Family Book Club

As a parent, you are your children’s biggest role model. Your kids watch what you do, listen to the things you say, and often mimic your behavior (whether you want them to or not…J). When you show them that you love to read, it has a big impact on their own feelings about reading. In addition, when children have positive experiences with books and reading when they are young, it really helps them to develop a lifelong love of reading.

Because of this, I got so excited when I came across an article recently that talked about how you can start a family book club at home. What a perfect way to have fun together as a family while reinforcing that love of reading! If your kids are still really young, don’t worry; the article suggests ways in which you can cater your club to your own family’s needs, even if you have babies and toddlers. Get ideas from the article here, and let me know if you try this. I’d love to hear how it goes!

Families, Families, Families!

Through a series of adorably illustrated family portraits, Families, Families, Families! by Suzanne and Max Lang demonstrates that families can come in all different shapes and sizes. The book starts: “Some children have lots of siblings./Some children have none./Some children have two dads./Some have one mom.”

It continues, showing children who have pets and ones who don’t, children living with grandparents, just dad, step-parents, or an aunt, children who are adopted, and more. The book ends beautifully with the line: “…if you love each other, then you are a family.”

What a reassuring message for children--especially kids whose families look different than other families they see on a daily basis--to see a portrait of a family that looks like their own! What a great lesson in acceptance, too, for children from any type of family to understand that not all families look like theirs. This is a lovely book to share with your own special family!

This is Our House

 

When it comes to picture books, I’m typically drawn to the ones that are going to make me (and more importantly, my audience) burst into laughter. Looking through some of the new books that just arrived at the library, though, one of my favorites didn’t need to make me giggle to appreciate it. This is Our House, by Hyewon Yum, is a perfect choice for families to share together.

In this book, a photo album of sorts, a young girl chronicles her family home’s history from the time her grandparents “arrived from far away with just two suitcases in hand,” up until the present day. The girl talks about all of the family memories her house has seen: her mother playing with her brothers when they were little; the kitchen where her grandmother made her mom’s favorite soup; the tree outside that blooms every year in the springtime; her mother bringing home her father to meet her grandparents for the first time; and the birth of the little girl herself.

More than anything else, I love thinking about the conversations that I know this book will encourage. Use it as an opportunity to share your family history with your children. You might be surprised at how much they will love hearing stories about your childhood and learning about the similarities and differences between yours and theirs. While you’re at it, you may even be inspired to break open some of those dusty, old family photo albums. While the book isn't likely to produce any laughter, the photo albums certainly might! J