Do You Change Your Books with the Season?

I do my best to rotate the picture books that I have out for My Little Reader. (Sometimes "my best" is rotating them every three months.)

What I really enjoy though is rotating our books according to the seasons and the holidays. It's an easy (and educational) way to make your house more festive!

Books About Family

This blog chronicles my life as an early literacy teacher. And right now my job as an early literacy teacher is to help my own three kiddos, two of which will be coming home from Ethiopia soon (still don't have a travel date yet. Wah!). I guess this is a disclaimer... or maybe an apology, for all my recent posts. Hopefully there is something to be gleaned by most of you teachers and parents reading these posts. And I've been appreciative of all the help you guys have been giving me in this area!

There are so many, many things I love about picture books. One of the things I love about them is how therapeutic they can be, and how they can open the door to talk about tough topics.

My Ethiopian children are grieving. That I already know. And when they join our family, they will be confused... unsure. Wondering if this new family is permanent. So right now I'm seeking to find some picture books that might help comfort, assure, and allow them to heal.

They aren't likely to speak much/any English when they first come home. But I've been told they pick it up quickly. I'm still not feeling very confident in my abilities to teach two older, non-English speakers, who have just been through a lot of upheaval (understatement), how to speak and read and write English. But that's a whole other post...

I'm trusting in the magic of picture books to help with the English learning while also addressing what they're dealing with emotionally, all while assisting us in the bonding process (as we snuggle and read together).

Here are some books I'm thinking might be good ones. I know this is just the tip of the iceberg, and that there are tons I'm leaving out and unaware of. So please share your book suggestions in the comments!

Rotten Ralph by Jack Gantos - I like the way it assures that love is not conditional of behavior. Sarah loves Ralph not matter what.

Llama Llama Red Pajama - Anna Dewdney - A sweet assurance that Mommy is always nearby.

The Heart and the Bottle - Oliver Jeffers - Might be over their heads, but if not, could potentially address well some of what's going on inside their little hearts.

"More More More," Said the Baby - Vera B. Williams - This is a book Isaac loves, and I do too! I love the sweet rhythm of it, and the comfort of family it communicates. What a great book to bond and attach over... And I also love that it portrays what appears to be a white grandma with her brown grandchild. This book was way ahead of it's time!

The Family Book by Todd Parr- Celebrating the diversity of families and assuring that no one family is better or worse than another.

Welcome Home, Forever Child by Christine Mitchell - This one looks like it will address some of the struggles my children will face as children that were adopted at an older age.

I must add as an end note that when you are preparing to adopt, you begin to read picture books with a different perspective. And I have discovered quite a few pictures books that I will not be reading my Ethiopian children. But that also is perhaps a post for another day!

My Home/School

My home is beginning to feel like a little school house. I've been prepping for our newest two additions to our family (via Ethiopian adoption) and for the unique challenges that older child adoption will bring (remember too that our children do not currently speak English). Some of these preparations are things I've been wanting to do anyway, for Isaac's benefit, but haven't been motivated enough.

I am convinced we will never truly be prepared, but it doesn't hurt to try. Check out a few of the things I've been getting ready:

Photo labeling toy bins for easy clean-up.

A sorted craft cabinet. So exciting!

The bookshelf in our breakfast nook. Stocked with play dough, coloring books, paints, pads of paper, pens, crayons, markers, books, CDs, puzzles...

A visual timer to help make transitions a little easier.

A velcro chart for our daily schedule. These cards will also help with communication at the beginning. They have simple pictures of everyday tasks, places, and such.

A calendar. Figure we won't be using it till the kids come home.

Art displays ready to be filled.

Yes, I'm trying to label everything in the house. Hoping it will help all three of my kids learn to read English. The labeling process is slow going, but I'm getting there. I've got enough stuff labeled now that I think David's starting to get annoyed with it. :)

I'm curious if anyone else has done this kind of labeling around their house for their kids at any point? If so, did you attribute any reading successes with it?

Perfect Ending to Any Day

Thank you, Hallmark!

Have you seen the Hallmark recordable books? No, this is not a product review post. But I do love these books!

Yes, there are plenty of ways to record yourself reading a story to a loved one. But these Hallmark recordable books ended up being the only feasible option for us to be able to send to our children that are in Ethiopia, waiting for their Mommy and Daddy to come bring them home.

