 Hopefully the showers of April have brought you May flowers, which also puts me in the mood to plant my own garden; flowers to bring me joy and herbs and vegetables for yumminess. I love being able to walk out to my backyard garden in the summer to gather what I need for a salad. We even keep pots of herbs on the deck, which my daughter loves to water and cut to use when we cook together. Be sure to include the little ones in decision making and in planting and don’t forget the fairies. They love their own garden and children enjoy creating them.  This last month of spring is Get Caught Reading month. Many schools reward students when they are “caught” reading this month but on the flip side, those same students are often reprimanded for reading when they shouldn’t be throughout the school year (I know, I was one of them.) Be supportive of and encourage your child’s reading habit and, if possible, snap a photo when you catch them reading and share it with us on our Facebook page. The first week of the month is the 100th anniversary of Children’s Book Week. Read your child’s favorite book with them or share one of your favorites from childhood. For ideas and further suggestions, check out the book lists on the BTBL website. This is also a great time to support local authors. Ask your librarian or local book seller who would be on the list. Last but not least, the second Sunday in May is Mother’s Day. Celebrate the day reading with your children, your mother and your grandmother if you are so lucky to have them all in your life. Including the generations fosters a sense of continuity and builds lasting memories. Special Dates in May *Note: this post contains Amazon Affiliate links. Any purchases made via the links provided go to support our literacy efforts. 4th: Star Wars Day (May the 4th be with you!) - Need we say more? There are many Star Wars books to choose from, from board books to graphic novels. For a fun read choose a title from Jeffrey Brown’s Darth Vader series. If your child has other interests, get creative. Read under the stars, read about space exploration or extraterrestrials, and so on.
5th: Cinco de Mayo - Though officially the date is in celebration of a battle victory for the Mexican army in 1862, today in the U.S. it has become a celebration of Mexican culture. Read one of Roseanne Greenfield Thong’s books. Another fun option is Dragon’s Love Tacos by Adam Rubin or choose a book from the Skippyjon Jones series, a cat who thinks he’s a Chihuahua, by Judy Schachner.
16th: Author/Illustrator Margret Rey’s Birthday - Best known for the Curious George series she created with her husband, H.A. Rey. Read one of the many stories about the world’s favorite monkey and also read about the Reys’ harrowing journey to bring their beloved stories from war torn Europe to the United States in The Journey That Saved Curious George: The True Wartime Escape of Margret and H. A. Rey by Louise W. Borden.
24th: Queen Victoria’s Birthday - The longest reigning British monarch until Queen Elizabeth. Besides a biography, there are several interesting and fun books you can read. Queen Victoria’s Bathing Machine by Gloria Whelan and The Queen’s Knickers by Nicholas Allan. An interesting title, especially for older children might be The Adventures of Alice Laselles, written by Queen Victoria herself when she was 10 years old.
Poem “Mary Had a Little Lamb” published in 1830 - Great time to read the poem with your child and sing the song. For older children who are already familiar with the poem, check out Mary Had a Little Lamp by Jack Lechner and Mary Had a Little Lab by Sue Fliess for laughs and perhaps use the Internet to find and listen to Thomas Edison reciting the first lines of the poem on the original phonograph. A great learning opportunity that also makes a connection to a historical event.
May is also a month for remembering our fallen heroes who died while serving in the armed forces. Armed Forces Day is the third Saturday in May and Memorial Day is the last Monday. Look for ways to celebrate our freedom and to honor those currently serving our country as well as our veterans.
Happy reading! -Kate @ BTBL Author We are three generations that seek a way to get back to basics. It’s not that we eschew technology, but sometimes simpler is better, especially in raising our children. Mom was a reading teacher, Amanda is an early childhood educator and Kate a children’s literature specialist and former school librarian along with the latest editions, a daughter for Kate (now 3) and a son for Amanda (now 1.) We advocate reading aloud, the simple toys that use imagination and encourage creativity and learning in the kitchen, which can be a fun mess but also teaches life skills. Join us in raising healthy, happy, inquisitive and intelligent children.
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*Note: this page contains Amazon Affiliate links. Any purchases made via the links provided go to support our literacy efforts.
Nursery rhymes originated as part of a long oral tradition of storytelling and remain an ever-present part of children’s literature today. Though nursery rhymes vary, most are noted for their use of rhyme and rhythm, which makes them easy to remember and so continue to be passed from one generation to the next. Experts agree that hearing nursery rhymes aids in language acquisition and also with speech development. Nursery rhymes also help children to develop auditory skills, discriminating between the different sounds and patterns as well as developing an ear for the music of words. Hearing, reading and singing nursery rhymes inspires natural learning as children sing along and learn the rhymes, committing them to memory.
*Disclaimer: Usborne Publishing Ltd. (UK) has no connection with these pages and does not sponsor or support their content.
I am an Independent Consultant with Usborne Books & More. To purchase UBAM books visit: https://s7598.myubam.com/
Introducing the repetition and rhythm of nursery rhymes can aid in:
For those of you who don’t know the rhyme I’m referring to, this is the version I learned as a child:
Who stole the cookies from the cookie jar? (Child's name) stole the cookies from the cookie jar. Who me? Yes you! Couldn’t be! Then who? (repeat with name of next person) 
I also want to note that there may be several versions of a rhyme and no one is correct. Whichever one you learned and wish to pass on to your child is the correct one for you. If you are feeling nursery rhyme challenged, we recommend the book Humpty Who? by Jennifer Griffin. It is billed as “a crash course in 80 nursery rhymes for clueless moms and dads” complete with a sing-along CD.
We also recommend considering the following books to share with your youngster:
For even more recommendations take a look at our Nursery Rhymes & Poetry book list.
So, embrace the rhymes of Mother Goose to share with your little one but remember to keep it organic and fun and resist making it academic. Your little one will naturally come to know these rhymes and their rhythms and the benefits will be numerous with the rhymes staying with them for a lifetime waiting to be shared with yet another generation.
Happy rhyming! -Kate @ BTBL Author
We are three generations that seek a way to get back to basics. It’s not that we eschew technology, but sometimes simpler is better, especially in raising our children. Mom was a reading teacher, Amanda is an early childhood educator and Kate a children’s literature specialist and former school librarian along with the latest editions, a daughter for Kate (now 3) and a son for Amanda (now 1.) We advocate reading aloud, the simple toys that use imagination and encourage creativity and learning in the kitchen, which can be a fun mess but also teaches life skills. Join us in raising healthy, happy, inquisitive and intelligent children. |
AuthorWe are mom Sandra and daughters Amanda and Kate, all with backgrounds in literacy and education, who want to share our philosophy of taking the basics of life; books, simple toys that encourage play, imagination and creativity, and using cooking and baking to teach math and real life skills to raise happy, inquisitive children. Join us in exploring the old and the new and sifting through the myriad of research to consider what is best for our children. Archives
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