Advent is going by so quickly! Here is everything we read during week three.
Day 14 (12/12/15)
by Jean Marzollo
This is a great adaptation of a Bible story to the picture book format. The text is straightforward and easy to understand and the illustrations are appealing. Along the bottom of each page is a border filled with tiny black sheep who comment on the events of the story, helping young readers to consider the implications of each event in the plot. I only read the story to Miss Muffet, as it was pretty long and her attention span can often be quite short, but I could see a four or five year old really enjoying that extra content along the bottom of each page. Jean Marzollo has done a few others of these, and I will be on the lookout for them!
Day 15 (12/13/15)
by Benjamin Elkin and Anita Lobel
I liked this story, which is a legend about King Solomon. Miss Muffet did not, even though she will typically sit and listen to any Anita Lobel book. A bee figures heavily into the plot, and she was happy to identify the bee and make its signature buzzing sound. She was not, however, interested in hearing about how he had to prove his wisdom to the Queen of Sheba, probably because it all went over her head. This is a great read-aloud for older kids, though. I would definitely use it in a CCD class if I had the chance.
Day 16 (12/14/15)
All I Want for Christmasby Kate Merritt
I reviewed this board book earlier this week. (See the post here.) Miss Muffet mostly read this one independently ("by self"). It was not quite the favorite I expected it to be, but I showed the cover to Bo Peep and she broke out in a huge smile. This is the ideal book for a one-year-old, so we'll hang onto it for next year.
Day 17 (12/15/15)
Mary, the Mother of Jesusby Tomie dePaola
We didn't make it all the way through this book because it tells Mary's entire life story, and I really just wanted to focus on helping Miss Muffet understand the Nativity story. I'm also not sure how I feel about some of the information dePaola presents. The author's note explains his sources, but Miss Muffet certainly isn't old enough to figure out what is known and what is speculation. This would be perfect for an older audience, though, and I'll keep it in mind for future homeschooling purposes.
Day 18 (12/16/15)
Christmas is Coming by Hannah Wood
This one was also reviewed on the blog this week. Because it involves counting and each page introduces a different holiday concept, Miss Muffet was very into it, and she kept returning to it on her own during the week. It's a good one to read when there are ten days left until Christmas - unfortunately, we didn't time it exactly right. Oh well.
Day 19 (12/17/15)
Olive, the Other Reindeerby J. Otto Seibold and Vivian Walsh
This strange little book was part of my personal collection before I had kids. The punny title is what first made me interested in it, but I had never really read it until this week. Strangely, Miss Muffet was very into, despite not having an appropriate frame of reference to get the joke. When we finished the story, though, I sang Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer to her and it made such an impression, she kept asking me to repeat it. She will appreciate this one more in a couple of years, I think.
Day 20 (12/18/15)
Where is Baby's Christmas Present? by Karen Katz
Miss Muffet was very excited to read this book, and she was thrilled to lift the flaps and name the Christmas-related objects underneath. Holiday vocabulary is all new to her this year, so any opportunity to talk about ornaments, gingerbread men, candy canes, or Santa Claus is always welcome. All the Karen Katz board books are basically the same, and there's nothing remarkable about this one, but it was still a big hit!
I took this book out for Little Bo Peep, but Miss Muffet snatched it up before it got anywhere near her baby sister. I read it to her once, but after that, she realized there was only one word per page and she preferred to read it herself. I asked her to read it to Bo Peep, but she went and hid it in her book box instead, so it looks like she might not be quite ready to share yet. Despite the title, it seems this book is ideal for second and third Christmases, too!
Less than a week to go! Our last Advent Reading Round-Up will be posted on Christmas Eve.
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