picture books – Peaceful Reader

29 days of book love

When you love books as much as I do you look for them in odd places. I was having a girl’s day with my friend Mary Kay one day, a lovely afternoon of lunch and second hand/antique shops. As we were browsing I happened upon a book by Elsa Beskow. I was in love.

First published in 1910 this is a beautiful picture book from a different era but many children would love it. Tiny forest people with mushroom caps on their heads. Elsa’s story relays the fun the children have in their woodland home, playing with other animals, and going off to school to learn. Following the little folk through food gathering in the fall, winter snow games, and fresh spring beginnings…the seasons are beautifully portrayed by Elsa Beskow, an artist and author from Sweden.

I have another Elsa Beskow book-Ollie’s Ski Trip-that my friend Mary Kay found for me later. It is as small as my palm and filled with beautiful illustrations and it is like a small chapter book with pages filled with words about Ollie waiting for winter so he can use his new pair of skis. Old Man Winter eventually does show up but first Ollie gets to meet Jack Frost.
Charming books-ones I bring out when I need a moment of respite from the busy world around me.

Snow days coming our way…

Did you know that we are about to get hit with a major snowstorm here in the Midwest? Yes. Lots of snow, high winds, crazy kind of weather. We’ve had two smaller storms but no snow days. We are due and I am ready. Hot chocolate and pancakes, lots of reading here we GO. Sadly we are not wusses though so it takes a major snow to cancel school. I checked out a few snow books to get me in the mood. Here are a few of my favorites from our public library.

Hooray for SNOW! by Kazuo Iwamura: Sweet squirrel family learns to play in the snow altogether. Lovely illustrations.

Here comes Jack Frost by Kazuno Kohara: A young boy, feeling blue during winter, has a chance meeting with Jack Frost and makes a new friend to play with all winter long until Spring begins to sprout. Lovely woodcut illustrations.

Snowman’s Story by Will Hillenbrand: Sweet wordless picture book with forest animals and a snowman with a treasured book sharing the love of reading. I love the Bear and Mole series by Hillenbrand also so no surprise that this one is a hit as well.

Peter and the Winter Sleepers by Rick de Haas: Peter lives in a lighthouse with his grandmother and his dog Leo. During a particularly snowy week the lighthouse becomes a makeshift home for many forest animals! Peter and his grandmother welcome a freezing rabbit, an owl, birds, bats, a squirrel family, and finally one lone, cold fox. The house is starting to smell, there are droppings everywhere but worse yet they think fox might have eaten Gull. My teacher brain says this book is great for empathy, grit, kindness, and problem-solving.

First Snow by Peter McCarty: I love Peter’s work! Pedro comes to visit his bunny cousins and snow arrives the very next day. Pedro doesn’t like the cold so he’s unhappy to see his first snow. Poor Pedro complains as all the neighborhood bunnies frolic in the snow but, of course, he sleds down a big hill and loves it. No more complaining! Lovely illustrations.

Cheers to a snow day. Our traditions include hot chocolate and chocolate chip pancakes, Gilmore Girls, reading, and lots of cuddling under big blankets. I’m ready like I said.

Half a dozen books worth giving…

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In the midst of holiday shopping I came upon this thoughtful image that snapped my attention away from shiny baubles and to what really matters. I’ve always leaned this way yet this year it made a bigger impact on me. Do you shop with this in mind?

We all have so much we should be grateful for; roof over our heads, plentiful food at our table, games in the cupboard, and books spilling off the bookcase. Keeping that fun mental image in my head I am almost finished with my holiday shopping. I have four books to pick out and then I will be done. If you are still looking for a few yourself I have a few pictures books I’d love to recommend.

1. Last Stop on Market Street (2015) by Matt de la Pena: I love this beautifully illustrated (by Christian Robinson) and well-thought out book about the world around us. We go on a journey with C.J. and his nana as they leave church. He questions her with the whys and what ifs that occur naturally to small children. Why don’t we have a car? Why is it raining? Peppering his grandmother with curiosities she answers back kindly each time, sharing empathy along the way until C.J. feels the warmth of Nana’s words. I love the diverse and unique people Robinson depicts on each and every page. This book is 10 stars and deserves to be wrapped up for any holiday.

