Suggestions for Effective Read-Aloud Time
Make reading aloud a DAILY habit.
Spend a moment Previewing the cover - Who is the author/illustrator? If you look them up ahead of time, you might have interesting information to add.
Do a picture walk before reading, talk about what you see in the pictures.
Track your reading with your finger.
Read with expression - consider changing the tone of your voice for dialogue.
Adjust your reading pace to fit the story. You don’t have to rush to the end.
Allow your child to interject their thoughts without being pushed to complete the book.
Be willing to pause and whisper to yourself what you’re wondering about while you read a certain part. “That seems like it’s an important word/part/sentence/idea.”
Ask your child to interact with the print - "Can you find a word that starts like your name?"
Invite your child to “read” repeated, predictable words/phrases.
Ask questions about the story -
"What do you think will happen next?"
"Do you think that character made a good choice? Why or why not?"
"What do you like about this picture?"
“Do you notice any patterns?”
Bring attention to sounds of words - "What sound do you hear at the beginning/end of ---"
Ask other family members to be readers so your child has many role models for reading.
In this story, a child is visited by his first chance and unsure what to do with it, he lets it go. Later on, when a new chance arrives he reaches for it, but this time he misses and falls. Embarrassed and afraid, he begins ignoring each new chance that comes by, even though he still wants to take them. Then one day he realizes that he doesn't need to be brave all the time, just at the right time, to find out what amazing things can happen when he takes a chance.
Sometimes we hide who we really are to conform to the way we think we are supposed to be in the world. Sometimes we compare ourselves to others and feel we don’t fit in. But when we realize we are something to be celebrated, and we proudly live out loud as our true selves, we can make our unique mark on the world—and share our joy!
Jabari is definitely ready to jump off the diving board. He’s finished his swimming lessons and passed his swim test, and he’s a great jumper, so he’s not scared at all. “Looks easy,” says Jabari, watching the other kids take their turns. But when his dad squeezes his hand, Jabari squeezes back. He needs to figure out what kind of special jump to do anyway, and he should probably do some stretches before climbing up onto the diving board. In a sweetly appealing tale of overcoming your fears, Gaia Cornwall captures a moment between a patient and encouraging father and a determined little boy you can’t help but root for.
Katie Honors is a really good kid -- most of the time. But sometimes... well, sometimes, say when her little brother knocks down her beautiful castle after she told him not to touch it and she knows she'll never be able to make it look that good again... sometimes Katie gets so mad she's BOMBALOO, she's just not herself. Sometimes she uses her feet and her fists instead of words.
Being Bombaloo is scary. But a little time-out and a lot of love and understanding from Mom calms Bombaloo down and help Katie feel like Katie again! This is a warm book about losing your temper and how to feel like yourself again. With Yumi Heo's bright illustrations and Rachel Vail's sweet text, this title is the perfect read aloud for librarians, teachers, and parents.
Accompanying a manuscript Dr. Seuss wrote in 1973, was a letter outlining his hopes of finding "a great color artist who will not be dominated by me." The late Dr. Seuss saw his original text about feelings and moods as part of the "first book ever to be based on beautiful illustrations and sensational color." The quest for an artist finally ended—after the manuscript languished for more than two decades—at the paint brushes of husband-and-wife team Steve Johnson and Lou Fancher whose stunning, expressive paintings reveal such striking images as a bright red horse kicking its heels, a cool and quiet green fish, a sad and lonely purple dinosaur, and an angrily howling black wolf. Using a spectrum of vibrant colors and a menagerie of animals, this unique book does for the range of human moods and emotions what Oh, the Places You'll Go! does for the human life cycle. Here is a wonderful way for parents to talk with children about their feelings. With Johnson and Fancher's atmospheric, large-scale paintings bursting off the pages, Dr. Seuss's vision is brought to life. This rare and beautiful book is bound to appeal to both the innocent young and the most sophisticated seniors.
Poor Big Al! He just wants to make friends. And in the whole wide blue sea you can't find a nicer fish. But because Big Al is large and scary-looking, the little fish are afraid to get to know him.
What can he do? He tries everything he can think of -- from disguising himself with seaweed to burrowing under the ocean floor so he'll look smaller. But something always goes wrong, and lonely Big Al wonders if he'll ever have a single friend. Then one frightening day, when a fishing net captures the other fish, Big Al gets the chance to prove what a wonderful friend he can be!
Follow a little girl as she takes you on a tour through all of her favorite things, from the holes she digs to the hugs she gives in Now, a clever and poignant picture book by award-winning artist Antoinette Portis.
When Vinnie, a crazy-happy dog, gets lost while visiting a nature preserve with his family, he finds comfort in the company of Bogart, a big, lazy rhinoceros. Vinnie loves his new friend, but Bogart would rather just take a nap. A friendship soon blossoms-even if Vinnie's definition of "friendship" is very different from Bogart's-and when word of their unique situation spreads, Bogart and Vinnie are a worldwide sensation! But as soon as their fifteen seconds of fame ends, what's left is a bond even Bogart can't ignore.
In a rap-style prose poem, expressively illustrated in colored pencil, a racially mixed group of children enjoying a sunny day at the playground discovers the virtues of racial diversity and, at the same time, the basic identity of all human beings.
When Whistle for Willie was first published in 1964, The New York Times wrote "Mr. Keats' illustrations boldly, colorfully capture the child, his city world. and the shimmering heat of a summer's day." Now the story of Peter, who longs to whistle for his dog, is accessible to even the youngest child in a durable board book edition, with reinforced pages, a handy trim size, and safe, rounded corners. Ezra Jack Keats, who died in 1983, was the award-winning author of such children's favorites as The Snowy Day, which won the Caldecott Medal, and Goggles, a Caldecott Honor Book.
Noticing when someone needs help
Waiting patiently for your turn
While using a simple metaphor of a bucket and a dipper, author Carol McCloud illustrates that when we choose to be kind, we not only fill the buckets of those around us, but also fill our OWN bucket! Conversely, when we choose to say or do mean things, we are dipping into buckets. All day long, we are either filling up or dipping into each other's buckets by what we say and what we do. When you're a bucket filler, you make the world a better place to be! This 32-page picture book is perfect for children, parents, grandparents, teachers and people that want to teach empathy, nurture kindness and create a positive environment in their home, classroom, workplace and community.
The Rainbow Fish is the story of a beautiful, colorful, and shiny fish with metallic scales that lives in the sea. Rainbow Fish loves his scales so much; he does not want to share them when asked by a blue fish. The blue fish is so hurt by Rainbow's Fishes' refusal to share that he no longer wants to be around him.
Jim the chimpanzee is in a terrible mood for no good reason. His friends can't understand it--how can he be in a bad mood when it's SUCH a beautiful day? They have lots of suggestions for how to make him feel better. But Jim can't take all the advice...and has a BIT of a meltdown. Could it be that he just needs a day to feel grumpy?
Being kind can be a little difficult, even for dinosaurs. But with a little practice and some heartfelt humor, our prehistoric pals can develop empathy and compassion for others. Join in the hilarity as the bestselling duo Jane Yolen and Mark Teague teach young readers and dinosaurs that being kind is important and cool!
It's okay to need some help.
It's okay to be a different color.
It's okay to talk about your feelings.
Blue is a quiet color. Red’s a hothead who likes to pick on Blue. Yellow, Orange, Green, and Purple don’t like what they see, but what can they do? When no one speaks up, things get out of hand — until One comes along and shows all the colors how to stand up, stand together, and count. As budding young readers learn about numbers, counting, and primary and secondary colors, they also learn about accepting each other's differences and how it sometimes just takes one voice to make everyone count.