Best Audiobooks for Kindergarteners...or read alouds! (updated monthly as we read more!!)

We are a couple years into our plunge deep into reading aloud and audiobooks with Quinn.  I would guess she hears 2 hours+ a day, in combination from Matt and I reading aloud to her and listening to books on cd at rest time and bedtime.

This could easily become a soapbox for me....I could rant on and on the wonderful benefits of reading aloud to young (and older!) children, and this has become a topic I've delved into--research wise--both professionally and personally for many years now.  But most of all, if I wanted to share something, it would be the list of books we've loved.

I share this list--our list--which I carefully cultivated from books I was familiar with, those recommended by read-aloud professionals (Jim Weiss, Jim Trelease, etc.) and from booklists recommended for kindergarteners--not for them to read themselves, but to hear.  These books are well above what a kindergartener can typically read (especially mine, as we are letting her slowly emerge on her own as a reader) but perfect for their comprehension level.  And I'd just about guarantee you are going to love them, too!  They are beautiful classics....timeless and perfect for developing little minds into lovers of words and stories and all-things literature.

I have to tell you I don't pay money for books.  Well, not directly.  I think the public library system is just about the best place in the world and the only place my taxes go that makes me smile.  We check out all our books from the library--books and cd's.  I max out the online request function, where you can reserve up to 15 books ahead of time, in our huge county, they can come from any of the numerous library branches and will be waiting for us on the reserve shelf, under the L section, in a glorious golden manilla envelope, complete with a lovely reminder in my email box.

So I would encourage you to mine your library.  Figure out how to use the reserve/request system.  get all these books for free!

These books are a mixture of ones we read aloud or that Quinn listened to.  Often I will first read these novels aloud and then check out the cd, so she can re-listen at her leisure.  I can't stand for her to listen to them without me because I don't want to miss these beautiful stories, so the first time we share these books it is usually with me reading them to her.  Then she relistens at bedtime and naptime.  I can't tell you what that does for reading fluency, comprehension.....I could go on and on.  But most of all, it is so immensely pleasurable.

(HERE is an article I wrote previously on the power of audiobooks......)

I would guess at this point she has heard over 200 novels since she turned 4 and we started novels with her.  I haven't done a great job of keeping up here on my education blog, though I have done photos on my personal blog, so I am going to be in the process of adding title recommendations over the course of the next few months, so check back often for updates!

And go to your library!!!!

Here they are.....our most recommended stories to hear aloud via CD or Mama/Daddy!

Flat Stanley by Jeff Brown

Elliot's Park series by Patrick Carman

Nate the Great Series by Marjorie Weinman Sharmat

Cricket in Times Square by George Selden

Peter Pan by JM Barrie

Princess Posey books by Stephanie Greene

Story of the World Series by Susan Wise Bauer

Wonder Horse by Emily Arnold McCully

Paddington by Michael Bond (any of the series....A Bear Called Paddington, More About Paddington...)

My Father's Dragon (any of the series) by Ruth Stiles Gannett

James and the Giant Peach by Roald Dahl

Charlotte's Web by EB White

Stuart Little by EB White

Ivy and Bean series by Annie Barrows

Three Little Robbers by Christine Graham

Fat Bat and Swoop by Leo Landry

The Littles (series) by John Peterson

The Trumpet of the Swan by EB White

Sable by Karen Hesse

Lafcadio The Lion Who Shot Back by Shel Silverstein

Chomps, Flea, Grey Cat and Me by Bill Wallace (or any of this series)

The Magic Treehouse Series....ALL OF THEM!  by Mary Pope Osborne

Maybelle In the Soup by Katie Speck

The Boxcar Children Series by Gertrude Chandler Warner

Nate the Great Series by Marjorie Sharmat

Tales of a 4th Grade Nothing, Double Fudge, Superfudge, Fudge-a-mania, any from this series by Judy Blume

Freckle Juice by Judy Blume

Animal Rescue Team Series by Sue Stauffacher

The McBroom books (all of them!) by Sid Fleisch

Gooney Bird Jones Collection by Lois Lowry

The Clementine Series by Sara Pennypacker

Junie B. Jones Series by Barbara Park

Fancy Nancy Series by Jane O' Connor

*The Best Christmas Pageant Ever By Barbara Parks (with some editing of the language)

