Now I know my ABCs

Out of the millions of alphabet books out there, today I'm loving Tomorrow's Alphabet by George Shannon and Donald Crews. It's a different spin on ABC books and the traditional "A is for apple". I love the thought process involved, and the possibilities for further learning, discussion and activities. The book begins with "A is for seed, tomorrow's apple". Each 2-page spread goes on to show a before and after, or a change... such as "B is for eggs, tomorrow's birds" and "R is for grapes, tomorrow's raisins".
At first, I thought the book was much too confusing for Fischer, if my goal was for him to understand the correspondence between letters and sounds. There are better ABC books for that, but now that he is a bit older and seems to already understand letters and sounds, this book opens up some fun dialogue and thinking for him.
For older kids, I would just love to make a class book and get them thinking along this pattern. I found a fun one here that a 4th/5th grade class made (click on the pictures to see the full 2 page spreads). There were also some interesting ideas for extension activities and discussion on this site.

Fischer really enjoys letters and of course really digs the old favorite Chicka Chicka Boom Boom by Bill Martin Jr., John Archambault, and Lois Ehlert. The simplicity and rhythm of the story seems to snag students of many ages. We also like listening to the songs of it on youtube.

For a unique visual treat, we also really like The Hidden Alphabet by Laura Vaccaro Seeger . Very cool, although probably a bit difficult for the littlest of readers to really identify all of the letters. Once they are familiar with their letters, this is a great one. It is a fun change in perspective and example of optical illusions. There are so many wonderful alphabet books out there... What's your favorite?

Now, for the tiny DVD lovers out there, Leap Frog's Letter Factory is surprisingly enticing.It does a really fun job of introducing the letters and teaching their sounds in a memorable way. It happens to be one of Fischer's faves.

When I was teaching, my students LOVED Gaiam's Yoga kids and especially their ABC video. What a fun way to get a physical understanding of the letters! We'd watch it for inside recess or when we needed a little wiggle time. Although I do have to say that the video never actually fit into the slot of time I allotted and I always turned it off around "V"... now that never really went over to well with my students or the paraprofessionals in the room!

Loving trees

Gambel Oak

Last week was Arbor Day. Fischer and I headed up to our local botanical and ecological center to commune with the trees. Plus, they were having a FREE admission day! Fischer actually loved it. We hadn't been there since fall... and had usually always spent all of our time in the children's garden... but on this day we explored the entire garden and participated in some of the learning activities they were offering. He was so interested in the different types of trees and flowers, seriously - he wanted to know the names of the different varieties. He and I really enjoyed a few hours of tree lovin' fun. Actually, my favorite part was when we came across an empty outdoor stage, and Fisch stood up there and belted out "Finkle Finkle Little Taw" while I sat in the grass and listened. What I would have given for a video camera at that moment... or even my camera! Of course, I had to top that beautiful moment with a cowardly mommy moment... when he asked me to sing so he could watch! "Uh... let's go see what else we can find". Trust me, nobody wants to hear that (except Fischer).

They gave us a free Gambel Oak tree which is thriving on our kitchen windowsill waiting to be planted now.

Speaking of trees, we have recently fallen in love with Our Tree Named Steve, by Alan Zweibel and David Catrow. It is all about a beloved tree in a family's yard and all of the wonderful ways that tree was part of their lives, till one day when a storm hit and the tree fell. It is written as a letter from a dad to his children (who are away at grandma's when the storm hits). The book has beautiful illustrations and a thoughtful story line. It really makes for a good story about the love of a tree, but also about loss. Of course, I cried when the tree fell... but, I'm a pregnant mess... so maybe you won't. ;) Anyway, we love this story. I think that the children in the story are named after Zweibel's (the author) own children. A comedy writer by trade, it appears that this is his first children's book. He sure teamed up with a fabulous illustrator (Catrow) - we love Catrow's books!

Interested in saving the world with a tree?

• The Arbor Day Foundation has many ways to help.
• AND, don't forget about Eco Libris

Looking for more fun tree books? Click here for a few of our other faves.

Celebrate the earth with a book!

Happy Earth Day! While I realize that everyday should be Earth Day, it is still nice to have a day to remind us of all that we can be doing to help save the earth. It is also a nice reminder for those that are just beginning to do their part.

Here are a few books from our shelves that might help us celebrate today and everyday:

• Michael Recycle by Ellie Bethel and Alexandra Colombo is a fun recycling book with a cool new superhero to introduce. Fischer received this as a birthday gift from his buddy James. We've been enjoying it. I noticed that the Michael Recycle website has a list of great green tips. We also ran across a little computer game about recycling on Funschool. Of course Fischer is into recycling... because he is into the recycling trucks!


