The Sound of my Heart Book & Activities
Snuggle up for a sweet read & easy activity with your littles! Perfect for valentine’s day or year round :)
Read MoreBallet Day 2020
Fun books to celebrate Ballet day!
Read MoreFall Leaves Us Reading BINGO Challenge
Fall is well underway but it’s never too late to start a good reading challenge! Especially as the holiday season really kicks off, a reading challenge is a great way to keep your children engaged and entertained on even the coolest of days! All the items listed here on this BINGO sheet leave room for your family to really make it their own. Whether your family is full of bookworms or maybe has a few reluctant readers, this reading challenge is geared towards making the time set aside with a book fun and unique. Challenges like this not only broadens your child’s mindset about reading but also encourages them to go outside their comfort zones and familiar titles.
Have littles that aren’t quite reading yet? We do! Our oldest is 4.5 and even though we don’t have independent readers yet doesn’t mean we can’t read aloud or still mark every box. It’s never too early to read with your babies, the bond it builds is for all ages and makes for fantastic lifelong skills.
Download and print your FREE Fall Leaves Us Reading BINGO Sheet here!
If you’re up to the challenge I would LOVE to hear what your family is loving! Favorite block to mark, books read, new discoveries, feel free to share away!
If you’re looking for some book ideas check out some of our favorites below:
Favorite Author’s First Book:
William Joyce’s George Shrinks
Chapter Books (listed early readers to older):
Fizz and the Police Dog Tryouts
The Chronicles of Narnia Boxed Set
Books for Veteran’s Day:
My Letter to Daddy (written and illustrated by a military spouse)
Non-fiction:
Pandas (This Beginners series has TONS of titles, currently we have a Panda fan)
Fairy or Folk Tale
Balloons over Broadway: The True Story of the Puppeteer of Macy's Parade
Pop-up Fairy Tales The Three Little Pigs
Peek Inside Fairy Fairy Tales: The Little Mermaid
Goldilocks and the Three Little Bears (Picture Book)
Little Red Riding Hood (board book)
Nature
Bug Hotel
Lift-the-Flap Weather and Seasons
Books for the car
Complete Book of Farmyard Tales Collection (with CD)
Muddle and Match: Imagine
Kisses, Cuddles, and Goodnight
Silly Books
Gobble, Gobble, Moooooo Tractor Book
How to Bath Your Little Dinosaur
Seasonal Favorites
That’s Not My…Reindeer
Read with a flashlight:
The Shine-A-Light series is FANTASTIC for reading in the dark. We usually pair it with a $1 flashlight from Walmart (in their camping section). Makes for an awesome kid’s gift!
Secrets of the Apple Tree Shine-A-Light
Wordless Picture Books:
The Lion & The Mouse
Journey (Aaron Becker's Wordless Trilogy)
Children’s Recipe Books
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Celebrate the 4th of July--Patriotic picture book & craft!
4th of July is almost here and what better way to celebrate than with a Patriotic picture book & craft! The girls had so much fun doing this super simple and fun craft from Crafty Morning! Once complete we snuggled up for a reading session while our masterpieces dried and although there are tons of fun books you could pair with this craft but we opted for Americanly!
What You Need for Your Patriotic Craft
red & blue paint
7 flexible plastic straws
2 paper plates
1 piece of white paper
tape
Since my littles are still pretty little I went ahead and made the firework straw stamps for them and then had them help pour the paint & prep the rest of the space. For the firecracker stamps, take your 7 straws and stretch them out as far as they go and gather them in your hand. Wrap a piece of tape around the bottom and then another right under the top. While dry branch out the tips of the straws to create the firework effect.
I had one plate for blue paint and the other for red. I went ahead and let the girls stamp in whichever color they preferred onto their white sheet of paper. If the paint doesn’t catch completely have your children press the straws individually against the paper. Repeat with the opposite color as much or little as your child would like!
Once the girls were done we laid their work to dry, read our accompanying book, and took a nap (since you know, we had plenty of time since our stuff had to dry ;) )
Patriotic Picture Book
Americanly is such a fantastic book written by Lynn Parrish Sutton and illustrated by Melanie Hope Greenberg. The title originally released in 2016 in conjunction with the National Park Service’s 100th birthday and through its rhythmic verse showcases landmarks and monuments across the United States.
Each line of the story begins “I love you…” and is followed by adverbs and descriptions of locations across America. We’ve absolutely loved this title as we’ve recently moved from Washington to Oklahoma as a military family. Our girls were curious as to where we were each time we stopped to rest and could often reference the map in the back of this title to see how far our adventure took us each day. The book is sturdy, has round corners, and is such a delight to read!
As with many of the Usborne Books & More titles, there is an enormous amount of resources available for teachers and parents to accompany the book. Interviews with both the author and illustrator, a glossary to define each landmark mentioned as well as coloring pages and a word search for young readers to dive into after the story is over!
Americanly is a must have for any family looking to explore the wonders of the United States from the adventure of the road or comfort of their home.
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