One of the best ways to help a child succeed is to get him or her involved in music at an early age. Even a few minutes per day is enough to teach your child a musical instrument. This would be a great way to spend your time, because studies have shown that children taught to play music at a young age do better in school and have better discipline. Piano is a great instrument to start on, because it can be a great gateway instrument – meaning that if you can play piano, it’s easier to pick up other instruments down the road. Furthermore, you can’t lose a piano, and it’s also very hard to drop or crack!

Purchasing a Piano

You don’t need to buy an expensive piano to teach your child how to play. Even a simple keyboard is enough to help him develop coordination and the ability to read music. Visit a local electronics store, or consider trying Craigslist or Ebay to find something simple. The bigger the keyboard is, the more useful it will be to you in the long run, but it might be beneficial to choose a cheaper, smaller model. If your child doesn’t enjoy it, you won’t be out too much money. A standard keyboard has 88 keys, but try to purchase something with at least 42 keys.

Finger Dexterity

When playing piano, the goal is to develop finger independence, so that each finger can play each key of the piano effectively. The last thing you want is for your child to become frustrated because his fingers aren’t cooperating. So, have your child place all five fingers anywhere on the keyboard. Then, ask him to depress one key at a time very slowly. The goal is to try and depress the keys without moving any of the other fingers. This will be difficult at first, but with enough practice, he will learn to do this effectively on his own.

Identify Middle C

Help your child identify where “middle C” is on the piano. This is the basis for good posture and will help him find his hand position. Have him sit in front of the keyboard. The keyboard or piano should be adjusted so that the keyboard falls just beneath his hands. His arms should be at just less than a 90 degree angle and parallel to the piano. Show your child middle C by asking him to find the white key to the left of the set of double black keys. Then, ask him to find the C that is closest to the center of the piano. This is middle C, and is one of the most fundamental aspects of learning how to play piano.

Finger Numbers

Next, you need to teach your child the numbers of each finger. When playing piano, early music has numbers written above the notes. These numbers tell you what finger to use to play a note. By learning the numbers associated with each finger, your child can more easily play songs. Have him hold both hands out in front of him, with palms facing away. Tell your son (or daughter) that the thumbs on both hands are 1s. Then, the fingers go up to 5, ending on the pinkies. Next, have him place his right hand on the keyboard. Tell him to play the finger that you call out. Call out random numbers until he correctly plays the finger associated with each number. Once the right hand is mastered, he can move on to the left hand. When he can play with each hand separately, have him place both hands on the keyboard, to see if he can play “hands together.”

Further Instruction

Work on these basic lessons for at least a month. Once your child has mastered these skills and developed some coordination, purchase a method book for young beginners. Guide your child through the book or hire a piano teacher to help him continue to develop. As long as you dedicate yourself, you can keep up with him for quite a while. Eventually, you’ll have to hand the reins over to a qualified instructor, but you can definitely save some money in the beginning while your child works through the first few books.

Guest Post
This post was written by Melissa Tyler. She likes to write, spend time with her family and frequent www.dentalinsurance.net.

Related Reading:

Help Your Creative Child Develop a True Love of Music
Suzuki Music Lessons
Ten Steps to Boost Your Child’s Creativity

Photo Credits:
Top: photo by Will Merydith.
Middle: photo by Iampeas

How to Help Your Child to Fall Asleep in His or Her Own Bed and Stay There Through the Night

We All Need Our Sleep

There are few topics that cause more discussion or disturbance in the home than sleep, or the lack of it! Parents cannot deal with their children when they themselves are overtired. Children cannot learn, play, or grow properly unless they have adequate sleep. Lack of sleep can be linked to many other health concerns, including depression, obesity, even cancer. So, when you have a child that won’t go to sleep or stay asleep, and sleep through the night in his own bed, you have a serious concern!

What NOT To Do

Do not rock your child to sleep. Do not nurse, or feed a bottle to a baby to put him to sleep. You need to put a child or infant in his crib while he is still awake, but sleepy, and he needs to learn how to self-soothe, how to relax and let himself fall asleep. If you rock a child to sleep, then when he wakes up in the night, as all children will do, he may need you to get up and rock him back to sleep! If you rock a child as part of your bedtime routine, that’s wonderful. But make sure your child isn’t quite asleep yet when you lay him down. Do Not put a child to sleep with special music, or a movie, or a toy. If your child depends on that music, or movie, or toy, then he will not be able to sleep without it. The exception to the rule is, if you live in a noisy area and wish to use a “white noise” machine – you are not training your child to fall asleep with the white noise as much as allowing your child to fall asleep with the absence of disruptive noise.