• Dear Children Of The Earth by Schim Schimmel


• One Less Fish by Kim Michelle Toft and Allan Sheather


• If the Earth...Were a Few Feet in Diameter by Joe Miller and Wilson McLean


• Keepers of the Earth: Native American Stories and Environmental Activities for Children by Joseph Bruchac and Michael J. Caduto


• 50 Simple Things Kids Can Do to Save the Earth by The EarthWorks Group

There are so many more fabulous earth books for kids, do you have any favorites? We're always looking for new books at our house.

Book of the day

Purple, Green and Yellow by Robert N. Munsch and Helene Desputeaux is one of my favorites and Fischer likes it too. Now, I know I told you how much I hate paint... and the same goes for markers... but I'm trying to loosen up a bit. Even worse than the mess, is the sucking on marker tips and the pounding them on the page till their tips disappear! OK, enough about my pet peeves.

This book is a lot of fun because the little girl in the story LOVES markers and gets her Mom to buy her enormous sets so that she can draw and draw and draw... never writing on the walls or herself... or does she? Who can resist that temptation? I know Fischer can't!

Book of the Day

A few days ago, Fischer told me that he wants to be fireman AND an astronaut. He has recently taken an interest in rockets and space shuttles. He received a space shuttle toy set for his birthday and a few books about space. Floating in Space by Franklyn M Branley and illustrated by True Kelley is our favorite. It tells all about the astronauts and what it is like to go into space. Fischer was especially interested in the fact that they could walk on the walls or ceiling and that they could slurp their drink out of mid-air! We've been learning a lot about space, shuttles. planets and astronauts through our books. He also likes Me and My Place in Space by Joan Sweeney and Annette Cable. This one tells all about the planets and the solar system in kiddie-friendly terms. Space is pretty abstract for Fischer, but he is interested in the planets (since he has glow in the dark ones on his ceiling with stars). He also loves to look at Rockets and Spaceships by Karen Wallace. He is very interested in the way the shuttles work.

Morbid dinner roll creations

We were going to make some fabulous dinner roll creatures... the easy way. We used Rhodes frozen dinner rolls and let them thaw on the counter (in a greased pan) till they were soft. Then we stretched and pulled and mushed until we had made them just the way we wanted. I made a snail, a snowman and a burrito. Fischer made a "party animal", "whale", "ferret", and TWO "killed owlets". Wait... WHAT? Killed owlets? Where in the world did that come from? Hmmm... It turns out it came from the book, Why Mosquitoes Buzz in People's Ears: A West African Tale. We own this book, however we've never read it. BFF has this book and it made her mommy cry. BUT Fischer has heard it numerous times at MamaBarb's house... and he likes it! BFF likes it too, although she is quite bothered by the owlet dying (as she recounted the story for me at IHOP last week). Fischer is... intrigued by it, and he does seem to understand that "killed" means "dead" and "dead" means that the owlet can't fly anymore.

The book is actually a lesson on rumors and telling lies, and is a Caldecott Award winner. It begins with a mosquito telling a lie that sets off a chain of events that affects everyone who lives in the forest.

Next time I think I'll pull out our Rhodes Kid's Ideas Cookbook to give him more positive inspiration! ;)

Book of the Day

Fischer is soooo into Goldilocks. He loves me to read the book or just to just tell him the story. He also loves to retell the story to Andy and I. In fact, he loves it so much... that for weeks he was insisting that he wanted Goldilocks shoes for his birthday! When I asked him what they were... he drew me a picture. I wish I would have saved it to show you. Basically two oval squiggles. When I asked him to describe what they looked like he said, "I drew you a picture!"
Ok, silly me. When I asked what color they were (he had drawn them in pencil)... he started to get annoyed with me because they were obviously yellow since he drew them on a yellow steno pad! OK... getting nowhere. So... I said that Goldilocks shoes are girl shoes. Well, he wants them in white, so ... apparently they are now boy shoes. Now what? I searched the Internet, couldn't find a thing! So I did what (I hope) any good mother would do... hoped he would forget about them. AND, he finally has (at least I think he has, I don't dare bring them up again!).
Anyway, our Goldilocks and the Three bears is retold and illustrated by Jan Brett... and true to her form... the pictures are fantastic.... so much great detail. We love it.

Book of the Day

I hate spiders. Andy hates spiders. Fischer is beginning to hate spiders. It is horrible, I know, to transfer such hatred to our children.... oops. ALSO, it is horrible for "gardeners" such as Andy and I to hate one of our best garden allies. It is irrational. With all this hatred swirling around us, why oh why would I get Fischer this book? It was my way of trying to redeem myself and raise a spider lover... or maybe it is just cute and you know how I love books!