2. Is Mommy? (2015) by Victoria Chang and Marla Frazee: Mothers get the short end of the stick often and their book illustrates this perfectly. In the course of a day we often appear mean, messy, boring, and little ones see us as short, ugly, and funny. No matter what, mothers are loved as the young ones in the book shout at us gleefully. I love books like this because it can be a call and response reading with children. Might there be a new title in the wings “Daddy Is”? I would love that as well.

3. Mixed Me (2015) by Taye Diggs and Shane W. Evans: I was lucky to receive a free copy of this lovely book but if I hadn’t I would happily buy it. The message is a cheerful look at acceptance by Mike who loves his blended color and who he is. We don’t need to match to get along and I wish Mike could teach that to quite a few adults in today’s world. Mike’s crazy hair bounces through the pictures just as Joe Cepeda’s illustrations for Nappy Hair. Love it.

4. Once upon a memory (2013) by Nina Laden and Renata Liwska: This is simple a beautiful book for all ages. A little boy playing in his room spots a feather as it floats in through the window and it makes him wonder if the feather remembers the bird, does a book remember it was once a word…playing the sequence out several more times until we are reminded to remember that we were once children. Such a lovely way to be reminded. Every time I flip through this book I am filled with a sense of peace.

5. Plant a Pocket of Prairie (2014) by Phyllis Root and Betsy Bowen: For nonfiction lovers this one illustrates beautifully the reason for prairies and why it is important to refurbish prairies around us. Betsy Bowen’s Antler, Bear, Canoe; a Northwoods alphabet is a family favorite and this book is just as unique. Both Root and Bowen hail from Minnesota which is a land I love.

6. 28 Days; Moments in black history that changed the world (2015) by Charles R. Smith and Shane W. Evans: I discovered this gem inside one of the Scholastic boxes for my recent book fair. Combing through the glossy pages I discovered a great deal of cool history; surpassing what we already know about Rosa Parks and Dr. King. I learned that Daniel Hale Williams successfully performed open heart surgery on a stab wound patient on July 9, 1893 in Chicago and that he opened his own hospital to welcome patients and doctors of all colors. Each page focuses on a person or event with a poem and facts. On the inside flap the books says it is perfect for Black History Month (February) and every month. I hope the book is picked up often. Buy this one and share it with someone you love.

All titles are linked to The Red Balloon, one of my favorite bookstores in the Midwest. Have a holly jolly whatever you celebrate and buy a book for everyone on your list.

Picture Book Frenzy

I went to the library and picked up a so many delightful picture books off the shelf my bag was packed. I usually think I have to be with my friend Tina to overfill my bag but I guess I’ve proved that I can do it all by myself!

I was looking for ideas for school. The collection at my school library is still new to me so I go to the public library to look at the new shelf to see if it is worth buying and maybe it will work its way into a lesson plan.

That’s what happened with Monsters Love School by Mike Austin. What a delightful picture book. I read this to all my kinder and first grade students. It covers the exciting part of going back to school as well as the fears in a fun Muppet-kind of way. We compared monster’s school experience with their own here at Hansen. The illustrations are filled with color and the writing is all over the page. We all loved Ms. Scribble the art teacher with her very clever head of hair. Please Mike Austin bring us more Monsters…they could love Halloween, or Winter, or the playground. Anything. Monsters and students say “more, more, more!”

I also loved Dog Days of School by Kelly DiPucchio and Brian Biggs. Charlie does not like going to school (we all know someone just like this right Groovy Girl…) because he is tired of all the work. One Sunday night Charlie wishes he were a dog so he could stay home and lay around instead of face another week of school work. The next morning Charlie’s done the “freaky friday” thing and is laying on Norman’s dog bed instead of in his own. Norman gets ready for school and Charlie stay home to sleep with adorable results. This will have everyone wishing they could trade places just for one day. An interesting side fact-Brian Biggs is from Little Rock, AR. He also has a a series out called Everything Goes.

Arlo Rolled by Susan Pearson and Jeff Ebbeler; Arlo is a pea and he doesn’t want to be eaten; he wants to grow up. He escapes from his pod and rolls through the yard finding bugs and slugs and dogs until he’s exhausted. While he takes a nap something marvelous happens to him. This is a perfect spring book to talk about plants and how they grow. It also makes a fun anytime read aloud with a lot adventure for one cute little pea.

