We all know reading aloud to children is important. Many studies have proven this time and time again. One of my reading heroes, Jennie Fitzkee, preschool teacher and the author of the blog Teacher’s Reflections: 30 Years of Wonder, has written post after post about the importance of read alouds. Many of those posts have given me chills and some have brought tears, because they share her stories of how that daily time of sharing chapter books inspires the children in her classes to become lifelong readers. In fact, children don’t need to be preschoolers or even elementary age, they can be any age. In fact, as Donlyn Miller, author of The Book Whisperer and another one of my reading heroes, recently said “We do not age out of read alouds. (If we did the audiobook industry would not be thriving)”!

With summer coming (you can tell I’m dreaming about it from my picture!) there’s more time for family read alouds. With our busy lives, though, you just might need to be a little creative to find that time! Here are a few suggestions:

• In the sandbox
• On a swing
• During play dough time on a rainy day.
• During breakfast or lunch
• Audio books as you drive to one of the kids’ summer activities. Your library has lots of titles for downloading or books on CD. It might make those traffic jams a little more bearable for all of you!
• Audio books as you cook dinner together
• And of course, bedtime.

Now, I want to offer some titles I’m sure your entire family will enjoy. That means mom, dad and kids of all ages! Jennie Fitzkee offers some great suggestions in her post, Chapter Reading.  Here are mine!

the lost boy’s gift – by kimberly willis holt 

This sweet story is full of heart, magic, endearing characters and talking animals. It takes place on a storybook street lined with rainbow colored houses full of caring neighbors who notice the world. In one of those houses you’ll find Tilda Butter, who has lived there since her parents dropped her off when she was seven years old and never returned to take her home. Soon after Tilda arrived Aunt Sippy said something rather remarkable. She told Tilda that everyone has a special gift and it’s up to us to discover it and use it. “For a gift should never be wasted.” Shortly after that conversation, Tilda learned about her special gift. She realized she can talk to animals and bugs, and in fact has delightful conversations every day.

Now Tilda is getting new neighbors. Daniel and his mother are moving in next door, but Daniel’s dad is not coming with them. He stayed in their old townhome across the county. Daniel is very sad about his dad staying behind and about moving to a new house. He doesn’t share his mother’s feelings, or his neighbors that he is very fortunate to be living on While-a-Way Lane. He explores the neighborhood and discovers the local pond, lots of animals and lots of trees. He also makes some special friends – the lightning bugs who give him a hug when he needs it the most. And he begins to notice things about his neighbors, the animals and most of all about his mother. Maybe Daniel is learning what it means to live on While-a-Way Lane.

This warm, loving story is one you will remember for a long time. It’s one you will want to read aloud to all ages as you snuggle up together and marvel at the magic you’ll find together on While-a-Way Lane. Teachers, please read it to your class (preschool – grade 3). Librarians, please order it for your elementary library.

wishtree – by Katherine applegate

Just like almost everyone else who has reviewed this beautiful book, I truly loved it. It is such a gentle story full of empathy, compassion and friendship. It would make a wonderful read aloud from preschool through middle school. The narrator is the 253 year old red oak, Red, who has grown old, strong and beautiful while he watched his neighborhood evolve around him. He has watched immigrants from all over the world live in harmony in the houses on his street.  He is close friends with all of the animals who call him home. And most importantly he is the neighborhood Wishtree. Every year on May 1, and some other days as well, his branches are adorned with wishes from young and old. They might be silly wishes like “I wish for chocolate spaghetti”, but they also might be heartfelt wishes, such as “I wish for a friend.” This was the wish from Samar, a Muslim girl who had recently moved to the neighborhood. Unfortunately, her family had not been welcomed. Red decided he would change that. He would help Samar get a friend.

