National Tell A Story Day

April 27th is National Story Telling Day.
What story will you tell?

Earth Day Activities featuring The Lorax by Dr. Seuss

If you have lived your life so far and never have read The Lorax, now is the perfect time.  Today is EARTH DAY and as we celebrate Earth Day we all stand and think about what we could do to better our world for the next generation.    Dr. Seuss eloquently and gently illustrates with pictures and words what will eventually happen to our world if we do not start conservation efforts now, were needed.  

This is a story that when read, will be encouraging and sad at the same time.  We can not stare with blind eyes at what is becoming of our environment.  We can not ignore the cries of the wild as their homes and means of sustenance is depleted.   So, grab this book and introduce it to your little ones.  

Right now you can find this book in almost all Kohls department stores along with this super soft and cuddly Lorax.   Procedes for the purchase of this $5 cuddly and $5 book go directly towards Kohls Cares

Now, we've hunted and dug and searched and scoured to find you the best Lorax and Earth Day projects for you and your little ones.

Click Here and go to Craft Jr, to make your own Truffula Trees with pompoms, pipe cleaners, craft glue and play-dough.

Make these beautiful butterfly's with your babies.  Visit Here to find out just how easy these beauties are and we suggest glue a magnet to your butterfly and attaching it to your fridge, it's a beautiful reminder of how delicate our world is.  You can also use eye droppers to drop colored water to your project.  This action uses the same muscles that your little one will later use to  cut with scissors, it's good safe and fun practice.

 Plant some seeds!  Show your little one how to produce and grow his or her own veggies or fruits.  Sometimes the gentle hands of a children can grow better produce that a hard working mans.  Here is an idea from our sister site, HomeSpun Threads on how to start your own garden and be conservative at the same time.

Miycreations has a super cool lantern project that encourages children to reuse plastic soda bottles.  Be careful, you could get lost browsing this really awesome, crafty site.  She's got so many fun ideas for crafters and kids. 

Here are a list of books we recommend:

• Fancy Nancy: Every Day Is Earth Day (I Can Read Book 1) by Jane O'connor and Robin Preiss Glasser
• Not Your Typical Book About the Environment by Elin Kelsey and Clayton Hanmer
• A Different Kind of Hero (an illustrated children's environmental fable about a monkey protecting the rainforest) by Leah Beth Evans
• Don't Throw That Away!: A Lift-the-Flap Book about Recycling and Reusing (Little Green Books) by Lara Bergen and Betsy Snyder  
• The Tree Farmer by Chuck Leavell; Nicholas Cravotta and Rebecca Bleau
• If I Ran the Rain Forest: All About Tropical Rain Forests (Cat in the Hat's Learning Library) by Bonnie Worth and Aristides Ruiz
• The Three R's: Reuse, Reduce, Recycle (What Do You Know About? Books) by Nuria Roca and Rosa M. Curto 

National Reading Month Read Along Follow-Up

Now that National Reading Month has come to a close, here a is a great  Read-Along that you can check out to continue reading all year long.  Reading like this shouldn't happen one month a year, it should happen everyday, all year long.  Check out these amazing ideas and books that have been shared.

Polly at Helping Little Hands  has a huge collage of reading activities that you can choose from for sharing books with your little one.

5 Elements of Fiction

I was working on some interview questions today and decided to look up this video on the website called www.flocabulary.com and I had to share what I found...enjoy!


Flocabulary - Five Things (Elements of a Short Story) from Flocabulary on Vimeo.

Here are the lyrics Flocabulary

Five Things Lyrics

Check it out yo...

Setting, that's like where it's going down,
Could be the train compartment, a castle or a town,
Could be the Arctic winter - like To Build a Fire
The temperature's dropping, excitement is getting higher,
Setting sets the scene so the scene seems set,
Could be the Italian restaurant where we met,
Setting gives us the where and the when,
Could be modern day, the future, or way back when.

Plot, Character, Conflict, Theme,
Setting, yes these are the 5 things
That you're going to be needing
When you're reading or writing
A short story that's mad exciting x2

Plot is the action, the quest for satisfaction,
What's going down, what's going to happen.
Four men at sea in an open boat,
Rowing and hoping that they can stay afloat. The plot:
They have to make it to the beach,
But the waves are big, and the shore seems out of reach,
Plot is a series of events... like Lemoney Snicket,
It could be crazy, wild or straight wicked.

Plot, Character, Conflict, Theme,
Setting, yes these are the 5 things
That you're going to be needing
When you're reading or writing
A short story that's mad exciting x2

Knock knock, who's there? Oh, it's the characters,
The people in the story who carry out the action.
Characters can be pretty, tiny or clean,
Characters can be silly, whiney or mean,
Juliet is a character, and so is Romeo,
Pokemon has characters and so does Yu-gi-oh,
Characters could be dogs, lions, or hippos,
JK Rowling chose Harry Potter. "Why?" Who knows!

Plot, Character, Conflict, Theme,
Setting, yes these are the 5 things
That you're going to be needing
When you're reading or writing
A short story that's mad exciting x2

Uh-uh! Put your snack back in your backpack we're not finished!
Something gone wrong! That's the conflict kids
A struggle in the plot, now who's on top,
Could be a fight for money, like some robbers and cops,
Could be an internal conflict - a struggle inside,
Like I don't want to tell the truth but I don't ever want to lie,
Flick something in your eye, now you're conflicted,
What created drama? The conflict did.

