Valarie Budayr and I were so excited to meet the Children’s Africana Book Awards at the National Social Studies Meeting. 2014 Children’s Africana Book Awards Africa Access was founded in 1989 to help schools, public libraries, and parents improve the quality of their K-12 collections about Africa. In 1991, Africa Access in collaboration with the Outreach Council* of…
International Book Giving Day FREE Book Plate!
International Book Giving Day is giving out lovely bookplates and bookmarks to celebrate a day of book giving coming up February 14th. It’s another way to celebrate Valentine’s Day and literacy! International Book Giving Day on February 14th! For those of you unfamiliar with the holiday, International Book Giving Day is a day dedicated to getting…
My Son’s 4th Grade Reading List
I’m trying to keep track of my son’s 4th Grade reading log because if I don’t write it down, I forget what he read and at what age. I’m hoping that the books that appeal to him — he has a very narrow range of book genres he likes — will help other parents find…
How to be a More Involved Parent
How to be a More Involved Parent Sometimes it can be difficult to strike a healthy balance between the different areas of your life. Whenever something is urgent, everything else takes a back seat until the issue is resolved. But a happy and successful life requires more than just putting out fires, it requires proactive involvement in…
Best Children’s Books from 2015 & Picture Book of the Day
I wanted to share Maria Gianferrari‘s great Caldecott and Newbery picks that she left in my comments: My vote for the Caldecott goes to Marla Frazee’s The Farmer and the Clown–I LOVE this book! It’s funny and touching–I laughed and cried I also loved Kelly DiPucchio’s Gaston w/ Christian Robinson’s amazing art, and The Right…
14 Great Easy Readers & Early Chapter Books: Cybils 2015 Shortlist
I am thrilled to be judging the Cybils in the category of Easy Readers and Early Chapter Books but mum’s the word on my opinion of the shortlist until the winners are announced on February 14th (also International Book Giving Day!). All I can say is that this is a great list for emerging readers…
Helping Women in Haiti Rebuild Their Lives
Please welcome my work friend Jeradina today. She is guest posting on a cause that is near and dear to her heart: helping women in Haiti rebuild their lives through an organization called Trades of Hope. ———— Monday, January 12th marks the 5th anniversary of the earthquake in Haiti. When the disaster struck many of…