This book deserves to be on every family’s forever bookshelf and shared with everyone you know.. It’s definitely going to be on mine!

the vanderbeekers of 141st street – by karina yan glaser

When I finished this book I realized I had fallen in love with the Vanderbeeker family on the very first page! I wanted to slip right into their cozy Harlem brownstone and join one of their rousing neighborhood get-togethers. I loved every member of this caring family from Laney, the 4 ¾ year old who goes through life handing out huge hugs, to 6 year old creative animal lover Hyacinth, to 9 year old book loving Oliver, to 12 year old twins, Isa and Jessie, and of course mom and dad. This is a story about community, diversity, city living and love. It’s a perfect read aloud for the entire family. I highly recommend gathering all the kids, whatever age, cuddling up under a fuzzy blanket and reading this delightful story together. You’ll find yourself yearning for a large caring family, lots of caring neighbors and wishing you could move to 141st Street in Harlem! This is just book one. Happily there is a book 2, and you’ll get to visit them with them again in September when a third Vanderbeekers will be published. I can’t wait!

the penderwicks – by jeanne birdsall

This delightful story introduces you to the four Penderwick sisters, their loving father who sometimes speaks to them in Latin, their neighbor, Jeffrey, two pet rabbits, Hound and finally Jeffrey’s stern, high society mother. The descriptions of their adventures in a run down summer rental on the shores of Massachusetts will have your kids laughing and begging for “just one more chapter.” And the great thing is there are four books in this series!

the unlikely story of a pig in the city – by jodi kimball

This is a charming story about family, friendship, teamwork and of course, animals. Josie is one of five children in a loving, lively family living in a small townhouse in an Ohio city, who often feels overlooked. When her brother brings home a piglet on Thanksgiving, the runt of the litter from a nearby farm, Josie falls in love and knows in her heart she was meant to save Hamlet.

I especially loved the relationships the five children had with each other, as well as with their loving parents, while they struggled to happily live together in a 3 bedroom city townhome. Each of the kids tries to find his or her place in the family, where there is a lot of competition, but also a lot of support and love for one another. The teamwork among the kids when they are down to the deadline for finding a new home for Hamlet, is heartwarming and brought tears to my eyes, as well as a big smile. This is great family read aloud and a special one for Charlotte’s Web fans and Penderwick fans! And don’t miss the second book in the series, Dog Days in the City.

The Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane by Kate Dicamillo

This book was shared at my school with all ages and was loved universally. I’m sure your family will agree!

From Good Reads: “Someone will come for you, but first you must open your heart. . . .”

Once, in a house on Egypt Street, there lived a china rabbit named Edward Tulane. The rabbit was very pleased with himself, and for good reason: he was owned by a girl named Abilene, who treated him with the utmost care and adored him completely.

And then, one day, he was lost.

Kate DiCamillo takes us on an extraordinary journey, from the depths of the ocean to the net of a fisherman, from the top of a garbage heap to the fireside of a hoboes’ camp, from the bedside of an ailing child to the bustling streets of Memphis. And along the way, we are shown a true miracle — that even a heart of the most breakable kind can learn to love, to lose, and to love again.”

These are just a few of my ideas for read alouds. I’m sure you have lots more. I’d love to hear about them in the comments!

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I am sitting on a deck in Michigan on a beautiful day and looking out at the glittering lake. I hope your summers are going as well as mine, and you are enjoying lots of happy family times in the warm weather. We receive such a limited number of these perfect summer days, so I try to make the most of every one!

This  past month has been a whirlwind of family activities! We drove to Lubbock, Texas, to attend our niece, Haley’s Honor Ceremony and Graduation from Texas Tech. She is now a Speech Language Pathologist and we couldn’t be prouder! It meant so much to us to be able to be a part of the special weekend. We then visited old friends in Colorado and Kansas and created lots of special, new memories. The fun didn’t stop there. We then returned home and hosted a wedding shower for our niece, Kelly! Now we are looking forward to her July wedding and to our niece, Julia’s shower and wedding later this summer. It’s a little crazy, but giving us so much joy and great family memories!

I know school has been our for many of you for a few weeks now, and because I remember what happens once the newness of summer vacation begins to wear off, I want to share some books that might add some fun and joy to your summer. Some of these are for the parents and teachers, and some are for the kids.

SUMMER ACTIVITY BOOKS

Nature Anatomy by Julia Rothman, is perfect for all of your little ones who are fascinated by nature and are bombarding you with questions! I gave this to a special little neighbor and he keeps it by his bed, making sure it’s always available to answer his questions. It is a wonderful book for any family who loves the outdoors and are taking those summer walks to the park or the woods or the beach. And as a bonus, that this former librarian loves, it introduces the concept of research to your kids!

