Thursday, April 7, 2016

Read With Us

I had a different "Life Lately" post planned for today, but life lately around here has had a LOT to do with books so I switched it up at the last minute.  Luke's reading has taken off and he's reading whatever he can get his hands on.  

The weather was perfect last night and Dave and I had a few things to do around the yard, so we popped up this little tent and brought out a big stack of books. 


Usborne Books sent the kids a box of great reading material and they were so excited!  I've worked with them before and am always impressed with their quality. 

First up from Usborne were these Hey Jack! books.  


The illustrations were cute, the story line was easy to follow and they were a quick and easy read for Luke.


 I mentioned last week that we gave him the entire Harry Potter series for his birthday and while we've been reading those together, he's been absolutely devouring the "Black Lagoon Adventures" series.  He's reading in the car, at school, at ESS, when he gets home... I LOVE IT!  My parents gave him all of the Magic Treehouse books for his birthday and I can't wait to see him delve into those as well.



Here's the stack of books he brought outside to read last night :)





The next book from Usborne, All Better, was PRECIOUS!  There were five "restickable" bandaid stickers and on each page there was an animal with a boo-boo.  The instructions were to "kiss it, put a bandage on it..."



Griffin kissing the page :)




Next up was Nibbles the Book Monster.  It came with the precious little plush which is always a bonus. ;)


Nibbles the monster escapes and nibbles his way through books...


This is where the book got SUPER cute.  There were books WITHIN the book.  So you'd open a page and find Nibbles inside a classic book.  SO CUTE and SO CREATIVE!



And the book finishes with a hole in the back cover - Nibbles escaped again :)



Mason giggled the whole way through this one - he LOVED it!





These books weren't only filled with great information and colorful illustrations - they had a surprise...


 When you held a light underneath the page, you could see hidden pictures!

  

I'm excited about summer vacation for lots of reasons - one of which is bringing back our Family Book Club days.  There's not a whole lot I love more than watching my kids read.  There is SUCH a difference in vocabulary, grammar and overall writing skills of students who read outside of school versus those who don't and I'm hoping we can nurture a love of reading into all of our kids.

One way we're hoping to do that is by providing them with lots of reading material ;) another is by modeling reading ourselves.  This is something that I'm not great at, mainly because I don't have a ton of free time to model reading for pleasure.  But I'm determined to make a point of reading in front of my kids.  Lead by example, right? :)  Lastly, I think that by making an "event "out of reading you make it more fun and exciting for them.  Popping up a simple tent outside and making it a book party took almost no time and/or effort and the kids are already begging to do it again. 


So, here's where I need your help!  I need recommendation for a few things :)

1) Books or series of books that Luke would love
2) Kids books that would make a great family book club day
3) Books for me!  I need some great recommendations!

Happy Reading, Friends!!!

Thank you so much to Usborne Books for providing my kids with the awesome reading material and to LightSpeed for the pop-up shelter!  We love it!!!  Also, this post contained affiliate links, which means that if you clicked on a link and purchased an item, I may receive a commission.  THANK YOU!!!

60 comments :

  1. We love the Magic Treehouse series!! My Father's Dragon is another good one (there are 3 books in that series).

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  2. The "I Survived" series is awesome! The plus is that it teaches history along with being interesting!

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  3. My son loves the Flat Stanley books and Geronimo Stilton series! Happy Reading!!

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  4. My teacher side just did a back flip! I love when kids love reading. One of my favorite oldies but goodies with lots of activity potential is Bubble Bubble by Mercer Mayer...and anything Pete the Cat is a hoot!

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  5. Books for you: anything by Elin Hilderbrand or Kristin Hannah. Two of my favorite book lately were All the Bright Places by Jennifer Niven (technically young adult but oh so good and all the feels!) and All the Ligh we Cannot See by Anthony Doerr (super long but so worth it!) if you are more into suspense or thrillers, Luckiest Gorl Alive of Girl on the Train were both great. Happy Reading! Shannon

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  6. Reading is so important to my family as well!! I'll be reading the suggestions of others for sure. Geronimo Stilton and Amelia bedelia are the favourites of my six year old!

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  7. Geronimo Stilton series and Stink Moody series for Luke. My son and I read the Who Was/Who Is series together as well.

