I had to run an errand after I picked up our four year old yesterday. For some reason, I thought out loud that maybe I would bring our iPad to help keep her entertained while I did some banking. Fortunately, my husband reminded me that we don’t do that. He said, “Are you doing to […]
Read moreToday I went to local school to learn how I could volunteer. I am friends with their professor in residence and have listened to many stories about the community she serves. I had expected to be shocked and disturbed by what I found but my expectations could not have prepared me for the hours I […]
Read moreBack in the fall I was thrilled to be selected as a panelist for the Cybils awards. I was happy for a number of reasons. I couldn’t wait to read lots of new books. I was excited to engage in conversation with other children’s lit lovers. And I was also hopeful that being a member […]
Read moreThanks to the inspiration of one of my favorite bloggers, Teach Mama, I have brought back our magnetic letters. They were on the refrigerator for years when Caroline was tiny and then went away in those years when Caroline lost interest and when Katherine would merely teeth on them. I am thrilled to have been […]
Read moreBoth of my daughter’s schools encourage lots of parental volunteering and I have jumped in head first. I am a ‘reading mom’, a ‘read aloud parent’, a ‘library aide’ and and an ‘art docent.’ Fortunately, at the start of the school year, I realized that I had to focus on killing two birds with […]
Read moreThis month has been all about planning. Before Thanksgiving arrives, I will have given three presentations, begun teaching a parent-child literacy class and made significant progress toward deciding this year’s choice in the Cybil awards. While I may be struggling to find time to blog through all my planning, I do continue to read to […]
Read moreI am in one of those points in life when my personal and professional life are completely intertwined. The reading I do for “work” is so directly related to my own children that I often step back and think how lucky I am to be passionate about something that is truly important for my own children. I […]
Read morethe most fantastic resource! I am in the process of putting together a parent seminar anda parent-child class each called Growing Readers. The process is both exhausting and truly exhilarating. It is so wonderful to be doing work that really and truly does not feel a bit like work. As part of my preparation I am […]
Read moreThis week, my oldest daughter read with her teacher. While she was excited to tell me that she had gone up a reading level, she was most excited to let me know about her teacher’s subjective comments. She let Caroline know that she read with beautiful expression. And then that teacher must have gotten her […]
Read moreYesterday, the girls and I were lucky enough to meet Tad Hills, author of the Duck and Goose books and most recently, How Rocket Learned to Read. Rocket, we learned is modeled after Tad’s real dog which is no surprise. It was interesting, though, to hear how, when Tad decided that the bird in the story would […]
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