 Henry David Thoreau for Kids by Corinne Hasfield Smith, a tour guide at Thoreau Farm, in Concord Massachusetts, has written a book which is a good choice for parents and kids to read together to introduce older children to the wonders of the world. It provides background about Thoreau and 21 hands on activities that relate and honor Thoreau’s ideas, such as  keeping a daily journal, planting a garden, baking trail-bread cakes, going on a half-day hike, and starting a rock collection. It even integrates technology with nature activities such as describing and providing a link to a birdcall identification app.

PARENT AND TEACHER SUMMER READING SUGGESTIONS

If you are looking for a feel good book that will inspire you to read to your kids every day, this is it! In The Reading Promise Alice Ozma shares the story of her father reading aloud to her for eight straight years. If you are wondering if spending so much time each evening reading to your children, is truly worth it, this will surely convince you that it is!

I first read about Thirty Million Words by Dana Suskind last fall, and immediately knew I wanted a copy. Dr. Suskind  is a Cochlear Implant Surgeon who discovered the true value of talking to and with your children from birth through age three. She  was concerned about why some of the children who were returning to see her for their post operative appointments were so talkative and some were not. Were the cochlear implants not successful with some children? However, after much research she discovered that some of the children were hearing lots of language in their homes and some were not. This book will tell you how to create the “best language environment” for your child. It will help you to understand why the first step to successful lives for our children is to simply talk to your children in a way that builds their brains. This is a perfect gift for young parents and early childhood teachers.

I first learned about Reading Picture Books to With Children by Megan Dowd Lambert on the Eric Carle Picture Book Museum Facebook page. I truly think it’s an important book that all teachers and librarians need to read! It describes the techniques to use when reading aloud to help the children interact with the story and to truly see and understand the importance of the pictures and to get them to “think with their eyes”. I always thought it was so important to interact with the kids when I was sharing a story (that’s why my story times were always so long!), but this opened my eyes to new techniques and vocabulary to use during my story times in the future.

TWO HISTORICAL FICTION BOOKS FOR KIDS

The War that Saved my Life by Kimberly Brubaker Bradley, a Newberry Honor book for 2016, is the story of Ada and her brother, Jamie, during World War II in both London and then the English countryside. I read this in a few hours. I just couldn’t put it down! Children will learn so much about history during World War II and the impact that it had on the children.

Ada has a club foot and her mother is very ashamed of her. Ada is never allowed to leave their one room apartment in the slums of London and is punished by being locked in the cabinet under the kitchen sink. When Ada learns that Jamie is leaving on the train with many other London children to escape the war and live with families in the English countryside, she decides she must go with him. This story describes their adventure beginning with their escape from their apartment, their harrowing train ride and then their new life in a small village. Because Ada has never left her apartment, she has so much to discover and to learn to trust. You share her joy, as well as her terror that she may have to return to London and face the wrath of her mother.

Glory Be by Augusta Scattergood tells the story of Gloriana June Hemphill and her life in Hanging Moss, Mississippi, during the summer of 1964. Glory is so excited. School is out and it’s just a few weeks until the most important day of the year – her birthday on the 4th of July. Every year she celebrates in the same way. She invites all of her friends to have cake and ice cream and to go swimming at the town pool. However, this year things are different. There are rumors that the town pool may close because it must now be integrated. Glory can’t believe it, so she decides to write a letter to the town newspaper to protest. The story is a memorable novel about family, friendship and making choices.

CHAPTER BOOKS, BEGINNING CHAPTER BOOKS AND PICTURE BOOKS FOR KIDS

Finally, I want to remind you to visit my past posts that will give you some more ideas for your kids when they just don’t know what to read next!

Beginning Chapter Book Series List is Here!

New Picture Books for All Ages!

New Kids Books You Don’t Want to Miss!

The Chapter Book Series List has Arrived!

Are there some books you would like to suggest for the summer reading lists? Please let us know in the comments below.

Happy Summer!

