I’m so glad you’re interested in ecology books for children, for if the planet is going to be preserved it’s the present generation of children that will have to do it. One good book on the subject is The Lost Kingdom of Karneka, a fairy tale by Richard Kennedy, co-published by the Sierra Club. This […]
Horses have an almost magical attraction for children. There are more good horse stories than you can shake a saddle at. Two very beautiful books are The Blind Colt by Glen Rounds, and Song Of The Horse by Richard Kennedy. Glen Rounds grew up on a Montana ranch himself, and there’s not much he doesn’t
Poetry and song come from the same roots. If you are introducing your very little one to verses, one of the easiest and most irresistible ways of doing this is with some of the beautiful little inexpensive illustrated paperback versions of nursery rhymes. “Hush Little Baby” is an old, old lullaby eminently suitable for rocking
Architecture and city planning isn’t everybody’s favorite subject, but you can’t fail to become fascinated if you look at the books by David Macaulay. With meticulous line drawings and clear language, Macaulay demonstrates in his numerous books how a castle is built, how a Roman town was laid out, how the pyramids were constructed, how
Some times it is helpful to know how to read and interpret printed reviews of children’s books. I’m sure you’re going to gain skill in this as you read more and more reviews of children’s books in the media. Some, you’ll discover, merely retell the plot of a book. You’ll know that’s only the beginning.
Some families enjoy making their own Christmas traditions – putting a glass of milk out for Santa or reading a book or verse together on Christmas Eve. There are a least two Christmas versions of Clement Clarke Moore’s poem The Night Before Christmas. Penny Ives has created an attractive book in which the child gets
Among the great new Christmas books are Kris Van Allsburg’s The Polar Express. In 1985 this book won the Caldecott Medal for the best illustrated book of the year. The Polar Express is a book that reaffirms the importance of the world of imagination, not only for children but for us all. On Christmas Eve
Again, just like alphabet books, counting books provide wonderful opportunity for artists to paint almost anything they like without having to worry about someone else’s plot, thus there are great numbers of them by remarkable illustrators. Bert Kitchen’s Animal Numbers is thoroughly delightful with gorgeous big bold black numbers and animals starting with one kangaroo
Really it’s never too early to take steps to make your child a reader. You can take those first steps even before your child is conceived by making yourself a reader. If reading is a habit with a parent, it’s likely to become a habit with a child. You can inform yourself about the world
Here are some ideas for reading activities with your preschooler: • Besides looking at illustrations together, or having the child repeat refrains, you can get wonderful, active participation by having him or her draw characters or scenes from the story, or draw or paint scenes in which the characters moved to other worlds or other
