Wrapping Paper Romp

A toddler and kitten explore the simple joys of unwrapping a gift through playful, rhyming text in an adorable board book by the author of Pots and Pans.

“The ideal time to begin sharing books with children is during babyhood, even with children as young as six weeks.” —Starting Out Right National Research Council All parents hope to give their children the best possible start in life. Many of them know it’s a good idea to read to their children at a very young age, not with the goal of teaching their kids to read, but with the joy of having special time together looking at pictures and playing with words. Carefully chosen books that introduce children to the pleasures of language, simple story structure, and wonderful artwork are the foundation for a future love of books. Great Books for Babies and Toddlers is the first book of its kind—a guide to the best age appropriate children’s books available. Compiled by Kathleen Odean, former Chair of the Newbery Award Committee, Great Books for Babies and Toddlers provides lively annotations for more than five hundred books, divided into two helpful categories: Nursery Rhymes, Fingerplays, and Songs; and Picture-Story Books for the Very Young. With story selections ranging from such classics of children’s literature as Goodnight Moon and Where’s Spot? to excellent new books like How Does a Dinosaur Say Good Night? and Buzz!, Great Books for Babies and Toddlers will be more than a cherished guide for parents—it will also be a child’s first step in the lifelong adventure of reading.

Since children develop the critical language and early reading skills necessary to enter kindergarten between birth and age five, reading aloud is one of the most influential steps librarians, teachers, parents, and caregivers can take to foster preschoolers’ literacy skills. Early exposure to books heavily influences vocabulary knowledge, which in turn improves later reading skills and helps foster lifelong literacy. Highlighting more than 300 birth-kindergarten titles, Bailey offers A hand-picked selection of quality books adeptly chosen to help develop crucial literacy skills such as expressive and receptive language, expanded vocabularies, narrative skills, print awareness, the ability to understand written language, awareness of story structure, alphabetic knowledge, and phonological sensitivity Thorough annotation of each title, including a full bibliographic record, a short summary, and journal reviews Chapters organized by type of book, from primary skills books, wordless picture books, and rhyming books to toy and movable books A list of additional resources helpful for building a core collection Valuable for regular use by caregivers as well as for collection development, this book spotlights hundreds of titles that are engaging and fun for reader and preschooler alike.

"In Maryland's Carroll County, story boxes have made this impossible dream come true for twenty years. Now MacMillan, writer, storyteller, and former children's librarian, outlines the proven story box system for sharing an array of successful programs. Story boxes offer a simple method for capturing ideas, talent, creativity, and resources available in your library. Including step-by-step instructions from concept through implementation and supplemented by programming tips, A Box Full of Tales also offers detailed plans for fifty great story boxes, including suggested books, fingerplays, songs, props, crafts, and sign language." "From ah-choo to antlers, from monkey business to zoo escapes, A Box Full of Tales is an easy way to offer winning, stress-free library programs for children without the headaches and the hassles. You can make the impossible happen when you share resources with story boxes!"--BOOK JACKET.

Whether used for thematic story times, program and curriculum planning, readers' advisory, or collection development, this updated edition of the well-known companion makes finding the right picture books for your library a breeze. Generations of savvy librarians and educators have relied on this detailed subject guide to children's picture books for all aspects of children's services, and this new edition does not disappoint. Covering more than 18,000 books published through 2017, it empowers users to identify current and classic titles on topics ranging from apples to zebras. Organized simply, with a subject guide that categorizes subjects by theme and topic and subject headings arranged alphabetically, this reference applies more than 1,200 intuitive (as opposed to formal catalog) subject terms to children's picture books, making it both a comprehensive and user-friendly resource that is accessible to parents and teachers as well as librarians. It can be used to identify titles to fill in gaps in library collections, to find books on particular topics for young readers, to help teachers locate titles to support lessons, or to design thematic programs and story times. Title and illustrator indexes, in addition to a bibliographic guide arranged alphabetically by author name, further extend access to titles.

Over 300,000 Megaskills books sold - A breakthrough new MegaSkills book - the first of its kind for developing character and achievement in the early years "This new book continues the key MegaSkills commitment to showing how parents can work with their children at home to help them learn." Marian Wright Edelman, president, Children's Defense fun For more than 20 years the MegaSkills program has taught parents how to help their children develop the abilities and values essential for success in school and in life. Now, nationally respected educators Dorothy Rich and Beverly Mattox show you how to start building MegaSkills before children reach school age. Specially designed for ages one through six, MegaSkills for Babies, Toddlers, and Beyond gives you hands-on techniques and kid-friendly activities to teach the 12 MegaSkills: Confidence Motivation Effort Responsibility Initiative Perseverance Caring Teamwork Problem-Solving Common Sense Focus Respect Along with the age-specific activities, this guide contains: Activities for children with disabilities How to get the best from technology MegaSkills measures for parents A wealth of additional resources "These inventive 'recipes' for parent-child activities build competence and confi dence and character, helping parents help their children make the most of childhood's earliest years." Judith Viorst, author of Alexander and the Wonderful, Marvelous, Excellent, Terrifc Ninety Days

For toddlers, every storytime can be a new adventure, while art activities are important for developing impulse control, hand-eye coordination, and fine motor dexterity in the hands. Hopkins’ new book fuses them together. Designed for children ages 1 to 3 years old, the book’s 52 storytimes promote pre-reading skills such as print motivation, vocabulary, and narrative skills. Based on themes familiar to children, including bears, bugs, springtime,clothing and hats, flowers and gardens, weather, music, pets, transportation, pirates, and many more, each storytime includes a list of books, action songs or rhymes along with their words, a flannelboard experience, plus instruction for two to three art activities. This complete toddler storytime resource also includes An introduction which discusses the differences between art activities and craft activities, a toddler’s ability in creating art, and why children this age should be exposed to art activities Advice for using different art mediums, such as food, plus important safety considerations Pointers on conducting playful yet educational storytimes Tips for finding inexpensive art materials, with a list of recommended supplies to keep on hand More than 100 drawings, all easy to reproduce and modify Weblinks to “Artsy Helper Sheets,” downloadable supplements complete with phrases, tips, and tricks that inform parents and caregivers about the benefits of doing art activities with toddlers Pick up Hopkins' book and you'll be ready to conduct a storytime within moments!

Lose weight and feel better, while enriching your cat's life! Here's an innovative, fun book with a simple premise: Incorporating exercise for you into brief playtimes with your cat can improve your life, brain function, and overall health- and make a difference in your cat's well-being. Select from over 50 quick-and-easy exercises requiring only 10-minute bursts of activity- using your cat as a personal trainer! This is a new life-changer for people of all ages.