Image by Tie Guy II via Flickr

This is a really super cool activity that will help kids with reading AND science! I would love to do this with my own name – so much fun! Gardening is such a fun activity to do with your kids and it provides so many learning opportunities, but, this is a very unique way that it can help your child with his/her reading skills! I love it!

From the site:

Kindergarteners spend hours and hours reading, writing and exploring the sounds in their own names, and in those of their classmates. Teachers love to use names to help reinforce key skills in early reading instruction… and parents can help!

Seriously, this looks like a lot of fun! Go there now: Activities : Plant Your Name with Seeds!

I found this activity – written by Julie Williams – on Education.com

Recently at school, Sammie and her classmates celebrated Read Around the Clock. Have you ever heard of this before? I think it’s so cute! We didn’t do this in Texas, although we did do something similar. Anyway, for Read Around the Clock day, the kids brought books, blankets, pillows, and their favorite stuffed animals to school.

Oh, and check out this cute graphic I found on the web for it:

Isn’t he cute? Ok, so back to Sammie’s day – they were allowed to bring all their favorite cozy stuff, and they spent the majority of the day all comfy and reading! Doesn’t that sound heavenly?

I think she said they went to PE, lunch, and music, and other than that – it was all reading! I just think it’s too bad they didn’t invite the parents! I would love a day for nothing but reading! I might have to just put one on my schedule over the Christmas holidays!

I was online looking at dog supplies when I found the coolest Kong toy! I love Kong toys anyway – I think they are simply genius! The toy that I found would be so perfect for my mother’s dogs. She leaves the house and goes to work all day, leaving the dogs home to get into all kinds of mischief, and if there’s one thing those dogs are good at – it’s mischief!

Here’s the toy that just might help them out!

They call it KongTIME and it dispenses four different Kong toys at different times throughout the day. And you can, of course, fill the Kong toys with yummy goodness for your dogs!

I could have used this recently myself – my parents were here visiting and we were taking them out for the day sightseeing. As we left the house, I grabbed three dog biscuits and plopped them down in different places through the house. I couldn’t make them too hidden, or in rooms or areas I knew he wouldn’t go, but, I hoped it would take him at least a little while to discover each of them. Ha! You try ‘hiding’ biscuits from a nosy 120 pound dog! He found them all before we even left the driveway! So I know we could benefit from one of these,too.

My only reservation would be to wonder of what material the dispenser itself is made. The reason that Kong toys are so popular is because they are indestructible. And I think I know a dog or two, not mentioning any names here (*ahem* Jake *cough* Randy) who would love to rip the dispenser to shreds, if possible! And then they could have those darn Kong toys whenever they wanted!

We went to our town Christmas parade last night and it was so much fun! My oldest son was in the parade, with his high school marching band. And there is an awesome coffee shop in the town square where we were watching it from. I had the most delicious chicken salad sandwich and a yummy coffee.

The theme of the parade was ‘A Country Christmas’ and there were all kinds of ‘floats’ entered in the fun procession! There were very dirty muddin’ trucks, a funeral parlor limousine, and even a miniature carousel. There was even a truck from the Coop – I’m pretty sure that’s where my mother-in-law buys her horse riding apparel. I just love saying it – ‘the Coop’. It makes me feel so country, like an official, bonafide small-towner! I just love it – but, I’m a dork like that!

It is really just so sad, but, lately no matter how early I go to bed, I can NOT read! I can’t stand it!

Last night I went to bed at 9:30 and I really wanted to read just this one little article in my magazine that had just come in the mail – Website Magazine. I wanted to read the article about the controversy that is brewing around the internet, more specifically the blogosphere, about a certain type of advertising.

And I could barely read the first few paragraphs without falling asleep! I don’t think I even read the first column without just completely conking out!

And here is where it gets really sad – about a week ago, I went to bed at 7:30. That’s right, folks – 7:30pm. I completely thought I would get to relax in bed and read for at least a couple hours.

Do you think that happened? Nope. I was out – like a light!

I want to read – someone un-sleepify me!!

When you shop for a holiday gift at The Alzheimer’s Foundation estore, all proceeds benefit The Alzheimer’s Foundation of America. This is a perfect time to make our kids aware of helping others in need, as this month is National Alzheimer’s Month. And it’s the perfect time to be shopping for gifts, too.

The money that goes to the foundation goes toward research to find a cure, but, also – it goes toward providing quality care to those afflicted, which is so important. People with Alzheimer’s do need hands-on, often around-the-clock care, and ensuring that they receive good care is so important and can be so difficult. Funding that can help families get through this difficult time is sorely needed.

I think it is so important to teach our kids about the different things that can go ‘wrong’ in people’s lives. I want my kids to know that life is not all about looking the coolest and having the coolest clothes and hanging out with the coolest people. Teaching them about something as common as Alzheimer’s is a good way to do that. So many of us will have someone in our lives with Alzheimer’s, or will get it ourselves.

