read aloud – Book Sipper

Dominic

The old hardback copy of Dominic that I brought into the house was met with unease. It looked like one of those classics that you had to read in high school, that you knew would be awful.

But we decided to take a chance on the mustardy yellow color covered book and we found a heroic tale of a dog with a superb blend of action and deep meaning.

Dominic is an on the go sort of dog. He sets off with his piccalo to see what lies down the road. His keen sense of smell leads him to find friendships on his adventures and right into the clutches of the Doomsday gang. The Doomsday gang is a group of villians who attack the innocent animals of the countryside. Being a kind and courageous dog, Dominic must find a way to defeat these ruffians.

The exceptional descriptive vocabulary in this book make it a wonderful read aloud. The reading level in my opinion would have to be 7th grade or higher. The beauty of the wording may get overlooked and skipped over if a child had to sound out many of the words.
That is why reading aloud is an easy way to learn new words. The challenging words are heard in context and are made to come alive in the mind.

The illustrations in Dominic are simple stick and line sketches. I found them charming, but my children seem to have a more refined opinion of what an illustration should be. But by the end of the book they were asking to see the pictures as well. Simplicity can grow on you.

To wrap it all up in a bandana ( story reference ) Dominic is a fabulous boy read or read aloud for mulit-ages, I lean towards 8 and up. Boys will enjoy the sword fighting and heroic deeds of this loveable dog.
Moms will appreciate the outstanding vocabulary and life lessons taught in the story.

I dog eared several pages but this is a tidbit I am still mulling over- "Fighting the bad ones in the world was a necessary and gratifying experience. Being happy among the good ones was, of course, even more gratifying. But one could not be happy among the good ones unless one fought the bad ones."

The Penderwicks

I enjoy reading aloud with a book in my hand.

But lately we have been spending a lot of time driving to and fro, getting people to where they need to be.

So, I did the next best thing to reading a book, I popped in an audio book.

Is it still considered a read aloud if I am not doing the reading?

We are reading aloud or listening together to The Penderwicks.

The Penderwick family is off enjoy their summer at a rental cottage on a large estate. The story centers around the four sisters- Rosalind, Skye, Jane and Batty. The girls enjoy many summer adventures at Arundel Hall where there are friends to be made, a snooty lady to be avoided and lost rabbits?!

This is a charming story that has kept us entertained for miles and looking forward to stop lights- so we can listen for just a few more minutes.

Do you listen to audio books?

Ivy and Bean Series

I check out piles and piles of books for the kids at the library and hope that one or two of them will become a “get lost in a book” kind of read.

I check out stacks more hoping to find read aloud books that will have even me saying one more chapter!

Ivy and Bean by Annie Barrows, was a title I grabbed and thought it looked okay.

Imagine my surprise as I sat down to skim a chapter but ended up reading the whole book, laughing at the antics of these characters! This book was a delight.

I read it to the kids that night & they loved hearing all about Bean and the trick she plays on her older sister, & how a girl across the street turns into a friend, even when they think they have nothing in common.

That first Ivy & Bean (Book 1) (Bk. 1) led us to read the entire 10 book series.

Girls ages 8-12 are sure to enjoy this dynamic duo & will love the mischief that occurs in these stories.

That being said, my son thought they were highly entertaining as a read aloud. But I doubt he would have pulled them off the shelf for himself.
So if you want a read aloud that can handle multiple ages and be fun for boys and girls- Ivy and Bean is a winner!

Reasons to Read Aloud

I will be sharing quite a bit about reading aloud with my kids and our favorite read alouds. It is a subject near and dear to my heart.

The kids and I began curling up with good books when they were in diapers. And the book adventures have not ended!

“Story-time with Mama” by Breezy Brookshire, 2011

Reading aloud is vital to children’s language development and in many other areas as well.
And I am not the only one who thinks so! ( It’s nice when others agree with you, isn’t it?! )

Here are three articles that discuss it further.

http://adc.bmj.com/content/93/7/554.short

http://edsource.org/2015/study-says-reading-aloud-to-children-more-than-talking-builds-literacy/82045

http://www.reachoutandread.org/why-we-work/importance-of-reading-aloud/

Reading a book to a child not only builds literacy, it bonds you together as you share stories and time together.

When attention spans were short, we would pull out a simple picture book and read it before bed.

Then as attention spans grew, chapter books captured our attention & had them begging for “one more chapter!”

Now with my trio all in double digits and able to read themselves, there is a lure that brings us all together at read aloud time.

All it takes is a great book.

Do you read aloud to your children?

Me & My Book Reading Style

I am a Booksipper.

I read and drink tea. (a lot )

But what kinds of things do I read?

I am a fiction fanatic!
I love a good story. A story that draws you in and you can't put down. I want very little drama and suspense -real life gives me enough of that!

But to keep my mind sharp I began a yearly nonfiction list. And come to find out, there are all kinds of great nonfiction books too!

I have read loads of amazing children's books to my kiddos over the years.
Homeschooling has added countless books to our piles.

I read books to learn how to do things. I have learned so much about essential oils, cooking and homesteading.

Really, I will read just about anything!
It's all about my mood, and the amount of time I have to settle in with a sippable beverage and my latest read.