reading » Four Against Two

In One Ear And Out The Other: An Idiom And My Children’s Listening Skills!

A Mom's Job, Adoption, Books I Have Read, Education No Responses »

Jan 112012

One of my goals in homeschooling Enu this past semester was to help her with her English. That may surprise some who have heard her speak, as she is very much fluent in her conversation and has no accent. When we first brought the girls home I read that it took 7 years for a child to become fluent in English. I scoffed at this (as I did many, many other things I read about!) and thought they were fluent after just two years. They needed no extra school help and understood everything.

Or did they? I have slowing gleaned that while they seem conversationally fluent, if they don’t know something they fake it, or guess the meaning by the context of the conversation. I have learned we need to work on vocabulary, tone, sarcasm and idioms. They are still very literal in many ways.

Enu and I have worked a lot with word ladders. This has improved her spelling and vocabulary and they are fun to do. I found two other books that helped with her language skills:

In A Pickle And Other Funny Idioms by Marvin Terban

Ever wonder where the expression “To let the cat out of the bag” came from? This book will tell you along with other idioms like “He got up on the wrong side of the bed” or “Keep your shirt on.” I learned some things reading this and I know Enu did as well.

How Much Can A Bare Bear Bear? by Brian P. Cleary is a book on homonyms and homophones. “A bee can be.” ” A horse can get hoarse from talking of course.” An easy read that shows kids how to learn our complicated English in a fun, silly way.

I would love for Mita to read these books as well, as I know she too struggles with some of these things as Enu does. Of course a fifth grader is not always open to such suggestions from mother ;)

I wanted to share these books to help out the fellow homeschooler and the parents of newly adopted older kids who are learning English. They are helpful and fun and free if you get them from the library as I did. I did get the word ladder of Amazon, but it was totally worth the few bucks it cost.

(Disclosure: I was not asked to review these materials, nor do I make money on the links. I should do something about that shouldn’t I!)

NaBloPoMo And Me

It's all about me!, NaBloPoMo No Responses »

Nov 112011

I was reading a touching post on BlogHer and was yet again inspired to write a post. That makes two posts this month (9 days) that I have challenged myself to write a post with a specific purpose.

The writing experiment that is NaBloPoMo has been great for me. I’m really trying to improve my writing and reading other posts is one of the best ways for me to do this. I love reading, always have, but I’ve never read books, blogs or magazines as a writer. I’ve always approached them as a reader looking for information, inspiration and entertainment. Looking at different sentence structures, uses a word, expressions and humor has challenged me to work harder.

When I describe myself as a writer, I use the term loosely as I have never been great with words, spelling or grammar. I do want to inspire others though. Be it with breastfeeding knowledge, adoptive parent anecdotes or by telling you about a book I like; I want to contribute.

Thank you for reading, leaving comments and tolerating me!

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Book Suggestions For Kids (And You!)

A Mom's Job, Books I Have Read, Education, Entertainment, Reading Challenge 1 Response »

Sep 292011

I am always up for book suggestions. Last year I met a retired reading teacher and she wrote the names of some authors she thought my then ten-year-old would like. She was so passionate about reading she wrote the suggestions on the back of the event’s program and we talked for a long while. She was not a fan of Harry Potter, but I liked her anyway and quickly requested the suggestions from our library. She was right, they were great books and I will pass them along to you as well as a few others I adore. I cannot mention all the books, but I will try and touch on ones I haven’t written about before.

Preschool/Young Readers

Frog and Toad by Arnold Lobel- You cannot beat these simple stories that stress friendship, kindness as well as having an ease about them that makes reading fun.

Child’s Garden of Verses by Robert Louis Stevenson- Given to Meg when she turned two from her beloved great-grandpa Pap Pap. These verses bring out the adventure of being in a child’s imagination as well as build vocabulary skills with the old time language the book has. Elle is very fond of this book right now.

Tikki Tikki Tembo by Arlene Mosel - I started reading this book to Meg when she was about three years old. She quickly had it memorized and years later can still say his whole name! This is a favorite to read out loud in the class room as well. The illustrations are classic and introduce kids to the Asian culture a bit.

Early Elementary Students

The American Girl books are great (for girls!) as they have adventure, good morals and history in them. I like reading these books with my girls as I can add some historical tidbits and the books promote great discussions. Reading Addy was hard for me as I cried a few times, but those tears lead to great conversations with Meg. Kit made me mad when she hopped the train, but I was able to talk with Meg about listening to parents, making good choices and the like. Mita liked reading about Josephina and Enu enjoyed the Kit books best.

Flat Stanley by Jeff Brown is a fun and easy to read series that has started a phenomenon with the post office! We created our own Flat Stanley that Grandma and Grandpa took with them across the country and took pictures. Talk about inter-active! A great way to mix geography and reading.

Junie B. Jones by Barbara Park is Enu’s favorite. I do enjoy reading about Junie B. and hearing her language miss-haps are great learning tools for Enu. The way her mind works reminds me of another great series Amelia Bedelia by Peggy Parish. I’ve always adored Ameilia Bedelia being read out loud. Funny.