What TO DO to Help Your Child Fall Asleep Faster

Develop a Solid Bedtime Routine

or ritual, and stick with it always and forever. It can be five steps long (as your young child can count down each step on his fingers). It should be written down and posted, so your spouse and babysitter and the grandparents can all follow the same routine. The bedtime ritual tells your child that it is time to unwind and get ready for sleep. What you do isn’t as important as the fact that you always do it. Your routine may include picking up toys, taking a bath, putting on pajamas, hearing a story, and saying prayers. Add or delete activities to suit your needs.

Develop a Daytime Routine

Make sure that your child’s entire day follows a routine. See that he eats, naps, and plays at regular intervals every day. This guarantees that your child will actually be SLEEPY at bedtime. If his meals are hectic, and his naps are sometimes early, sometimes late, sometimes skipped, then his body never knows when it will be tired. The more you get your days into a routine, the less difficult your child will be through the “terrible twos” and beyond.

Daily Outside Play Can Help Your Child Sleep Better

Make sure your child has plenty of outside play time every day. Don’t raise a couch potato. If he plays inside all the time, he’s not getting enough fresh air and sunshine. Remember how you feel after an afternoon at the beach? Don’t you come home feeling unusually tired, even if all you did was sit in the shade reading a book? Something about being outside helps your body to be tired by bedtime. Maybe it has to do with soaking up sunshine and getting your body to follow its natural circadian rhythms. If your child plays outside every day for two hours minimum (1 in the morning, and one after naptime) he will be far more likely to be sleepy at bedtime.

Regular Daily Naps Help Your Child Sleep Through the Night

Make sure your child is getting enough sleep! Many times when children are having difficulty sleeping, it is more that they are not getting ENOUGH sleep, rather than the opposite! When your young child acts sleepy, he’s really overtired. A toddler or preschooler who is starting to feel sleepy usually acts “wound up”. It’s as though they are afraid of missing something exciting when they sleep, so they do anything they can to keep themselves awake. They may start to talk more, or talk louder, and they make less sense when they talk. They may start to run in circles or jump on the furniture. These are all signs of a “tired” toddler. Toddlers and Preschoolers need 13 – 14 hours of sleep in a 24 hour day. That’s usually about 11 – 12 hours at night, and a 2 hour nap. How many hours does your child get now? If he is not getting enough sleep on a regular basis, readjust your daily routine. You may need to put him to bed earlier, or allow him to sleep later in the morning, or schedule a longer nap. Maybe he won’t always sleep at naptime, depending on if he’s going through a growth spurt or not, but he should always lay down for naptime and rest.

Four Methods for Sleep Training Infants and Young Children

There are four basic methods for training your young child to sleep in his own bed. They are the Cry It Out method, Persistence, Sleep Training, and Family Bed. The final method isn’t really training your child to sleep in HIS own bed, but allowing him to feel safe and secure by sleeping in YOUR bed. This method is very popular among some groups, and goes along with the Attachment Parenting philosophy. It does not really solve the problem of your child not being able to fall asleep on his own. It merely postpones the issue, by allowing him to sleep with you. If you would like more information on co-sleeping, you may read The Family Bed.

Cry It Out Method of Sleep Training

The first method that is often recommended is called “cry it out” or CIO, for short. This method means to simply put your young child or infant to bed and let him cry himself to sleep. This may be hard to listen to, and can take from a few days to several weeks for it to work. This method is popular, because for many children, it does work. It is also the easiest on mom and dad. Cry it Out does not work for all children, or all parents, and should never be used on an infant less than four months old. For the Cry It Out method to be most successful, be sure to incorporate a good bedtime routine, which alerts your infant or young child that bedtime is near and helps him to settle down for the night.

Persistence Method of Sleep Training

Put your toddler to bed. Leave the room. When he gets up, you pick him up and put him back to bed. He gets up, You pick him up and put him back to bed… again and again and again, and again. You might have to do it 72 times the first night! But he will learn that you mean business, and he will learn that he must stay in bed. DO not get angry with him. Do not talk to him. Do not give him a drink, or more attention, or anything at all. Just quietly, firmly, pick him up and put him back to bed. This method is recommended on a popular television program about nannies, and I’ve seen it work. The next night, you might only have to put him to bed 50 times, then maybe only 20 times, and eventually, within a week or so, he’ll be trained that when he’s in bed, he must stay there. Of course, if he is still in a crib, he may not be able to get out of bed! In which case, you may need to go in and lay him back down 72 times, instead. Again, be sure that your child has a bedtime routine, and follow it consistently.

