Donna’s Book Bag

In her first blog entry on the organization’s website, Donna DiFillippo, Executive Director of Raising a Reader MA, provides a list of exceptional books to read with young children to enrich their learning experience.

Dear Friends,

Summer is finally here, and the longer, sunnier days bring new opportunities to read with your children. You can read outside and talk about the natural world, or read a book about colorful fruits and vegetables and visit a farmer’s market together. Wherever you choose to read, just remember that reading with children is ideally an interactive activity. When the storytelling is shared between you, your child’s experience will be richer and you’ll both have more fun! But best of all, shared reading enhances the actual architecture of your child’s rapidly developing brain, building a solid foundation for future educational success. To help kick-start your summer learning, I’ve created a book list of personal favorites that make it easy to share in the storytelling. Hope you enjoy!

The Napping House by Don and Audrey Wood

The cumulative and repetitive text makes it easy for your child to predict…be sure to pause and let her describe what happens next.

The Very Hungry Caterpillar by Eric Carle

This one has it all – colorful fruit to name and count, days of the week to learn, and a very beautiful ending that will teach your child about the origin of butterflies.

Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What Do You See? by Bill Martin Jr and Eric Carle

Your child can name the animals and/or the colors; she can predict which animal will come next in the story; and you can share stories about all the animals you both know and love.

The Little Mouse, The Red Ripe Strawberry, and The Big Hungry Bear by Don and Audrey Wood

The mouse in this story has the most expressive face… talk with your child about how she thinks the mouse is feeling as he works desperately to hide his strawberry.

Eating the Alphabet by Lois Ehlert

This just might be the answer to getting your child to eat more fruits and vegetables! The upper and lower case letters are bold and easy to read…find the letters in your child’s name. The illustrations are mouth watering!