A few weeks ago, I sent out an email to all of the library volunteers from the past school year, to let them know about Red Canoe Reader. I received a lot of kind and supportive responses. It meant so much to me. When I was an elementary school librarian, the volunteers played a vital part in the success of the library. They are the moms who didn’t mind trying to make sense of the crazy and mixed up library shelves, to check in hundreds of books or to rearrange the furniture. And most importantly, they were the moms who kindly helped the kids with their many requests and needs. There was never a complaint when a little one would ask, for example, for the “blue book with an elephant on the front”. Even with that small amount of information, they would always do their best to help the kids to find the perfect book! And that was not an unusual situation. It happened multiple times through out the day! So, when one of the moms mentioned in her reply to my email that her son, a rather reluctant reader, was  needing some new beginning chapter book series on the second and early third grade levels, I got busy with this addition to the website. I was planning to compile a list of beginning chapter book series, so this prompted me to get started! I had already posted a list of middle grade chapter books a month ago, Chapter Book Series, so if you have some kiddos who are ready for books on the 3rd – 6th grade levels, that is the list for them. If your kids are not quite there yet, then try some of the series in this new list, Beginning Chapter Books.

Reading Strategies for beginning chapter book Series

I suggest going to the public library and getting several books on the list. It doesn’t need to be the first in the series. Luckily, the majority of these series can be read in any order. Then let your little one choose a book, cuddle up and begin to read it together. You can take turns reading pages. Perhaps, you can read a few chapters each night or more if you can’t put it down! In that case, keep reading! I found with my kids that once they found a series they loved, a great strategy was to buy the books. There’s something about owning the book, that adds to their confidence. Of course, if you have a great public library, you may not need to do that. You may just be making lots of trips to pick up new books!

As always, this list is certainly not all of the beginning chapter book series out there. For one thing, early chapter books are defined differently by publishers, librarians, teachers and parents. These are simply books that appealed to lots of different kids with lots of different interests in my library. And when a child finds the perfect series for them, they are going to keep reading. I’ve seen it happen so many times and it’s magical! It’s one of the reasons I loved being a school librarian.

Do you know of some beginning chapter books to add to the list? I’ll look forward to hearing your suggestions in the comments below.

Before I wrote my first post for Red Canoe Reader, I had plans of composing several lists of books that I would share with you through links in the menu. Unfortunately, I spent so much time composing the posts that I neglected to make those lists. Well, I posted my first list – Chapter Book Series List! It includes many titles that you can find at your public library, purchase at your favorite bookstore or possibly even have on your own shelves.  I have included links to Amazon, if you’d like to purchase these for the children in your lives, as well as the Accelerated Reader and Lexile Levels to help you find a series on your child’s level. I’ve also divided the list into realistic fiction, graphic novels and fantasy to help you choose.

I have included chapter book series in many of my previous posts, so I hope you’ll check these out, as well. Here are the titles of the posts and the links:

Some New and Noteworthy Kids Chapter Books

HISTORICAL FICTION: READING ABOUT KIDS FROM THE PAST

CHILDREN’S BOOKS FOR CHRISTMAS GIFTS: CHAPTER BOOKS

ENCYCLOPEDIA BROWN SERIES

Of course, you might be having a hard time enticing your child to read any book, or at least anything you suggest! I recently read about an idea that I want to share. On the blog, Modern Mrs. Darcy, Anne Bogel recently described  her strategy about getting her kids to read. She goes to the library and brings home a large stack of books. They might be chapter books, nonfiction, graphic novels or picture books. Then she plops the stack on the kitchen table. When the kids walk by they get intrigued and usually pick up a book and begin to read! She never says a word. I just wish I had thought of that when my kids were little!

And finally, please remember, the chapter book series titles in this list, as well as the books in my previous posts, don’t begin to be a complete list of chapter book series titles. What books should I add to the list? Let me know in the comments and I’ll make updates!

And please share this post with your friends who might be looking for some ideas to entice their kids to read.

In my last post, I wrote about some of the new chapter books in Some New and Noteworthy Chapter Books and I wrote about some of my favorite chapter books in my post, Children’s Books for Christmas: Chapter Books.  Those books are usually written on the third grade level and higher. But what about the kids who are not quite ready for these, but are eager to feel the pride in reading chapter books? That is when I would lead them to the colorful displays of the early chapter books in the library. The displays made it easy for the kids to choose their own book, once they were familiar with the series.

