a day for reading, and a giveaway to boot!

Did you know what today was? In honor of Dr. Seuss's birthday, March 2nd is celebrated as Read Across America Day, of course!

I could blog about books and the joys of reading until the cows come home, from wherever it is that they apparently went. On a day that a national focus is on reading with children, it only seems right to take a few minutes to share some book love. Let's do this in a mish-mash sort of shout-out to reading!


The kids on reading:
 
I asked each of the kids about books today, and here's what I got.

Me: What do you love about reading and books?
Red (almost 5 years old): Books are good because they have good authors, and they make people happy. I like it because the authors of each book we read are cool.
Me: What do you like about books? 
Red: Well, I like how the author makes it cute and funny. 

Me: Do you like books?
Pudge (3 years old): Yes! 
Me: Why?
Pudge: I like books because I love them.
Me: Why do you love them?
Pudge: Because! I like them very much! You tell the titles, and you tell the words.
Me: How do books make you feel?
Pudge: Silly!

Me: What do you love about reading?
JAM (ten years old): Hmmm. Reading is really fun. You don't always have to finish reading a book if you don't like it. That doesn't usually happen to me. Books kind of get me away from everything else, like when my sister is having a fit, I can sit down and read, and it will take me away from that.
Me: Do you have a favorite kind of book to read? Or a couple types?
JAM: I'd say my favorite books are mysteries and adventure, because with mysteries, you never know what's going to happen, and with adventures, it's always keeping you reading.

The role of the public library in our lives:

We go to the library about once a week, and I have often taken advantage of the wonderful service that's available online where you can search the system and place books on hold. When you get to the library, all you have to do is head to the desk, give them your card, and voila! All your books are ready for you to check out. For teachers this is a HUGE time saver-- you can spend time at school or at home leisurely looking for books by topic or author or title, and then do a quick pick-up trip. Win, win.

Oftentimes when I pick up my books, several are bound together with big rubber bands and slips of paper verifying the hold, and this has apparently made quite an impression on Red. In the last few months, she has been regularly "playing library" in which she sets up a desk at a table or at the edge of the couch, complete with an old keyboard, some notepads and pencils, a big pile of books and a bag of rubber bands. She binds together groups of books, only to take them all apart again and "check" each book out to an imaginary friend. Today, Bella checked out a whole bunch of books as you can see:

 

Reading aloud as an art:

Earlier this week, I had the lovely opportunity to speak to a Literacy Development university undergraduate class that a friend and former colleague of mine is teaching, and Red and Pudge came along as my assistants. We did a couple of read-alouds, I talked a bit about the prep work a teacher (or parent) can do to lead to a successful and thoughtful reading experience, and we shared our recent Venn diagram experience. Red was determined that morning that she was going to talk to "the grown-up students" even though she was feeling "a little bit excited and a little bit nervous." Well, it went wonderfully, and I hope that the students got something out of it, or at the very least an entertaining story or two. And for the record, Red did talk! This is HUGE!


And finally, time for a giveaway!

I'm happy to direct you to a review written by my fabulous 5 Minutes for Books editor Jennifer, that includes a giveaway for the first in a new I Am A Reader! series from Sleeping Bear Press.

Tugg and Teeny: Book One is written by J. Patrick Lewis and illustrated by Christopher Denise, and is in the category of early readers for children in the lower elementary school grades. I have to admit that I don't have a whole lot of experience with this category, because JAM quickly jumped to reading chapter books soon after he began to read independently in kindergarten, and he just didn't express much interest in this level of books. I should also say that my impression of this level of books wasn't all that great from the few that I have seen... more the idea of a few words, little plot, that kind of thing.

Guess what? I am delighted to say that this book defied all my preconceptions! In three short stories, Tugg and Teeny manages to develop interesting plots, introduce characters with whom readers can connect, and balance basic language with some more sophisticated vocabulary words interspersed. Much of the text is in the form of dialogue, but it doesn't succumb to the boring "Blah blah blah," said Tugg, kind of model, but instead flows more like natural conversation.

While this level is marked for children in second through third grade, the stories are still very much enjoyable to "newly independent" readers who may need some adult assistance, or even to pre-readers like my own younger children who have enjoyed listening to the stories read aloud to them.

I'm not alone in my praise for Tugg and Teeny-- Jennifer also has a positive perception of the book in her review on 5 Minutes for Books today. And the icing on the cake? THREE randomly selected commenters will receive a copy of the book! Head over there, read what Jennifer has to say, and leave a little comment and you'll be in the running, too.


Well, that was kind of all over the place, but hopefully the common theme of a great love for reading with children was enough to keep it all together, at least a little bit. Hope you had some wonderful reading times with your own little ones today!