*Chapter book for 7 to 10 year olds, fantasy *Young (flat) boy as main character *Rating: Kids that are fans of Flat Stanley and/or love Ninja stuff will enjoy this book! Short, short summary: Flat Stanley loves ninjas, and so does his brother, Arthur. They especially love movie star, Oda Nobu, and they decide to [...]

photo by Beverly & Pack www.flickr.com July 4th is always a good day for me. I love summer, I love festivals, and I love BBQ. I also love my husband, and it’s our anniversary–so even more reason to celebrate. I don’t always take the time to really think about what we are celebrating on July [...]

photo by chefranden www.flickr.com *Chapter book, contemporary fiction *Elementary-school aged girl as main character *Rating: Amber Brown Sees Red by Paula Danzinger is a terrific book for children in first through third grade who love a series and love a quirky character like Amber! Short, short summary: Amber Brown is seeing red! She’s mad–she’s madder [...]

Henry Huggins is the lesser known resident on Klickitat Street, but he’s got a lot to offer kids and their parents even sixty years later! You are probably more familiar or might remember better from your childhood Beezus and Ramona books, but these two lovable sisters show up in Henry Huggins, too! Plus who can [...]

photo by cr9245 www.flickr.com So, today’s my birthday, and I decided to remember a Timeless Thursday book that I had and loved as a child. I still remember my copy with a gold cover and how I wished Winnie, Piglet, and Eeyore would come alive out of my pages like they did on the Disney [...]

I love Mrs. Piggle-Wiggle! Children love Mrs. Piggle-Wiggle (still after 50+ years) and how can parents and teachers not love her practical ways and advice! I am so very excited about this Timeless Thursday post because I hope if you haven’t shared Mrs. Piggle Wiggle (written by Betty MacDonald and illustrations by Hilary Knight) with [...]

*Chapter book for second to fourth graders, realistic contemporary *Third-grade girl as main character *Rating: Clementine’s Letter is laugh-out-loud funny while being touching and so true to life at the same time! Short, short summary: Clementine is back and in third grade. She is finally “in sync” with her teacher, Mr. D’Matz (be careful how [...]

photo by GraceFamily www.flickr.com At this time of the year, many teachers and parents are getting ready for teaching about holidays. The three most common holidays to teach and do holiday activities with are Christmas, Hanukkah, and Kwanzaa. But teaching Christmas around the world lesson plans and Hanukkah lessons can often cause controversy in the [...]

At my stepson’s parent teacher conference last week, we had an interesting conversation about how he is feeling different. He goes to reading and math class for help in these areas; and being in third grade, he is finally starting to care that he is not doing the same thing as everybody else in his [...]

Why would Shel Silverstein’s A Light in the Attic be pictured on a post that talks about challenged and banned books? Because believe it or not, it is on the list of the 100 most frequently challenged books from 1990 to 1999. Are you racking your brain, like I was when I saw the list, [...]