Creamed Tuna*Fish and peas on Toast by Philip Christian Stead; Amazing illustrations, funny story. Kids will think it is funny. I wanted him to try the creamed tuna fish and peas on toast first before discarding it; it’s just the mother in me. I was hoping he’d end up liking it like green eggs and ham. Nope. Didn’t happen that way but the layered illustrations and the bird antics make it worthwhile anyway. Philip’s website has some beautiful and free music for your listening pleasure.

Little Lola by Julie Saab and David Gothard; Lola starts her day with a to-do list and the last thing on the list is to have an adventure (as every day should). Heading off to school for the day her adventure is perfect until she spots a mouse in the classroom. Hilarious. I hope to see more of Little Lola as she has the right attitude that will have little ones thinking. Brand new husband and wife illustrator/writer team.

If you buy for a school, for yourself, for your lovely grandchildren-any of these would be amazing additions for reading over and over again.

What did you read this weekend?

Three note-worthy picture books for you to enjoy!

We checked these three out recently and I thought they were worth sharing.

The ABC’s of Yoga by Teresa Anne Power (2009); Each letter has more than one pose assigned to it so the “D” page has “dolphin” and “do nothing” pose together. Each direction rhymes and we found most of the poses on our favorite children’s yoga site, Namaste Kid. Sample:

Frog

Squatting

With my feet apart wide,

I am a frog

With a big underside.

Bringing my arms

Inside my knees,

I jump up and say

“R-r-r-r-i-b-b-i-t!”

On the count of three.

Millie and the Big Rescue by Alexander Steffensmeier (2012); Millie the cow plays hide-and-seek with her barnyard friends until one day she gets herself stuck up a tree. She’s found the best hiding spot of all and nobody can find her! With cute results all the animals (and the farmer) join Millie in her clever spot. I noticed there are two other Millie books; Millie waits for the mail and Millie and the snow that look equally as funny!

Catty Jane Loved to Dance by Valeri Gorbachev (2013); This was Groovy Girl’s favorite and I love Mr. Gorbachev’s work. Catty Jane loves to dance and has been dancing since she could walk. Eventually her mother signs her up for dance class at Mrs. Herron’s Dance Academy. Mrs. Herron informs her that it “takes a lot of practice” to become a ballerina. Her friends host a dance party but she thinks they are silly and don’t really know how to dance. She overhears their fun though and decides dancing together is far more fun.

All three of these books were checked out from my public library and are now overdue. Luckily next week is Library Week and I can take in cans of food to pay for my many fines! Love your library.

It's Spring Break here!

So I went to the library. And found lots of picture books. And found out that Iowa has a new picture book award category for preschoolers as a cool way to encourage reading before you get to school. What a novel idea, don’cha think!

We did not take a glamorous trip. We are doing something far more exciting; taking out (gross carpet) and putting in (wood floor) into our family room. This is a much needed DIY project for us as we can’t live with the yuckiness of this carpet anymore. Not one more day. It’s out the door now and we’ll be on to step 2 pretty quick here.

In the meantime there are library books to talk about:

I love vacations by Anna Walker (2011); Sweet little stuffed toy character takes us on a seaside vacation sharing all that is best about the sand, the surf, and a good friend. Adorable illustrations and easy sentences on each page, making it a perfect book for young readers.

Theo’s Mood by Maryann Cocca-Leffler (2013); It is Mood Monday in Theo’s class and he just cannot tell Miss Cady how he feels. Several children give him suggestions and then Theo is able to put into words how he does feel about becoming a new big brother over the weekend! Sweetly told and a perfect way to introduce mixed feelings about a new sibling. Simple sentences and postcard-sized words inside show emotion words, making this perfect for young readers.

Matilda and Hans by Yokococo {Yoko Shima} (2012); Matilda and Hans are the exact opposite of each other and Hans is always getting into trouble. Matilda saves the day though when Hans goes to far. This is perfect book to reach for when your toddler is causing trouble; we all have little trouble-makers living inside us. Bold illustrations and a very quick read.