And about this time of year, those displays contained very few early chapter books, because the kindergarten and first graders had discovered them. So many times, those beginning readers would come in and ask for a book with chapters. They might still be reading on the first grade level, but they wanted to have the thrill of moving on to reading chapter books. This meant the books needed to have a table of contents containing a list of the chapters and the page numbers. The book might have only three chapters, but that didn’t matter, because it was a chapter book!

Then the next step would be finding that series that would draw them in and make them eager to read another one. My assistant and I would spend what seemed like endless hours working with all of our kids to help them find the perfect book, because we knew if we could hook them on a series, most likely we would create a real book lover.

Recently, I saw a blog post about early chapter books that I was very much in agreement with. Sarah Mackensie wrote about early chapter books on her blog, Amongst Lovely Things, titled Series Books that Will Turn Your Struggling Reader into a Voracious Reader. I was very excited to read her thoughts, because her ideas and methods were so similar to what we tried to do in our elementary library. In addition, Sarah has excellent step by step instructions to help make your child into a reader who is eager to read every book in a series! She also includes a list of many chapter books that will entice your child. When I saw this post, I was already planning to write about early chapter books, so I was excited to read Sarah’s ideas and wanted to share her post with you. I would encourage you to give her ideas a try, if the child in your life needs a little extra support and guidance to make them into a lifelong reader.

cynthia rylant early chapter books

Once the kids began chapter books they had many favorites. And I was constantly searching for new series, to make sure they could find a perfect book when they were ready to move on to a new one. To introduce early chapter books, I would read the first few chapters of some early chapter books during my weekly storytimes with the kindergarten and first grade classes. I always started with Cynthia Rylant’s Henry and Mudge and High Rise Private Eyes series.

When the kids wanted to try another series (or all of Henry and Mudge and High Rise Private Eyes are checked out), I would suggest another series by Cynthia Rylant, Mr. Putter and Tabby.  

These are all well loved early chapter books that give the kids a real sense of accomplishment.

national geographic readers

For the children who would rather read a nonfiction book, National Geographic Readers are a great choice. They range from second grade through fourth grade reading level, Lexile 220 – 650, AR 1.9 – 4.2. Due to this wide range of levels, you might want to check on each book on the Lexile site and the AR BookFinder site to find the right book for your child.

Katie Woo and Max and Zoe

Two extremely popular early chapter book series for the kids, once they are ready to move on from the Cynthia Rylant books are Max and Zoe, and Katie Woo. Katie is a sassy, spunky, curious and funny Chinese American girl who is great at getting into trouble. The character was inspired by the great niece of the author, Fran Manushkin. Max and Zoe feature Max and his best friend Zoe as they explore different places and meet new people. 

BILLIE B. BROWN and HEY JACK by sally rippin

Billie B. Brown is a girl and her best friend Jack lives next door. The Billie B. early chapter book series describes her quirky adventures from her point of view. Hey Jack gives her next door neighbor a chance to be heard. At first it was hard to convince our early readers that they should read both series, even though there might be a girl or a boy on the cover (horrors!), but once we convinced them to give it a try, they loved both series.

star wars and lego chapter books

Finally, two more favorites are the Star Wars and the Lego early chapter books. These books were loved by kindergarteners through third or fourth grade, no matter their reading level. In fact, one little guy would come in almost every day and want a new Star Wars books. I tried to convince him to try something else, and sometimes I would succeed, but often he was adamant that he wanted a Star Wars book. He told me that he and his dad would read them together and read them over and over. I soon realized that the books might be above his reading level, but they were providing some special family time. Since the new Star Wars movie was released in December, I would guess these are even more popular now!

Finally, for Lego lovers, there is a series of Lego early chapter books. They range from first grade through fifth grade reading level. These books describe adventures of lots of different characters and include many about Star Wars, making them extra popular!

This is just a short list of some of my favorite early chapter books. There are so many more! Look for a list of these books to be added to my website within the next few weeks. I’ll let you know when that happens! And please remember, that although the links from the book titles direct you to Amazon, most of these books can be found in your public library.

Which early chapter books series are your favorites? Please let me know in the comments below!