Self-Soothing Method of Sleep Training

Sometimes the problem isn’t just getting out of bed, but that the toddler really doesn’t know HOW to put himself to sleep! This might be the case if your child wakes up and cries in the night, every night. This child will not fall asleep using the Cry It Out Method – instead, he may cry and cry until he throws up. He may eventually fall asleep from shear exhaustion, but will only sleep for ten to twenty minutes, then wake up and continue crying.

We all wake up in the night, several times a night. Most of us just roll over and go right back to sleep, and may not even remember waking up. Children are the same. The child who cannot self-soothe, though, will come fully awake and be frightened. Once you train the child how to self-soothe, he will be able to fall asleep on his own – when you first put him to bed, and when he wakes up during the night.

This method can take two months to complete, but the first week is the hardest. Don’t begin it unless you have the time and patience to see it through. The first night, after your bedtime routine is complete, you will lay your child in his crib or bed. Cover him up (Children under one year are not to be put to bed with a blanket), and then pull up a chair and sit right beside his bed until he falls asleep. You might need to put your hand on his back. You are NOT holding him in bed! You are just using your touch to reassure him that you are right there. Do not talk to him. Do not give him another drink, another story, another kiss… he has had his last drink, his story, and his kiss as part of his bedtime routine. Now it is time to sleep. This method is similar to the persistence method, but you do not leave the room until your child is sound asleep.

It may take your child an hour to fall asleep! Hopefully, not quite that long, especially if you have followed the suggestions at the top including plenty of fresh air and exercise during the day. Your child should not be hungry, or over tired, if you have a daily schedule that includes regular meal times and a nap. Your presence is only there to help reassure the child that he is safe. If your child is still awake after an hour, just continue. Do not give up. Do not get up. Do not get your child up. But be sure that tomorrow you increase your child’s activity during the day to help him burn off energy and become more tired.

If your child wakes up in the night crying, you will need to repeat exactly what you did when you put him to bed. You will need to sit beside his bed until he is asleep again. No talking, kissing, singing… just sit there and reassure him with your presence. Once he is asleep, of course, you may go to your own bed and try to catch a nap.

You will need to sit by your child’s bed every night for two weeks, your hand on his back or forehead. Maybe it took an hour the first night for him to fall asleep, but after two weeks, maybe it only takes him twenty minutes. This is a sign that your plan is working! He is already learning that he can sleep in his own bed, that you are there to protect him, and that you love him dearly, but that it is bedtime! You are not talking to him, you are not giving in to his demands for a drink, a story, or more kisses. You are serious, calm, and consistent!

After about two weeks, you will continue to sit by your child’s bed, but do not touch him. Maybe you need to keep your hand on his pillow so he can see it, but try to train him to fall asleep without actually touching him. Continue on this step for several days to a week.

After three weeks, move your chair a foot away from his crib or bed. Continue to sit with him until he falls asleep. He should be falling asleep in about fifteen to twenty minutes. If it is taking longer, increase his activity during the day, or re-evaluate his diet to see if he is getting any artificial colorings, preservatives, caffeine, or other chemical that could be affecting his sleep.

After four weeks, move your chair two feet away from his crib or bed. Continue moving your chair a little bit further from the child’s bed every week, until you are sitting out in the hall. By now, your child should have learned how to self-soothe. He should know how to relax and allow himself to fall asleep on his own. Next time he wakes up in the night, do not go right away to his crib, but wait a bit and see how long it takes for him to fall asleep on his own.

This method may sound exhausting, but in about two months, you’ll have cured the problem. Keep the goal in sight, and document your progress. If after all that you’ve done, he’s still not sleeping, then it may be time to speak with your pediatrician. Keep a “sleep journal” to share with your pediatrician. List the times your child sleeps and how long he sleeps, and how long it takes him to fall asleep. This will help your pediatrician to see if there is a cause for concern, or if diet or exercise might be more to blame.

No matter what method you try, do it will calm assurance. If you are uptight, angry and frustrated, your child will become uptight, angry and frustrated – and he will never fall asleep. You may need to nap with your child during the day, or call a babysitter or neighbor to give you a break so you can catch up on your sleep.

For More Information:
Cry It Out Method: Good or Bad?

