"There’s so much more to a book than just the reading." —Maurice Sendack
Whether your child is just learning their letter-sounds or is enmeshed in chapter books and novels, we will put together an engaging reading program that will keep them intrigued, deepen their experience, and sharpen their skills.
Early Literacy: Short Vowel Sort
Description Which short vowel do you hear? Some sounds are easier to hear than others, and short vowel sounds can be tricky for young learners...MORE
7 Adventurous Dinosaur Books
We are all about dinosaurs in the studio right now and thought it would be fun to share our favorite dinosaur books with you! As we are coveri...MORE
Starting a Book Club for Children
One of the greatest gifts we can give our children is a love of reading… Yet, as many of us know, it doesn’t necessarily come easy. Even...MORE
Our Inner Poet: Write an Infinity Poem
What could be better than good literature, math explorations, and a dose of poetry? Good children’s literature naturally engages students and o...MORE
Word Play: A Workout for Your Brain
As a kid, I loved playing word games. I grew up playing Scrabble and Boggle with my mom, and for me the Sunday comic section was more about the...MORE
Picture Book Project: Homes Around the World
“The Potential of the Child is stunted when the end point of their learning is formulated in advance.” – Carla Rinaldi Children...MORE
Author Focus: Susan Verde
I am thrilled to be collaborating with Emma Walton Hamilton, Susan Verde, and Stefanie Sacks to offer a Parenting Discussion Series in the studio. I...MORE
Author Focus: Emma Walton Hamilton
I am thrilled to be collaborating with Emma Walton Hamilton, Susan Verde, and Stefanie Sacks to offer a Parenting Discussion Series in the studio. I...MORE
Math Literature: Infinity and Me
Literature with math concepts is often the perfect way to start a math lesson. Literature naturally engages students and often initiates meaningful,...MORE
Compare and Contrast: The Night Before Christmas
Merry Christmas To All, And To All A Good Book… We have an abundance of Christmas books at our house. I love Christmas, I love books, perfect h...MORE
Me: In Poetry, Song, and Art
When I was a classroom teacher, one of the most relaxing, yet beneficial professional development opportunities I attended was a “Picture Book Read...MORE
10 Books for New Kindergarteners
Is your child starting kindergarten soon? Are you sobbing as you’re reading this? Maybe your heart even aches a little. Let’s face it—the...MORE
DIY Games for Kids: Word Mastermind
Do you have a Scrabble® game in your home? If so, put those letter tiles to use with this simple game. You will need: Letter tiles Playsheet printa...MORE
Let it Go! When to Abandon a Book
I am a list maker, mostly because I find immense satisfaction in crossing things off my list. Sometimes I actually add something to my list just so...MORE
The Power of Wordless Picture Books
A few months ago, I was at home perusing a stack of books that I was planning to share with the students in my 2nd/3rd grade classroom. My kinderga...MORE
Summer Reading Bucket List
What is on your summer to-do list? It may be packed with adventures, getaways, and activities, but did the simple act of reading throughout the summer...MORE
Crafts for Kids: Make a Collage Bookmark
Our Summer Book Clubs are well under way and we thought it would be fun to build on the experience by making some inspiring bookmarks! Here is a fun...MORE
Summer Reads Bingo
Summer is here and we all want our children to read for pleasure over the next few months… Although, over the years, I have found that the requi...MORE
Playful Picks: Poetry Anthologies
When I first started teaching I was terrified of the month of April. April means poetry in many schools. My exposure to poetry was not too much bro...MORE
Favorite Poets For Children
As I sat down to compose a list of my favorite poets, I became aware that I read poetry like a writer, and I consider the young writers who might be i...MORE
Book Love: Embracing the Seasons
As each new season rolls along for another three months, it is a special time to reflect on what the season brings, be in hibernation, endless days o...MORE
Author Focus: Keri Smith