There were so many biographies in my library that were never touched by the kids. Mostly those were the ones that were at least an inch thick and contained very few pictures. Although I had based my purchases on the respected reviews that I had read in a variety of library sources, these books were ignored. The
kids taught me very early in my career which biographies I should be buying or the books would simply sit on the shelf! They liked the to read the ones which gave them lots of facts, but not using too many words to relay the information. They liked indexes and table of contents. And most importantly they liked pictures!

 BIOGRAPHIES FOR YOUNG READERS

In the Common Core Curriculum, which is now found in schools across the country, children are being exposed to many more biographies. I found when I shared biographies with first and second graders, they were fascinated and rushed to check them out. A series that is great for this is First Biographies from Capstone Press.These books are available in public and school libraries, as well as from Capstone Press. The books are 32 pages in length, contain many pictures, as well as an index and table of contents. They are perfect for pleasure reading or research.

BIOGRAPHIES FOR oLDER rEADERS

Another publisher I really like for nonfiction is Bellwether Media and their Blastoff Readers. A great series for older readers, third grade reading level and above, who are looking for biographies about authors, is the Children’s Storytellers Series. These books are 24 pages in length and contain a table of contents, index, glossary, timeline and fun facts about the authors. They are perfect for both pleasure reading or research. 

JANE GOODALL BIOGRAPHIES for home and school

A new biography that I recently discovered is Untamed The Wild Life of Jane Goodall by Anita Silvey, with a foreword by Jane Goodall. Lexile Level 1100, Accelerated Reader 7.4

I was initially drawn to this book when I read a review on the site, The Nonfiction Detectives. I have been an admirer of Jane Goodall for many years. When my son was a freshman at Beloit College, he had the opportunity to attend a lecture given by Ms. Goodall. Immediately afterwards, he called me to tell me all about it. If you have ever been a mother of a college boy, you may recognize the importance of this call! First of all, he actually called me immediately after hearing the lecture and was extremely excited! He was very impressed and motivated after hearing about her work in Africa and her mission to make the world a better place for animals. He wanted to buy some of her books for me! His enthusiasm led me to read many books about her and to share picture biographies with the children in my elementary library every year to introduce the biography section of the library. This included early reader biographies, as well as Me, Jane by Patrick McDonnell and The Watcher: Jane Goodall’s Life with the Chimps by Jeanette Winter.

However, I never had a Jane Goodall biography to offer to the older students. Untamed is that book! It reinforces the stories the children learned in the previous biographies, and then expands on that. It follows Ms. Goodall from childhood through the present as she travels the world to teach about conservation. It includes many photographs on every page with very descriptive captions. The vibrancy of these photographs and the engaging text will appeal to children and inspire them to continue reading.

What are some of your favorite biographies? Is your child looking for biographies about a particular person? Please let me know in the comments and I’ll try to help them find that “perfect book”!

 Children’s picture books for

Christmas gifts 

Holiday Gift Ideas

Last week sixteen members of our family gathered at my sister, Lisa, and brother-in-law, Scott’s home to celebrate Thanksgiving. We were fortunate to have such a large group, but we were certainly missing some who were unable to join us. However, we still had a fun time together! During the after dinner conversation, talk turned to my blog and there were lots of questions… When was I going to announce it on Facebook? When was I going to announce it to my friends? I was having a hard time answering, because I’ve been really nervous about announcing to the world that RedCanoeReader.com existed! But then finally a question that I could answer: Would I write a post about book gift ideas for kids of all ages? So here is my first list, which is a compilation of children’s picture books.

Board Books

Whenever I’m invited to a baby shower or I need a baby gift, I turn to concept board books. After all, it has been proven that babies need to hear thirty million words by age three to best develop their brains and what better way to accomplish this, than to read aloud to your child whenever you have the chance! The board books I choose have very simple content or have a concept on each page, such as counting, animals, the alphabet and opposites. Here are a few examples with links to Amazon. I’ll probably also add a few classics to the gift box such as Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What do you See?  Children love the language in this book and it can become a game as you read it aloud. And finally I might include On the Night You Were Born, which is a simple story that tells children how much they are loved.

