites of the bunch we got this last time and I had a lot of fun reading it out loud to my son.  This little blue monster knocks on the door and wanders throughout the different rooms of the house trying to find something.  He bangs pans, squishes soap, boots footballs, and smashes plates.  He finally ends up in the baby's room and sees exactly what he wants.  Of course, the authors make you think he wants to eat the baby, but the baby and the monster come to an agreement about what each of them would really like.  Such a fun book to read.  This is in the following categories: Sound Exploration and Bedtime Stories.

   6.  Planes! By Charles Reasoner - This book is a board book and is definitely lacking a plot.  It starts off and sounds like there will be at least a semi-interesting plot, but the pages don't really seem to connect with each other, as far as their literacy.  This was picked by my son, probably because it had a picture of an airplane on the front and he is very into things that move right now, but he wasn't even all that interested throughout the four pages of the book.  Not a very captivating read, although it does repeat the phrase, "big busy" at least once per page.  This book in the category of: Hobbies and Sports.    

7.  Time to Say "Please" by Mo Willems - This book is by the same author who wrote the "Don't Let the Pigeon Drive the Bus!" Series.  This was a very cute book and a great way to teach children how to be polite.  It might be a bit on the blatant side with the little mice holding up the signs saying please every 2 inches, but it was still very nice.  My son has been signing the word please for quite some time now, but we are working on having him speak the words because not every person he meets is going to understand that patting his chest and sounding like Tarzan means "please" to him.  We will probably be borrowing this book again as my son gets older.  This book is in the category of: Independence/Growing-Up.   

Last and in my opinion, least:

8.  Winter Snow By Liesbet Slegers - This book briefly talks about some of the things you might see at winter time, like a coat and hat or bare branches.  I was really hoping this one had a natural rhythm to it and that it rhymed because it didn't really seem to have much more going for it.  I started reading it out loud and quickly realized that it had literally no "rhyme or reason" to it.  Because it doesn't snow where we live I was hoping it would go into more details about how snow feels and what it looks like to play in it, but most of the snow scenes were stand alone pictures that didn't seem that it would help young children connect to the idea of winter or snow.  Sadly, there is a reason this one is at the bottom of the list for both myself and my son.  Luckily, I do have still have some time before winter comes to talk with my son more about it.  For now, I will have to see if we can focus on fall and find some books that have pictures of real people doing things in the fall season.  This book is in the categories of: Seasons and Winter.

Again, sorry for the long entry this time!  I do want to let you know though, that from the last post when my son and I had read Mr. Cookie Baker, we actually made some of the cookies from the given recipes.  They were very good cookies and my son was very excited to stand on the stool and help Mommy in the kitchen.  His favorite part was dumping things into the bowl and watching the mixer!

Happy New Year! (School Year)

         Now that the new school year is started up it means that hopefully there will be a little more of a routine to both my life and my child's.  Since I am a teacher and my husband is also in the world of education, school is an important part of our lives.  Starting up with routines again, my son and I were able to go to the library this last week since we know we will actually be around for awhile and have a chance to read the books we borrowed.  This time we borrowed the most books that we have in all of our time of going to the library.  The magic number this week is 11!  The first day we brought them home my son grabbed his blanket and his book bag and began to take out a couple of books for me to read to him.  We read two books and then he pulled out more.  I really thought he was not going to want and sit and read all of the books, but we actually proceeded to read all 11 books that we got that very morning.  It surprised me a little bit, but when I mentioned this to my mom she said that it was a very familiar situation...only it was 25 years since she had seen it last.  I won't write about all 11 books in this post, but you can be expecting quite a few posts in the next week.
        Since my son is getting older he can now sit for a full length story and not just a board book.  We do still read the board books and he enjoys them, but we are definitely shifting the attention-span.  We started our reading session with Mr. Cookie Baker by Monica Wellington.  This books is great for helping children learn a sequence of events.  My son really enjoys looking at the pictures of all of the cookies once they are decorated.  The vocabulary in this book is simple enough, but still exposes young children to "kitchen" words, such as "mixes," "measures," "ingredients," and "recipe."  Of course, at the end of the book there is an opportunity to put the "kitchen" vocabulary to use.  The book provides four different cookie recipes to try out.  We haven't had a chance yet, but we will probably try one in this coming week.  Maybe when we are making the cookies and waiting for them to bake we will read this again so that the idea of making cookies becomes something that is more than just pictures in a book.  This book is in the category of: Hobbies and Sports.
       We also read, Counting Birds by Jing Jing Tsong.  This is a board book that emphasizes counting from one to ten.  Each bird that joins the others in the singing tree has a different sound so by the time you have all ten birds in the tree you are reading a very rhythmic verse of bird calls.  Watch out at the end for a different type of animal call!  This book is in the following categories: Counting and Number books, Sound Exploration, and Animal Books.