My Little Bookcase » Babies

Reading Tip: How to choose book gifts for babies

Jackie Small — Tue, 23 Jul 2013 13:05:04 +0000

I first wrote a version of this post for Culture Street, but with the birth of the new member of the British Royal Family, it felt fitting to publish these tips for choosing baby books on My Little Bookcase.

Books make the best gifts. However, buying books for a new baby can be difficult. You want to find books that will be practical but will also last the test of time. Here is a list of book types to look out for when shopping for a new baby.

1. Cloth books

Cloth books are always great for babies because they are durable and tactile, which means they can chew and suck on them to their heart’s content without damaging the book. This is such an important task to help babies develop a love for books.

2. Black and White Books

It takes a while for a baby’s vision to develop, which is why contrasts and patterns stand out for babies. Although many contrasts exist in the environment, black and white offers the highest contrast.

3. Classic Books

A classic book is one that will be enjoyed by a baby, but one that the baby will still pick up with fondness when they are an older child or adult. Often classic books are ones that parents enjoyed when they were a child themselves.

Always on the list for a baby’s first library are books such as Peter Rabbit, Dear Zoo, and The Very Hungry Caterpillar, but I personally love the contemporary books based on well-known classics.

4. Books about a baby’s day

Apart from talking to your baby regularly the best way to help a child develop a rich vocabulary is to read books that they can relate to. Books that will gain a child’s interest are simple and short books that reflect their own everyday activities and adventures.

5. Repetitive and rhyming books

Books with rhyme and repetition have a soothing, lyrical rhythm that babies love. Listening to rhymes from an early age is also known to assist child’s language and literacy development. What makes these rhyming books extra special is that they allow you to mix-up story-time by singing the stories instead of reading them.

6. Textured and Puppet Books

I think interactive books with textures will always fascinate kids, and puppet books are fantastic for babies. Alongside a fun story, they provide an object of focus and movement for a baby. They’re sure to make babies giggle too. Books that feature holes for your fingers, such as Hervé Tullet’s finger book series, are also a great way to make a story engaging for baby- and don’t babies just love to pull at your fingers?

Crinkly Book of Aussie Animals by Jill Brailsford (Walker Books), 2013

There are four books in this crinkly, cloth book series, From the Bush, From the Nest, From the Outback and From the Ocean. Australian animals are featured as black silhouettes in all books, and matching each image is a two word sentence. The sentences describe an infamous action of each animal. This creates a great invitation for the reader to act out the invitation to baby.

Mesmerised by Katey Love

Mesmerised is an 18-page, small format board book made up of black and white images. Each double page spread features a silhouette image of an animal or creature and an associated pattern. For e.g. a bird and a twirling branch, a ladybird and polka dots, a cat and a trail of paw prints, a snail and a spiral. This book is distinctive and beautiful for babies to look at, but its wordless nature also allows you to make up a different story to tell your baby each time you share the book together.

What’s That Noise? Go Baby Go, Hush Baby Hush, and Where is Baby? By Sally Rippin and Craig Smith/Ann James/Lorette Broekstra (Allen & Unwin), 2008

These are my favourite board books to read to babies. They are gorgeous, practical and simple. The illustrations are adorable and the text relates to the simple events that take place throughout a baby’s day.

Baby Lit books.

These sturdy board books are most certainly a treat for literature-loving parents to read to their children. The books can be enjoyed from a young age, but their classic nature and beautiful styling also mean that the books will remain life-long and beautiful keepsakes. With a cleverly selected text and bold, bright graphics and patterns, Jennifer Adams and Alison Oliver have produced books that are sure to capture the attention of little eyes and introduce them to some well-known classics such as Alice in Wonderland, Romeo and Juliet and Jane Eyre. You can read more about the series here.

Baby Gets Dressed by Katrina Germein, Sacha Hutchinson (Working Title Press), 2009

Featuring bright illustrations created with beautifully textured fabrics, each page sees a selection of colourful apparel laid out before the baby. The rhyming prose takes the reader through the process of dressing a baby from nappy to hat. There is also the subtle inclusion of colours and patterns in the story.