  Dr. Seuss’s ABC          first 100 animals       Baby Touch and Feel Animals  

Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What do you See?                  On the Night You Were Born

Early Picture books

When it comes to early picture books, there are literally thousands of books to choose from. If you are interested in a newly published title, I suggest going on Amazon and reading about the best picture books of 2015. There are some wonderful ones, both humorous stories and those with a message. Probably my favorite of the year, is Waiting  by one of my favorite authors, Kevin Henkes. The story tells about toys that are each happily waiting for something amazing to happen.

     Waiting                                                                                                                   Lenny and Lucy

My other favorite is Lenny and Lucy by Philip C. Stead and illustrated by Erin E. Stead, the author and illustrator of the 2011 Caldecott award winner, A Sick Day for Amos McGee. This is a special book about the uncertainty and scariness of moving to a new house and it’s also a great lesson in empathy.

Now I’d like to tell you about some “oldies, but goodies”. These are books which may have been published after you were reading picture books so you aren’t familiar with them (and the children receiving them won’t probably already own them), and because they are somewhat older, aren’t showing up on the “best of” lists and in the library displays.

Journey by Aaron Becker

This tells the story of a lonely girl and the magical world she creates with a red marker. It is a wordless picture book that was the Caldecott winner in 2014.

That is NOT a Good Idea!  By Mo Willems

I’m sure many of you know the Piggy and Elephant books by Mo Willems, but this is one you don’t want to miss. It is a very fun read aloud that keeps you guessing until the very end!

Officer Buckle and Gloria by Peggy Rathmann

I decided to add this book to my list after a holiday dinner with my local nieces and nephew. Although, they are teenagers and beyond, they have many fond memories of picture books and we had a lively discussion recalling their favorites. While we were talking about the blog they told me that this was an extra special one because of the characters and the humor. It was a favorite of the Caldecott committee, as well, because it won the award in 1996.

Lost and Found by Oliver Jeffers; Up and Down by Oliver Jeffers

You really can’t miss with any of Oliver Jeffers books, but these two are especially touching stories about the importance of friendship between a penguin and a boy.

children’s Picture Books 

When I first opened my elementary school library 22 years ago, I needed to make a decision about how I would refer to the picture books. Many libraries call it the “Easy” section, but I disagreed with that for two reasons. First of all, many picture books are written on fourth grade level and higher. Secondly, and perhaps most important, I didn’t want the older kids to consider them just for K and 1. So the picture book section became the “Everybody Books”. I’m a firm believer that picture books are truly for all ages. I always keep two or three on my coffee table to share with my guests. When my nieces and nephews visit someone is always reading one (and they are just about all grown up now)!

Here are a few more of my favorites with concepts that might appeal to children beyond pre-school age.

How Rocket Learned to Read  by Tad Hills. This is a delightful book about friendship and the power of learning to read.

The Night I Followed the Dog by Nina Laden. After waking up early and seeing his dog hop out of a limousine, a little boy decides to follow his dog the next night. A great read aloud!

Interrupting Chicken by David Ezra Stein.  This is another great read aloud. Papa tried to read some favorite bedtime stories to Little Red Chicken, but before Papa can finish, little red chicken jumps into the story and interrupts. Will he ever get to sleep?

Say Hello to Zorro! by Carter Goodrich. This book tells the story of what happens when a new dog joins the family. It’s a story of friendship that any dog lover can identify with.

Courage  by Bernard Waber. This book explores and celebrates all kinds of courage, big and small.

Ask Me by Bernard Waber. When I was checking to make sure Courage was still in print, I saw this book, which was just published in July. I couldn’t help but add it to the list. The illustrations are amazing – very soft and comforting. The story tells about a father and daughter, their walk through their neighborhood and all of their many questions about what they see and what they like. It would be a great conversation starter for you and your child.

Otis by Loren Long. There is a series of Otis books. Otis is a special tractor who loves his job and all of his friends on his farm, especially Little Calf. Happily, Otis also always manages to save his friends from disasters, as they have fun at the end of a long work day.  These will remind you of Virginia Lee Burton’s Mike Mulligan and his Steam Shovel and Katy and the Big Snow where Mike and Katy both save the day.

Of course there are so many more children’s picture books I would recommend, but I’m going to move on to the early chapter books. These are books with a more limited vocabulary and written on second and third grade levels.