Aaaarrgghh! Spider! by Lydia Monks is a fun little tale told from the perspective of a lonely spider. The spider wants so desperately to be a family pet. It does all sorts of fancy tricks to try to catch the attention and admiration of one family... but each time the poor spider ends up scaring the family. You'll have to see if the spider's dream ever comes true... let me just warn you, the last page has seriously given me nightmares!

Anyway, Fisch is liking this book and Andy and I are finding it therapeutic! ;)

Book of the Day

Out of the enormous box of holiday books that we have been reading this month, Fischer continuously insists that we read Margie Palatini's Mooseltoe. It is about "Moose" who happens to have an incredible mustache - or rather Moosetache, and his Holiday to do list. This moose is on the ball with holiday shopping, cooking, decorating, card writing the works... but come Christmas eve he and his family discover there has been one Major oversight... he forgot the tree! Anyway, this is Fischer's Christmas book pick this week. I'm hoping that we can start reading more of the others, because while this one is cute, I'm ready for a new story!

Will this Thanksgiving be a horror story for Fischer?

Because of books like Eve Bunting's A Turkey for Thanksgiving and a few other similar stories on our shelf, Fischer is just absolutely positive that we'll be having a turkey for dinner on Thanksgiving. No... not on a platter, but on a chair... as a guest. We've gone many a round with this one. He thinks it is hilarious when I say that we are going to eat the turkey. He "knows" I'm pretending. Because how would the turkey fit into our mouths? ... Obviously it would be too big. I've tried to explain that the turkey will be dead and cooked... but he doesn't get it. Luckily I stopped myself tonight from telling him that we'll "just cut him up with a knife so he'll fit in our mouths". I think that may have been a traumatizing image for bedtime. Sooo, I have no idea what horror may occur at our house on Thursday when there is no big colorful bird sitting at the head of the table... only the gnashing of teeth and people mumbling... "the turkey is delicious". Yikes.

Book of the Day

Fischer, Andy and I have been happily gobbling up a feast of Thanksgiving books for the past two weeks. I have to say that Fischer's and my favorite is I know and Old Lady Who Swallowed a Pie by Alison Jackson and Judy Schachner. If you couldn't guess, it follows the idea and rhythm of the original "I Know an Old Lady Who Swallowed a Fly" song and story. This story stars a hungry old lady eating up the entire Thanksgiving feast dish by dish until her body becomes enormous and blob-like (especially compared to her teeny tiny little boots). it is definitely a fun one. I like to sing it (even if I am tone-deaf) and Andy likes to read it. Either way Fischer just loves to hear it. We won't give away the ending... because as you know full well "perhaps she'll die".



I found lots and lots of lesson plans crafts and activities about this book on the following great sites:

• Moultrie-Colquitt County Library
• Mrs. Nelson's Class
• Making Learning Fun

Click around till you find what you like in the subject you want to target.

Book of the Day

I have been dying to tell you about Growing Up Grizzly: The True Story of Baylee and Her Cubs by Amy Shapira and Douglas H. Chadwick. I am absolutely in love with this book. I had to wait till our swap partners received it before I could talk about it.

The photographs are fabulous and the story is true. The authors witnessed this story unfold and we are so lucky to get to experience it in a book! It is about goofy looking 2 year-old bear named Emmett who wanders into an area of land inhabited by other grizzly bears. He notices a mother bear and her three cubs and is immediately drawn to them. The mother does a good job of keeping him away from her cubs, until one day, he sneaks over to them while she is fishing. When she returns she sees this big old bear sitting with her tiny cubs and seems to realize that he needs her. He becomes one of her cubs. She feeds him and teaches him and keeps him close to her as if she has 4 cubs now. They hibernate together and ... well, they seem to be one big happy family. Then when her little cubs are 2 and it is time for them to be on their own... well, Emmett is ready too! It is as if he was kicked out of the den at two but just really needed two more years to be ready... I am tearing up just thinking about it! You can think of it as a bear adoption story or a bear with special needs or a beautiful mommy story or whatever you want... I just thought it was touching and the photographs are fabulous. Did I mention it was true??? So sweet.

We're Going on a Bear Hunt

I've been wanting to talk about a few things since our swap package arrived in the UK last week. I'll be doing a series of posts this week about bears. Grizzly bears have been on my mind for awhile and I have a few good things to tell you about.

Today, I'd just like to say again..."Thank you" to Life with Nature Girl for hosting this swap and "Thank you" to Craft Matters for being such good swap partners. Out of all the books in the world to choose from... we both chose to theme our packages around BEARS!! So funny.

