Back to Basics Literacy was established with the goal of bringing children and their families back to the basics of life, such as reading aloud to their children, eschewing screens for the very young, embracing pretend play and promoting toys that build imagination and creativity. What better way to get back to basics than in the kitchen working with your hands to create something yummy? So along that line, this is the first in a series of blogs regarding cooking/baking combined with reading to help you see your kitchen in a whole new way.

Great recipes + great stories = great memories.

     Spending time in the kitchen affords you and your loved ones the opportunity to build real life skills while bonding with your children and creating lasting family memories.

     Cooking with your child is such a fun, engaging, and terribly tasty pastime and a positive on so many fronts that it should be a part of every childhood. A story can be used along with cooking to either introduce a food or activity or it can be read when you are done to reinforce what you have just completed. So keep visiting our site for recipes, ideas and story books that enhance the experience that will keep you and your children engaged in the kitchen while building lasting memories.

     If you're looking for some titles to get you into the cooking/baking mood then please take a look at our list of Baking, Cooking, Gardening & Food Related Books!

     Some of my daughter's personal favorites include:

     Be on the look out for our next Bookworm Bakers post and in the mean time share stories and encourage your child to help out in the kitchen as much as they can!

Happy reading and cooking!

*Note: this post contains Amazon Affiliate links. Any purchases made via the links provided go to support our literacy efforts.

Have you noticed painted rocks suddenly popping up all around your community and been a bit puzzled by the phenomenon?

Have you picked up a painted rock and turned it over to see if there was anything written on the back? Did you then go online to the specified page and share an image of your find?

Are you completely confused and have no idea what I am talking about?
 
The Kindness Rocks Project is the one that started the painted rock craze. The idea behind the initiative is to encourage creativity and spread a little joy and kindness by painting a rock with a beautiful image or uplifting message/saying/quote and then hiding it in a public location for someone else to find. On the back of a painted rock you will typically find the name of a Facebook group where you can share a photo of the rock you found. Then it is expected that you would help spread the joy by re-hiding the rock or painting your own to hide.

This activity has become especially popular with children, turning trips out to the grocery store or local park into treasure hunts. My own daughter and I have gone to the park with the sole intention of searching for painted rocks or hiding rocks we found on a previous outing. The excitement on her face whenever she finds a painted rock is absolutely priceless!
 
After a couple outings, we decided to paint some rocks of our own to send out into the world. But then real inspiration hit. We absolutely love reading and want to share that love with the world. Reading totally rocks (haha, get it?)! So, why not paint some rocks with quotes about the joys of reading? Better yet…why not paint rocks with quotes from our favorite stories?! Hang on to your hats here folks…why not then create a Facebook group devoted to sharing these painted rocks that celebrate all things book, literacy and reading related?!?

And that is how BTBL Rocks! came to be.

Linked with our Facebook page you will find our group BTBL Rocks! The purpose of this group is to share the joy of books and reading via rocks that have quotes from or the title of your favorite book or an image of a beloved character painted on them. Brighten someone’s day with an inspiring or humorous message from a literary work and you just might lead them to their new favorite book!
 
Below is a list of all of the titles that have been featured on our rocks thus far:

Nursery Rhymes:

• This little piggy went to market.
• Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star

 
Picture Books:

• Priscilla McDoodleNutDoodleMcMae asks, “Why?” By Janet Mary Sinke
• When I Grow Up by Al Yankovic
• Giraffes Can’t Dance by Giles Andreae
• The Pout-Pout Fish by Deborah Diesen
• Little Blue Truck by Alice Schertle
• All in a Day by CynthisRylant
• The House in the Night by Susan Marie Swanson
• The Jellybeans Love to Read by Laura Numeroff& Nate Evans
• ChickaChicka Boom Boom by Bill Martin Jr. & John Archambault
• Don’t let the pigeon drive the bus!by Mo Willems
• Hippos Go Berserk!by Sandra Boynton
• Jabberwocky by Lewis Carroll
• One Cool Friend by Toni Buzzeo
• Goodnight Moon by Margaret Wise Brown
• A Roomful of Questions by Tracy Gallup
• Monkey and Duck Quack Up! By Jennifer Hamburg
• Too Many Toys by David Shannon
• The Big Elephant in the Room by Lane Smith
• Creepy Carrots!by Aaron Reynolds
• Zombelina by Kristyn Crow
• The Tale of Peter Rabbit by Beatrix Potter
• Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone by J.K. Rowling
• Guess How Much I Love You by Sam McBratney
• The Very Hungry Caterpillar by Eric Carle
• Where the Wild Things Are by Maurice Sendak
• The Cat in the Hat by Dr. Seuss
• One Fish Two Fish by Dr. Seuss
• Oh, The Places You’ll Go! by Dr. Seuss
• The Itsy, Bitsy Pumpkin by Sonali Fry
• If You Give a Moose a Muffinby Laura Numeroff
• If You Give a Mouse a Cookie by Laura Numeroff
• If You Give a Cat a Cupcake by Laura Numeroff
• If You Give a Pig a Party by Laura Numeroff
• On Market Streetby Arnold Lobel
• Amelia Bedeliaby Peggy Parish
• The Dark by Lemony Snicket
• Steam Train, Dream Train by Sherri Duskey Rinker
• Exclamation Mark! by Amy Krouse Rosenthal
• Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What Do You See?by Bill Martin, Jr.
• Today is Monday by Eric Carle

 
Please join BTBL Rocks! on Facebook and help us spread the joy of reading!
 
Happy hunting and reading!