We'll close out the month by taking a little break from food, and connecting more dots of reading and children's books. As the picture books I've been writing about will mainly appeal to children between the ages of 3 and 8, I realize that some of you may feel left out of the equation.
I strongly believe that picture books are appropriate for people of all ages, but the core readership base ranges from newborns through 8 or 9 year olds. So, while I do try to mix in picture books for older readers (ages 9 to 14) as well, I mainly do so for siblings and advanced (or just very enthusiastic) readers. There are so many extraordinary ones out there these days (especially when it comes to nonfiction, which is important for tweens and teens), but these resources are often overlooked and unopened because independent readers feel more mature reading lengthier books. That's a topic for another day, though.
Just like learning to eat healthfully can start at a very young age, so can a love of reading be instilled. Both are contagious when they're modeled by parents.
Sometimes, parents have to think outside the box, though. For example, if your child is reluctant to visit the library with you, maybe a lion can help!
Everyone knows there are rules to follow when you're at the library, but what if a lion fell asleep in the story time area of the children's room?
"No one was sure what to do. There weren't any rules about lions in the library."
~quoted from Library Lion
The lion wakes up for story time, but is not too happy when it's over. When he lets out a loud roar, the librarian is not too happy. Will he learn the rules, so he can stay? The story takes some surprising twists and turns as it progresses, just as a visit to the library very often does!
Library Lion has it all: a delightful, engaging story, so perfectly complemented by illustrations which weave together the intricacies of the plot and the emotions of the characters. It's one of those children's books that people of all ages will appreciate, enjoy, and learn from; but best of all, it could inspire even the most reluctant reader to visit the library!
A wonderful book to compare and contrast this one with would be The Happy Lion (Read to a Child!: Level 2)
This time, a lion is content gazing and admiring friendly people from his fenced in home at the town zoo. When his keeper inadvertently leaves the door open, though, he decides it might be nice to visit his friends around town. He politely roams around saying "bonjour" to everyone he sees, and he's shocked when everyone runs away from him!
The firemen arrive, but luckily, so does Francois, the zookeeper's son. Sometimes, a friend comes in and saves the day. And what more could a happy lion need?
Here are some ways to connect the two books:
- Questions to ponder: Why did people react differently to the two lions? What would you do if you saw a lion or other animal roaming in your neighborhood? If "library lion" were to say hello like "happy lion" did, what language might he say it in? How do you think the two would get along? Which lion would you want to have for a friend?
- Read with a family pet or stuffed animal. Your child might even want to tell the stories!
- Bring in art (sketching, painting lions), music (like The Lion King), and even drama (act like a lion).
- Take a trip to the library to find even more related children's books, such as The Lion and the Little Red Bird (Picture Puffins)
, by Elisa Kleven (tie-in friendship, diversity, and art), or nonfiction selections like Face to Face with Lions (Face to Face with Animals), by Beverly and Dereck Joubert and/or The Life Cycle of a Lion
, by Bobbie Kalman and Amanda Bishop.
- Take a trip to the zoo, or even an African safari. Or, just pull out a world map and talk about where lions might live.
- Writing tie-in: Have your child write (or tell you) a different ending for one of the stories. Or, have them write another story with both lions in it. If they're too young to write it down themselves, you can do so and have them illustrate it. OR, video tape your child telling the story.
- Book to movie/character trait connection: Watch The Wizard of Oz (might be scary for younger readers, though) and talk about courage.
Please feel free to add even more connections to the list! We'd love to hear about any experiences with the books, too.
If you like what you're reading, won't you please consider forwarding this information to someone with young children? My goal is to inspire parents, teachers, and caregivers to visit the library regularly to seek out high quality children's books together. The research and content writing does not leave me much time for getting the word out, so any help would truly be appreciated.
Happy reading, library visiting, and book looking!
Here's a link to another related post, Open 2 Books: To write well, you first need to...
