This week we are debuting our new Early Literacy App Collection! This is a collection of apps for young children and beginner readers selected for their high quality content. These apps provide children the opportunity to practice early literacy skills like reading and writing, introduce science and math topics, and involve creative and interactive play. You can use the apps at the library in our Children's Room. Detailed reviews of our selected apps will be available here on this blog under the tag "apps".
App Name: Don't Wake Up Tiger Developer: nosy crow Cost: $0.99 Available on iOS Recommended for toddlers and preschoolers This app is based on the book of the same title by Britta Treckentrup. You can find the original hard copy of the book in SHARE, too! The story is read out loud in the app and includes fun interactive elements like scratching the tiger's nose to keep him asleep, blowing on balloons to help the animals float by, and more. Young readers will enjoy participating in the story as it goes along. The app also includes a video of "Happy Birthday" sung aloud for the tiger and two games: a matching game and a spot the difference games. The games can be enjoyed alone or with a friend or caregiver.
This week we are debuting our new Early Literacy App Collection! This is a collection of apps for young children and beginner readers selected for their high quality content. These apps provide children the opportunity to practice early literacy skills like reading and writing, introduce science and math topics, and involve creative and interactive play. You can use the apps at the library in our Children's Room. Detailed reviews of our selected apps will be available here on this blog under the tag "apps".
App Name: Red in Bed Developer: Pop Pop Pop LLC Cost: $0.99 Available on iOS and Google Play Recommended for toddlers and preschoolers
This app is an interactive version of the book, Red in Bed by Josh On. The story follows the colors of the rainbow as they go about their day coloring the world, except today red is not feeling well. The other colors try to help red out, but instead end up mixing everything up! The cute story is accented by musical notes that correspond to each color and reflect the moods of the characters and story action.
Picture spread from the story
The story text can be displayed in 5 different languages (English, Japanese, French, Spanish, and Hungarian). The text is not read aloud, so this app is best shared by a child and caregiver who can read the story to the child.
This story is enhanced through the interactive features developed into the app. Young readers will enjoy sharing this with a caregiver as they practice color recognition and predicting what will happen next.
The December pick for our book club is Little Women by Louisa May Alcott. Louisa May Alcott is an American novelist best known for the novel Little Women. This book tells the story of the four March sisters as they grow up in New England during the 1800s. Little Women has been adapted into a variety of formats including television, stage, and film.
Want more of the March sisters? Give one of these novels a try!
The Mother-Daughter Book Club by Heather Vogel Frederick - When the mothers of four 6th grade girls form a book club, the girls are obligated to join too. Together they read and discuss Little Women and learn that they have more in common than they had thought.
Littler Women: A Modern Retelling by Laura Schaefer - This retelling of Little Women follows the March sisters as they make new friends, attend school dances, and develop first crushes.
Little Women and Werewolves by Porter Grand - This retelling of the classic, imagines a story in which Laurie is a werewolf.
The Spring Girls by Anna Todd - Meg, Jo, Beth, and Amy live on a military base in this retelling of a modern day version of Little Women.
The Little Women Letters by Gabrielle Donnelly - This novel explores the lives of Jo March's descendants. The adventures of Emma, Sophie, and Lulu create a contemporary family story that reflects the sisterly bond found in Little Women. Little Woman in Blue by Jeannine Atkins - This is the story of May Alcott, Louisa's sister. May dreams of painting a masterpiece and finding love too. When she reads her sister's popular novel, Little Women, she is hurt by Louisa's portrayal of her as the Amy character. She decides to prove her talent and moves away from her home to make a new life for herself. Can she succeed in achieving her dreams?
Happy belated Thanksgiving! As the holiday season continues, many of our celebrations involve sharing meals with families and friends. So, here's a look at some of the newest cookbooks in our collection to inspire your next feast!
These are books for readers who are beginning to read independently. Some of the books contain practice with phonics and sight words. Others provide practice with story structure and comprehension. The books in this collection range from simple texts with only a handful of words to more complex beginner chapter books. As beginner readers develop their reading skills, they are able to use a variety strategies to predict words and confirm comprehension with pictures and context clues. You can learn more about the stages of reading development from Reading Rockets.
Publishers of easy readers often provide levels to gauge the difficulty of a text. Generally, these go from Level 1 (simple sentence structure and vocabulary) to Level 4 (more complex sentences and vocabulary). Each publisher uses different scales and guidelines to judge the level of a book, so we recommend opening up the book and trying out the 5 word test - have your child read the page, if there are 5 words they don't recognize, the book might be too challenging. Kids are often motivated to read above their level if it's a book they love or are very interested in. So, we recommend letting your kids select books when they come to the library.
Our easy readers are organized alphabetically by author's name and series title. So, you'll find stand alone books such as I Like Stars by Margaret Wise Brown in the "B's" after the Biscuit series, but before the Cliffordseries.