Related Articles:
Bedtime Routines for Preschoolers
Mastering the Nap
Common Bedtime Mistakes Parents Make

Photo Credits:
Top: photo by Jill M
Middle: photo by John Lustig
Bottom: photo by Sally

Some may think that preschoolers are too young to understand the story of Christmas. See what these preschool children believe! It is precious, and enlightening as well.

We live in a technological society. A generation ago might have seen a computer in the home, but today’s families may have multiple desktops, laptops, and handheld devices, along with cellphones, iphones, ipads, and ebook readers. Today’s preschool child can even get his picture books on a Nook Color. When is progress no longer a step forward? Could there be a time when we advance too far, that it hampers our natural development?

How Children Learn

All of the great philosophers, educators, psychiatrists and caregivers of young children agree that children learn best by doing. They explore the world through their five senses. They touch, taste, see, smell, and hear everything, to gain understanding. When a child has touched, tasted, smelled, heard, and seen something long enough, then he is no longer interested in it. We adults see that as a “short attention span”. Instead, we should praise the child for having discovered so much so quickly!

How then, do computers fit in the Early Childhood program? A child can touch a computer, certainly. He can see it, although most of the type on the screen is far too small, causing eye strain and potential damage to his young eyes. Some programs have sounds, although few children are listening to symphonies, but rather a series of silly bleeps and bops of whatever simplistic game a developer created who may not have any idea what really appeals to children. Computers don’t taste very good, and if your computer smells, then it might be time to replace it.

Game Developers May Not Be Qualified

Preschool teachers have gone to college. They have a degree, and they have learned something about the young child. They are qualified to prepare lesson plans for your preschooler, that will be educational and beneficial. There is no such regulation for computer software developers. They do not have the qualifications to teach your child. Depending on a computer game to teach your child would be tantamount to hiring a high-school dropout to babysit. The drop-out might do an excellent job, but it is unlikely.

That said, more and more young children are using computers! Public libraries and preschools have computers available for little children. Parents and grandparents are buying laptops and computerized toys. Even gaming systems have latched onto this growing market, creating video games for the younger set. So the question no longer is “Should Young Children Use Computers,” but rather… preschoolers are already using computers, therefore, “What computer and video games are right for them?”

New Games Page Added

I have added a new page to this blog, “Games”. In it, I will list computer games as I find them, play them, and rate them. The top table will list games that are acceptable, and rated on a scale of one to five stars, with three stars being the average. (I have yet to find a five-star game.) The second table lists the game sites that I would not let my granddaughter play, and why. I will continue to add to this page as time permits. If you have a favorite game, please share it in the comments section, and I will review that, as well.

As a final note – keep computer usage to a minimum. Certainly, no more than fifteen minutes a day. Then have your child go outside to play, to relax his eyes, and work his muscles. You will have a healthier child for it.

Related Reading:
Kids and Computers
Backyard Sandbox

Photo Credits:
Top: photo by Oleg1975
Middle: photo by Debora Austin
Bottom: photo by Randen Pederson

Spring! Spring! Spring! Lesson Plans

How can you tell that it is Spring? The snow melts, the ground thaws, and birds return. Small buds appear on trees and plants, which soon burst forth into green leaves and pretty flowers. All this happens before the official “first day of spring” in March.

There is so much to cover for this theme, that it will be divided into two weeks. This first week will look at melting snow, clouds, warm winds, mud, baby animals, and flowers. The following week will focus more on gardening and birds.

Your child can learn:

• Spring is the season that follows Winter
• Snow melts, and turns to water
• Days are longer (Sunrise is earlier and sunset later)
• The ground thaws (if it freezes where you live)
• Rain falls from the sky instead of snow
• Birds return from their winter homes in the south
• Hibernating animals awaken
• Many baby animals are born in the spring

You will be gathering pussy willow branches this week. Cut the ends, and put them in a vase filled with water. Children will love to watch them green up and produce the fluffy silver gray catkins. Directions for making a pussy willow arrangement are found here. You can buy pussy willow branches, or plant them in your garden so you’ll have them for years to come.

