I think Fuse #8 Productions is one of the best children’s lit blogs around. Her predictions for Caldecott and Newbery Winners is usually dead on and I use her list to buy Christmas and birthday books for my kids because the timing of the actual awards comes in early January which is not perfect timing for the holiday season gift buying. Last year based on her list, I bought my oldest a stack from her list.
Tag: kids books
Best Books for Boy Readers, Reluctant or Otherwise (ages 7-14)
Reading list for boys, grades 1-6. I love to find books that excite reluctant readers. The key is to find that magic intersection that marries your child’s just-right level with content that matches their interest and a layout that is visually appealing (small chunks of text broken by pictures, larger font size, etc.). Alas, this is a moving target. I have an actual person that I select these books for, my youngest son’s best friend’s older brother who is a 4th grader with my oldest. My mom friends have had success with these books for their reluctant boy readers and suggests you try them. If you want to purchase a book, click on the image of the book to buy at Amazon.com.
Easy Chapter Book Series for Girls: Clementine
Clementine by Sara Pennypacker is a hit with 2-4th graders. Clementine is a third grader with a big heart and and even bigger imagination.
Books for Kids That Teach Compassion and Tolerance
I wasn’t familiar with this award though I do know about the Simon Wissenthal Museum from living in Los Angeles. My art teacher had a piece exhibited there and he said that it was the highlight of his career. I went through the past winner list and I haven’t read all the books, but the ones I have read (Though My Eyes, The Year of Miss Agnes, So Far from the Sea) are OUTSTANDING so it makes me want to read the entire list of winners, both past and present.
What Are Your Kids Reading This Summer? Win Prizes by Sharing!
My going-into-fourth-grade middle child has a summer reading assignment. She must read five books and do a book report project by the first day of class. Even though we read year round, she is protesting and slightly stressed about this homework. To select these books, I consulted My Best Book Lists and came up with these five.
Wonderful Comprehensive Pop Up Mythology Book: Encyclopedia Mythologica (for ages 5-15)
Encylopedia Mythologica covers Ancient Egyptian gods as well as the more famous Greek and Roman gods. The book also covers Norse, Middle Eastern and Native American gods. Like the other books in the series, the pop ups are magnificent and there are pop up pages-within-pages chock full of interesting stories and factoids.
What I love about this book series (and I think I own them all) is that it entertains at many levels — younger kids will love the pop ups and may only want to read selectively, and older kids can absorb a lot of information by exploring all the smaller pop up pages. This is a great non fiction book for reluctant readers and Middle School kids since 6th grade typically covers Greek Mythology.
Best Children’s Books To Teach Green
The Green Earth Lit award is sponsored by the Newton Marasco Foundation for books that either promote an inspired understanding of the environment, an awareness of environmental issues, or a celebration of nature; encourage the concept of environmental stewardship and the role each of us can play in nurturing, protecting, and defending our environment; and with environmental issues that are current and accurately portrayed. What are your favorite Green Earth books? Please share!