Literacy – 15 Family Literacy Info
Tips for Parents
Ideas for Parents
Interactive Activities
Reading Materials
The Recommended Children’s Books section lists the books that have been used in the Family Literacy Program and that are available for check-out from the A.K. Smiley Public Library Literacy section. Click on Parent Books to get a list of books that assist parents with selecting children’s books and provide helpful reading tips.
What are you interested in?
All About Me
Books are available for checkout at the library.
The Family Book by Todd Parr
The Way I Feel by Janin Cain
Going to the Dentist by Mercer Mayer
Just a Special Day by Mercer Mayer
I Promise by LeBron James
Apple Cakes by Dawn Casey
Wild About Dads by Diana Murray
The Night Before Mother’s Day by Natasha Wing
Colors
Books are available for checkout at the library.
Brown Bear, Brown Bear by Bill Martin Jr / Eric Carle
Elmer by David McGee
Monsters Love Colors by Mike Austin
Mouse Paint by Ellen Stoll Walsh
Life Skills
Books are available for checkout at the library.
Learn numbers:
Ten Red Apples by Pat Hutchins
Learn days of the week:
Cookie’s Week by Cindy Ward
Learn about jobs:
Whose Tools are These? by Sharon Katz Cooper
Practice using your imagination:
Not a Box by Antoinette Portis
Rhyming Books
Books are available for checkout at the library.
Cat in the Hat by Dr. Seuss
Wacky Wednesday by Dr. Seuss
A Camping Spree with Mr. Magee by Chris Van Dusen
Science
Books are available for checkout at the library.
Planets by Elizabeth Carney
Bugs! by Shira Evans
In My World by Lois Ehlert
Growing Vegetable Soup by Lois Ehlert
Big Red Barn by Margaret Wise Brown
Peek Inside the Forest by Anna Milbourne
Bug Homes by Anna Milbourne
Pumpkin Circle by George Levenson
The Very Hungry Catepillar by Eric Carle
Under the Sea by Fiona Patchett
Holidays / Winter
Books are available for checkout at the library.
Cozy by Jan Brett
The Christmas Wish by Lori Evert
Olive, the Other Reindeer by Vivian Walsh
Too Many Tamales by Gary Soto
The Gingerbread Man Illustrated by Gail Yerrill
Thanks for Thanksgiving by Julie Markes
The Night Before Mother’s Day by Natasha Wing
Parent Books
Books are available for checkout at the library.
Reading Magic: why reading aloud to your children will change their lives forever by Mem Fox
100 Best Books for Children by Anita Silvey
The Read-Aloud Handbook by Jim Trelease
The Read-Aloud Family: making meaningful and lasting connections with your kids by Sarah MacKenzie
What to Read When: the books and stories to read with your child and all the best times to read them by Pam Allyn
Remote Instruction Resources
Parent Time Handouts
(PDF files suitable for printing)
Workshop 1: Responsive Parent-Child Interactions
Children can learn a lot through conversations. The way adults speak to children is important. Children learn how to listen when adults talk to them. They also learn new words when they hear adults use them. Here are some tips for listening and responding to children that will help them learn and grow.
Workshop 2: Playing with Sounds and Words
Many activities that focus on playing with sounds and words can be done anytime, anywhere. Your family does not need special materials or a lot of time. So, play with sounds and words in the car, in a waiting room, on the bus, or while giving your child a bath. Remember, playing with sounds and words helps your child build skills that support learning to read.
Workshop 3: Building a Love of Reading
Remember to let children hold the book. Talk to them about how books work and the different parts of the book.
Workshop 4: Making the Most of Reading Time
Remember to let children hold the book. Talk to them about how books work and the different parts of the book.
Workshop 5: Retelling – Building Story Understanding
Parents can retell stories with their children. These can be stories that they have read together or family stories that parents have told their children.
Workshop 6: Celebrating Children’s Writing
As early as age 2, children can begin drawing and writing. However, children’s writing looks very different from adult writing. This is okay! Children of all ages should be encouraged to draw and write.
Internet Resources
Reading Rockets offers research-based reading strategies, lessons, and activities designed to help yeoung children learn how to read better. Our reading resources assists parents and educators in helping struggling readers build fluency, vocabulary, and comprehension skllls.
Where natural curiosity and imagination lead to exploration and discovery in learners of all ages. Each day, we pose a question – the Wonder of the Day – and explore it in a variety of ways. Wonderopolis was created by the National Center for Families Learning (NCFL)
This website provides students with the most accurate and current resources available on the internet that are child safe sites. Students can search by topic to learn more information. FactHound will fetch a list of approved and recommended Web sites and books that match.
Provides opportunities for young children to have fun learning their ABCs and reading skills through positive reinforcement in a brightly colored web page that is full of activities, games, and songs.