What a weekend

So the weekend comes to a close and how often do we look back and think of the chances that we gave our children to learn and explore.  For myself this is the one I try to make my goal to be better at, this weekend we were able to take the kids to the Drive-in to see Kung Fu Panda 2, this was a great time for the kids to really have a blast and stay up late. For the parents it was a great time that turned out better then one might dream of.  Our kids loved the movie and watched it with excitement not only for the movie but the chance to eat junk food and run and jump around the back of the van.  Great time.
To the Sunday night book reading, this was very fun as my oldest brought me our small book collection of Richard Scarry books, they are a set of 8 board construction books about 8 pages long and full of colorful pictures and lots of busy and fun scenes that our oldest seems to just love.  They have opened up his ability to look at the picture and tell his own story from what he sees and his younger brother will tell a crazy story of how he has seen a watermelon car out side or that he saw a worm with a tennis shoe outside in the garden.  The books range in title from Things That Go!, Huckle's Opposites which is a great book to do a Q&A with young children the words are simple and short, great for the young reader developing his ability to recognize words.  We have All About Us, Get Up and Go!, Huckle's Good Manners, and others which can be found at www.fivemile.com/au or http://www.amazon.com/ My littlest boy came to me with   He is really into pointing and asking "whats this" and wanting to hear the story of what he points to and this book like all Disney books is great for him, with dogs and cats, and even a horse I can give him a good story in a few short minutes and he is interested and turning the pages ready with a point and answer. 
My three year old is into the Batman supper hero thing and I got these books from work and for him it is that feeling of beating the bad guy and the fighting and being strong that really gets him into the book and wanting to read.  That is okay because it helps us talk about what it takes to be supper and that bad guys are out there but if you take care of yourself you can take on those bad guys and be like Batman, and he loves knowing that he can get bigger and stronger and that gives me a smile and know that this is part of who he is right now.
So as you can see the age might not actually say anything about the books they want to read, but you just go with it with no questions just an open mend and make it into something that lets them learn and grow in their search for language and knowledge of their world.  Reading is the one thing that a father can build in the child and it takes only a small amount of time for it to build into a world of difference.
Until tomorrow read a comic to your kids

A little room to move

So last night was a relaxing book time for myself and my two youngest, the oldest was under the weather and asleep.  My three year old really likes at times to just hear a book and snuggle next to me, and the youngest just wanted to point at pictures and turn pages.  This is that moment when you see how they just enjoy the time you are giving them, that they really have control over how much they read and we present the stories.  I love the days we just snuggle and read, when they are intone with hearing my voice and the story at hand, it gives me the chance to present the characters and create a style for the listener.
Often when reading to children adults forget that there are characters and that they each have their own voice and the story just becomes a flow of words with little impact of how it was meant to be read, this is not something we think about dads it just is our nature to present the facts and get to the bottom of the story.  So often is the case when all three of my boys want to hear a story and one has a book about bugs the other a counting book, I get caught in the mix of material and this is harder to achieve. 
What you do at that moment is look at the books they bring to you read the title and glance through the pages, this takes very little time.  Then set your mind into the characters setting and take a deep breath.  Last night it was A Charlie Brown Christmas, yes this is what my 3 year old picked, I love Christmas so I was ready. 
This is a Hallmark gift book from their Nana, it is interactive with voices and sounds that really get younger children involved.  Anyone who remembers growing up and watching this special on TV will find this book a joy to read to their children, it is easy to present and with the added interaction it offers you a time to see great smiles.  I love getting into the characters and really letting the story become real for my kids to almost see them looking at me and not the book.  I mean lets face it the lines between Lucy and Charlie are always great and the emotion that Charlie Brown brings really gets you to connect words and emotional reaction, this is a great way to help teach social interaction. 