Worksheets:
If your child is ready for pencil and paper activities, here are several worksheets focusing on the letter B, number 5, the color yellow, and the triangle shape. Except for the first one, they are all included in the Spring! lesson plan. If your child is not ready for these activities, just skip them. Worksheets have limited value.
Letter B worksheet #1
Umbrella Tracing Page (simpler activity, to substitute for bitsy book, if necessary)
Yellow Triangles
My Itsy Bitsy Triangles Book
6 crabs
pre-printing practice: horizontal lines

Music:
You might find one or all of these recordings at your library. Otherwise, you can purchase them here. You might upload them to your computer, in case the CD gets damaged, or simply purchase the recordings as a download, then burn it to a CD for your child.
Saint-Saens: A Carnival of the Animals
Thunderstorm: a Surround Sound Experience
100 Singalong Songs for Kids
Elmo’s World-Springtime Fun(DVD)

Spring Puzzles
Puzzles are a great toy. They help your child develop small muscle dexterity, and pre-math concepts such as spacial awareness, parts of a whole, sequencing, matching, problem solving, and more. Young children progress from three or four piece chunky puzzles, to 10-25 piece jigsaw puzzles. Here are several spring-themed puzzles to add to your collection.
On the Farm jigsaw puzzle
Four Seasons peg puzzle
Melissa & Doug Bugs 24 piece floor puzzle

Spring Picture Books
Look in your library first, then you may wish to purchase the ones you can’t find there. These are all “five star” books, rated by the parents who own and love them.
Spring is Here!by Lois Lenski
Everything Spring by Jill Esbaum
How Robin Saved Spring by Debbie Ouellet
Robins: Songbirds of Spring by Mia Posada
It’s Spring by Linda Glaser
Splish, Splash, Spring by Jan Carr
Flower Fairies of the Spring by Cicely Mary Barker
Spring: An Alphabet Acrostic by Steven Schnur
Spring is Here, Corduroy! by Don Freeman

Lesson Plans for Spring, Spring, Spring! Week

Related Links:
Working with the Lesson Plans
Play Areas for Encouraging Creativity
Calendar Activities
Umbrella Tracing page

Photo Credits:
Top: photo by Marie in NC
Middle: photo by Shoe the Linux Librarian
Bottom: photo by Abigail Batchelder

Guest post by Emily Patterson and Kathleen Thomas

Early Childhood Learning- The Best Time for Bilingual Education

The future is a mystery, no one can say what it will hold – but if current trends continue, your child will grow up to enter a workforce in which the competition for decent-paying jobs will be nothing short of cut-throat. Despite the calls for greater co-operation and “interdependence,” human nature being what it is, it’s a good bet that the economy of the the future will operate according to the Law of the Jungle. It goes without saying that a good education is one of the best ways to prepare that child for survival in that economic jungle of the future.

The Bilingual Future

One of the future trends that has become certain is the existence of a diverse, global society and this rings true especially in the United States. Almost from the beginning, the U.S. has been a land of immigrants, and while the “melting pot” has been an interesting theory, it has not happened in practice. On the contrary, most major U.S. population centers have become more of an ethnic and linguistic checkerboard; Spanish, Russian, Vietnamese and Chinese speakers represent some of the fastest-growing segments of the immigrant U.S. population.

As China continues to rise, English may very well lose its preeminence as the international language of business; at best, it will have to share that top status with Mandarin in decades to come.

Getting Ready

Traditional wisdom has been to start teaching a second language in middle school, or even high school. Yet numerous research studies clearly demonstrate that the optimal period in a child’s life for multilingual education is during the preschool years – at exactly the same time they are learning their first language. Yes, it is possible to learn a second and third language later in life, but it is more difficult, because that neurological “window of opportunity” – when the brain is most malleable – has passed.

According to Dr. Fred Genessee, Professor of Psychology at McGill University in Montreal, it’s as easy for young children to learn two or three languages as it is for them to learn one. He’s not alone; educators throughout the world (in countries that often have two or even three official languages) have understood this for decades.

The way a child learns a second language is by actually speaking it in a total immersion environment. You may recall an episode of the animated series The Simpsons in which young Bart gets trapped on a farm in France – and by the end of the episode, finds he’s actually speaking the language. While this was a fictional scenario, the phenomenon is real; anyone who has taken young children abroad to stay with relatives in a foreign country for any length of time has observed this happening.

Enrollment in a preschool or day care program that offers immersion in other languages is the best way to get your child started. This investment will make him/her much more competitive in the job market later on.

Emily and Kathleen are Communications Coordinators for the Atlanta day care facility, a member of the AdvancED® accredited family of Primrose Schools (located in 16 states throughout the U.S.) and part of the network of day care preschools delivering progressive, early childhood, Balanced Learning® curriculum.

Photo Credits:
Chinese Islamic Boy: Photo by Mykaul
Rafi: photo by Ben Francis
Beautiful Girl: photo by Dizzle Productions

There is so much emphasis on teaching young children letter and number recognition, that many preschools simply do not have the time to properly incorporate music into their program. Music education should be more than singing a few children’s songs, or chanting some fingerplays. Little children are capable of so much more! Just attend any concert put on by Suzuki music programs, and watch the three- and four-year-olds play their violins. It is breath-taking.

