Dear Reader,

This Blog is designed for the parents, grandparents and caregivers of young children.  Each post will highlight a great book that all children should hear, with tips to enrich beginning reading skills.  You will also find fun recipes that go along with each story.  Enjoy reading and cooking with the children in your life.

*Read to the children in your life every day.  You are giving them a gift that will last a lifetime!

Big Red Barn          By:  Margaret Wise Brown         Illustrated by:  Felicia Bond

Ages:  Toddlers through Kindergarten

 

This wonderful book holds a special place in my heart, because it was my son, Trevor’s, favorite book when he was two years old.  We read it so many times that he memorized every page.  This book highlights the life of the animals on a farm (no people).  Children will learn animal names and the sounds that they make.  It also is written in rhyming verse and is great for vocabulary development.  It is a gentle book that is perfect to read before bedtime.  Thanks for indulging me.  Judy

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*Read to the children in your life every day.  You are giving them a gift that will last a lifetime!

Little Blue Truck          By:  Alice Schertle          Illustrated by:  Jill McElmurry

Ages:  Toddlers through Kindergarten

 

This amazing book provides many learning opportunities for children.  It explores recognition of colors, animal sounds and rhyming patterns.  However, the best part of this delightful story is that it shows the importance of being kind to each other and how valuable friendship can be.  It is just a fun story that children will want to here over and over again.

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*Read to the children in your life every day.  You are giving them a gift that will last a lifetime!

Nobunny’s Perfect          By:  Anna Dewdney

Ages:  Toddler through Kindergarten

 

 

In this delightful book, our little bunnies have some issues much like the children in our lives.  Ultimately, the bunnies show children the right way to behave in a number of situations.  This book covers sharing, empathy, following rules and manners.  Nobunny’s Perfect is written in rhyming verse which offers another opportunity to practice rhyming words with children.

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*Read to the children in your life every day.  You are giving them a gift that will last a lifetime!

Lemons Are Not Red          By:  Laura Vaccaro Seeger

Ages:  Toddler through Kindergarten

 

We live in a world full of vibrant colors and it is important to introduce them to young children.  Lemons Are Not Red is full of brightly colored objects with cutouts to make it fun.  As children learn the colors, they can better describe the world that surrounds them.   It is also a useful skill that they will need to classify objects.   Lemons Are Not Red is a great introduction to colors and helps children to differentiate one color from the other and also clearly displays each color word.

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*Read to the children in your life every day.  You are giving them a gift that will last a lifetime!

A Pizza the Size of the Sun          Poems by Jack Prelutsky           Illustrations by:  James Stevenson

Ages:  Preschool through Third Grade

 

Children need to hear the music of language.  Poetry is an excellent way to share this experience with them.  There are many great books filled with poetry for children and Jack Prelutsky has produced many of them.  As you preview A Pizza the Size of the Sun, pick out those verses that are best suited for the listener’s development and interests.  Read life into the poetry by using expression and different voices that fit the poem that you are reading.  Poetry helps children with the development of letter-sound recognition, vocabulary, and rhyming patterns, but most of all, they are just a lot of fun.

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*Read to the children in your life every day.  You are giving them a gift that will last a lifetime!

What Mommies Do Best/What Daddies Do Best              By:  Laura Numeroff          Illustrated By:  Lynn Munsinger

Age Range:  Toddler through First Grade

 

What  do Mommies and Daddies do best?  Each child’s response will be based on his or her life experience.  The author gives us many examples of what they do best, but ends with the most important thing of all.  Reader, don’t worry.  Mommies and Daddies can do the same things equally as well.

The author has produced this book in a unique format.  One side of the book is about Mommies and you flip the book over to read about Daddies.  Each of these can also be purchased separately.

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*Read to the children in your life every day.  You are giving them a gift that will last a lifetime!

Dragons Love Tacos                   By:  Adam Rubin            Illustrated by:  Daniel Salmieri

Ages:  Preschool through Second Grade

 

 

Tacos are often a favorite family dinner, but what children may not know is that Dragons Love Tacos.  In this delightful book, there is a bit of a problem.  Dragons do love tacos, but they do NOT like spicy salsa.  This book is great for vocabulary development and the amazing illustrations assist with comprehension of the text.  But most of all, Dragons Love Tacos is just a lot of fun to read.

 

 

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*Read to the children in your life every day.  You are giving them a gift that will last a lifetime!

Gingerbread Baby              By:  Jan Brett

Ages:  Preschool through Second Grade

 

Most children know the story of The Gingerbread Boy.  Jan Brett’s colorful illustrations highlight this familiar tale with a new twist.  The Gingerbread Baby befalls many of the same problems as his predecessor, but the ending will be a surprise.  The child’s attention will be drawn to the story going on in the margins of every page.

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*Read to the children in your life every day.  You are giving them a gift that will last a lifetime!

Click, Clack, Moo: Cows That Type                 By:  Doreen Cronin              Illustrated by:  Betsy Lewin

Ages:  Preschool through Second Grade

 

 

Children may need a little history lesson prior to reading Click, Clack, Moo: Cows That Type. With today’s text messaging and e-mail, they may not know what a typewriter is and how it was used.  In this delightful story, the cows are very cold and find an old typewriter in the barn.  They send a letter to the farmer and the fun begins.  This award winning book helps to build vocabulary and is an example of the art of negotiating and problem solving.

Continue reading Click, Clack, Moo: Cows That Type

*Read to the children in your life every day.  You are giving them a gift that will last a lifetime!

Goodnight Moon               By:  Margaret Wise Brown                Illustrated by:  Clement Hurd

Ages:  Toddler through Kindergarten

 

This classic bedtime story is often given as gifts to expectant mothers.  The story describes the green room prior to bedtime, and wishes everything goodnight, including the moon.  This is a perfect book to read to a child before bedtime.  Goodnight Moon provides descriptive text and can foster vocabulary development as well as rhyming patterns.

 

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