Snow Days

With much of the country covered in snow and in below zero temperatures I am sure there are plenty of kids at home enjoying a SNOW DAY!

This map shows the snow amounts across the country. 

In honor of the snow and cold temperature, this week's Throwback Thursday is dedicated to the classic by Ezra Jack Keats, The Snowy Day.  In the story Peter wakes up to every child's dream, the ground is covered in deep, cold snow.  He does not waste anytime, eats his breakfast, gets dressed and heads outside to play.  Peter explores the different ways to make tracks in the snow.  He walks with his feet pointed in, he drags his feet and he finds a stick to make a track with.  Peter continues to play in the snow.  He sees the big boys having a snowball fight, he makes a snowman and a snow angel.  The very last thing he does is make a snowball to put in his pocket to save for tomorrow.  That night when he goes to check on his snowball and it had melted.  But it doesn't matter because when he wakes up the next morning the snow is still there and new snow is falling.  

Ezra Jack Keats does a great job of painting a picture of every child's dream snow day.  There is not a single snow day activity that he missed, except for maybe the hot chocolate.  He was even able to capture the sounds of a snow day using words like,  crunch crunch crunch, s-l-o-w-l-y, and plop.  I can't think of a better book to share on a snowy day like today.  

So bundle up and get outside to play because we all know in a couple of months we will be wishing for cooler temps.  

Happy Reading!

Laura

Snowmen

There is a great little series of books out right now all about snowmen.  The first book by the husband and wife team Caralyn and Mark Buehner was Snowmen at Night. It was a rhyming book all about what your snowman does at night and why in the morning he looks slouched and droopy.  It plays right to the imaginations of a child, turning the snowman into life, giving him friends and family.  The Buehners decided not to stop at what snowmen do at night but now they have Snowmen All Year, Snowmen at Work, Snowmen at Play and the one I want to share with you today, Snowmen at Christmas. 

This is the perfect book for any child with a wild imagination.  In this story the snowmen come alive on Christmas Eve.  They all gather in the town square to decorate for Christmas.  The snowmen, snowwomen and snowchildren all enjoy "cold" treats like ice cream and snow cones.  They even get a visit from snowman Kris Kringle! It is so fun to see and hear what the snowmen are up to for the holidays!  It is the perfect book to inspire some Christmas and winter writing.  So if you are lucky enough to get a white Christmas bundle up in the cold to make a snowman with your kids then as a family write about all the adventures your snowman will have that night while you are all sleeping!

Then come inside from some hot cocoa and snowman marshmallow treats! YUM!

Happy Reading!

Laura