Category: Literacy Tips

When I was in the classroom, one of my favorite parts of our reading workshop program was assessing my students’ “just right” reading levels and helping them find high-interest, accessible books to read. Now that we have a reader in our house, I am confident that my teaching background gives me a general understanding of what her independent reading level is and helps me find appropriate books for her to read. But, I understand most parents don’t have the benefit of this professional background when helping their children find books (as is evidenced by the frequent questions I get from followers who need help finding books for their children). That is why I am thrilled to introduce you all to Just Right Reader, a company that will not only help parents figure out their children’s “just right” reading levels, but also send books at these reading levels to the children! Continue reading “An Easy Way to Receive Just Right Books for Your Child” →

Towards the end of the summer, we took a family trip to Sequoia, Kings Canyon, and Yosemite National Parks. If you’ve never been, those 3 national parks are just as breathtaking as you might imagine them to be… And giant sequoia trees are indeed gigantic. So much bigger than the redwoods we see somewhat regularly close to our home! But, this post isn’t about that trip… Instead, it’s about another new and very simple addition to my restaurant and waiting room “go” bag — watercolor paints!

Last spring, I wrote about how we always have a tote bag close to the door, loaded with various books and activities for the girls, easy to grab in case we are heading somewhere where they may need to wait or be entertained for a bit. We usually take it with us to restaurants, but we also grab it for doctors’ offices, siblings’ practices or classes, and car repair shops. A few weeks ago, I mentioned that I’ll be adding our Alphabet Go Fish game to this “go bag” rotation, and today, I’m here to let you know that watercolors are amazing to toss in, too! Continue reading “An Unexpected Restaurant Bag Win!” →

Back in July, I wrote a post full of suggestions for fun, natural ways to combat the summer learning slide. In case you missed it, I’ll give you a spoiler alert — none of my ideas involved worksheets, book reports, or comprehension quizzes! And that post struck a chord with you all! I received so many comments, messages, and emails full of appreciation for the ideas and thanks for the reassurance that parents (unless explicitly directed by a teacher or learning specialist, of course) really don’t need to do anything out of the ordinary to keep learning going through the summer!

And now, I’ve got an addition to that post: Alphabet Go Fish! This is another game to add to your collection, this time one that might help develop or keep early literacy skills. Do you have Alphabet Go Fish in your home or classroom game collection? If not, remedy that now! Continue reading “A Fun Game for Letter Recognition” →