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What to Read When: The Books and Stories to…
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What to Read When: The Books and Stories to Read with Your Child--and All the Best Times to Read Them (edition 2009)

by Pam Allyn

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Award-winning educator Allyn offers parents and caregivers essential advice on choosing appropriate titles for their children--taking into account a child's age, attention ability, gender, and interests--along with techniques for reading aloud effectively.
Member:kepitcher
Title:What to Read When: The Books and Stories to Read with Your Child--and All the Best Times to Read Them
Authors:Pam Allyn
Info:Avery Trade (2009), Edition: Original, Paperback, 336 pages
Collections:Your library
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Tags:reference, books, reading

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What to Read When: The Books and Stories to Read with Your Child--and All the Best Times to Read Them by Pam Allyn

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Even though I'm a librarian, I sometimes have trouble finding age appropriate books. I mean, I know how to help college students conduct research, I know how to preserve documents and I know how to make early American history relevant to today's present but sometimes finding a children's book stumps me.

That is where What to Read When: The Books and Stories to Read with Your Child ~ and All the Best Time to Read Them by Pam Allyn comes in handy. Pam Allyn is the the founder and executive director of LitLife, an internationally recognized organization that trains hundreds of K~12 teachers each year. She is also the founding director of Books for Boys, an award~winning mentoring and reading initiative at The Children's Village. Allyn is also the recipient of a Points of Light/Disney award and two James Patterson PageTurner Awards for excellence in bringing literacy to underserved populations. In other words, a librarian's dream...

The idea behind the book is the belief that reading aloud to your children is important in the development of happy, healthy, well~rounded children. And while most read~aloud book guides are geared towards children from birth until roughly 5 years of age, this book also offers book suggestions for children up to the age of 10. Yes, it is just as important to read to older children as it is to younger children.

The book begins by explaining why parents should read aloud to their children ~ think bonding, developing an interest in reading and expanding your child's imagination. The next part provides an annotated list of what to read to your child at every age and ends with a reading guide for books by theme, such as adoption, courage, death, loneliness and spirituality.

I like that each section is prefaced by a memory of Allyn's interactions with her own family members or children she has come in contact with during the course of her work. These little vignettes make the book approachable and help the parents to understand why a certain book was chosen or the discussions that can develop from the readings of various books.

One of my favorite book choices is in the section dedicated to books about heroes because gasp a librarian is included in the mix of civil rights leaders, Native American activists and suffragists. The Librarian of Basra: A True Story of Iraq by Jeanette Winter tells the story of Alia Muhammed Baker, a librarian in Basra, Iraq who struggled to save her library's books before the war. According to Allyn, read this story to provide "a new perspective on the war in the Middle East, and to show the incredible capacity of books to inspire heroism." Wow.

This book is a definite must for any parent or adult looking to find age appropriate books to read to their children on a plethora of topics. ( )
1 vote curiouschild | Jul 20, 2010 |
I cannot say enough good things about this book. Pam Allyn offers wonderful insights into the meaningful moments of childhood literacy development, and explains to parents, teachers, and caregivers how to identify and nurture those moments. I am particularly appreciative of the sensitivity with which she identifies the general differences in boys' and girls' reading preferences, without stereotyping. She shows amazing sensitivity to all different types of emerging readers, and to those who would read aloud to them.

This book categorizes a wealth of children's literature in two different ways: 1) by age/developmental level, and 2) by theme. This text thus becomes the perfect handy reference for parents looking for general books to collect for their children, as well as for those in need of children's literature relevant to a specific occasion. Allyn also offers insight into the times to read these books, and how to approach reading time -- with suggested discussion questions, reading times, settings, etc.

I was a bit surprised to find that Allyn's list of so-called Landmark books -- "books that have shaped how childhood has been conveyed to us over the years" -- is more or less limited to books from the middle of the 20th century. Surely there have been some Landmark texts in the last ten or twenty years... no? That said, Allyn offers a very good defense of many controversial texts that are often challenges as valuable texts for children -- the Harry Potter series among them. She also emphasizes the value of culture-specific books that speak to a child's unique experience and allow him/her to better empathize with the main character. Allyn seems quite attuned to the unique needs of children in a variety of circumstances, and recommends books to be read aloud to them accordingly.

Her text is well researched, and even though I don't agree with all the selections on her book lists, her explanations and justifications are well though and compassionately conveyed. I've already recommended this book to several parents who I think will benefit from Allyn's insight as they figure out what to read to their own children in order to best boost their literacy. For anyone who cares for children, this book is an invaluable guide to establishing a positive reading routine and choosing the right books for the right times.
  Eneles | Jan 10, 2010 |
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Award-winning educator Allyn offers parents and caregivers essential advice on choosing appropriate titles for their children--taking into account a child's age, attention ability, gender, and interests--along with techniques for reading aloud effectively.

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