Articles tagged Books
Do you want to get students excited about reading nonfiction? Invite some lizards to school. Twice in the past two years, Lunenburg Elementary School has invited creatures that include reptiles and canines to visit students. The ulterior motive, of course, is to get them to read all sorts of books about dogs, lizards, mushers, snakes, and even … Continued
General / Book Recommendations
Recently, while at the library seeking new reading material for my son, Emmett, two books jumped out at me. Each had an enticing title, intriguing subject matter, and captivating imagery. And Then It’s Spring and Peaceful Piggy Meditation grabbed my interest, and without hesitation, I checked them out and nestled them into our stroller. Though the books are … Continued
At the Highgate Apartments in Barre, VT the quiet of a recent Saturday morning ended abruptly as the unmistakable roar of a race car engine announced to all children within earshot it was time to meet Thunder Road driver Troy Kingsbury, check out his awesome car, and get some cool new books to read.
General / Book Recommendations
Time magazine recently reported on “Why Math Is the Hot New Bedtime Reading.” WHAT? Everyone knows how we here at CLiF feel about books and reading. And I have a particular soft spot for the soothing, relaxing, entertaining bedtime read. I mean, I have been reading my kids into a sleepy stupor for as long … Continued
Ah. The much needed mid-winter break. Who doesn’t need a little rest from the hectic day to day of the school schedule right now? I know that teachers worry that reading and writing skills will slip over break and kids will return to school at the end of the week two steps behind. If you … Continued
Watching your child develop language skills is definitely one of the great joys of parenting. My five year old is picking up big, grown-up words every day, and it is fun watching her figure out how to use them. But, as with any new skill your child obtains, there are definitely drawbacks. When they learn … Continued
Love is amazing for many, many reasons. One reason is that love is one of the very few things in life that you get more of when you give it away. Typically speaking, when you give away your cookies, you have fewer cookies. If you give away your time, you run out of time. But … Continued
As the biased parent of this lovable Rottweiler-Malamute mix, I look at the picture above and coo. Sylvester, a certified therapy dog with Therapy Dogs of Vermont, has just started a new gig at the Stowe Free Library. To him, this seems like the easiest job in the world: He shows up, gets loads of pets, cuddles … Continued
General / Book Recommendations
In 1967 artist Leo Lionni wrote a beautiful book about a little mouse named Frederick. Instead of working like the other mice to gather food and straw for the long winter, Frederick sat quietly soaking up the rays of the sun. When the other mice asked Frederick why he did not work, he explained, I … Continued
Earlier this week, a manilla envelope packed with hand-written thank-you notes arrived at the CLiF office. They were all written by English Language Learner students at McLaughlin Middle School and Beech Street School, where CLiF presenters Duncan McDougall and Marty Kelley had given storytelling presentations and lead book giveaways for nearly 400 students in November. … Continued
General / Book Recommendations
Do you know how some literature channels your perspective outward, forcing you to examine the world that you live in? It might challenge your assumptions about something outside of yourself and contribute to the way you view the world and your role in it. Other books force you to look inward and examine your own … Continued
As you have probably guessed by now, the CLiF staff is a small community of readers within itself. In our lives beyond children’s literature, we chat about the books we enjoy, circulate must-reads (oftentimes children’s literature), and recommend favorite titles to one another or for each other’s families. We have a vast array of interests … Continued
My kids have been pressing me lately for an explanation. Some books have found their way into our home and my girls just LOVE them… and I don’t (to put it mildly). “Why, Mommy? Why don’t you like Barbie Princess Charm School?” “Why won’t you read the Rainbow Fairy book again?” “Why do you always … Continued
I love a good bookstore. If I am visiting a town and I’ve heard about a cozy, quirky or otherwise interesting locally owned bookstore, you better believe I’m going to make some time to check it out. Luckily for me, I live in an area of Vermont that offers a plethora of bookstores to cater … Continued
I don’t like it when my house gets too quiet. As the mother of two little boys, silence makes red flags go up in a hurry. I have become quite talented in tuning out the everyday sounds of fights over whose truck is whose and whose turn it is to play with the fireman. I … Continued
2012 was a pretty good year. The year our girls learned to swim and to ski. The year our older daughter started kindergarten and became an “emergent reader.” Another year our old dog survived. We had some ups and downs, but mostly ups. Not too shabby. Of course, we can always improve. Onward and upward, … Continued
Jodi Wheeler is no doubt a local hero around Lyndonville, Vermont. In 2005, Jodi founded the H.O.P.E. Foundation to help address the most basic needs of her neighbors: clothing and food. H.O.P.E. operates a thrift store to provide low cost clothing, provides emergency food and operates a weekly backpack program for children in need. Jodi … Continued
General / Book Recommendations
A few months ago I tasked our readers with an important assignment: help me find books that I can read repeatedly without losing my sanity. For those of you who missed my first blog post, feel free to read it here. The gist of my request was that I now have a (just-about-in-only-one-week-where-did-the-time-go) two-year-old who has … Continued
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