My youngest chose this book by Richard Scarry which can be found at http://www.fivemile.com.au/ or Amazon.  We have a set of several easy to follow board construction books that are great.  This book is full of bright colors and busy pictures of food, planes, and pigs to name a few.  My yougest was in the mood to point and listen to me talk about the things he pointed to and it abled me to work on pronounceing words and helping him to hear the sounds.  Like Fork, SPoon, TOothBRush,  and to hear him try and repeat those sounds, there is nothing more exciting and comical I love this time with the boys and look forward to it every night.  Knowing that I am offering them a chance to learn and see me in a different way means the world to me.
Until next time have a great day

Just some things to know

As a dad you may be asking yourself, what can I really do?  So much of a child's language is given to them in a social context, and with regards to growing their vocabulary, it starts with an abundance of experience and the chance to learn with that experience.  That is where you come into play, you offer your child or children that chance for a one on one or small group learning experience that is not afforded them in school, and often the case with dad. 
Take your profession for a brief minute, does it require that you interact with lots of people or that you understand how to solve a problem within a set amount of time.  This is what you bring to their growth of language.  We take for granted that learning to talk just happens and if you really tried to look back at your own journey in language you would be lost as to how it started, but you could find that there are always situations in which having had a path before you would have meant a different outcome. 
At times this is presented to us and we have overlooked it and thought nothing of it, until now.  I enjoy taking the children to the grocery store, this is the time to really put some language and reading skills to use.  Give them a list of a few things that they need to be on the look out for and along the way give them cues to look for or ask them questions about were in the store might the thing be located.  This will prompt their brains to search and start asking about everything in the store until they have located the item.  You get the chance to teach them ENVIRONMENTAL PRINT, everyday things that they encounter from logos to letters and shapes.  I like to explain to them why they can have yogurt but not candy so they can ask why and I can try and explain ingredients.  The store also helps use work on their PHONOLOGICAL MEMORY or their ability to remember what the heard for a brief period of time. 
Store time is somet5hing every family has more then they care to acknowledge but it is the one time that offers itself for dad to show that little one that they love to spend time with them and that they want to teach them some cool and interesting things.  I also want to say that you will see that your children will start to turn to people in line and tell them what they have learned or they will tell them that they know something about the store or the item on the checkout stand, this is always that moment you feel great and know that you made the most out of a time that use to be a get in and get out moment.

I end tonight with one of my favorite books that my children got from their Nana, All the World by Liz garton scanlon.  This book is so wonderfully put together that I don't no where to begin.  It has bold letters and a flow of sounds that is so rewarding as a reader to young children.  The ability it gives me to get them to pronounce words back and to keep their interest into the book is fabulous, and the art work, well that is beautiful, every page is full of color and detail as if I remember being at those places on my own travels.  This book is a must have for any child's book shelf and will be the one you will see offers a world of education for dad and his little ones.  Find this book at http://www.kids.simonandschuster.com/   So until next time, show them you are bigger then life

Dad I love insects!

So as the little ones grow the duties of a dad chamge from knowing how to change the oil in the car to now knowing about EVERYTHING and I do mean EVERYTHING, I love this because it keeps me on my toes and helps me build that language of asking questions that I feel a school system doesn't do for children.  Having spent sometime working as a Para-Professional in the local school system I had the oppurtunity to see that children have a drive to want to learn amazing new things but they seemed to not have the foundation of how and when to ask a question.  For tonights focus I move to my 5 year old who is at that amazing quest for knowledge and right now it is bugs and evrything about every bug.  Tonights book is titled Where Butterflies Grow by Joanne Ryder, found at http://www.penguin.com/ the art work in this book by Lynne Cherry is amazing, she takes you into the grass and field level settings that offer a view into the life of a caterpillar from egg to butterfly.  The words are simple and it offers the child boxes that show a zoomed in view of what is going on and that opens the question gates.  You can point out that it is important for the egg to be hidden from prey and I gaurante he will ask where is a good place to hide and what would want to eat a bug, the list goes on so just come back with anything.  I offer up that in some cultures people eat bugs as part of their daily meals this is good wide eyeid expressions that to me are proceless.  I ask him to explain what he sees on the page and instead of correcting him I give him a building block to work off. EX.  There is a page that talks about the caterpillar shedding his skin as he explains this he seems confused so I explain that he loses skin cells and has to replace them to become bigger and in return he tells me that the catterpillar is going to grow bigger as a butterfly.  Remember that it is important to just let them come up with whatever they wish in this process and instead of correction give him a way to see it in a new way.  I know very lttle aboutr bugs but I know that I can create a world that interacts with his and it offers us the chance to learn great things together.  I highly recomend this book to any young child who loves bugs, at the end it offers a way to get butterflies into your own garden and in the end giving your child the chance to have a hands on experience with their reading will only help to increase their knowledge and give you a great big smile at the end of a long day.  IS THERE ANYTHING BETTER THAN THAT!
Until next time imagine the world