David Macaulay, Toilet; How it works (2013); Easy reader nonfiction gives the facts about how that porcelain bowl and our sewer system really works. With a glossary at the end and great illustrations this book is a perfect way to introduce the toilet and David Macaulay’s work to young kids. I learned a few things about this essential tool but still no easy way to keep the dang thing uber-clean.

These were only the top of the pile and they were all perfect for about the same age range. I don’t have any of these at my school library (it is sooo hard to keep up!) and I will have to add them to my list for next year’s order.

Happy Spring Break reading.

Baby, It's cold outside; Picture books to snuggle with…

Cuddle in by the fire and read!

I have a few picture books I checked out from the library and they are lovely and perfect gift ideas!

Mo’s Mustache (2013) by Ben Clanton

This is a very humorous look at copy cats and trendsetting-a fine line to be sure! Mo appears with a mustache and all his crazy friends follow along which eventually makes Mo unhappy and feeling very un-special! He puts his beauteous mustache away and sports a fantastic new scarf. His friends copy him again. This is perfect book for the little trendsetter in your family!

Glamorous Glasses (2012) by Barbara Johansen Newman

Bobbie and her cousin, Joanie do everything together so when it comes time for Joanie to get glasses Bobbie wants a pair to wear. It’s always greener on the other side of the fence as Joanie doesn’t really want to get new glasses. The two girls problem solve a solution that ends up mixing both of them up. This would have been a perfect book for Groovy Girl in kindergarten when she struggled with finding anything glamorous about wearing glasses.

Year of the Jungle (2013) by Suzanne Collins

Suzy’s father heads to Viet Nam and from a child’s perspective we hear about how his absence affects the whole family through the year. Full page illustrations show Suzy’s imaginative idea of the jungle. This is short and perfect to use for parents who are deployed today as a way to explain their long absences and may help them to draw their own journals through writing and pictures.

The Littlest Evergreen (2011) by Henry Cole

Full circle for a tiny tree; from the tree’s perspective we learn how this tiny shoot no taller than the glass blades transitions into a Christmas tree. His roots are dug up and surrounded by burlap and purchased by a family. In the springtime the tree is planted again in a big hole dug just for him. This is especially relevant to our family this year as this is exactly what we did. We plan to plant it where another evergreen died around the border of our yard. Our kids are adjusting to the fact that it is not a full-sized tree this year but we are giving it back to the earth and that they can live with.

Happy Holidays.
I had plans to have many other fantastic Christmas posts done before this but it just hasn’t happened. I did have a great last few days of work handing out cookies and sharing books with students and now I will enjoy my family back together for the next week or so. I hope the holiday is filled with many blessing for you and your family.

Back-To-School Story Ideas

I’ve been back to school for two days now, attending meetings, planning with teachers, and cleaning up the library. On Monday I was exhausted by 10 am and ready for a nap. No kidding. Even though I’ve worked in my house over the summer somehow back-to-school wore me out.

How do you think the kids are going to feel those first few days? Worn out. Ready for a nap. Itching for their handheld electronics or endless amounts of television viewing. Teachers have to have their game on as kids enter their classrooms. Kids might come in thrilled for the new year yet it won’t take much to lose them if we aren’t centered and focused.

Here’s a short list of books that I think are perfect for the first few days of school.

1. First Day Jitters by Julie Danneberg: I love this story as it has a bit of a twist that will make kids smile, maybe even giggle and the conversation after reading it is always enlightening. Sharing this book will show your students that YOU, the teacher, has a sense of humor. Busy Teacher’s Cafe has activities for this book-click their name to pull up website. And if you want a digital tie-in here is a video clip. The video ends just short of the surprise ending which leaves a window for students to make predictions. Find more teaching resources for this book at Unique Teaching Resources.

Pete the Cat; Rocking in my school shoes by Eric Litwin and James Dean: This jazzy title gives a quick and fun rundown of what the school days will be like and shares a quick trip around the school. It does not matter what your school shoes look like because once I introduced Pete the Cat last year and I plan to keep him rocking this year as well. The positive message won’t be forgotten. Video to share:

The Kissing Hand by Audrey Penn: This one is nearly a classic to teachers and children alike. Every year though I’m surprised by students who’ve never, ever heard the story. This is especially appropriate for pre-k, kinder, and first grade students who may have trouble letting parents go on the first days of
school. In my home copy I was lucky enough to have a page of heart stickers inside the book so every time I read it with my own kids I could grace their palm with a sticker. Make Learning Fun has activities to compliment this title. Share this collection of videos.

