Gaga For Lulu

Deviating from the sarcasm of my last few posts, I want to let you all know about some great books. As you know, I have three girls. The oldest is reading and the middle one is just starting with sight words. We have been buying Step Into Reading-Reading With Help books for the last year or so. They are published by Random House and have a website at www.stepintoreading.com. The have hundreds of books that are categorized into 5 steps. My girls are reading the stage 1 and 2 books right now, which are “ready to read” and “reading with help” for preschool through first grade. They progress to step 5, “ready for chapters”, which is suggested for grades 2-4. I love how the books assist the children in reading success. They build confidence and establish the joy of reading in kids.

The Boss is currently reading The Statue of Liberty (Step-Into-Reading, Step 2). I think this is wonderful, since it teaches her about history at the same time as teaching her to read. A lot of these books are about history, instead of cartoons or dolls. Oh, yeah, Marsha Marsha Marsha is reading Barbie: School Days (Step into Reading). Baby steps people, baby steps.

Have you ever wondered how to help your child identify and talk about the emotions they are feeling? As a parent, I encourage my kids to share what they are feeling with my husband and myself. It can be a hard concept, how to feel and appropriately react.

There is a series of books that help educate kids how to identify and handle their emotions. “The Way I Feel” books, written by Cornelia Maude Spelman, are excellent additions to any child’s library. The series of books explore everything from divorce and sadness to caring and feeling good about ones self. Check them out! They have helped all three of my girls relate their emotions to everyday activities.