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  8. My 12 year old loves loves loves to read. I cannot get books in the house fast enough. Thank you Amazon for 2 day shipping.
    My 8 year old would much rather be outside building a fort then read. But some fun series he likes are Diary of a Minecraft creepy Steve zombie...they have them all. Hank the Cowdog and Flat Stanley. We listen to a lot of audio books because every where we go is a 20 min drive.
    I love the reading in the tent idea. I will have to try that one...
    Lesley McFarland
    Www.kltfamily.blogspot.com

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  9. My students love the weirder school series (you can usually find them cheap through scholastic too!) My two favorite books (for you)are Roses and Somerset be Leila Meacham. (Not sure I spelled her last name correctly)

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  10. I second I Survived & Who Was...series. Notebook of Doom series is super fun for boys & not at all as scary as it sounds. Short chapters, great illustrationservice, and a bit of mystery.

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  11. I think Griffin would love the Pinkalicious series, and you should try out Sophie Kinsella books...she's hilarious!

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  12. Books for you: authors Emily Giffin, Sophie Kinsella, Jennifer Weiner, Elin Hilderbrand, Kristin Hannah, Liane Moriarity. Specific books, Room by Emma Donoghue, Me Before You by JoJo Moyes, Gone Girl. I also suggest getting a Good Reads account because I find I got a lot of recommendations that way!

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  13. After Harry Potter, A Series of Unfortuntate Events would be another great series for you to read aloud/along with Luke.
    Anything by Chris Van Allsburg (the author of Jumanji)
    David Weisner's wordless picture books
    The Journey wordless trilogy by Aaron Becker
    Harold and the Purple Crayon
    A Bad Case of Stripes (great for talking about loving yourself and being confident in who you are)
    Oliver Jeffers picture books
    The Big Orange Splot
    Owl Babies
    Stellaluna

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  14. I'm so excited you talked about Usborne books...I'm getting ready to have a party! I would love to hear more of your reccomendations or favorites as you come across them. Love your blog!

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  15. My son loved the Horrible Harry series!

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  16. My crew has loved The Boxcar Children series.

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  17. My oldest son is 9, and his reading exploded last year. He loved diary of the wimpy kid series, I survived series, magic tree house. He read ALL the Harry Potter series by himself and loved it. Now getting through Percy Jackson series by Rick Riordan and loves that also. I'm always looking for more suggestions for him next. For you, Elin Hildebrand, The Nightngale, JoJo Moyes, girl on the train. Good luck and happy reading!!!

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  18. Try the Nate the Great chapter books for Luke, my first grader loves them! For younger, we like The Book with No Pictures, Press Here, and Dragons Love Tacos.

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  19. Hank the Cowdog series! We LOVED them!

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  20. The Big Big Big Book of Tashi is brilliant. My 7 year old loved The Enchanted Wood / Faraway Tree series and the Jack Stalwart books. He also liked the Dinosaur Cove series.

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  21. The Kindergarten teacher in me LOVES this post :)

    Some of the favorites in my classroom are:
    - anything Dr. Seuss (especially love the newest one What Pet Should I Get? You could definitely have some fun with the open-ended ending)
    - Eric Carle
    - The Book with No Pictures - my kids were hysterical when we read this.
    - Peanut Butter and Cupcake by Terry Border
    - Steve Jenkins books are so cool! (Actual Size is our favorite)
    - Pirates Love Underpants (and the whole series)

    Happy reading!

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    1. We love Actual Size too. Please do a Family Book Club day for that one!

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  22. You are so smart to do things like this. My children have attended a private school the past three years and were not required to read. So, now...all four hate reading! Their school this year requires reading and participates in the AR program...we are struggling to get 12-14 points per quarter. It is a total downer on their self-esteem when their cousins are getting 100+ points per quarter. My 5th grader has a classmate who gets 250 points per quarter! Crazy Amazing. Keep it up!

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  23. My fiance's son's reading and vocabulary skills really took off when they read through the Harry Potter series together. His son was about Luke's age at that time. He's 12 now and LOVES to read on his own. He really gets into book series. He enjoyed the Percy Jackson series, the Eragon series, and now I think he is working his way through the Last Dragon Chronicles.