I had two close friends whose daughters were about the same age as my oldest child, and all the girls were taking music lessons – theirs on the piano, and mine on the violin. The two moms exhibited the extremes of parental opinion in regards to their child’s music. The one mom clasped both hands to her breast, and with a dreamy expression on her face proclaimed, “It just brings me such joy to hear my child practice! To think than any child of mine would have so much talent is a true blessing!” The other mom snorted, remarking, “Thank God for electric pianos! She can plug in the ear phones and I don’t have to hear it.” I was somewhere in between. I loved hearing my daughter practice, but after listening to ten-thousand twinkles, I was mighty glad when she progressed to the next level.

The benefits of Music for the Young Child

Music develops listening skills! Music helps children express their emotions. Music and dance can give children a healthy way to expend some energy. Creating music fulfills a basic need that many of us have long ignored. And finally, music develops neural pathways in the brain, that lay the foundation for reading and math.

Introduce your preschooler to wide variety of music. Let him listen to classical music, folk music, baroque, romantic, jazz, blues, and more. Have him sing, clap, dance, and move to music. Help him discover sounds. One day he might bang on the back of a pot with a wooden spoon. The next day try beating on an empty oatmeal carton with a rubber spatula. One day you might actually get him a drum. How does it sound when he hits it with his hand, as opposed to the drumsticks?

Here below is Jonathan, a preschool conductor. He is listening to Beethoven’s Fourth Symphony, and he doesn’t miss a beat. He knows this piece! He knows what’s going to happen next, he anticipates it, giggling gleefully. In the comments after the video on YouTube, professional musicians said they would have no difficulty following him, and they wished their own conductors were as enthusiastic. The video is precious, but what struck me more than how talented this little guy is, is how joyful he is! I want that joy for my grandchild! I hope all of you can give your young children joy like this.

If you can find a class near you, you might want to look into Music Together. I’ve just discovered it while doing an internet search. I don’t have first-hand information on this program, but I watched their promotional video, and it surely looks good. I contacted a local class in my community, and depending on the cost, may give it a try.

The most important tip of all – have fun! Music should be loved, enjoyed, experienced. It should never be forced.

Photo Credits:

Little Drummer: by Bev Sykes

These are what I consider the best in Children’s Literature. These are the stories I read to my children, and now to my grandchildren. Some are stories I heard as a child. Fully ninety percent of the books I see in the libraries and in book stores for kids today are what I’d consider truly garbage. Yuck! Ugly pictures, stupid stories – we do not need to talk “down” to children! If you can’t find these books in your library, then I strongly suggest you add them to your Christmas and Birthday shopping lists. These are the stories that your child will want to hear again and again. The best way to raise a reader- read to them often. Read to them great books. Provide great books at home. Libraries are great, but children will want to own their own copies of their favorites so they can return to them again and again.

Mike Mulligan and his Steam Shovel by Virginal Lee Burton. Actually, I will list anything by this author. She wrote a number of children’s books – some of them Caldecott Award winners – for her own two boys. This story is a classic, timeless tale of a man, his trusty steam-shovel, and the work they do. As progress makes steam shovels obsolete, Mike and Mary Ann work together to find a solution. Written in 1939, this book has it all, “heroes and happy endings, lively illustrations, and a dash of nostalgia for extra charm.” (quoted from the publisher’s website). The publisher is currently offering extended activities for this story. You can click here for the website to download the activity sheets. I looked through the activities, and would recommend them for older preschool children, kindergarten, and even first grade. Her other books include Katy and the Big Snow and The Little House. Of course, if you’re going to buy Mike Mulligan for your little one, you might want to get a steam shovel from Tonka to go with it! Pairing a toy with a book is a great way to grow a book-lover.

Corduroy by Don Freeman. This charming story is about a Teddy Bear who wants to go home with a little girl. During the night he explores the store, looking for his lost button. He has a great imagination, is a warm and friendly character and one that small children can certainly relate to. In the morning when the girl returns to the store to buy him, he realizes that she must be a friend. He always wanted a friend! There is a sequel to this story, A Pocket for Corduroy, which is just as cute. (You can get the book Corduroy with a matching Teddy Bear.

