Making History Fun for Kids
Encouraging a child to follow the guidelines of their leveled reading program does not have to be “un – bear – able”!
April 19, 2010
Bears…Who doesn’t like bears? I think of a stuffed Teddy Bear, Smokey the Bear, and even Ben, the bear on Grizzly Adams. Well, Leveled Reader has books about a multitude of lovable bears. Even one called “Big Brown Bear.”
Mind you, the bears in “Big Brown Bear” are not like the brown bears photographed by Scott Cromwell Solent recently grappling then wandering off to catch salmon together in Alaska.
No, the bears in “Big Brown Bear” end up finding out that balls, bats, bikes, and paint mix with hilarious results. Young readers are encouraged by the playful rhythms, repeated phrases, strong spoken language patterns and creative story. It also includes enrichment activities at the end of the story. [Age Level: 4-6 years. Grade Level: Pre-School to K. Leveled Group: A-B.]
And what about the bears in the other bear stories? You might select books about Goldilocks, Goldilocks with Chicken Pox, a snoring bear, a princess and a white bear, or…..well, check them out for yourself as excellent options for you and your child as you select leveled books and other books and book sets to supplement your child’s reading program.
After reading these great bear stories, you can relate them back to historic bears, companion bears, amazing bear stories, television bears, or even bears in the news today. Or, simply relish in the time spent with your child reading or being read to: never time wasted.
Quote: “Reading to kids is to ordinary reading what jazz is to a string quartet.” Sean Wilentz.
Posted in Buying Books For Kids, Getting Kids to Read, Making History Fun for Kids | 
Tags: Encourage your child to read, Grandparents, Leveled Book Resources for teachers and parents, Leveled Book Sets enhance your childs reading program, parents and others purchase quality books for children | 
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Guided reading programs can become boring – let Flat Stanley spice things up for teachers and parents who know it is hard work to keep kids interested in reading!
February 28, 2010
Part of our goal in being a “Leveled Book Resource” is to bring our teachers, parents and others that want to encourage kids to read ideas that help encourage today’s youth to spend time reading.
Spring is almost here and Spring Fever might make your child want to do anything but read. Along with Spring, thoughts often turn to adventure and travel instead. You and your students or child may not be able to travel in the literal sense, but you can through books!
One of our favorite choices for helping children explore the world beyond their front door is the Flat Stanley books and project.
If you haven’t been involved in the ‘Flat Stanley Project’, now might be a good time to initiate the project, engaging and benefiting your student or child in many ways. Visit the Official Flat Stanley Project site to get started.
Flat Stanley not only brings back travel stories and photographs, but frequently brings back souvenirs! On a trip to Bakersfield, California, he brought back a tiny bale of harvested cotton from the cotton fields, crude oil from the oil fields and more. You can read about all the things he did and brought back from Bakersfield here. But, when you visit the official Flat Stanley Project site or go to www.YouTube.com and type in “Flat Stanley” for a multitude of videos (for example, this creative rap), Bakersfield might seem a little dull. Flat Stanley has been to the White House, the Academy Awards, a television show set, NASA, and Australia to name a few.
Students can blog about their Flat Stanley adventures and even add photographs to the photo gallery. In the classroom, they can plot Flat Stanley’s travels on maps and share the journals. Have them read about success stories.
To get started, you can order Flat Stanley by Jeff Brown and Stanley, Flat Again by Jeff Brown. They are appropriate for ages 6-9 years, grades 1-4 [Level L-M]. You can also purchase a Level L-M book set that includes a Stanley book. Or get all the Flat Stanley books!
Once students become familiar with Flat Stanley’s story, they make paper “Flat Stanley’s” by coloring and cutting out the template, and then keep a journal of Flat Stanley’s adventures with them for a few days. Flat Stanley and the journal are then mailed to other people who are asked to treat Flat Stanley as a guest and add to the journal, and then return them.
The Flat Stanley Project even accommodates Special Education students. This is such a wonderful opportunity for students to learn about other parts of the country or world, other cultures, events and situations they might not otherwise be able to visit themselves.
Dale Hubert, a third grade teacher from Ontario, Canada, developed this excellent program in 1995. For hints on how to integrate the project into your classroom curriculum, visit “hints” at the Official Flat Stanley Project site.
Millions of children around the world have shared Flat Stanley’s travels. Join the Flat Stanley phenomenon and support this international literacy activity. It can include visual arts, geography, oral language skill building and more. I know young adults and their parents who have the fondest memories of Flat Stanley and still get excited telling their tales…. Lily, here at LeveledReader, hopes this helps you continue to create that safe and fun learning environment while you aim to enhance literacy and other important skills.
Leveled reading resources for teachers celebrating February and Black History Month
February 19, 2010
February is quite the month for celebration. Not only is there Valentine’s Day, but it is the month in which two presidents are honored—and also to be honored is the history of African Americans. February is Black History Month.
From our Leveled Reading selections, readers have an opportunity to learn about two famous African Americans, Sojourner Truth and Jackie Robinson.
Did you know that Sojourner Truth’s birth name was Isabella Baumfree? She became an itinerant preacher during the mid-1800s, on a mission to abolish slavery. Our selected book, titled “Sojourner Truth: Path to Glory” by Peter Merchant, takes the reader through Sojourner’s enslaved childhood and free adult life and why she changed her name. She successfully proclaimed her message of equality for blacks and women, even though she was illiterate, through giving speeches and writing poems and a book.
This book is included in our Level J-K book set as well as available as a single book purchase. Generally appropriate for Grade Two students, but may be appropriate for some Grade One students. As you review our Leveling Criteria chart, you can best determine the Level based on various reading test scores.
For a printable resource on Sojourner Truth, you can visit the Scholastic site.
We all know Jackie Robinson is famous for baseball. Did you know he was the first black player in modern major league baseball? And, in 1962, he became the first black player to enter the Baseball Hall of Fame. Read more about how special Jackie Robinson was in our selected book, “Jackie Robinson: He Led the Way” by April Jones Prince.” In simple, engaging language, this book follows Jackie from childhood through his career as a Most Valuable Player—award winning baseball player and a hero of the civil rights movement. Perfect not only for Black History Month, but also for the start of Spring training!
This is a Level L-M book, generally appropriate for the more advanced Grade Two student, but can be appropriate for the Grade One—and even Grade Three–student. Review our Leveling Criteria chart to best determine the Level based on various reading test scores.
Choose these, and other, books to inspire your students and children.
For a printable resource on Jackie Robinson, you can visit the Scholastic site . This is a read-aloud play for Grades 4 and up.
Posted in Books for Special Occasions, Buying Books For Kids, Getting Kids to Read, In support of America's Teachers, Making History Fun for Kids | Tags: Celebrate Black History with Leveled Books, Encourage your child to read, Leveled Book Resources for teachers and parents, Leveled Reader supports educators | Comments Closed