Finding your groove

I want to start by letting Dads out there know that it is about finding the time that best works for you when trying to start this.  For me and my schedule it just happens to be the night time bed routine.  Also with boy's ranging from 5yrs, 3yrs, and 19 months it is a challenge but each child gets the chance to pick one book of their choice.  Remember if you have a little one to accept any book he brings and work with it, this really lets him or her feel like they are a big part of this whole process, and you will get a great feeling when they bring you Cat in the Hat.  So for now look for a time of day that you can give them any amount of time, for the purpose of the post today we will look at my youngest.  At 19 months I am lucky to get a good five minutes from him so he gets first priority and tonight it was Pet Babies by Charles Reasoner, this can be found at http://www.justforkidspress.com/.

I love this book for young children it is a thick board construction which means it can take a beating and that is number one in buying books for little ones, second it has those over exaggerated character eyes that kids are drawn to.  For me this book offers pages of bright colors and lots of objects on the page for the little one to point at and for me to improve off of.

 Opening page example, it has several animals to make noises for and the chance for you to do point and find with the little mouse in the picture.  I give this book a 5 star rating because with the art work and fun looking animals I can forget the words and teach and watch my youngest as he points and tries to mirror my actions and noises.  Like the blog states it is aboutt finding your groove, make it a time when you are ready some simple rules to follow when reading to children: 1) Be in a good mood, they can feel your mood, 2) know who you are reading to 3) make it different then the rest of the day for you and them
Until next time enjoy being a DAD!!!

Daddy I love your voice

When I started out on this fatherhood journey i had the chance to be reading some research by Patricia Kulh at the University of Washington.  She talked about the abilities of how young children till the age of 6 months can discriminate distinctions among languages.  This is amazing stuff I invite you to check it out, I found it at www.researchchannel.org I mention this because as a new father we often think that babies are just there, they really only seem interested in mom and lets face it she has all the things they really need.  Now we can say that dad you have something to offer, the SPORTS SECTION!, I know that this sounds to good to be true but, if we understand that young babies can pick up on language distinctions then that must mean they are intently listening to the spoken world around them and to that I say "dad let your voice be heard".  You can do this simply by taking the news paper you read go to the sports section, its quick and has just enough in their to keep baby going, at the same time give your little one the local sports store advertisement and let them have at it.  It is important to know that a young baby is exploring and feeling their way around the world so give them something that they can dig into and have their way with.  While they are on your lap read the world of sports out loud to them and when they look at you or make a noise directed to what you are doing use that as the open door to talk to them, tell them about the pictures in the paper and tell them that the Dodgers have a good team, and ask them "do you like baseball?".  Give them the chance to see your face and how your face is while you read, that means showing your excitement when the Steelers(that's our team) get into the playoffs or when they lose.  It is also important for the child to understand the emotions that go with the noises of the words.  Dads, we know that this fast pace world of working and getting the most out it is tough to manage, and I offer no simple solutions for that, but what I do offer is the chance to take the everyday and make it the every opportunity day that we as dads can teach our little ones.  They really do love our voice and that is all the world during this early time!!   Thank you