Judy's Workshops

BER Seminars • Winners! • Books Kids Will Sit Still For • Selecting Books for Children • Literature and Library Skills • Booktalking & Reading Aloud • Multicultural Books • Once Upon a Time • Storytelling • Hi Ho Librario • Keynote Speeches • Parent Programs • Musical Booktalk •

AFTER SCHOOL OR EVENING PARENT PROGRAMS: AN ALPHABET OF READING

"How do I get my child to love reading?" parents ask me all the time. Think back on your own childhood, and you can most likely recall the times your parents and teachers read to you and how special it made you feel. Most of the Secret Formula for getting children to love books is simple: read to your kids frequently and let them see you enjoy reading. Have books readily available at home. Go to the library on a regular basis. Celebrate books and stories every day.

When I give a program for parents, I stay practical. What books will fire up children and get them want to read more? How can parents participate in their children's reading lives? How do you raise a reader? Through a combination of hands-on activities and an irresistible mix of wonderful recent children's books—picture books, fiction, poetry, nonfiction—I demonstrate down-to-earth ways of making books come alive for children.

To that end, I have developed an "Alphabet of Reading," an alphabetical list of 26 strategies, ideas, and motivational ways to help parents connect children with books. These techniques are intuitive, simple, and child-friendly, and they work. "I do that already!" you might say, or, "Ohhh. I never thought of doing that! I could do that!" I'll give you my list, too.

We explore singing, dancing, storytelling, arts and crafts, experiments, and acting as natural tie-ins to books. We look at books that keep kids humming and playing with language through book-related songs, chants, poems, puzzlers, and wordplay. We examine the latest best books to see what makes them so great. We get excited about books.

Included in the program is my most recent bibliography of the best recent children's books that you can duplicate as a handout for parents, teachers, and children.