For the past three weeks, my daughters have been asking me “How many more days until spring?” The Midwest winter was long this year, so my girls k...MORE
Investigating Spring: Resources for Young Scientists
Springtime sun and rain puddles naturally raise our children’s desire to explore outdoors. Often, we do not need anything but the time and desire to...MORE
A Cinderella Study for Big Princesses
While we all get swept up in the happily ever after notions of today’s fairytale characters, it’s important to break open the concept of...MORE
A Book List for Animal Lovers
We thought it would be fun to share a list of our favorite books for all of the animal lovers out there… 1. Animalium by Jenny Broom. If I was g...MORE
10 Books to Share with Someone Special
As your children exchange little candy hearts that say “U R SWEET” and Minecraft Valentine cards, it’s the perfect time to reflect on love. What...MORE
Lessons From the 100 Acre Wood
0ne / two I just recently finished reading A.A. Milne’s Winnie-the-Pooh and The House at Pooh Corner to a class of second and third graders. I am e...MORE
A Book List for Young Architects
Taking a close look at the development of buildings over time is such a wonderful starting point for architecture and engineering. The following tit...MORE
Holiday Book List: A Little Bit More
When I originally decided to write a blog post about multicultural holidays and their shared message of peace and giving, I imagined myself surrounded...MORE
5 Great Reasons to Read Graphic Novels
One of the biggest concerns many parents have (this can be an issue for boys in particular) is how to encourage reading in their kids. No matter ho...MORE
Author Focus: Mo Willems
My daughters, aged 4 and 6, love Mo Willems. My second and third graders at school love Mo Willems. I think everyone under the age of 10 loves Mo Will...MORE
Connect Literacy to Wonder: Letter Drawings
Can letter-sound correspondence be learned from imaginative play? Yes! Here’s how. Most young children learn the alphabet and corresponding lett...MORE
Author Focus: Chris Haughton
As a family we adore Chris Haughton. I do believe that Sshh we have a plan was my little one’s first favorite book which he requested over and...MORE
Picture Book Project: The Bear’s Song
Having three children under the age of seven in the house amounts to a lot of picture book reading! Every now and then we come across a picture book...MORE
Discussing Literature with Older Children
What’s your book about? I don’t know. Do you like it? It’s OK. If you read Jacki’s recent post, “How to Talk to Your Children about...MORE
Selecting Just Right Books for Your Reader at Home
As a parent, it’s important that you know how to help your young reader self-select books outside of the classroom. Like any other skill, knowing h...MORE
Author Focus: David Mackintosh
David Mackintosh is a delight. His style and color palette are just perfect. It is bold and graphic with fine details and there is always something i...MORE
Author Focus: Jon Klassen
Rebecca from Thirteen Red Shoes is with us today to share some inspiring insights and book recommendations from the great author, Jon Klassen. ...MORE
Growing a Young Reader
Christie Megill is with us today to share some great tips for nurturing the budding young readers in our lives. Learning to read is a process;...MORE
8 Ways To Fit Reading Into Your Busy Schedule
Nicole Clevenger is with us today to share some handy tips for fitting quality reading time into our busy after school schedules. It’s b...MORE
Genre Studies: Back to School Read Alouds
In planning for back to school with my second and third graders, I spend a significant amount of time researching which books to read aloud to...MORE
Author Focus: Oliver Jeffers
Rebecca from Thirteen Red Shoes is with us today to share some inspiring insights and book recommendations from the great author, Oliver Jeffers. &n...MORE
Introducing Poetry to Children
Poetry is such a delightful way to introduce children to the beauty that is a collection of words. Poetry in itself is not always about telling a sto...MORE
Picture Book Projects: Extra Yarn
Randi from Swoon is with us today to share a fun project to compliment the inspiring book, Extra Yarn by Mac Barnett. Being displaced and living with...MORE
Graphic Novel Booklist