Anyway, you already know about the fabulous book "We're Going on a Bear Hunt" that we received... but I wanted to let you know about Michael Rosen (the author) reciting the story on You Tube. T and D's mum told us about it... it is great!! Fischer is in love with the book now and really enjoyed ALL of the You Tube videos on it... I really liked Michael's.

"...Autism cannot wait until April to be discussed"

Remember Eileen and Kim? They created the book: "The Girl Who Spoke with Pictures: Autism Through Art". They'd like you and I to be able to get our hands on a copy - in a bookstore. Unfortunately, bookstores don't have it. It is on Amazon, but that doesn't help people who'd like to see inside the book before purchasing. Eileen, Kim's mom, sent me a letter this morning. I thought I'd share it with you. Maybe if we all inquired about the book at our local bookstores, we'd be able to get bookstores to have a copy in stock. (I bolded certain phrases for you)

Good morning Lisa,

Kim and I thought it would be fun to go to a couple of bookstores (60 miles from our area) to scout out our book on the shelf. Much to our surprise, we could not find the title. We weren't expecting numerous copies, but it would have been nice to see just one. We went to the front desk to inquire. We were told that this particular book store does "carry" the book, but does not keep it in stock in their store. I asked if they would ever have it on the shelf, to which they replied, "no." I went to subsequent bookstores in this area and found that there were no books on the shelf, but they were "happy to order it." When I arrived home, I went online to check stores on west coast/east coast and found that the only stores that had our book in stock, were the bookstores that I had contacted in person weeks prior to publication.

I want your readers to know that if they want to buy our book in a bookstore, they will have to ask for it to order it.

I have contacted news organizations all over our state to make people aware of the existence of our book. We have heard nothing. (Many organizations, news and bookstores in the past have expressed that they want to wait until April which is Autism Awareness month.)

Plan of action: Kim and I have decided to take this directly to the people. We are going to go out into our state's community and meet with people to introduce ourselves and our book. Of course, we are going to do this in a creative and unorthodox way, but ever since Kim was born, my life has been extraordinary.

Our Mission: We want to kindly ask bookstores everywhere to carry a "sample copy", ONE COPY, on their shelf, so that customers can peruse to see if they would like to place an order. Our book is our voice, if our book is in a warehouse, it is not being heard. To let people of the community and news media know that autism cannot wait until April to be discussed. Parents and individuals with autism live with incredible challenges and experience victories every day, not just to be recognized during that certain month. If it takes just one person at a time, one handshake at a time, one community at a time, we are willing to be proactive to introduce ourselves. How can people request or order a book that might be helpful, if they have never heard about it? How can "The Girl Speak With Pictures" when her artwork is not seen? Her art is so unique, the context in which it occurs adds richness to her communication, it requires explanation.

Remember, "Education is not the filling of a pail, but the lighting of a fire." author unknown

We want to start a bonfire!

Eileen Miller

Eileen and Kim have some "unorthodox" plans to accomplish their goals. I cannot wait to hear about their experiences. I'll keep you posted.

In the meantime you can look at the book on Amazon and you can request to see a copy at your local bookstore.

You can read more about the Kim and Eileen here, and here. You can also visit their website.

Our swap package arrived!

Fischer and I signed up for One Good Book Swap over at Life with Nature Girl, in September. We were paired up with 5-year old twin boys, T and D from the UK. We've learned a bit about them and their crafty mom via email and were excited to choose a book for them. We mailed the boys a package of goodies based upon our book. They did the same; it arrived yesterday, and I had forgotten to get the mail! So... Fischer opened it today. He was so excited to see what the boys had sent him. We sent theirs out on Saturday, and I think our package will take its sweet time getting there.

Fischer was totally spoiled! He was beaming! The package was themed around the wonderful book, We're Going on a Bear Hunt, by Michael Rosen and Helen Oxenbury. Fischer had never heard this story and got a huge kick out of the onomatopoeias and the actions we did.

Their mom made Fischer a fabulous cloak to wear during his own bear hunting. It has a bear on one side and his name on the other. I can see why her blog is called Craft Matters, she is definitely talented! I can't imagine the time and skill that went into making it. Soo cute.

As if the cloak wasn't treasure enough, she also made Fischer a crocheted dog to keep him company on the hunt! The detail is incredible, we are so lucky!

T and D sent him bear stickers, and a bear cookie cutter, and super yummy "Smarties" from the UK, where they live. Their Smarties are chocolate! He ate the Smarties first thing, who needs breakfast?