Sand Cake by Frank Asch. Papa Bear amuses Baby Bear during an afternoon at the beach. Warm, family relationships, cute story, charming pictures. This author is very prolific! Most of his work is excellent. I especially recommend Popcorn, Milk and Cookies, and Bread and Honey.

But No Elephants by Jerry Smath. This is a silly story, but adorable. The kids love it. Just the right mix of humor, lively illustrations, and caring, compationate characters. Check out other books by this author, as well. He wrote and illustrated 40 books, and illustrated a hundred more.

The Mitten by Alvin Tresselt, illustrated by Yaroslova. I mention the illustrator, as well, because this story is a classic Ukranian folk tale, and there are other versions available. This is the best of them all. A little boy is out fetching wood for his family, but loses a mitten. A woodland mouse finds it, and makes a home in it. The mitten stretches and stretches as more animals climb in beside the mouse to escape the cold. Jan Brett, a fantastic illustrator, also did a version of this book, but the story isn’t quite as charming. Alvin Tresselt has done many other books, as well, including White Snow, Bright Snow, and Wake Up, Farm!

Annie and the Wild Animals by Jan Brett. She is absolutely the best illustrator! Her pictures are detailed and colorful. Her intricate boarders add little clues about “what happens next” before you turn the page. I’d buy her books just to look at the pictures. However, as far as stories go, they are somewhat lacking. This one, though, is the exception. I loved Annie and the Wild Animals, and so did my children. My copy is in the mail – can’t wait to see my grandchild’s face on Christmas Day! We do own Brett’s The Three Snow Bears. It’s okay as far as story goes. We love it, because we also run sled dogs. Here is a Jan Brett treasury of board books, for younger children.

Strega Nona by Tomie dePaola. “Strega Nona” means Grandma Witch, the title the people in the village have given an old woman. She is not a scary sort of witch, though. She can cure headaches, help girls find husbands, and get rid of warts. Big Anthony comes to work for her, and gets into mischief. It is a delightful story, the illustrations are perfect. This is a Caldecott Honor book, and well-deserving! One reviewer even suggested that children who grew up loving this tale became Harry Potter fans. Interesting concept. Another reviewer compared this tale to Disney’s Sorcerer’s Apprentice, and said that this one was less frightening. I just know that I loved reading it to my children. You really have to like the books you buy for them, as you will have to read them at least a hundred times each. You can safely buy ANY book by Tomie dePaola, and know you are getting a classic. I especially recommend Tomie dePaola’s Book of Bible Stories, The Clown of God, The Miracles of Jesus and Mother Goose.

The Snowy Day by Ezra Jack Keats. I didn’t care for this story as much as my kids did. I thought the story was a little bare, as were the pictures. A little boy goes outside to play in the snow. He puts a snowball in his pocket to keep it safe, and when he goes inside, it melts. On the other hand, this book would probably appeal to a much younger crowd – ones, twos, and young threes. If your child does enjoy this book, you make want to check out Keats’ other stories, especially Peter’s Chair, Whistle for Willie, and A Pet Show.

Caps for Sale, by Esphyr Slobodkina.I loved this story! Another classic tale retold, a man’s caps are stolen by some monkeys. He tries everything to get his caps back, but not until he gets so angry that he takes off his own hat and throws it on the ground, do the monkeys comply. A cute, monkey-see, monkey-do theme. This story is fun to read, if you make a fist and imitate the poor salesman. It can generate a discussion about emotions, as well – anger, frustration, etc. This is really a story worth owning. It’s been around for more than fifty years!

The Story About Ping, by Marjorie Flack. This one is a must-have. Ping is a young duck with a huge family on the yellow waters of the Yangtzie River. Ping gets separated from his family, has some adventures, and eventually finds his way back home safely. Colorful and charming, this classic tale is a must-have.

Tkiki Tikki Tembo, by Arlene Mosel. This is a great retelling of a classic Chinese folktale about why the Chinese give their children short names. The older brother in the story had a great, long name. Children love the rhythm of this story, and will repeat the long name with you over and over. “Tiki Tiki tembo, No Sa Rembo, Chari-bari Ruchi, Pip Peri Pembo”. Poor little Chang is quite out of breath as he runs for help, to inform his mother that his brother is at the bottom of the well. This book is a perfect read-aloud. Don’t get this story confused with “Riki Tiki Tavi” – a story for older children by Rudyard Kipling.

