Kids Blog

Kids Are Natural Poets - National Poetry Month

For many adults, poetry is either a dead or boring format, with no relevance, resonance, or rightness to it. "I think that I shall never see / A poem lovely as a tree"? Oh, brother! Kids know better. Poetry is their natural language. Starting in first and second grade, they begin to hear the end rhymes of words and will repeat rhyming words with delight (theirs, not necessarily yours). They start understanding metaphors and similes - "You're shaking like a leaf!" "It's raining cats and dogs!" - and enjoy using language that captures their feelings and ideas.

Noodlehead Stories & Why Kids Love Them

You're a noodlehead, I'm a noodlehead, we're all noodleheads! We all have moments when our brains take a vacation and we misunderstand a figure of speech for the literal meaning. ("Let's toast the new year!" - would you like strawberry or blueberry jelly on your toast?) But the "noodlehead" genre is also a storytelling tradition around the world that children gravitate to because of the humor and hi-jinks. (It might also remind them of their own journeys from literal to metaphorical understanding.)

Wonder Twins, Activate! Listening + Reading Along Increases Comprehension

If you are parents to young children right now, you probably do not know what the 1970s cartoon "Wonder Twins" even are (though if you're grandparents of young children, there's a good chance you do!). Still, I think of this duo because of its importance in audio books for young readers. Namely, when kids listen to a book while reading along - using two senses - it can be a game-changer, especially for reluctant or struggling readers. First, it's just fun, and there is a game-like quality to following along while enjoying the story.

Reading on the Level (& When It Doesn't Matter)

Can you imagine walking into the library or bookstore and asking, "Where do you keep the books for retirees?" Sounds silly, right? You already know that while some of the books in our adult fiction section will appeal to older readers more than twenty-somethings, they're still all "adult fiction" books and we shelve them in the same section. And yet, we at the library get a number of well-meaning parents and grandparents who come in asking, "Where are your third grade books?" or "Where do you keep books for ten-year-olds?"

Music, Music, Dance, Dance! The Brain Benefits of Your Favorite Songs

Quick - what song, when you hear it on the radio or in the grocery store or on a TV show, never fails to make you want to get up and move - and sing along? I'm an 80s girl myself, so if Duran Duran is playing anywhere, I'm likely to at the very least tap my toe - and at the most, sing loud and bop around in the front seat of my car. (Yes, I'm THAT person in the car in front of you on your morning commute.)

Read It Again! Great Read-Alouds for Kids

When it comes to read-alouds, some books are just superstars. Here are a few of my favorite superstar books from storytime - hits with both kids and parents. Enjoy!

Kids Have Reading Rights, Too!

There are a whole bunch of unwritten rules when it comes to kids and reading that we would never stand for ourselves as adult readers. Think about it: when was the last time you started to read a book but then abandoned it because the characters were flat or the dialogue was silly? How would you feel if someone stood over you and MADE you read that terrible-to-you book? Angry? Exasperated? Like you want to throw the book across the room?

Word Knowledge is World Knowledge

Talking is like breathing - we do it countless times every day without thinking. Of course, that was not always the case. You had to learn your language, and the way you did that was listening to other people (most likely your parents and other adults in your family) in everyday situations. For example, your father asked if you wanted a snack, and you pointed to the yellow pointy thing on the counter. He said, "Banana!

Finding the "Right" Book for Your School-Aged Reader

Has your child not yet fallen in love with reading? They could just be stuck in finding the "right" book for them! For me, I didn't find the "right" book - the "one" that set the precedence for my true love of reading - until I read The Lion, The Witch, and the Wardrobe by C.S. Lewis.

Art Lab for Kids

When you were little, what kinds of art did you do? My art education was pretty standard for the time. We used watercolors, crayons, and learned a few paper craft kinds of things. The book Art Lab for Kids by Susan Schwake has plenty of standard art experiences, but it offers even more to do and explore in the wide, wide world of art.  Best of all, the focus on each project (there are 52 in total) is not perfection but the experience of making the art itself.