Thank you so much to T and D and their awesome mama! We had a fabulous experience and hope that you get your package soon!

PS If you like the sweet little doggie, check out Craft Matters' Etsy shop.

Book of the Day

We've been reading lots and lots of Halloween books around here. Fischer loves The Runaway Pumpkin by Kevin Lewis and S.D. Schindler. The pictures are funny and the text has a good rhythm. Fisch really likes the "'round and 'round across the ground makin' thumpin' bumpin sound came that thumpety, bumpety, thumpin', bumpin, round and roll-y RUNAWAY PUMPKIN!" line that is repeated throughout the book. We've read it enough to almost have it memorized!!
He is also a big fan of Kay Winters' The Teeny Tiny Ghost series and Ten Little Mummies by Philip Yates (which is good if you can get past the idea that "little mummies" would have to be dead children - apparently that doesn't bother Fischer ;)).

First Trip to the Dentist

Fischer went to the dentist for the first time ever today. I picked up Going to The Dentist by Dorling Kindersley at the grocery store last night to help him prepare. This morning, we read the little story about Dora's first dentist experience, and studied the photographs of all things dental. I really think it helped Fischer to know what to expect. Although, he still cried when they said it was his turn (he's gone strange - more about that in a minute), he quickly calmed down and let the dentist look in his mouth and count his teeth. The doc said that his teeth were healthy, and in fact the ones that had turned gray after he bonked them a few months ago, are fine now!
I had heard conflicting stories about when is the best age to have your first exam, so I thought we'd just go and make sure everything was going well. Yay, it is. Fischer received a green sticky hand for a bravery prize. I was going to take his picture in the big chair, but he was glued to me the whole time, so that wasn't going to happen.

About "strange", the other day I met a woman who told me that children this age may "go strange". In fact she asked me if Fisch had "gone strange yet". Huh? Apparently the phrase is referring to the clingy whiny, shy, scared, crying 2 1/2 year old that is my son. So, yes, he has officially "gone strange". Let's hope he comes back soon!

The Girl Who Spoke with Pictures

Exciting news! The book is out and the website is up!! Remember when I told you about Kim Miller, an artist who has autism? She and her mother have collaborated on a book together that lets us into the mind of Kim as she communicates through her artwork. Well, the book has received a wonderful review from ForeWord Magazine, and is for sale numerous places, including Amazon.

"Kim and I were overjoyed when we read the review. The magazine considers nearly 1,000 pre-publication galleys and manuscripts submitted each month, and approximately eight percent of those titles are selected for review. To be considered was awesome, to get reviewed was glorious." - Eileen Miller

Also Kim and her mother have their website up, to keep us all posted on the latest and greatest from this mother/daughter duo. I just thought you might appreciate an update!

Book of the Day

Ducks Don't Wear Socks by John Nedwidek and illustrated by Lee White is a new friend of ours. Do you ever think of books that way? Maybe just the characters? I have a few students who have very personal relationships with books, and who can't bear the thought of introducing "new" books into their lives. I also like to think of favorite books as old friends. Certain books and certain characters hold memories for me or seem to comfort Fischer with a bit of "home". Anyway, my nephew gave me this book for my birthday. Fischer, Andy and I have had a great time reading it. Fischer gets a kick out of Emily the "serious girl", and loves seeing her finally crack a smile and the a laugh!

Book of the Day

Fischer is now really enjoying the Froggy series by Johnathan London and illustrated by Frank Remkiewicz. We have about six different Froggy books at our house: Froggy... Goes to School, Goes to Bed, Eats Out, Goes to the Doctor, Learns to Swim, Plays in the Band and Froggy Gets Dressed. This last one seems to be Fischer's current favorite. All of the books are really cute, with repetitive phrases and familiar characters. Froggy is always forgetting something and ALWAYS gets embarrassed at some point during the book (I can totally relate). I think Fischer can relate to Froggy too as he watches Froggy doing new or familiar things. I think this is the first series that Fischer has really been interested in.... No, I take that back... the David books were his first series fave. At any rate, we have been reading a lot of Froggy these days.

For all of you teachers, home schoolers or mommy go-getters, here are a few fun links for more info, ideas and activities to go with Froggy Get's Dressed:

• Suite 101 has free printable lotto boards and uno games to go with the story.
• Abcteach has a bunch of printable worksheets for reading, comprehension, and fun that are specific to the story.
• You Tube has a video of an enthusiastic Cullen from Cullen's ABC's doing her own rendition of the story using felt pieces from funfelt.com.
• This story lends itself to many conversations and activities about clothing and weather and how the two are connected. Froggy forgets what kinds of things he should be wearing in the snow.