We sent a care package to our kids, which will get to them next week. It included a photo album, which will be the first they ever see our faces. And we also included one of these recordable books, All the Ways I Love You, (Hallmark has quite a few titles to choose from).

No, they aren't likely to understand the words being read to them (though we are hoping somebody at the foster home might translate it for them), but they will get to hear our voices. And we will be getting to read to them already! Before we even meet them! I kind of equate it to how we read to Isaac when he was still in my belly. He didn't understand what we were reading him either, but he was hearing our voices.

With these Hallmark books, there is a recording device in the book that allows you to record yourself reading it. Then you can flip a switch in the battery compartment to lock your recording. So this ensures that our voices will stay in the book we sent. And all they have to do is open the book and flip through the pages to hear us reading it to them!

I could see this being a really neat tool to use with beginner readers. They could record themselves and listen back. And as they become more fluent, they could make it fun and read in silly voices and such when they record. They could also record themselves reading and then send the book to a family member as a gift. What a great way to show off their reading skills! Maybe it could be sent to a parent serving overseas, who maybe has never heard their child read yet.

And obviously, they are a great way for friends and relatives to record themselves reading a story to a special little one in their life, and then give it to them.

I know you guys could think of some other creative uses for these recordable books too! Share in the comments section!

(I swear Hallmark is not offering me any reimbursement for this glowing review... though I would gladly accept it if they offered. Hee!)

Big Sale on Reading T-shirts!

Needing to make room and simplify in our house. I have a stack of these super-cute t-shirts that are begging for a real home of their own. :) Maybe yours?

I love mine, and everybody else seems to be loving theirs too. It's my quick go-to, look-good shirt! And I hear that they are quite the compliment magnet! They also make cool teacher gifts. (Come on, you're not really going to give your kid's teacher another ornament or coffee mug this year?)

Since I don't have room to keep storing them at the moment, and would love to have them out spreading the early literacy message, I'm putting them on SALE!! $10 and it's yours! (Add $2.50 if you need it shipped to you.)

I have limited stock so grab your size before it's gone, if it's not already!

These are unisex fit tees, and run true to size. Chocolate brown color with white text on it. Oh-so cute and stylish! Click the Paypal button below to order!

Here's what I've got:

Smalls - 2

Mediums - 0 (sorry!)

Large - 0 (sorry!)

XL - 0 (sorry!)

2XL - 3

Sizes

Small $10.00 Medium $10.00 XLarge $10.00 2XLarge $10.00

Oh! Oh! And I've got ONE of these tees left.

Only $7! It's a 2XL.

Sizes

2XL Tee $7.00

Flattered, but Annoyed

"I want Mommy!" A phrase my poor husband hears our son, Isaac, utter much more often than he he cares to. To be honest though, I'm not sure who it annoys more, him or me! We're assuming it's a stage (Isaac's 2). Praying it's a stage. But nonetheless, it's something we're forced to deal with now, till this assumed "stage" is over.

Bedtime seems to be the worst, which is so hard because my husband, like most dads, works during the day. The evening time is his one good shot each day at getting some quality time with Isaac. And boy, do I love it when my husband does bedtime!

BUT Isaac refuses for anyone but Mommy to read him stories lately. Daddy is not allowed. Auntie Rebecca is not allowed. Grandma is not allowed. Only Mommy. If you try to insist, he will throw the biggest crying fit you've ever seen. I kid you not.

Daddy reading with Isaac, back in the good ole days!

I'm flattered. Really. I mean, what a sincere compliment, right? Isn't he basically telling me, "Nobody reads a story like you read a story, Mom?" If he only had the vocabulary, that's exactly what he would say to us. It would be even more flattering if he weren't also likely to say (given the right vocab), "Nobody wipes my butt like you do, Mom." and "Nobody knows how to fix a cup of chocolate milk like you do, Mom."

So... I guess it's really more annoying than flattering. I want Daddy to have reading time with his Isaac. I think that's really important (and it's important that Mommy gets a few minutes of Mommy time once in a while). But how do you make that happen when you have a very resistant 2-year-old? Wait it out? Force it? Feels like we've tried everything else.

While you guys ponder that, I'm going to go get Isaac. I hear him waking up from his nap, and word around the Watson house is that nobody knows how pick him up out of his crib like me!