I hope everyone has a cheerful school beginning-we all deserve that, teachers and students alike. As teachers we have the ability to lift our students up and bring a positive message to their education.

3 Sweet Picture Books

Like many book lovers I adore the public library for many reasons one of which is it gives me the chance to preview books! I can fill my library bag up with all kinds of picture books from the new shelves, read them slowly at home, and then put my favorites on my order for our school library. If I could figure out how to make a button I would make a button flair for the public library.

Yes, I love buying books with the school’s money but with dwindling budgets every dollar is precious and I’m wary about ordering books at expensive prices before I’ve thumbed through them. There are many authors that I trust to give me a good product but I’ve had my share of bad order mistakes.

Groovy Girl, with her keen eye, has become a big help in this process. She weeds out the top few for me to focus on. I always page through to make sure she hasn’t overlooked something but she is generally right on about what students will like.

Here are our top four picks from last week’s library bag:

Do You Know Which Ones Will Grow? by Susan A. Shea and Tom Slaughter. (2011)

Love this book. Bright, beautiful paintings created by Slaughter showcase comparisons like if a duckling grows into a duck then does a car grow into a truck? The illustrations are big with pages that open and I can see a use for this on many different levels. As I lesson planned this past weekend I considered “borrowing” this book and using it as part of a lesson. I decided to wait until our own copy comes in as I will get excited about it all over again when it does and then students will actually be able to check it out.

Jane Brocket’s Clever Concepts; Spotty, Stripy, Swirly (What are patterns?). (2012)

Another brilliantly cool book and this one sits on the nonfiction shelf. The bold photographs make this stand out as the author explains the difference between chaos and order. When things are set in a specific order or repeated they form a pattern. We-and by we-I mean, kids like patterns and repetition and this book shares a huge variety of unique patterns; from knitted stocking caps to garden lettuce, everything can be put in order. Even the title, according to Groovy Girl, has a rhythmic funky pattern to it! As I browsed the author’s website I was intrigued by several of her other concept books like Ruby, Violet, Lime; a book about colors. I can see pre-k, kinder and 1st grade teachers using her books frequently.

ABC Dentist; healthy teeth from A to Z by Harriet Ziefert and Liz Murphy. (2008)

This book makes the dentist seem fun instead of the pain center it really is. This would make an excellent tool to talk about the visiting dentist that spends a day or two at our school. Alphabet books are wildly popular especially when we create them on the computer. We do a lot of comparing and contrasting of ABC texts. And who knows there might even be a kid or two, like Hermie, who want to be a dentist! I see on good reads this duo have another catchy title-ABC Doctor.

Take it from Groovy Girl and I these three titles are worth the bucks you would shell out to add them to your home or school library.

Two fun non-fiction titles to get excited about…

Get Dressed! by Seymour Chwast (2012). The front of this charming book opens up from the middle for a unique twist. Clothing apparel is presented for two children from the start of their day to the end as they use their imaginations to fend off dragons, rock out in a band, build sand castles, play super hero, and then lose their clothing to take a bath and go to bed. This is perfect to share with a little one to spur their own imagination and for pure fun.

Art Panels, Bam! Speech Bubbles, Pow!; Writing Your Own Graphic Novel by Trisha Speed Shaskan and illustrated by Stephen Shaskan (2011). This cool book takes the reader step-by-step through the writing process and explains exactly how a graphic novel is written. Each page introduces one tool that will help students (and adults) move through and understand what makes a good story. Characters and plot are covered as well as how to draw thumbnail sketches, panels, speech bubbles, and captions. All children who love those drawing books will love these as well as graphic novel fans. I learned a new word “emanata“; little pictures or lines that emanate from a character or object to show emotion. Calvin always had zaggy lines bolting from his brain when he was furious. I feel a little smarter today thanks to this book.

Both of these titles will make it to my fall book list because they will attract both teachers and students. Kids would love a writing lesson based on the skills in this Art Panels and behold the teacher who would be smart enough to use it that way!