The Little House On The Prairie series by Laura Ingalls Wilder is one of my all-time beloved books. I read them and feel at home. That said, they are wordy and Laura does love to get into her descriptions so if your child gets distracted easy I would pick the easy reader Little House books as the chapters are shortened a bit. Meg never really got into these books as I had hoped, but I think she does appreciate that they mean a lot to me. Meg is my dragon lover when it comes to books and the Prairie doesn’t have enough fire-breathers for her liking!

The Magic TreeHouse by Mary Pope Osborne books are Elle’s favorites. She loves to read about going back into time. I really like the non-fiction reference books the series has as well. This is a fun series to listen to on CD in the car as it takes the kids’ minds of the drive and into history.

Middle School

This is my favorite reading level thus far with my kiddos. Of course you have Harry Potter (a given) but The Hunger Games Trilogy is my new suggestion as well! With a series plot that could turn people off if they don’t read the book and just hear about the story line (a reality TV show that has kids killing each-other, just doesn’t sit well with most of us) I urge parents to read these books so they can help the kids process what they are reading.

Another set of books with a futuristic 1984ish plot is Shadow Children by Margerate Peterson Haddox. Wow. Heavy stuff, but great ways to get us all thinking, discussing and preventing problems in the future. If your child has anxiety issues I would stay away from these books for a while. Enu will not be reading them anytime soon!

I just recently finished The 39 Clues Series. Meg made me read them. I really enjoyed this book set and number 11 made me want more books as the plot is thickening. The story line hold the older kids interest but the books are at an easier reading level for fourth and fifth graders. Fun.

A few more for middle schoolers:

Shakespeare’s Secret and Masterpiece by Elise Broach

Mandy and The Last of the Really Great Whangdoodles by Julie Andrews Edwards (yes, the Julie Andrews!)

Obviously I could go on and on…and I will with books I hope my kids will read as they get older but in another post! The selections above may be heavy on the girl side, but I am partial and lacking the experience of raising boys!

I hope you will add some suggestions to my comments so I can get cracking at those books as well.

Getting Your Kids To Love Reading

A Mom's Job, Education, School Issues 4 Responses »

Sep 222011

Okay....she is posing for this picture I admit it!

I have talked to several mothers lately who express that they want their kids to be readers, but confess that they themselves are not readers. Though I don’t consider myself an expert on getting your kids to read, I do have a few ideas and am very proud of the fact that all of my kids are often found with a book in their face.

As with all the values we want our kids to learn we must demonstrate those same values. Your kids have to see you reading. It can be fiction or non-fiction books, newspapers or magazines but they must see you reading for enjoyment on a regular basis. If they see you reading a book for a collage class you cannot complain about having to read it. If you read a book you don’t like, explain why you don’t like it. It is okay not to like a book or a particular subject and expressing this is a great way for your kids to learn.

I firmly believe that Meg would have been a reader without this, but Hubby reading aloud to her made a huge impact on how she enjoys books. He started reading the Harry Potter series to her in the first grade and five years later she is obsessed with creative, imaginative books that have dragons in them! Read out-loud to your older kids. I think we tend to stop reading to them when they start reading themselves. Reading out-loud helps them learn more vocabulary, gives them time to imagine about what you are reading and is great for bonding and cuddling with your kiddos.

Mita was a reluctant reader when she first came home with us and is now reading up a storm. We have to find out what they like to read. I worked hard at finding what she liked and then made sure she always had access to them. She is fond of biographies and non-fiction and also graphic novels. It was a bit difficult to find graphic novels that were girl-oriented and age appropriate, but I did find several. I think that the fact she was able to finish the entire book, and yet still be entertained by the pictures built her confidence that she could read well, and taught her that finishing a book is fun.

Enu is the child I am working at hardest right now finding her something to read. She has attention issues. Meaning she cannot pay attention. She will read one chapter of a book, deem it dumb and not finish it. The only books that she seems to enjoy are the Junie B. Jones books. She will finish these books with encouragement, but if I am not paying attention to her she will read several of them all at once, meaning she will read a chapter of one and put it down then pick up another one and read it. While I’m happy she is reading, I don’t think this does much for her comprehension or her enjoyment level. I have found that Books on CD are an easy way to get her into a story. It helps her vocabulary and takes some stress away.

Then there is Elle. My baby. My girl who tends to get the short end of the stick when it comes to one on one time now. She loves to read big books with hard words. She insists she is reading them. I struggle with this as I want her to read books at her reading level, but I want her to be happy and proud of herself as well. So as she reads these books I try and fit in a few fun first grader ones that will interest her. Foster confidence in your kids. She has such an imagination I know that once she starts reading independently she will be a lot like Meg and read a lot. I still need to spend more time with her and books those.

Reading is so important for our kids. It teaches language and communication skills, but more importantly it fosters imagination and possibility in our kids.I would love to hear your advice and suggestions for getting our kids to read more and enjoy what they are reading. I will soon write a post with some book suggestions for kids.

Reading With Meg

Books I Have Read, Moments With Meg, Stuff No Responses »

Jun 132011

I love this picture of her. Her face is just like when she was a baby. Serious.