Plot, Character, Conflict, Theme,
Setting, yes these are the 5 things
That you're going to be needing
When you're reading or writing
A short story that's mad exciting x2

The theme of the story is the main idea,
The central belief or the topic that's in there,
It's usually something abstract like sacrifice,
Isolation or resurrection: we're back to life,
Like don't lie, don't practice libel,
The theme of To Build a Fire is survival,
Survival on your own like Fievel Moskowitz
Flocabulary's something that you HAVE TO GET...

Plot, Character, Conflict, Theme,
Setting, yes these are the 5 things
That you're going to be needing
When you're reading or writing
A short story that's mad exciting x2

Make A Book With Your Children

I think we all have memories of growing up.  Vacations we've taken with our families, holidays, etc.  I also have memories of things I made.  Kids like to create.  So today, as I was home schooling my girls, I had an idea for my struggling reader.  I'm going to have her make her own book.  She is going to draw the pictures and even help create the story.  If I make sure to put it in words she can read, maybe this would encourage her to want to read.  After all, it will be her creation.

It doesn't have to be anything fancy.  If all you have is some construction paper and crayons, that is fine.  Give them some ideas for a story line.  A pet, grandparents, their birthday.  Let them choose and see if it doesn't peak an interest into the wonderful world of reading.

What's Your Favorite Book to Read Aloud at Bedtime?

I have 3 little boys and a few years ago when my youngest was a baby, my mother gave me this book "You're All My Favorites" and 3 little bears that to me, represent each of my baby boys.  I love reading this book aloud to them.  A few of my other favorites are, "The Napping House" because I love to hear my children giggle before bed but I'm very sentimental so I also love reading "Time For Bed" because it was the first book my husband and I read to our little boys before they were even born.  My mother gave me "Love You Forever" to make me cry but I've heard Robert Munsch tell his version and it can be down right funny to read as well.  "Guess How Much I Love You" to me is a tongue twister in it's own right.  It's a simple story line with beautiful illustrations.   

The Napping House by Audry Wood

Time for Bed by Mem Fox

Love You Forever by Robert Munsch

Guess How Much I Love You by Sam McBratney

What is your favorite read aloud books at bedtime?

Mother Daughter Book Club

I loved this idea of a mother/daughter book club.  Read about this little adventure between a mother and daughter.  I wonder if it'd work between mother and son.   Craft Nectar is a really sweet blog and you are sure to love this idea.

Recycled Crayons

Let's Explore is full of great ideas.  I am LOVING these recycled alphabet crayon letters.  I can't get enough of her wonderfully creative ideas.

Organize Books by Color

I've always loved the look of organizing children's books like this.  Visit here to see more examples.

Where's The Best Reading Spot In Your House

We were inspired by this post, to see what you had to say...

They asked...

Where does your family read and what makes it a great spot to do so? 

Did you load it with pillows? Blankets? 

Is it secluded from the rest of the hubbub? 

Give us the details on your reading nook below!

Image: Flickr member The-Lane-Team

8 Poetry Books for Kids

Need a list of wonderfully fun books for kids that will introduce them to fabulous poetry?  Here's your list!  Introduce your child to a world that encourages fun with words.

Vintage Kids Books My Kids Love

YES!  There is a whole blog dedicated to vintage children's books.  My favorite blog ever I think.  As a matter of fact, I'm a huge fan of the illustrator of that book on the top of the pile in the picture.  I love collecting vintage books.  You'll love this website too, it'll bring back tender memories!

Cupcakes and Cakes Inspired by Books

Talk about helping make a connection to books.  Little ones are going to love these cakes and cupcakes by CocoCake.

5 Reading Nooks

It's not just about having a great bookcase, or having great books, it's also about the atmosphere that encourages a child to read.  Check out these sweet examples of places that are perfect for children while reading.

Reading Posters from ALA

Encourage reading in the home or even in a classroom or hey, even in a library with these beautiful posters from ALA.  They'll bring back memories and make reading a little more exciting.

Visit here for more posters that will inspire your to read to your little one or for your little one to read.

Bookends for a Child's Room

Here is a cute collection of bookends that you can add to your child's room.  Visiting the book collection is now much more fun with these wonderful bookends.

ABC Floor Pillow

I saw my son sitting on a pillow today in the middle of our living room and thought, I need to find some great floor pillows...and I did.  Check out these fabulous pillows from Restoration Hardware, Baby and Child.

10 Rad Reference Books for Kids

Here's another fabulous list by OhDeeDoh for parents.  Check out these amazingly fun books for kids that are actually educational!

Play Librarian: No Really!

I don't even think we realize how much fun this kit could be for kids.  The idea of letting children form order in a chaotic home library actually sounds really fun to me.  Visit the Little Librarian to order this little kit for $19.95.  It was designed and created by a mother/daughter team who grew up loving the idea of being a librarian too.

Books about Libraries

Ohdeedoh has a great little list of books about libraries.  Check out these books and read a few to your little one before heading to your local library for a visit.  They are sure to cause excitement and curiosity.