The time has come for a first chapter book for my wee one. I wasn't sure if she was ready, I couldn't remember at what age my son was ready, but I knew I was ready. It is nice to move to a longer story and move away from the repetition of our favorite picture books. I felt the need for a longer tale. Stories with less picture on the page and more pictures in the mind. So for our first book, I chose one that was already on our shelf and I knew it was one of the firsts I read with my son. Stuart Little. We enjoy the full color version so that, although, the pictures are not as frequent as a picture book they still come around every page or two. Once we got started and she snuggled right up next to me, I knew she was ready. She loved it and we read nothing else until it was finished.
"Very good," said Stuart, cocking one leg across the other and shoving his hands in the pockets of his jacket. "Henry Rackmeyer, you tell us what is important."
"A shaft of sunlight at the end of a dark afternoon, a note in music, and the way the back of a baby's neck smells if its mother keeps it tidy, " answered Henry.
"Correct," said Stuart. "Those are important things. You forgot one thing, though. Mary Bendix, what did Henry Rackmeyer forget?"
"He forgot ice cream with chocolate sauce on it," said Mary quickly.
"Exactly," said Stuart. "Ice cream is important..."
Isn't Stuart awesome?!
Once Stuart was done, I suggested we pick up Charlotte's Web, also by E.B. White. And as I opened the cover here is what I found:
Aw, sweet. Unless you take what I wrote literally and you are thinking that the first book I ever read to my son happened when he was 3 1/2 - not so sweet. In fact, lame-o. But I swear what I meant was that this was the first chapter book we read together. Oh, you knew it. All along. Phew.
Back to Charlotte's Web. It is great fun to start reading chapter books. Starting to read chapter books really feels like a first step toward independent reading. Who knows where this first step will lead? Maybe we will go back to picture books? Maybe she will love all the first books her brother loved? Maybe we will find new ones just for her and her interests? It is exciting.
Next we created a simple book log! Clearly, I was not very good at keeping track of these first reads with my son but I'd like to take note this time. In this log I will reflect on what books were loved and which ones not-so-much love. Also I would like to consider which books were timely for her age and which ones weren't. I plan to include quotes and critiques from the horse's mouth (a.k.a. my girl.) And although I am years behind I thought my boy could join in too. I had 2 blank books readily available and I am thinking he can probably just log on his own - with a bit of encouragement. Should be fun to keep this record and check in on it for years to come.
Once the book logs were shared, we celebrated with some icicle hunting. Still some left in the shadier areas.
Nothing like the scrumptious taste of water that has dripped off a wooden deck and frozen into a perfect stick-like snack. Mmmm. Hope your Wednesday is as delicious!
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