What we're reading September 18, 2010



This week we read three books for our letter Aa lessons.  I had a couple more I wanted to read, but the library never got me the one and we just never read the other.

Book recommended by letteroftheweek.com:

The Apple Pie Tree by Zoe Hall

I remember reading this book years ago to the older children and was glad to have the chance to share it with the girls.  The reader follows the seasonal changes revolving around the family's apple tree in anticipation of the apples that will make the apple pie.  This book has beautiful illustrations showing both close up details of the tree and the children enjoying the tree.  In addition this book is a small introduction to seasons, pollination and baking an apple pie.  The last page includes some details about pollination and the recipe for the pie, which we made, yum yum.  I like that the text is simple and in a large font, though it doesn't distract from the pictures.  A great book, glad I chose to read this to help our focus on apples for Aa.

Book discovered through the What My Child is Reading carnival a couple of weeks ago.  Found over at Lady Chadwick's Weblog:

I loved the look of Alphabet Adventure by Audrey Wood and quickly put it on hold in anticipation of our week of letter Aa.  This story follows Charley's alphabet as they are ready, after a summer of training, to head of to their first day of school.  Unfortunately, little i almost falls in the water and then it is discovered his dot is missing.  So the letters proceed to hunt for his dot because if they don't find it they can't go to school.  I love the bright vivid pictures of Alphabet Island and the unusual transport the letters travel on later in the book after their quest is complete.  I also love the fact that if you look hard enough you can see little i's dot hiding in each double page spread picture after it is discovered to be lost, so the reader and child can go on the hunt with the letters making it interactive.  So glad to have found this book.

Our Sesame Street alphabet book:

Aa: Big Bird's Adventures by Susan Hood

This story follows Big Bird's night time musings on what he might want to be when he grows up.  All of which start with the letter A.  I love that Big Bird's teddy bear plays a different role in each picture, following Big Bird as he thinks of each new profession.  I have mentioned I really enjoy these books which were received from Reader's Digest years ago. 

We also enjoyed reading Alligator Pie by Dennis Lee, a poem recommended by Letter of the Week, which we used last year as well.  We use the ASL signs for important words and learned one stanza a day.  In the first stanza I do change the word die to cry, when it says "I think I'm going to die."  But that's just me.

To see what others are reading with their children head on over to Mouse Grows, Mouse Learns for What My Child Is Reading.