Winnie the Pooh Series by A.A. Milne

Pippi Longstocking by Astrid Lindgren

*The Children of Noisy Village by Astrid Lindren

Tumtum and Nutmeg Series by Emily Bearn

Dick King-Smith Books (Aristotle, Babe, Ace, The Lollypop Series (SOOO GOOD), George Speaks, The Water Horse (perfect for boys, especially!), Funny Frank, The Twin Giants)

Bed and Biscuit Series by Joan Carris

The Hoboken Chicken Emergency by Daniel Pinkwater

The Buddy Files Series by Dori Hillestad Butler

Little Horse by Betsy Byars

A to Z Mysteries (26 total!) by Ron Roy

Mrs. Piggle Wiggle Series by Betty MacDonald

The Secret Garden by Frances Hodgson Burnett

Egg's Surprise by Betsy Byars

Apples to Oregon by Deborah Hopkinson

Tales from Cultures Near And Far by Jim Weiss (cd only)

Mole Music by David McPhail

Arthur Chapter Books by Mark Linn-Baker

Geronimo Stilton Series by Geronimo Stilton

Toys Go Out by Emily Jenkins

The Little Match Girls by Marina Orsini

The Little Moose Who Couldn't Go to Sleep by Willy Claflin (or any of his audiobooks!)

Magic Schoolbus Series Audiobooks by Joanna Cole

William Steig stories (all of them!)

More Perfect Than the Moon by Patricia MacLachlan (any in this series--they go in order)

Bless This Mouse by Lois Lowlry

The Twits; The Minpins; The Magic Finger or any other Roald Dahl books

Cam Jansen series by David Adler

How to Eat Fried Worms by Thomas Rockwell

Starring Prima!: The Mouse of the Ballet Jolie by Jacquelyn Mitchard

Alice in Wonderland Series by Lewis Carroll

The Doll People by Ann M. Martin and Laura Godwin

Ralph the Magic Rabbit by Adam Frost

Horton and the Kwuggerbug and More Lost Stories by Dr. Seuss

Lulubelle and Her Bones by Vashti Farrer

Leroy Ninker Saddles Up by Kate Dicamillo

Francine Poulet Meets the Ghost Racoon by Kate Dicamillo

Bink and Gollie, Best Friends Forever by Kate Dicamillo

Any of the Mercy Watson series by Kate Dicamillo

American Girl Series (some people shy away from these because they don't want to get into the whole doll crazy....the books are pretty fabulous historical fiction that we learn so much from, so we chose to just not tell Quinn the dolls exist...and if she discovers them, she is most welcome to save her money up to buy one!)

*Good Christmas Reads

My try....my first playdough mat! Isaiah 53:5 Playdough Mat

I love the concept of playdough response mats so much....I used them Sunday during communion with 3yo Beck to great success!  He loved them and we had some great whispered dialogue between the two of us as we processed some of the elements of remembering Jesus' sacrifice.

I decided to make another mat that could go along with my communion set.  I've been wanting to use this verse and provide some type of response/interaction to it for a long time, and these mats were the perfect venue!

You can download the mat HERE to print in .PDF.

Maybe more to come?  So thankful to Flame  (click for link) for this awesome idea and all of the mats I downloaded and printed and am using from their site!

Bible Play Dough Mats courtesy of Flame Creative Children's Ministry

Recently I stumbled upon an idea that I just love!  Flame, a children's spiritual development blog, had these amazingly awesome and so developmentally appropriate playdough mats they were sharing!  I knew this was perfect for my kids--for a bit of guided playdough time and response to Bible stories.

First off, I printed all of the mats relating to the crucifixion and communion and Jesus rising from the dead--I placed them each in a page protector to keep the playdough off the paper, and I will be bringing them to church on Sundays for my kids to interact with during communion time.

In this current season we are in, our kids are expected to sing/pray and participate in the first portion of church.  During communion I like to bring some type of manipulative/book/activity specifically related to some aspect of communion/remembering Jesus' sacrifice so they can participate on their own developmental level.  I have a basket of several different objects that I choose from each week.  You can follow the label link to my other posts on this.

These playdough mats are perfect!  I will bring a small can of playdough (1 color) per child and I don't see this being too messy.  Each child has a parent sitting with them, so we can help if needed.

I also printed off all the other mats for the kids to use at tablework time (like when I am making lunch, etc.)  The first time I introduced them they spent about 2 total minutes and weren't that into them.  As with any new activity, the more I bring them out, model how to do them, and talk through the activity, the more engaged they are.  I just love the tactile way these invite young children to respond to Bible stories.

