The Bard's Books

In the town of Itching Down, things are NOT going well for the villagers. They've had a unusually high number of wasps and the villagers are fed up with their buzzing and stinging. At a town meeting, they come up with a plan to rid the town of the horrid insects by an unusual means - creating a giant jam sandwich! This book was my absolute favorite as a child. It is rhyming (and not in a tedious, forced way) which makes it perfect for reading aloud. The illustrations by John Vernon Lord wonderfully detail the process by which the villagers go about solving their problems. And the story itself is just delightful, to kids of all ages. The educational benefit is clear - the story focuses on creative problem solving. In addition, readers get some idea of where the ingredients for a sandwich come from, as we watch the villagers build their sandwich from the wheat up. This blog wouldn't be complete without a link to purchase. At Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Giant-Jam-Sandwich-Sandpi...

I just picked up this gem of a book from the World Trading Company in Austin. Its an adorable little children's book written by Boni Ashburn that's a fresh take on the traditional lullaby, "Hush, Little Baby". First off, its a book you can sing with, which gives it more points in my opinion. The illustrations by Kelly Murphy are adorable, and the book introduces new vocabulary to your little bibliophile (including the words entree, cuisine and musketeer). I plan on using it in my classroom with kindergarteners and some little dragon puppets. You can pick it up at Amazon here... http://www.amazon.com/Hush-Little-Dragon-Boni-Ashburn/dp/0810994917/ref=pd_rhf_p_t_1