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  24. I loved all the Eric Carle books for my two kiddos when they were very young. Shel Silverstein children's books are very cool. I have really enjoyed reading Francine Rivers' books lately. She writes Christian Fiction. The three I've enjoyed are Redeeming Love, Bridge to Haven and Leota's Garden.

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  25. Wow! I love your family book club days posts!! Please do more posts that involve books for yourself and your children.

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  26. OK, so this doesn't have any answers to your questions, but I have to put it out there. Do you have any tips for teaching kids to read? Elle is almost 4 and is interested in learning (AWESOME!), but I am not quite sure how to help her. We work on letter sounds and sounds in words, and we have also started learning a few sight words (and, the, but, me, you). I know you aren't a pre-K teacher, but you've got more experience than me. Any tips? Books you'd recommend?

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    1. I recommend the BOB Books sets 😉

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    2. Try the Ordinary Parents Guide to Teaching Reading.

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    3. try Teach your child to read in 100 easy lessons

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  27. My son is your son's age and he had a lot of trouble reading so therefore he didn't enjoy it much. I was looking for a series that would capture his attention and I tried a few different ones but when I bought him the I Survived series he devoured them! They are excellent. Entertaining while also being educational. They are just amazing. You are doing such a great job with your family Andrea! I enjoy your blog so much!

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  28. I love your posts! I don't know how you do it - teacher, mom, cook, clean, etc. I don't have kids but am a first grade teacher. Every morning as I settle in, I get my cup of tea and read your posts before school. How do you do it every day!? Wow! So some of my fave books for reading are: anything by Mo Willems or Oliver Jeffers. Oliver's books are my favorite!! The storylines are adorable and the illustrations are great!!!

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  29. It's been awhile since I taught (stay at home mom right now) but I remember Captain Underpants being a big hit with the boys! Only if some gross out humor is allowed at your house though;) I'm a big kid's lit fan so I'll be back later with some "book club" ideas (I hope!).

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  30. A to Z Mysteries, I survived, Geronimo Stilton, Ballpark Mysteries (if he likes baseball he will love these. Each mystery takes place at a different ballpark).

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  31. I love to read and owe it to my parents, especially my mom. She reads every single day and now works at her local library. :-)
    You've mentioned that you like historical books... I would recommend "The Residence" if you haven't read it. It's a compilation of interviews with past staff of the White House. A quick read and so interesting to view past presidents through others' eyes.

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  32. My 9-year-old son's favorite is the Diary of a Winpy Kid series. He's DEVOURING them, reading 2 books a week! This from a kid who doesn't much like to read for pleasure. I'm so glad he found something he enjoys. We're on the lookout for another good series for him.

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  33. My son your age loves the following book series because he can now read them independently: I Survived Series, Marvin Redpost series (there are 7 books I believe that are 1-3 grade level), and Ready Freddy series. Some of the I Survived are a little difficult, but the subject matter is his favorite!

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  34. How sweet! A tent book party is a really cute way to make reading even more fun than they'll surely realize, with a supportive and creative Mom like you :) My Mom HATES to read anything beyond People Magazine - always has, always will - but instilled a huge love for books and reading in me as a young child simply by making really awesome selections available and encouraging it as being a fun pastime.

    I've been reading Elin Hildebrandt, Emily Giffin, and Liane Moriaty lately as light, fun, adult reads. If you like historical fiction, you may enjoy the Devil in the White City. I don't have kids buy my niece loves the Ladybug Girl and the Pigeon books.

    Have fun!
    ~ LOTL
    LoveOnTheLakeBlog.blogspot.com

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  35. We got a couple of Hey Jack! books for my son, and he really liked them. Thanks for the great ideas!!

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  36. I loved All the Light we cannot see. And The Art of Racing in the Rain. You might like Death Comes to Pemberly by P.D.James.

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  37. Love the book party!!! As a kid we remade some eric carl books. Your older ones can do the writing /drawing while your little can compile the pages and help color. I still have some of them!

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  38. When I was Luke's age I loved all the "Bailey School Kids" books. They are short chapter books about the kids at Bailey School where all the teachers are some kind of mysterious creature! The kids try and figure out if the teachers really are werewolves, elves, aliens, witches, santa claus, etc. The actually have a plot, but are still easy to read! LOVED THEM!