Are you sold?  You have GOTTA print these off and add them to your toolkit!!
CLICK HERE to go to the Flame Playdough Mats Page

And below are photos of my Quinn using the mats (again, I did not create the mats--I printed them off the fabulous Flame site linked above).

I have made a couple of my own in the style of Flame's, click 

HERE to check them out!

Going on a leaf hunt!

Around here we still have leaves falling.  We had a fun walk trying to find as many colors of leaves as we could and making our leaf sticks pretty!  We just poked a sharp stick through our leaves as we walked around our nearby nature park.  I did a pile of green ones and then a pattern of red and yellow leaves.  A fun, simple activity that encourages mathematical patterning, observation skills and a little artistry when deciding how to arrange the leaves.  I did this activity with a 3 year old and a 2 year old and they both loved it!

Music and Art....our recent favorite!

With lots of rainy, cold days lately, we've spent more of our kitchen-school time indoors.  An activity we've started that everyone enjoys is drawing to music.  Here's how we do it:

-Get a hard surface for everyone (cookie sheet, sketch pad with a cardboard back page, etc.)
-Get a bowl of crayons--yes, just crayons.  They require more fine motor control to grasp--and especially if they are short crayons--these encourage a pincer grasp. Also you can use harder or softer pressure when bearing down with the crayon to make different types of strokes.
-lay in a circle on your tummies, facing into the bowl of crayons--laying is important because it uses core muscles and encourages good posture--and a different type of body movement than children typically experience during the day.
-play a song and draw during the song--no talking!  Just draw!

We use these musical concepts (and the activity itself came), from the book 101 Activities for Kids in Tight Spaces  by Carol Stock Kranowitz:
*tempo (can you make your crayon move as quickly or slowly as the music?)
*dynamics (how can you make your crayon move to the softness or loudness of the music?)
*Mood (How does the music make you feel?  Can you draw this?)
*Color (What color matches the music, do you think?)
*Rhythm (Can you hear patterns of musical beats?  Can your crayon draw that pattern?)

Usually I quickly talk through these concepts before starting the music.  I play the songs on my phone from Youtube.

So far we have done several Anderson songs--Syncopated Clock (my kids' favorite), Typewriter....all his stuff is good.

We have also done some Debussy--Golliwog's Cake Walk.

Kranowitz has a list of suggested songs in her book, or you can also just google some different pieces kids enjoy.  We have mostly used classical music so far, but am anxious to try some jazz, etc!

The first time we did this activity my kids were a little unsure and not super into it.  The second time they took right off and just love it.  Ever since then they get totally into the drawing and listening and often ask for the song again throughout the days.

Last time we did something extra fun as an extension--we completed the drawing/listening portion.  Then we played the music again and had fun dancing to it!  Such great ways to explore music, encourage body movement and critical listening skills.

You should totally do this!  It is super easy to pull off, takes 1 minute of prep work and your kids will grow to love it!

Ps) Quinn took a picture of the spot where we display our drawings (above).

Three things three-year-olds love!

TAPE!

*introduce them with a solid dispenser and good quality tape.  The cheaper stuff is difficult to tear.

*teach them to take a piece about the length of their thumb.

*show them to pull out then down to cut, and to be careful of the cutting edge.

*Initially I just let my little tapers tear and place tape on construction paper, then move up to taping two items together.  

*show them how to tape small pieces of paper onto a bigger piece--the tape has to touch both pieces--a difficult concept for them to learn.  

*I have a rule that tape only goes on paper.  I don't want tape on my walls, furniture, etc.  We keep a blue roll of painter's tape for taking pictures and signs up on walls.  That way our walls remain undamaged.  

***Taping is great fine motor practice and also a practical life and art skill!***

 CHALK!
*supply small pieces of colored chalk--the small pieces encourage a pincer grasp and not a fist grasp.
*a small eraser or piece of fabric
*get a small chalkboard---often craft stores have these in the unfinished wood items section
*threes love covering the whole board with chalk, erasing, and then using a moist rag to clean the board at the end of the session!
***fine motor, art, preliteracy***

PENCIL SHARPENING!
*I put out a tray with the sharpener and a jar of pencils.  My kiddos know all shreds of pencil need to land on the tray.
*remember to teach safety because the sharpener can cut you
***fine motor, practical life***

We have a designated art table in the living room where I keep all of these activities/materials out for free use at any time and often in the mornings my kids naturally gravitate there to use them.