Here it is folks, my 5 Must have Titles for the pre-holiday season and my Top Ten Tips for reading them. 

You don't need a new book, you need to read a catalog. With all the vacation days, snow days, travel days, colds, and flus - why not give catalog reading a try?

Halloween Special! The books today are two we picked up from a library they’ve warranted their own post because they both surprised me with how much I actually liked them. They are neither one a perfect book but both have qualities I found redeeming. With young children doing the choosing you can not only come home with a lemon but be forced to read it again, again, and more until the return date. Today I’m recognizing the Little’s choices for what they are and celebrating their highlights.

Today we’re going to look at how to use open ended story telling for older children, teens, and adults.

The absence of words on these pages is not an absence of language but an invitation for language creation. One of the beautiful things about language is its infinite quality - the fact that you can endlessly create new sentences and tell new stories. Using a book with no words gives a platform to create new stories every time you flip through the pages.

This week’s books I selected based on the ways they changed reading time in my house. It can be a real struggle to find a few minutes for reading if you’re not already in the habit - and in my personal experience, if the toddler likes the book just a few minutes isn’t enough time to read it again and more. We also have to consider that some kids just don’t like to sit down and focus on a book for so long. Sometimes we have to get creative about our reading time and let go of expectations.

The most popular books in my house right now are the ones without any words, and thankfully we have a few of them. The Little seems to be in constant possession of at least one of them and they will occupy her for ages. I am so happy with all of these books that I would have had a hard time choosing only two to discuss with you but the Little didn’t. Her clear favorites are Pancakes for Breakfast by Tomie dePaola and Professional Crocodile by Giovanna Zoboli and illustrated by Mariachiara di Giorgio.

This week let's take a look at two highly interactive books, good for kids who like to learn kinesthetically. They are bright, fun, and very free form in their language. Open books for your individual needs. 

The music you heard in this episode was composed and preformed by Josh Armistead: https://josharmistead.bandcamp.com/

Little Owl’s Day and The Crayons’ Book of Colors are two of my favorite books to read to my daughter. In fact, we’ve been reading Little Owl’s Day her entire life and it is still in frequent rotation for bedtime. These books are whimsical and full of intellectual content that challenges and stimulates a toddler’s understanding of the world.

The music you heard in this episode was composed and preformed by Josh Armistead: https://josharmistead.bandcamp.com/

Again Again MORE is a podcast and blog combo here to help you facilitate your child’s language development. Reading is a fantastic way to increase both the quantity and quality of language experience. At AAM I’m going to optimize your story time and turn the reading you’re already doing into serious language development.