Rereading Favorite Picture Books

I'm happy to say that Leah has always enjoyed reading.  As a teacher, I know the importance of reading and having a love for books.  I'm so glad that Leah enjoys books. In fact, she loves books so much that at times, she becomes completely obsessed with one book and will read nothing but that book!

Anyone who knows Leah knows that she's sort of strong-willed...she definitely knows what she wants, when she wants it and she lets you know it!  This is absolutely true with reading.  She goes through phases with favorite books and during these phases, there is no reading anything but her favorite book. It started with Peekaboo Farm.  This book was great because we were able to learn animal names and noises, plus this book has touch and feel parts!  After this phase ended, she became obsessed with Guess Who? A Foldout Valentine Adventure. I enjoyed reading this book to her because like Peekaboo Farm, it had animals and she was able to learn more animal names and sounds!  We then moved on to Clifford's First Valentine's Day.  I can't even begin to count how many times we read this book. Leah impressed me because she remembered the storyline and on the page where Clifford is found in the mail room, she starts barking because she knows that's what happens in the story!  Right now, we are reading Tomie's Three Bears and Other Tales (Tomie dePaola).  Along with the Three Bears, this book also has The Little Red Hen and The Big Bad Wolf. All three of these tales have dialog and I must say, my husband and I are pretty entertaining with our voices.  Leah actually sits and lets us read through all 3 (usually) stories.

Clearly, Leah does not get easily bored with books and when I thought about it, I realized that even the second graders I teach love reading books multiple times. Rereading books isn't a bad thing, and in fact it is recommend by experts and it has great value. The National Reading Panel shared in 2000 that children who reread books multiple times have better sight vocabulary, reading comprehension and fluency!

For Leah's age, rereading a book such as Farm Peekaboo allows her to keep practicing animal names/sounds and it also boosts her self-confidence as she accurately recalls the correct names and sounds!  For older children, rereading a book might provide an opportunity to learn a new vocabulary word, discuss a story element or make a connection between the story and the child's life. So the next time your child asks you to read a book for the hundredth time, take a deep breath and consider that this may be an opportunity for your child to make a brand new discovery about the book!

What is your child's all-time favorite picture book?

Baby Einstein Alphabooks

Baby Einstein Alphabooks
It should come as no surprise that I love books (I am second grade teacher).  Honestly though, in my case, it's not just that I love them...I am obsessed with books! I love buying Leah books and I really have to practice self-control when I go to a bookstore. I am thrilled that Leah already has favorite books and it warms my heart that she often goes to her room, pulls books off her bookshelf and "reads" them to herself.   

Before Leah was even born, two of my co-workers gave me the Baby Einstein Alphabooks.  I figured we would enjoy them with our child someday, but truthfully, I never expected for Leah (and me) to love them as much as we do.  Leah will sit and listen to us read each and every book.  They are alphabet books...so that means she reads through 26 books!  Granted, they are short books....each opened page has a picture on one side and the word on the other side.  But still, it does take us quite a while to get through every book and often times, we even reread certain ones!

I love these books for their simplicity.  The picture side alternates between photographs and illustrations and some of the chosen words are really unique- Zucchini, Violets, Garden, Quail- words that children might not hear daily.  There are also many familiar words- apples  foot, nose, dog, cat- which children will also enjoying hearing and seeing.  Leah especially loves the eyes (she will poke my eyes), hat (she points to her hat), Kiss (she kisses the book) and Dog (she barks).

These books are interactive, engaging for children and sturdy (they are board books).  I have no doubt your child will enjoy these books over and over and over again!