Once upon a time. A long time ago. I was an idealistic mother who couldn’t wait for her daughter to grow up and read all the books her mother loved so we could sit around and talk about them together. I made a list of books I wanted her to read, categorized by age appropriateness and reading level.

Fast forward ten years later and some of the list has been read by Meg. I have discovered a few things along the way. One is that Meg is Meg, not me. Two is kids like to talk, a lot, but not about things you want to talk about. Three is that Meg has given me my own list of books to read.

While Little Woman and Little House on the Prairie will always hold dear to my heart I have fallen in love Harry Potter. I recently read a fun book entitled Schooled. I read The Hunger Games trilogy and am discussing it with Meg as she completes it herself. The 39 Clues series is on my reading list as she really enjoyed them.

She likes adventure, mystery, strange languages and hard to pronounce names. I like history, clean and fun romance and moral courage throughout the pages.

Watching her read a book reminds me of me at her age as I would read all day long, switching positions (Chair. Floor. Hanging upside down off couch.) just as she does now. She will read for hours until a book is done, just like I can. She gets twitchy if she doesn’t have a book, like me.

Having a child is such a mystery. She is so Hubby. She is so me.

I’ll read what she recommends any day!

How High the Moon: Read it!

Books I Have Read No Responses »

May 232010

I just finished a book that MomOutnumbered passed on to me last week. I tend to like MomOutnumbered’s books (It is her fault I picked up Twilight, remember?) and just looking at the cover of How High the Moon by Sandra Kring made me want to start reading right away.

Last year I read The Book of Bright Ideas by Kring and loved it as well. Like her last book Moon has a young girl as the main character. Set in the 1950′s she has some of the innocence of the times, yet is more knowledgable about life than she can ever imagine!

Isabella “Teaspoon” is a ten year old with a lot of heart, who wants to help and cannot stop talking. I seem to attract these traits with my own girls! Her character reminds me of a Pippi Longstocking and Anne of Green Gables rolled in with some Shirley Temple. Teaspoon says it as she sees it and I found myself laughing out loud through out the book.

This book is a fun and easy read that also touches your heart and shows how fragile life is and how important it is to care for your children. Maybe my connection with adoption is why this book has become an instant favorite.

I cannot really call this a review if I don’t say something on the critical side, can I? If I had one wish about this book, I would have loved to have had a few chapters narrated by Teddy, the man raising Teaspoon. Of course this may have changed the story to much, but he is such a kind character. I wanted to get to hear his thoughts as well.

If you have already read this book, let me know what you thought of it. If it sounds like a good read for you , go to your library or ask Mom Outnumbered to borrow it!

I’m A Reader

Books I Have Read 1 Response »

Jul 062009

1184809_six_books I love to read. I would read all day long if that was possible. I have been know to digest a 600 page book in a day with no problems.

Once in High School I re-read Gone With The Wind in one day. Honest. I had read it before and was sick in bed from school. I read from the time I woke up until late that night, but I did complete it.

I also am a re-reader as mentioned above. I used to read the following books annually: Little Women, Corrie Ten Boom and The Notebook. I don’t read them anymore like I did, but Meg and I are reading Little Women together this summer and I need to read Corrie Ten Boom again to remind myself how good I have it in life! I am currently re-reading Harry Potter 6, The Half-Blood Prince in preparation of seeing the movie next week. J.K. Rowling is an amazing writer and this has to be my favorite series ever, even more than Twilight, which for some reason is embarrassing to admit I love it so much. Maybe the teenage love plot seems unbecoming a mother of four?

The other day I read a post by Firemom over at Stopdropandblog.com and she admitted that she dog-eared her pages. I admit I do as well. I think the more a book is loved the more worn it looks. My mom who worked for years at a library frowns upon my dog-ears and will often give me book marks. I try and remember to use them when I am reading other people’s books, but I do so love folding down the pages.

The kids are all doing Summer Reading at the library again this summer. It is always a lot of fun and the kids adore books as well. If I have done anything GREAT as a parent it is that my kids read and enjoy books.

I have an eclectic collection of books as most of my reading comes from the library, and if you were to look at the books in my house I would not be accused of being an intellectual by any means. I sometimes get on a kick to read the classics, but it never lasts long. At this point in my life I need easy reads to take me away from the everyday stress that comes with motherhood. I would rather read about a vampire’s first love than Shakespeare.

I was a bit offended though today when I opened up and email for Amazon today recommending the following book to me:

Walter the Farting Dog: Banned from the Beach

Really, what does this say about me? I have no idea why this would be recommended to me. Did someone tell the Amazon folks my kids were gassy? I’m sure this is a wonderful book and am not giving it a bad review, but I will not be buying it and I am seriously thinking a asking Amazon how they pick these things!

Photo Credit

Four Against Two

In One Ear And Out The Other: An Idiom And My Children’s Listening Skills!

NaBloPoMo And Me

Book Suggestions For Kids (And You!)

Getting Your Kids To Love Reading

Reading With Meg

How High the Moon: Read it!

I’m A Reader

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