Yes, Let's

With this weekend being the "unofficial" end to summer I think it is only appropriate to share a book about a favorite summertime activity... hiking!  Summer and fall are the perfect times to get out into nature and do some hiking, just like the family does in the book, Yes, Let's.

Using a rhyming text, Yes, Let's tells the story of a family who wakes up early, loads up the station wagon and heads out of town, into the forest, to spend a day hiking.  What is great about the day is that they don't just hike, the swim, build dams, make boats and relax.  They are truly spending a day together as a family.  No phones or tablets, just family and nature.  I really like the pictures in this book.  Even though the words tell the story of a "perfect" family, who has a "perfect" time together in the woods, the pictures tell otherwise.  In the pictures you can see teenage daughter and mom arguing about wearing boots, mom is getting scared by a spider and brother is covered in mud.  The pictures tell the story of what really happens when you take your kids hiking.  But in the end the family enjoyed every minute of it, they don't want to leave and can't wait to go back.  This book perfectly sums up summer, long tired days, bug bites and scratches, getting annoyed by siblings but in the end you would do it all over again!

If you like to hike, or just want to make some memories with your family, Louisville has so many great places to check out:

The Parklands: Complete with a spray ground to cool off in after hiking.

Bernheim Forest: I especially like to walk through the fairy garden and edible garden.

Jefferson Memorial Forest: Offers programs for kids of all ages to help them explore nature.

Many area parks like Cherokee, Joe Creason, EP Tom Sawyer and Iroquois also have great hiking trails to explore.

Where is your favorite place to hike?

Happy Reading!
Laura

Throwback Thursday

For this week's Throwback Thursday I am sharing a lullaby illustrated in a book.  This particular lullaby is not one that I remember from my childhood, but is one that I learned in my son's music class last year.  For those of you not familiar with the song you can hear it here:

All the Pretty Little Horses is a traditional lullaby that originated in the slave culture of the American South.  The book I found is illustrated by Linda Saport includes an extra verse that is not usually in the popular version of the song (but is included in the version I posted above).  The illustrations in this book are made with pastels, which creates a very dreamlike and soft feeling- perfect for a lullaby.

I wanted to share this song with you because it is one of my son's favorites.  He is not a big lullaby fan but when we found this song written in a book he loved it.  Now he asks to read this book every night. It is a simple and soft lullaby easy to sing to your child when going to sleep or upset.

What lullaby do you love singing to your child.  I will help you to find it written as a book!

Happy Reading!

Laura

Hot Summer Days

On these hot summer days, when the humidity is about 100% and you begin to sweat as soon as you step outside, we will try anything to cool off.  I have a "cool" book recommendation for you to help ease the heat on these hot, hot days.

Nanook & Pryce Gone Fishing by Ned Crowley is the story of two boys who set out to go ice fishing.  Their chunk of ice breaks off and they set off on a journey around the globe.  The entire book is written in two-word, rhyming lines. When Nanook and Pryce come across a giant octopus the books reads, "Something rustles.  Something squirms.  Little tussle.  Out of worms.  The pictures shows a giant octopus under Nanook and Pryce's ice block that is stealing all of their fishing worms with one tentacle and snatching the dog with another.  The style that the book is written in is enjoyable to young children because it creates a great rhythm and cadence.  Also, the use of few words really allows children to gain meaning from pictures, which is how story telling and reading begins!

After cooling off by reading Nanook & Pryce Gone Fishing try having some fun with ice.  All you have to do is fill tupperware (I also used different shaped sand toys) with water and stick them in your freezer for a night.  I added small toys to the water for added fun.  When ready pop, the ice out of the containers and let your child go to town!  They can paint the ice, hold the ice, try to get the small toys out of the ice by using hot water or different tools.  No matter what they do with it they will stay cool,  have lots of fun and learn a thing or two about science!

What are some of your favorite things to do to stay cool?

Happy Reading!
Laura

Hidden Poetry

I have talked before about how when you can read aloud a book with rhythm and rhyme children will automatically become hooked and begin to listen.  They love the ebb and flow of the text, whether the rhythm be up tempo or down tempo. Books with rhyme and rhythm are also easier for kids to "read" or memorize.  Recently, I have stumbled across a few books that have beautiful rhythm and rhyme, so much so I felt as though I found poetry hidden in the pages of children's books.  

The first hidden gem was Rain Play by Cynthia Cotten.  The text is very simple, two short lines on each page, but the story it tells speaks to every child who loves to splash in puddles and play in the rain.    The children are "at the park (as) the sky grows dark."  Then it starts to gently rain "Plip, plop. Drip, drop."  Some people leave the park because of the rain, but these children stay to play, "running, romping, puddle-stomping."  That is until, "Flash!, Boom!" the storm comes and its time to go.   The books ends with the children watching it rain from home until the sun comes out again.  

You can see from the examples above just how poetic the language is, and its not just the rhyme that makes it that way.  The author uses sound words like drip, plip and BOOM!  All these techniques bring the reader in, even your youngest readers.  My son is just two and he loved to listen to us read this book.  

So, besides reading a good book what is your favorite rainy day activity to do with your kids?  We love to run and jump in the puddles once the storm is over!

Happy Reading!

Laura