Make Way for Ducklings, by Robert McCloskey. There’s an excellent review of this book at Amazon.com, by a Professor Donald Mitchell. I’d almost forgotten this story, but it was one I read to my children often. It talks about parental love and concern for keeping their children safe. It was based on a true story, I believe. One day in Boston a family of ducks were trying to cross a busy street to get to the pond in the park, and the police got out to hold up traffic for them. Get yourself a copy, and share it with your children. There are even used copies available, which surprised me. Most kids wear this book out. The gold circle on the cover is a “Caldecott Award” – awarded annually for the “most distinguished American picture book for children.” Robert McCloskey has several other titles that are charming. I especially like “Blueberries for Sal” because I remember picking blueberries as a child.

The Little Engine that Could, by Watty Piper. I don’t know if this story even needs a review – who can’t remember it? The little engine had a big load to carry to all the good boys and girls, but he had to go over a tall mountain. He only made it by sheer determination, chanting “I think I can, I think I can, ” as he slowly made his way. A good lesson story, with bright, colorful pictures. I did think the “good little girls and boys” phrase got a little sappy halfway through the book, but you have the right to skip words and phrases when you read – your child isn’t going to know! Until, that is, it’s a favorite of his. Then he’ll know it better than you and he’ll remind you when you miss something.

The Story of Ferdinand, by Munro Leaf. I don’t remember actually liking the pictures in this book when I was little, but my kids liked the story anyway. The pictures are lovely line drawings, but at least the copy I had was tacky, two-color acetate overlays. Maybe they’ve republished the book with better color recently? This is a story about a bull who does not want to fight. He likes to stand in the field and smell flowers. Cute story, and a good one to share with children about learning to be true to themselves.

No Roses for Harry, by Gene Zion. I laughed the first time I read this one to my kids, and I still chuckled after the fiftieth time I read it. If any book can make you smile that much, it must surely be a keeper. Grandma knitted a sweater for Harry (the dog), but he didn’t like it. It has roses on it. He tried to lose his sweater, but someone always found it. Then one day at the park, as he was worrying a loose thread, a bird grabbed it (unraveling the whole sweater) to make her nest. I wonder if kids especially relate to this story, because someone – a grandma, or aunt, or neighbor – has probably given them something they didn’t like to wear either? There are several books about Harry, including Harry the Dirty Dog. I’d guess they were all great, but this is the only one I had.

Henry’s Awful Mistake, by Robert Quackenbush. Poor disaster-prone Henry. He’s expecting someone for dinner, when he sees and ant. As he tries to get rid of the ant, he makes a big mess and destroys his house. There is nothing to do but cancel dinner. He has to move into a new house, and the next time he sees an ant, he looks the other way. Kind of cute and imaginative. The illustrations are perfect, and the story moves along. This was very popular with my children. Henry has more adventures, including Henry Goes West.

Pickle Things, by Marc Tolon Brown. Personally, I didn’t really like this story the first ten times I read it. My kids did, though. And as I read it again and again, I grew to like it. Silly rhymes, but children love rhymes. “Pickle up, pickle down, juggled by a pickle clown. Pickle in, pickle out, pickles from the water spout.” Silly and colorful, children quickly memorize the poem and will “read” it right along with you. This illustrator is also the creator of the Arthur books, if your child happens to be an Arthur fan.

Are You My Mother? by P.D. Eastman. I imagine most of my readers already know this story. It is still popular, even though many of the other classic books I read to my children are no longer readily available. A little bird falls from his nest and wanders around looking for his mother. He meets a variety of animals and even a big piece of machinery, before he finally finds his mother. I wondered if very young children might be scared by this story, afraid of losing their mom, but maybe they focus more on the happy ending. I know that my two younger girls simple LOVED this story. I had to read it a whole lot more than I wanted to.
The same daughters and now my granddaughter absolutely adore his “Go, Dogs, Go!” These two books aren’t quite what I’d consider “five stars”, but they sure are popular with children.

Septimus Bean and his Amazing Machine, by Janet Quin-Harkin. Another cute rhyming story. Septimus creates a great machine, but doesn’t know what it does. Everyone helps him try to figure it out. I can’t find my copy, but I will definitely be buying a new one for my granddaughter. The rhyming is precious! And at the end of the story, they find the perfect use for his amazing machine. Amazon.com doesn’t carry this story any more, but there are sellers who will sell it through Amazon.com. I found one hard cover copy for under five dollars.

James Herriot’s Treasure for Children by James Herriot. This is the famous country veterinarian author of “All Creatures Great and Small”. This picture book is a collection of some of the sweetest animal stories you’ll find anywhere, with the most beautiful illustrations! If your child loves animals, this is sure to become his or her favorite book of all.