Rebecca from Thirteen Red Shoes is with us today to share a great list of graphic novels to enjoy with the young readers in our lives. We adore pict...MORE
Story Cubes for Young Readers
Rebecca from Thirteen Red Shoes is with us today to share a fun activity to share with the little readers in our lives… Story cubes are...MORE
Summer Reading In a Box
Randi from Swoon is with us today to share a lovely summer reading kit for the blossoming young readers in our lives. Summer is right around the cor...MORE
Audio Books for Kids
We adore audio books and have gathered a rather large collection over the last few years. Listening to audio books is a great way for young chil...MORE
Dinosaur Books and Apps for Little Ones
Rebecca from Thirteen Red Shoes is with us today to share some great app and book recommendations for the little dinosaur lovers in our lives…...MORE
Picture Book Advent Calendar
Rebecca from Thirteen Red Shoes is with us today to share some lovely tips for sharing a picture book advent with your family this holiday season. We...MORE
Printable Bookmarks Two Ways
Monique of Green Acorns is with us today to share useful bookmark printables to inspire the young readers in our lives… There have been so many...MORE
New Classics for Children
Rebecca from Thirteen Red Shoes is with us to share some lovely classic board books for the youngest readers in our lives… Over the la...MORE
10 Chapter Books to Read Together
Rebecca from Thirteen Red Shoes is with us to share a lovely list of fun chapter books to read together with your children. In our home, we have a...MORE
Peaceable Home: 8 Stories for the Heart
Today Emma from 95 Acres of Sky is with us to share a lovely list of children’s books that we can turn to when we need to explore some of life&...MORE
10 Pop-Up Books Your Kids will Love
Rebecca from Thirteen Red Shoes is with us today to share a fun list of lovely pop-up books. I can still remember my childhood favorites. They are a...MORE
Teaching Your Son to Love to Read: Successful Reading Strategies for Boys
Becky from a Sweet Hot Mess is with us to share some great tips on how to inspire a love of reading within the young boys in our lives… Afte...MORE
Phonics Apps for Little Ones (Part Two)
Rebecca from Thirteen Red Shoes is with us today to share part II of her recommendations for phonics apps for the little ones… After my initia...MORE
Phonics Apps for Little Ones (Part 1)
Rebecca from Thirteen Red Shoes is with us today to share another one of her thoughtful lists of app recommendations. My eldest son is beginning to...MORE
Friendship Booklist (Part 2)
Rebecca from Thirteen Red Shoes is with us today to share Part II of her book recommendations that cover the ever-important topic of friendship. Prev...MORE
Twelve Books about Numbers
Rebecca from Thirteen Red Shoes is with us today to share another a lovely list of recommendations for counting books… My eldest is able to co...MORE
10 Books about Nighttime
Rebecca from Thirteen Red Shoes is with us today to share another one of here inspiring book lists. This time her book recommendations are for the ev...MORE
Pocket-sized Library Lists {printable}
Annie from Alphabet Glue is with us to share a handy printable to help enhance the our beloved library visits… As you and yours prepare for the...MORE
Yoga Inspired Booklist
Monique is with is today to complement her Yoga series with her favorite Yoga inspired children’s books… As you have seen from my past Yo...MORE
Friendship Booklist (Part 1)
Friendship is something so important for little ones to be able to foster, nourish and develop. During the beginning stages of development, little ch...MORE
A Travel Inspired Booklist
Rebecca from Thirteen Red Shoes is with us today to with another one of her inspiring books lists. This time she is taking us all over the world with...MORE
Twelve Picture Books about Love
Rebecca from ThirteenRedShoes is with is with another one of her wonderful lists! Today she is sharing her favorite, love themed, children’s bo...MORE
From the Pinboards: Five Reading Nooks
Here’s a little inspiration to kick off the weekend! Five cozy, orderly, reading nooks designed for kids: (more…)...MORE
Sight Word Bingo
Learning to read and write is a complex process that requires many different skills. Although it is complex, it can be a joyful and empowering experie...MORE