Entries For: May 2010

Foundation for Early Learning is delighted to feature a guest blog post from Eileen Simmons, Director at Everett Public Libraries, a member of the Early Learning Public Library Partnership. If you are interested in being featured in the Foundation's blog, please contact Joel Ballezza, Communications Manager at joel@earlylearning.org.

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By Eileen Simmons, Director at Everett Public Libraries

When my son was born more than 30 years ago we lived within ten miles of his paternal grandparents. He was their 13th grandchild, so you might think they would have been a bit blasé about the whole experience. But they doted on Patrick. He was the only grandchild who had ever lived so close, and because of that they participated in his daily life in a way that hadn’t been possible with any of the others. They babysat, visited, read to him, and played with him. The three of them had what I would call a mutual admiration society, and he remained close to them even though we moved away when he was seven.

Now I’m a grandmother, with a grandson who lives 3,000 miles away. I have been happy to realize that technology allows me to remain in closer contact than the miles between us otherwise permit.  My daughter-in-law keeps a blog, posting photos, new words, food likes and dislikes, and just general baby news. We also have the occasional video chat. At 16 months, he doesn’t yet know there’s a live person behind that image on the screen, but it’s fun to see him even so. They change so fast and learn so much when they’re little. Watching his progress via the Internet is better than the still photographs my parents had to make do with, and I am delighted all over again with every new blog post. 

I don’t know how this online relationship will change as he gets older, but I am hoping it will allow us to develop a closer relationship than we would have had otherwise. I’ll keep you posted!

-Eileen Simmons

Director, Everett Public Libraries

One of my favorite activities with my little guy is to share a book. He will wander over carrying a book, hold it up to me and say, “daa, daa,” which is his way of saying “please read this with me.” Here is a list of Ivan’s favorite books:

Freight Train, by Donald Crews
There isn’t a real story with a plot, cute characters, or talking trains, but it does have fun illustrations, a nice rhythm, and some neat words. Words such as freight, caboose, trestles, tank car, and gondola are not words that we use in every day conversation but thanks to this book Ivan is now exposed to new vocabulary.

Ten Nine Eight, by Molly Bang
I personally like books that talk about bedtime. I read them to Ivan in the hope that he will begin to enjoy bedtime and go to sleep easier. In this story we count backwards as an adorable little girl moves through the motions of getting ready for bed with her father.

Usborne First Picture Trucks, by Emma Helbrough
Ivan loves the larger format of this picture book. He pulls it out and flips through the sturdy pages while looking at the trucks.

Black and White, by Tana Hoban
This was Ivan’s first favorite book. He has since outgrown it but I still lovingly remember watching him stare at the pictures. We discovered his fascination with the pictures when he was an infant; once when he was fussy we pulled it out and held it up and he instantly calmed down.

Very Hungry Caterpillar, by Eric Carle
Ivan loves the holes in the pages. We often just play with the holes and talk about the foods that the caterpillar ate through. 

Chalk, by Bill Thompson
This is a book that I enjoyed sharing with Ivan. It is a wordless book that depicts a story of a group of children that find a bunch of chalk and the adventure that they create when their drawings come to life. The book is a regular picture book (not a board book).

Owen & Mzee A Day Together, by Isabella Hatkoff
This is one of the few non-fiction board books that we have in our house. The story is simple and the pictures of a tortoise and baby hippo are endearing.

Brown Bear Brown Bear What do You See, by Bill Martin
When Ivan takes this book to his dad they ‘read’ it by making the animal noises together. I like how they are able to find their own special way to share this book and watching to see how silly they get.

Going to Bed Book, by Sandra Boynton

Again I'm very partial to going to bed books. This one has a fun rhythym and some quirky pictures in it. The funniest part for adults is the animals excercising before bed, really that doesn't make sense, but to kids it doesn't really matter.

If you have some favorite books that you would like to share with me, please comment below. We’re always on the hunt for new and favorite books.