Reading Through the Alphabet: G

We are reading the letter "G" this week! Here are the picture books we will be reading:

The first book was my sister's favorite when we were growing up: "Grandpa Bud" by Siobhan Dodds. This is a really fun book to read aloud! A little girl named Polly calls her Grandpa and asks if she can come over and spend the night. She tells him she would like a chocolate cake, as well! Then she proceeds to call him several more times, inviting more friends and requesting their favorite foods, as well. In the end, her friends turn out to be stuffed animals! Polly, Grandpa and her stuffed animals enjoy the feast he prepared.

The next book is one my kid's favorite stories! "We're Going on a Bear Hunt" by Michael Rosen and Helen Oxenbury is a classic children's book. The family is going on a bear hunt, but there are many obstacles they must overcome. What happens when they finally do see a bear? It's also a really fun read aloud book. And for some reason, I always read it with a British accent? Hmm...

 

"Goodnight Moon" is also a very well known and well loved children's book. We have several copies! It's a calming book to read before bed, saying goodnight to everything in the house.

 

I'm excited to see what books you've read that begin with "G"! Link up any posts, old or new, and be sure to visit the other blogs. Thank you!

 



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Reading Through the Alphabet: F

 

This week we read books that begin with letter F! Our first book is "Frog in the Bog" by Karma Wilson and Joan Rankin. This is a really cute rhyming and counting book about a frog in a bog and the insects he eats. At the end, though, does he get eaten himself?

 

The second book we read is "Frog and Toad are Friends". We love Frog and Toad here. They are really great book for beginning readers. Frog and Toad are hilarious friends! This book has five stories that can stand alone or can be read as chapters. These are very well known books and favorites in our house.

 

 

 

And lastly, the book we read is "The Firekeeper's Son" by Linda Sue Park. I bought this book when we were studying South Korea in geography. This story takes place in the 1800s in Korea. Fires were set on mountaintops in chain by different villages. If the king could not see a fire lit, he would know there was trouble and send out his army. One night, Sang-hee, the son of the village's firekeeper, had to take his father's place because his father hurt his ankle and could not walk up the mountain. Sang-hee debates whether or not to light the fire because he really wants to see soldiers. In the end, he sets the fire and is glad he did. It's a really great story with beautiful illustrations.

 

 

I'm looking forward to seeing which books you read! Link up any posts, old or new, and please visit everyone's links!

 



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Reading Through the Alphabet: E

This week we are reading the letter E!

The first book we read this week was "Elephant Families". This is in the Read-and-Find-Out Science book series that we love! This living book talks about how elephants work as a family unit. It is written in an easy-to-read format that keeps your child's attention. The illustrations are beautiful and there is a ton of information about elephants in this book written like a story! Definitely one you would want to read if you're learning about elephants, and even if you're not.

"Eating the Alphabet" by Lois Ehlert is the next book that we read. I purchased this book when my now 7 year old was doing My Father's World Kindergarten, I think for the "V is for Vegetables" unit. It's so pretty and lists different fruits and vegetables that begin with the letters of the alphabet! There are some unusual ones in here, like the jicama and the ugli fruit as well as some of our favorites like the yam and banana. This is a really colorful and fun book!

Of course, we have to include the hilarious "Elephant and Piggie" books by Mo Williams! We read "There is a Bird on Your Head!", but we have around 10 of these books. They are like graphic novels or comic books for your beginning readers! There is minimal text on each page, simple drawings, and a funny storyline.

I'm excited to see what books you read that start with E! Link up any posts, old or new! Please visit and comment on the other link-ups. Thank you for participating!

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Reading Through the Alphabet: D

I have been posting about picture books, but I couldn't resist adding one of Zeke's favorite board books this week - "Doggies: a counting and barking book" by Sandra Boynton! He loves this book and brings it to me all the time to read to him. It's a really simple and fun read. You get to "bark" in several different ways throughout the book - "yip, yip", "bow wow wow", "arf arf", and "ar-rolf!" just to name a few. Zeke likes to point to the dogs while I count and loves when I "bark" enthusiastically! I highly recommend this book to any toddler. It would make a great gift.

The next book we read was "Daniel's Duck" by Clyde Robert Bulla. This is "An I Can Read Book", level 3. It's a great story of a boy named Daniel who carved a duck for the county fair. He carved his duck with his head looking back, and everyone who saw it laughed. He thought they were laughing at his duck, but they laughed because they liked the duck. We "rowed" this book when we were doing Five in a Row.

The last book is an oldie but goodie - "Danny and the Dinosaur" by Syd Hoff. This book has a copyright of 1958. I found this original copyright, hardcover book in great condition at a thrift store for less than a dollar. It's been read many times! The illustrations are simple and colored in with crayon or colored pencil. It's also "An I Can Read Book" and my kids have lovingly read it over and over.