Early Chapter Book Series

Henry and Mudge by Cynthia Rylant, AR 2.2 – 3.0, Lexile 340 – 500

Frog and Toad  by Arnold Lobel, AR 2.5 – 3.0, Lexile 300 – 400

Billie B Brown by Sally Rippin; AR 2.2 – 2.9; Lexile 400 – 500

Amelia Bedelia  by Peggy Parish, AR 2.0 – 3.0, Lexile 200 – 400

High Rise, Private Eyes by Cynthia Rylant, AR 2.3 – 2.6, Lexile 150 – 350

Ivy and Bean by Annie Barrows, AR 3.1 – 3.9, Lexile 440 – 520

Ballpark Mysteries by David A. Kelly and Mark Meyers, AR 3.7 – 4.0, Lexile 480 – 600

Magic Treehouse Mysteries by Mary Pope Osborne, AR 3.0 – 3.9, Lexile 250 – 500

A-Z Mysteries by Ron Roy, AR 3.0 – 3.9, Lexile 410 – 590

I’m going to stop here, because this post is getting to be so long! Please look for another post within the next four or five days about chapter books!

Do you have any questions about any of these children’s picture books, or you are looking for more ideas for a great book for your child? Just let me know in the comments and I’ll get back to you soon!

Author, Peter Brown

In early 2006, I was reading my school email one Sunday evening (yes, yes, I know I should have been relaxing and not doing school work, but that’s just not what teachers do!) and found a request from a local independent bookstore addressed to all of the librarians in the two city school districts. She was asking if anyone would be interested in hosting a first time author for an author visit in their school later in the week. Because author visits are usually so costly, I jumped at the chance to host a free one even though the author was new, young and inexperienced at presenting to kids! The author/illustrator was Peter Brown and his new book, was The Flight of the Dodo (AR, 4.1, Lexile 870).

It turned out to be a very good decision! Peter was easy to work with and great with the kids. He even drew several poster size illustrations to demonstrate his techniques and left the posters with us. Those posters have been framed and hanging in my school for many years. In fact, every time I share one of Peter’s books, we enjoy looking at the posters and I tell the story about Peter Brown visiting Patterson before they were born!

Since that time Peter Brown has gone on to illustrate many more picture books, both ones he has written and ones written by other authors. This includes the book, Creepy Carrots by Aaron Reynolds, for which Peter won a Caldecott Honor award in 2013 and The Curious Garden, as well as the Chowder series about a lonesome dog who finds his true calling once he discovers the joys of a trampoline!

In The Curious Garden, (AR 4.4, Lexile 840) a little red head, Liam, who loves life and is full of optimism, discovered some deserted, raised railroad tracks in his dreary, drab city as he was out exploring on a rainy day. After he climbed the steps to the top, he found a small patch of dying wildflowers which obviously needed a gardener’s help. Liam became that person with inspiring results. His work and optimism transformed a depressing place into a welcoming spot for all of his neighbors to gather, visit and join him in supporting the blossoming gardens. Mr. Brown was inspired to write this book after noticing the raised train tracks near his home, which are now a beautiful and welcoming walkway for New Yorkers, The Highline, thanks to the kindness and hard work of many volunteers. When I shared this book with my class we would look at the website for The Highline, http://www.thehighline.org, which includes photographs and videos about how the walkway came to be. You may also find an excellent lesson guide at the following site to support you, parents or educators, as you share the book.       Curious Gardens Group Guide 

You will want to read several of Peter’s books. His more recent ones, such as Mr. Tiger Goes Wild, (AR 1.5, Lexile 170), winner of the 2014 Boston Globe Horn Book Award for picture books, and You Will Be My Friend, a New York Times Bestseller (AR 1.7 and Lexile 260) are written on a lower level but still include his amazing illustrations. They would be perfect books for partner reading between mom or dad and an early reader. As you read the books, you can discuss the different styles of the illustrations and why your child thinks Mr. Brown made the choice to change styles from book to book.

Peter Brown is now working on his first chapter book,  The Wild Robot, which will be published in the spring. Be sure and look for it! If you would like to learn more about Peter Brown, visit his website, www.peterbrownstudio.com.

I hope you will appreciate and enjoy Peter Brown’s books as much as I do and as much as my students did during read alouds. We had so much fun and shared so much laughter. I remember it fondly!