There is something for everyone in the easy readers collection! Here are a few of our staff favorites to check out.
Biscuit - This series about an adorable puppy by Alyssa Satin Capucilli is an excellent one for kids just starting to use the easy reader collection.
Elephant & Piggie - this pair is the creation of author Mo Willems. They are funny, silly, and enjoyable to read.
The Giggle Gang - Jan Thomas is the author of this new series. These brightly illustrated books are eye catching. The stories inside are just as good!
We Both Read - this series is designed to be read by beginner readers and fluent readers together. Spending time reading together is a great way to motivate children learning to read.
Puppy Mudge - This is a series by prolific author Cynthia Rylant. As kids become more confident readers and move into the First Chapter Book collection, they'll find the classic stories of Henry and Mudge featuring a more grown up Mudge.
Hello, Ms. Alison here! Do you know about the Library of Congress Letters About Literature program? This is a writing contest for students in grades 4-12 happening now! Winners will earn prizes of $100 for first place, $50 for second place, and $25 for honorable mentions. There are different grade levels for the competition and you can find out more here. Entries are due January 11, 2019.
The main idea is to write a letter to an author - living or dead - explaining how his or her work changed your view of yourself and your world. In honor of the contest, I thought I'd share 5 authors whose work has influenced my life.
Chrysanthemum was my all time favorite book as a little kid. I love Kevin Henkes' writing style and illustrations. Something about seeing those adorable little mice deal with anxiety (looking at you, Wemberly!), big events (hello, Lilly!), and self esteem (hi, Chrysanthemum) hit home for me as a young reader and it continues to resonate as an adult.
“Today was a difficult day. Tomorrow will be better”
Oh, Kate DiCamillo, every book you write makes me cry and I love it. I appreciate her philosophy that kids' book should be a little sad. The littmus lozenges from Because of Winn Dixie introduced to me to the word melancholy and gave me the words to capture the sweetness and sadness of growing up. When I read this as a 12 year old, it rocked my world. It still does.
“I lay there and thought how life was like a Littmus Lozenge, how the sweet and the sad were all mixed up together and how hard it was to separate them out. It was confusing.”
Growing up when I did, I don't think I could overlook the impact of Harry Potter on my life. Harry turned 11 and got his letter to Hogwarts the same eyar I turned 11 (still waiting for my letter though). No other book has been worth waiting in a line at midnight to buy my copy and spending the weekend of my high school graduation frantically reading between celebrations to find out how it all would end the way that Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows did.
“Because that’s what Hermione does,” said Ron, shrugging. “When in doubt, go to the library.”
― J.K. Rowling, Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets
I read House of the Spirits in one of my favorite classes in college. That class, and that book, opened by eyes to the world outside of my own bubble. It sparked my interest in learning about other places in the world through reading and travel.
There have been so many great books that I've read recently in my adult life, but one that I keep remembering is The Hate U Give. This book (the author's first!) forced me to imagine being in someone else's shoes and to examine my own inner biases and prejudices.
“What's the point of having a voice if you're gonna be silent in those moments you shouldn't be?”
― Angie Thomas, The Hate U Give
That's my list! I hope you start thinking of authors who have influenced you and consider entering this writing contest!
Here at the library, we have spent the last few months gearing up to move into our new addition! After moving everything over during two weeks in October, we are now open in our new space. You can find out more about our expansion project and timeline on our website or by following us on Facebook @eagerfreepubliclibrary.
In honor of our big move, here are some books for families to help their little ones navigate a move of their own - whether it's to a new house down the street or to a whole new country.
A House for Hermit Crab by Eric Carle
A hermit crab outgrows his shell and must find a bigger one to be his new home.
Bad Bye, Good Bye by Deborarh Underwood
Moving can be an emotional roller coaster with ups and downs.
Florette by Anna Walkter
May moves from the country to the city and has to find a new way to enjoy her favorite hobby: gardening.
Moving by Caitlin McAneney
A non-fiction text to help kids know what to expect when moving.
Malaika's Winter Carnival by Nadia L. Hohn
A young girl moves from the Caribbean to Canada and must adjust to a whole new community and climate.
Ella Who? by Linda Ashman
A busy moving day is interrupted by a surprise visitor, an elephant!
Double Happiness by Nancy Tupper Ling
A loving grandmother helps a young pair of siblings through the big change of moving.
Yard Sale by Eve Bunting
Saying goodbye to people, places, and things can be challenging as Callie finds out when her family moves from a house an an apartment.
Lenny and Lucy by Philip Christian Stead
Moving to to a new place often means making new friends as a young boy Peter discovers in this story.
But What If by Sue Graves
Worries plague Daisy when her family moves, but her grandfather helps her cope.
Tim's Big Move by Anke Wagner
Tim's stuffed dog is very nervous about moving, but making new friends helps.
