Don’t you wish there was a board game that encourages literacy – but which your kid would actually enjoy? Scrabble Flash goes one better… it’s also electronic, which kids love. And it’s completely portable, packing down into a little holder about the size of a small TV remote. (Which parents […]
Other News
Literacy Lava 6 – e-newsletter
Please check out the 6th edition of Literacy Lava e-newsletter. I have an article in it (“Newspapers Build Literacy Skills”) that I hope you enjoy. Click here to access the free .pdf, Literacy Lava 6. Scroll down on the page and click on the image of LL6. You’ll find lots […]
Macdonald Hall
Most of the summer, my son has been absorbed by the Macdonald Hall series, by Gordon Korman. Set in a Canadian boarding school, it’s all about the antics of Bruno Walton and Boots O’Neal, who share a dorm room – and get into a lot of mischievous fun. The MH […]
Back to school 2010
By Julia Mohamed It’s nearly back-to-school time! Time to go from running wild and free to becoming a studious student once again. Here are a few ideas to help make the transition as smooth as possible: Goal Journal Have your kids contribute to a nightly journal. Begin now, with their […]
Keeping kids reading
My son reads a lot. Erm… well, he used to. It appears that I’ve been resting on some laurels that have deserted me while I was looking the other way. (To use an overly complicated metaphor.) Over the summer, I started to notice that my son has been playing more […]
Supermarket Scavenger Hunt
By Julia Mohamed The next time you go grocery shopping, make it a more educational, enjoyable and literate experience for your kids with a Supermarket Scavenger Hunt! 1. Give each child a list of items to gather. Be as specific as possible (include a brand name, size, etc.) For instance, […]
Write your kid a letter
Have you sent your kid a letter this summer? What a great thing to do! When you’re bored at work – instead of re-checking your e-mail for the tenth time, or surfing, do something that will help your kid… write her a letter. It takes, like, 10 minutes and it […]
The Red Pyramid
Looking for the next great book? Here’s a conversation I’ve had a couple of times recently: Parent: “I need a good book for my son.” Me: “What books has he already enjoyed?” And then the list goes like this, not necessarily in this order: * The Bone series * Diary […]
License Plate Game
Our family recently took an 11-hour car trip. And guess what we did in the car? Played Julia’s License Plate Game. It was great! First of all, it took our son away from his DS video game (curse you, Pokemon!). Secondly, it did exactly what Julia said it would – […]
Survey for research on "enhanced books"
GKR readers, the U of C needs our help. The University of Connecticut is doing a study on illustrated children’s books. They’d like GKR readers to help by taking a brief (four-minute) online survey. Before passing along their request to you, I called them and spoke to them about their […]