And a lot of teens already have someone in their lives with Alzheimer’s and AFA is taking steps to help these teens cope with a very difficult situation. They have their own website, called AFA Teens. There are message boards where they can connect with other teens going through the same thing and lots of information on the site to help them understand Alzheimer’s better. They even try to get local support groups set up for the kids.

Another way The AFA helps families through this trying time is to offer in their eStore, a four part training DVD, that will help people learn basic skills for caring for family members with the disease. So when you purchase these DVD’s you are not only helping yourself and your family member, but, you are also helping the AFA, which in turn – helps your family member. So that’s pretty cool.

Yesterday afternoon, I was on Skype with one of my favorite bloggy-friends, Loretta. She wanted to share some ‘bookworm-y’ news with me – all about her sweet bookworm, Ethan, and his new favorite book! I love ‘bookworm-y’ news – Loretta sure does know what makes me smile!

Then we got to talking about the book fairs that the schools have and I was telling her how I didn’t really like them, because there are too many ‘trinkets’ on sale. Not to mention, the $30 books that Shawn always picks out! I know, though, with a $30 book he is getting his money’s worth.

Those darn ‘trinket’ combo things drive me crazy! They sell a really cheap toy, and a really cheap book – package them together and then mark the price up, because, you are getting a book and a toy! HA!

And Shawn used to be such a sucker for these! It used to drive me crazy! One time, he bought a combo set that was about airplanes and jets. If it was just a book, that would be awesome for a young boy to get excited about reading! But – he wound up with a really flimsy, cheap-o book, and these little bitty cardboard airplanes! It was awful.

And the thing is, that more and more of these things are making their way into the book fairs. And then the Scholastic team can pat themselves on the back, thinking they are getting kids excited about reading. I have to say, though, I don’t think Shawn – who is a voracious reader – even read that silly airplane book!

Then Loretta and I switched gears a little bit and began discussing the book orders. I told her that I do like those. There seem to be some really good deals in there, quite a bit more than at the book fairs. And I know how much the kids love ordering the books – it is so exciting for them when their books come in!

I remember very well ordering books when I was in elementary school and how totally awesome that was! (I don’t remember if we used Scholastic back then, though – I’ll have to ask my mother if she remembers.) And in the fourth grade, we had a behavior system that was based on points, but, instead of points, you got what we called ‘mula money’. The mula money was little pieces of construction paper with different amounts on them, that we had all helped to make at the beginning of the year, if I remember correctly. And on the week that our book order came in, on that Friday, in the afternoon – if you had enough mula money, you got a special treat. You were allowed to find a comfortable spot anywhere in the classroom that you wanted and read your new books. And – you could bring a snack – any kind of snack. It didn’t have to be healthy. If you wanted to bring a Snickers and a Coke, that was fine! Oh, how I loved those Fridays!! And what a wonderful memory to have!

Back to my Skype chat, though, Loretta and I were still chattering on and on about the book orders and the book fair, when Sammie’s bus pulled up outside the house. She came running in the front door shaking some papers at me, “Momma! I got a book order!” She was so excited, and probably wondered why I was ignoring her. It was because I was so busy laughing and typing to Loretta what Sammie had come in saying! It was so funny!

This video ROCKS so hard, it’s not even funny! I totally, completely, whole-heartedly LOVE IT!!!

GO READ A BOOK!

It is very important for children to keep reading, even during the long, lazy days of summer.

One way to keep your kids reading is to find books on topics about which your children are obsessed.

We all know that children go through phases of obsession – with dinosaurs, race cars, Pokemon, and all kinds of things!

If you will help your child to find books on their ‘topic de jour’, you will have a child much more eager to read.

I know that the teachers feel the difference, in the fall, between the children who continued to nourish their brains and those who didn’t.

I’ve often heard teachers complain that the first month is just getting the children’s brains ‘revved back up’.

If our children can start back to school in the fall ready to jump into the curriculum, it will make for a much more successful year.

For me, though, the most important thing is that children learn how utterly enjoyable reading actually is.

And when we help them find books on their very favorite subjects, even if that is truck engines, or electricity, or makeup techniques, we are much more likely to have a lifelong reader on our hands!

I fully understand that summertime is a time for fun, sun, and play. I am actually against the concept of all-year school – so trust me, I adore the idea of children fully enjoying their summer. And I dearly hope that some of that enjoyment involves reading!

GO READ A BOOK!

I am so glad that my children (well, two of them) have summer reading assignments. They only give them out at the high school level, which for us is 7th-12th grades. My children read all year long on their own, anyway, but, I still like that they are being instructed what to read – in the summer! Each successive grade level has an increasing amount of responsibility with their summer reading. The 7th graders, for instance, have to have their books completed by the beginning of the school year, and then over the first week, they will have extensive reviews of the book. And then they will be tested over the book. My 8th grader, however, will not have any reviews. They will just be tested on their books the first week of school. And then the 12th graders, on the other hand, have quite a bit of responsibility! They are reading more than one book and they have to complete an assignment for the books before the school year starts! As a mama bookworm, I have to say – that ROCKS!

GO READ A BOOK!