Please share!

I'm really glad that I've introduced Liliana to the world of Alexander.

The first time we read the book together, she kept repeating, "terrible, no good, very bad day." The reading teacher in me wanted to tell her that's not how it goes and that she forgot horrible, but the mom in me overrode that thought. Thank God. 

I'm thankful that I've introduced Liliana to Alexander because when I am the one having the terrible day, we can pull that book out and read it together. The same goes for her. Sometimes she will pick it off the shelf because she is having a bad day. And, sometimes, Liliana will even ask me if my day will get better. I'm glad she's so sweet and thoughtful.

And honestly, reading this book usually makes my day better. In my classroom, I used to leave the book on top of a pillow in the corner with a sign nearby labeled, "Australia." Any kid who needed to get away and go to Australia, could. It was a great self-managing behavior tool.

Today, our puppy has diarrhea and just farted something awful. Our cat is still jealous that we have a puppy. The cat is on happy pills because otherwise all of his days would be terrible, horrible, no good, very bad days. Everyone else is napping in the house, except me - I am on puppy diarrhea watch at the moment. I've even already gotten to do puppy poopy laundry today. I get to bring puppy poop to the vet tomorrow too. 

I know it's not really a terrible day and that actually I'm pretty lucky and that really the puppy is having a terrible day, but sometimes, I can relate to Alexander and his desire to go to Australia too.

I'm sure Liliana and I will read this book later and it will lead to reading the other book that she loves...

Please share!

​I cannot take credit for the name of this tip. It comes compliments of William Pope.L, an artist. 

​Last week, I took a break from writing a quick literacy tip on purpose. There is a lot going on in real life that is tense and I wanted to give myself some time and space to be uncomfortable, engage with others, reflect on my own thoughts and actions and be ready to re-engage. I think it's important to do this in order to grow and learn as adults and be ready to teach our youngsters. 

In order to teach, I need to understand. I spent time listening and learning from others - hearing the fabric of our country speak. I am talking about the state of race relations and power structures in our country.
​

Please share!

And, what would the Ideal bookshelf posts be without Liliana's ideal bookshelf list. Here is her list at the moment. Remember, she's three so she revisits this list often. Every few weeks we talk about this bookshelf and if anything needs to be added to it or removed from it.

Without further adieu...

Enjoy!

Please share!

As always, these quick literacy tips are for little kids all the way up to big kids. I have tips for all age groups, so keep reading! And, tips for teachers doing this in the classroom. 

Not all books are created equally. Some books are fantastic at creating the story, immersing you in the story and just telling the story. And some books have great illustrations to help you enjoy the story more.

​These are the Caldecott Award winning books.

In the last few weeks, Liliana and I have been going through Caldecott Award winning books. Because, as she starts her reading journey, why not include some of the best?

Caldecott books range in reading levels, so we had to stick to the lower end of the reading level spectrum, so I wasn't completely over her head, but I did include some more complicated stories. And remember, books that are awarded the Caldecott Medal are geared toward children 14 and younger.
​

I was reminded of this tip tonight. After I our little girl climbed into bed and was situated with her millions of stuffed animals and tucked in just right, and I left her to slumber, I heard her over the monitor, "I need a lullaby."

So, I went back to her room and sang her a song.

Singing and reading are a lot alike. Even for big kids. 

It's calming. It's lyrical. It has cadence. It has meaning. It helps make meaning. It's expressive.

Singing is after all, is reading with a tune. 

Once we get past the board-book and very simple storybook phase with kids, we really want to dig in with thoughtful stories. Trouble is, not all storybooks are useful for teaching critical thinking skills. Many of our old favorites like The Very Hungry Caterpillar are too simple to teach critical thinking. There isn't much of a plot, there isn't much to discuss and there aren't many characters.

As children get older and school-aged, we want to captivate their attention and dazzle them with what the world could be. Through books. We want reading to be magical.
​
If we want our children to turn into imaginative, critical-thinking grown-ups, we must expose them to complex storybooks - books that require the reader to infer character thoughts and motivation. And then, the reader needs to connect those thoughts to why a character acts.

The books listed below are some of the best complex storybooks for little readers. The reading levels exceed our youngest readers, but when read aloud or read together, these books are appropriate for young children. In no small part, because the illustrations in all of these books are compelling and aid in comprehension. They are all Caldecott Award winning books.

Without further ado, here are some of the best complex storybooks for little readers:

Complex Multi-Cultural Books for Little Readers

​Enjoy!

Kids like being storied to, too. Even big kids. If you're not a gifted storyteller yourself, you can still use picture books with big kids to tell stories. Even though they can read them for themselves. ​All you need is a good storybook, a story with some layers and good inflection. These stories are great as is, but can also be a great springboard into issues like homelessness, immigration, death and racism.

Eve Bunting is an especially good storyteller who includes many facets to her stories, but I've included others for your perusal. 
​

• Fly Away Home: This is a picture book you can reader to younger kids but ultimately is about homelessness. You can expand on this picture book by talking about larger societal issues.

• Smoky Night: This hits upon the L.A. Riots and a family's need to flee urban violence. It speaks to the coming together of an unknown community against violence, all in one book.

• Crazy Hair: A whimsical rhyming book about crazy hair. This book can be used to discuss first impressions kids have about others.

• The Wreck of the Zephyr: A beautiful picture book which you can use to talk about the toughest of topics, death.

​

• The Curious Garden: A fun tale of a boy growing a garden. This books speaks to environmentalism and watching things grow.

​

• A Day's Work: A touching story of a young boy who helps his grandfather find work, even though he doesn't speak English.

​

• This is Not My Hat: A tale of stealing and getting it back. This is a great book to springboard into heavier topics like stealing, righting a wrong and reparations.

​

• Mr. Tiger Goes Wild: A fantastic tale of a tiger who wants to be his own. A great story of uniqueness and compromise. This is a good story for kids who are coming into their own and feeling left out of their community. For a bigger picture conversation, talk about people who are bullied or ostracized as minorities.

​

• Mr. Lincoln's Way: This story is a straightforward bully story. Mr. Lincoln teaches tolerance and how to encourage others to be more open. But this story also turns the bully on its head, and shows that the school bully also has something positive to contribute. This is a great story to introduce the ideas of prejudice and consequences.