I have a ton to say on the topic of reading and how we’re ruining it for our kids, but I’ll keep it short today with 3 huge reasons you should never set a timer when your kid reads. Not even if his teacher tells him to. Not even if she sends home a fancy Pinteresting […]
What’s Your Best Family Travel Advice?
Vacatia.com has rounded up the best family travel advice from 57 (yes, fifty-seven!) travel writers! I’m thrilled to be included among such great company!
How to Heal Cavities Naturally and Free Printable Tooth Care Log for Kids
My 9-year-old daughter has two cavities we’re trying to heal naturally. If you’ve read up on healing tooth decay, you know there are loads of changes you need to make to your diet and lifestyle to promote healing and remineralizing your teeth. I created a printable Tooth Care Log that my daughter and I can […]
Beyond The Jungle Book: How to Introduce Rudyard Kipling to Your Kids
Disney’s live action The Jungle Book pounces into theaters April 15th! Jon Favreau promises a closer interpretation of the text this time around (not that I have anything against the 60s classic), so that gives every American kid 3 months to finish the book. You probably know that besides The Jungle Book, Rudyard Kipling also […]
The Best Disney Book You’ve Never Read
You think you know Disney. You’ve watched—or at least heard, as you worked while your kids watched—every Disney movie at least a dozen times, or, in the case of Frozen, as regularly as you brush your teeth. You can spell supercalifragilisticexpialidocious. I’ll wait while you quiz your kids. If you pick 10 toys at random from […]
Great Books for BIG Kids to Read Over Christmas Vacation
“There is more treasure in books than in all the pirate’s loot on Treasure Island.” Walt Disney Here are some ideas for books to read on Christmas vacation, and the reason why reading shouldn’t stop when school lets out for winter break. [Affiliate links in this post are for your convenience and offer free 2-day shipping […]
Free Homeschool Planner: How Kids Can DIY Homeschool When Mom Is Busy!
This post promotes affiliate links. It’s the most wonderful time of the year! I moved last month and that craziness doesn’t play well with my goal to be totally organized for Christmas this year. My heart says put up The Tree! And my head says, um…have you SEEN your bedroom? Yes, my heart looks like Joy and […]
How to Teach Vocabulary with Great Books! The Hardy Boys 1: The Tower Treasure
Do you want your kids to have a rich, expressive vocabulary? Sure you do! There’s really only one way to ensure your kids can easily pluck le mot juste from their magnificent brains at will: read Great Books to them! Take a good, hard look at your kids’ book lists from school: do you see […]
We’re Killing Cultural Literacy for Kids! The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde – Robert Louis Stevenson
Cultural Literacy is collective consciousness—the common body of knowledge shared within a culture. For me, that culture is the good old U.S. of A.! Cultural Literacy is our shared experience. If you grew up in America in the 80s like I did, you can reasonably assume that everyone around your age you meet today made a trail […]
Why You Should Read the Bible to Your Kids (Even if You’re Not a Christian)
Subscribe to my #Write31Days project to keep up with this month’s posts and get a free review copy of my Kindle book (Nov 2015), 31 Days of Great Books to Read to Your BIG Kids! Each post in this series has two parts: the Great Book, and tips on how to read that Great Book to your kids! These aren’t […]