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  39. My kindergarten boy is reading Boxcar Children and really likes those classics. His sister has all the Magic Treehouse, so hoping she’ll share soon (since she’s read every single one at least twice!) Before he was doing chapter books by himself I read him the Henry Huggins books, and he loved those too. And he still goes back to his Jedi Academy books when he wants a different style.

    And I agree – reading in front of your kids is everything. I have to credit my husband - he is a master’s level professor and always has a book with him. My second grade daughter reads at a fifth grade level and never goes anywhere without a book. My five-year-old son reads at a second grade level – though does still prefer to run and play! But I am astounded with their love and skill level at reading.

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  40. The "who is..." Or "who was..." They are great nonfiction chapter books. Easy. Entertaining. Both my son who is now 15 and my daughter who is 10 enjoyed these. For example "who was queen Isabella" or "who was dr. Seuss" so many of these books!!!

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  41. I teach second grade and my students have been reading the My Weird School books by Dan Gutzman. I read one aloud and it was hilarious. I laughed out loud several times. We're reading The Mouse and the Motorcycle by Beverly Cleary. Don't forget about some great nonfiction too. Any National Geographic kids books are awesome. Do your kids have any magazine subscriptions? My daughter gets the National Geographic Kids magazine in the mail on a monthly basis. Her grandma bought her a subscription as a birthday gift. Happy reading!

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  42. And all the reading teachers said AMEN!

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  43. I have been an avid reader since I was a wee little girl ( I am 52) and both of my daughters (27 and 23) are huge readers. I will say that while they were in college, their reading habits changed because they were reading for school and had other priorities. But both are huge readers again! I always have my kindle with me and usually have another book at my bedside, from the library! The library is a wonderful place to explore and borrow books for free! I think a lot of people miss the boat when they are always buying so many books that you can borrow! use your library my friends! Its an awesome place!

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  44. Childhood of famous Americans is a great series, we LOVE magic treehouse AND their fact checker books that go along with it, and five in a row is an amazing resource for family book club! It's a homeschool curriculum but it's only about 20 dollars and is a great resource for doing a million different projects based on one book for ages 3-8!!!

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  45. My Father's Dragon series by Ruth Gannett...such a fun family read aloud...

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  46. There is an amazing podcast called the Read Aloud Revival! If you can listen to some of them! She also just made a booklist that you can download for free.
    http://amongstlovelythings.com/read-aloud-revival-the-podcast/

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  47. There is an amazing podcast called The Read Aloud Revival. Try listening to some of them. Sarah also just made a great book list.
    http://amongstlovelythings.com/read-aloud-revival-the-podcast/

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  48. My oldest is just over 3 and her absolute favourite books right now are "Mix it up" and "touch here". She also loves "Tap the magic tree" and "Don't push the button"

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  49. Book Club Idea for the Pizza Loving Math Teacher's Family: Charlie Piechart and the Case of the Missing Slice!

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  50. We love our "Shine a light" Usborne book-- it's about an apple tree.
    Your reading tent idea is so brilliant! :)

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  51. He may like the Boxcar Children or The Hardy Boys or even Nancy Drew. Classics but good.

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  52. My boys are DEVOURING the "My Weird School Daze" series by Dan Gutman. They're along the same reading level as Magic Tree House. The boys love the funny titles and the humor inside. They're getting to know the characters too. I can't wait for warmer weather in the north so we can enjoy outside reading too! Happy Reading!!

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  53. Our boys are loving the "My Weird School Daze" series by Dan Gutman. The titles are catching (and funny) and they're getting to know the characters. They're about the same reading level as Magic Tree House. We're looking forward to warmer weather in the north so that we can head outside to read too! Happy Reading!!

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  54. My 2nd grader LOVES the Origami Yoda books by Tom Angleberger. He also likes Stink (Judy Moody's brother) by Megan McDonald and the Stick Dog books by Tom Watson.

    Some of our favorite family books are Go Away Big Green Monster by Ed Emberly, Leonard the Terrible Monster by Mo Williams and A Mama for Owen by Marion Dane Bauer. So good! It's based on a true story and the illustrations are gorgeous.

    For non fiction, Jen Hatmaker's For the Love was awesome! I also just finished Looking for Lovely by Annie Downs and it's awesome! I read it in just a few hours. So much good in it. Profound yet easy read, if that makes sense.

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