Link up your posts - old or new - and let me see what books you're reading with the letter "D"! Please visit some other links and leave a comment or two.

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Reading Through The Alphabet Link Up: C

I want to thank everyone who linked up last week for the letter B! I love reading about all of the books you have read or are reading. This week, we are on the letter C. I'm going through our bookshelves, finding the books we need. I wonder if I'll be able to find a book for every letter? It will be neat to find out!

The first book we read was "Counting On Calicos" by Phyllis Limbacher Tildes. This book is so cute, and perfect for my cat-loving daughter. It counts from 1 - 20, naming things about cats - like 9 lives, 15 ways to fall asleep. Each page also has interesting facts about cats and beautiful illustrations!

The next book we read was "Caps for Sale" by Esphyr Slobodkina  - the tale of a peddler, some monkeys, and their monkey business. We actually "rowed" this book several years ago when we were doing Before Five in a Row with my younger sons. It's been a favorite in our house since then! You can check out the activities we did with this book if you are interested!

The last book we read was "The Carrot Seed" by Ruth Krauss. I love how simple this book is! A boy plants a carrot seed and everyone keeps telling him it won't grow. He keeps watering it and weeding it, and lo and behold, it grows into a gigantic carrot! The illustrations are done in yellow, brown, white and bit of orange and are adorable. We never "rowed" this book, but it is one of the books in the Before Five in a Row curriculum.

Join me in reading through the alphabet, and link up below! New or old posts are welcome. Please visit some other link ups and leave a comment or two - we all love comments!

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Reading Through the Alphabet Link Up: B

This is the second week of Reading Through the Alphabet Challenge! This week's letter is B. As you know, I'm doing picture books for this challenge, but you are free to link up any books that begin with B! I'm trying to use books from our shelves, but I may get a book or two from the library sometimes.

The first book we read this week is "Big Red Barn" by Margaret Wise Brown. Zeke loves this book! There are lots of farm animals and opportunities for counting, animal recognition and sounds, and rhyming practice.

The next two books we read are by Frank Asch, who is one of our favorite authors! "Bear Shadow" is the cutest story about a bear who is trying to get rid of his shadow. He tries to bury his shadow and hammer it to the ground, only to be dismayed that it keeps coming back! This is a fun book to read, and you can even tie in some science with it and learn about shadows and the sun!

"Baby Bird's First Nest" is about a baby bird that falls out of her mommy's nest and decides to build her own nest. When she is in danger, she takes frog's advice and hops back to her mommy's nest. It's a sweet little book to read aloud with cute illustrations.

I would love for you to link up with me!





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Reading Through the Alphabet Link Up: A

This is the first week of Reading Through the Alphabet, and we are starting with A.

I'm going to do this challenge with my younger children, reading picture books. This week I scoured our bookshelves and picked three books to read.

First, we read "Amazing Animal Alphabet" by Brian Wildsmith. This is a very simple book with beautiful illustrations. Each page has a letter and animal - A is for Alligator, Z is for Zebra. It's a fun book to look at! The last few pages have some facts about each of the animals pictured.

Second, we read "Angus Lost" by Marjorie Flack. This book is about a dog who is bored of the same yard, house, and cat and decides to go on an adventure to see what else was out there. It doesn't take long before Angus decides that home, with the same yard, house, and cat, is the best place to be. The pages in this book alternate between black and white and color illustrations. My 11 year old daughter thought it was a cute book!

Lastly, we read "Ask Mr. Bear", again by Marjorie Flack. This book is about a little boy who doesn't know what to get his mother for her birthday, so he asks all of the farm animals. However, none of them give him the perfect gift idea until he asks Mr. Bear, who tells him to give her a hug. This is one of my favorite books for young children. The illustrations in this book are so beautiful. Marjorie Flack does her own  illustrating, and she does a wonderful job.

I'd love to see what books you are reading this week (or even what you've read in the past, if you're linking up older posts), so please link-up below! All I ask is that you put my button on your page and link back to my blog. Thanks!

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Reading Through the Alphabet Link Up

I have seen several different reading challenges starting this month, and I decided to start my own and make it a link-up! I love link-ups.

This reading challenge is called "Reading Through the Alphabet", and, you guessed it, you will link up books you read that begin with each letter of the alphabet. I'm going to go in order, from A to Z, and you can add any type of book you read. I'm going to do picture books, but you can do any genre you would like to or even a mix!

I do ask that you add my button to your page and link back to my page. We will begin this Thursday with the link-up, and each link-up will last from Thursday to the following Wednesday.

Let's get started!!