Monkey and Me by Emily Gravatt (Pan Macmillan), 2008

This board book is brilliant in its simplicity. Its rhyme, repetition and rhythm make it superb for babies. The illustrations are predominately black and white with pops of red, which depict a child and her toy monkey imitating the actions of animals at the zoo.

The beauty of this simple but gorgeous book is that you can extend it by adding your own actions and sound effects to the story.

Monday the Bullfrog by Matthew Van Fleet (Simon & Schuster), 2011

Monday the Bullfrog is a large, colourful and striking puppet. His mouth opens wide to reveal a story about what the bullfrog likes to eat each day of the week. Babies will love interacting with the range of textures found on each page including tails, wings and a mirror.

Are there any books that you like to buy for babies?

A baby’s first book: A precious milestone

Jackie Small — Mon, 04 Feb 2013 12:08:45 +0000

Two months ago, we welcomed a gorgeous little man into our lives, a precious soul whose presence had been much anticipated.

On 10 December, I introduced him to the My Little Bookcase community as Zac, thinking this would become his moniker (many of you would already know that I’m a name-shortening culprit).

The next day we rushed him to the Royal Children’s Hospital, where we have spent the majority of the past two months. At just five weeks, he underwent bowel surgery.

It seems we never really called him Zac at all .Instead, when we’re not calling him by his full name we actually find ourselves referring to him as Ike: a strong name for a resilient little boy.

When Ike’s I.V. and monitoring leads were finally removed we celebrated by ‘reading’ him his first book (after a long cuddle and a walk down the corridor).

Mesmerised by Katey Love was our book of choice. I’ve had a copy of this book since I began My Little Bookcase. Cam was just a little old for the book at the time, so I’ve been waiting patiently to ‘read’ it with my second child.

Mesmerised is a small format board book made up of distinctive, black and white images and patterns. Each double page spread features a silhouette image of an animal or creature and an associated pattern. For e.g. a ladybird and polka dots, a snail and a spiral.

As you can see, Ike really is mesmerised by this book. There are many other reasons to love this book too:

The high contrast in the black and white images and patterns are perfect for babies as their vision develops

The images help parents to introduce vocabulary and stimulate a discussion with baby

Without any words, parents can develop their own stories to share with their baby as they explore the book together

Being exposed to a small, board book from a young age, babies begin to develop an understanding of book concepts (e.g. turning a page etc.)

You can purchase a copy of Mesmerised at www.booksfornewborns.com.au for $13.95 (aud) + postage and handling.

Now we have this precious little boy home with us we can’t wait to embark upon a reading journey with him.

The Children’s Bookshelf: Book Nooks and Indestructible Books for Babies

Jackie Small — Mon, 03 Dec 2012 03:32:54 +0000

Every Monday, My Little Bookcase together with What Do We Do All Day?, No Twiddle Twaddle, Smiling Like Sunshine, Mommy and Me Book Club, and Mouse Grows, Mouse Learns hosts The Children’s Bookshelf.

The Children’s Bookshelf is a place where bloggers can share their book reviews and reading activities with other book lovers.

As well as linking up any of your book reviews or book-related activities, this week we’d love to invite you to share your Christmas-themed bookish posts.

Featured Post of the week:

Create a Book Nook in Five Minutes (Octavia and Vicky)

Books for Babies: Indestructibles (Laughing Kids Learn)

So if you have a children’s book or reading related post you’d like to share, please consider joining The Children’s Bookshelf Linky Party:

How to join:

Every Monday visit The Children’s Bookshelf, hosted at one of the following blogs: What Do We Do All Day?, No Twiddle Twaddle, Smiling Like Sunshine, Mommy and Me Book Club, My Little Bookcase and Mouse Grows, Mouse Learns. You can link-up your post at any time during the week and it will be displayed on all six blogs.

Link up your children’s book related posts. We love posts about book news, reviews, reading tips or any other book related items you think will be of special interest to parents.

Consider adding The Children’s Bookshelf button or text link to your post to let others know where the book party is. You can grab the code from the box underneath the button below. Click the text, copy it and paste it in the HTML of your post.

PLEASE Visit at least THREE other posts and share your comments. We want this to be an interactive community of book lovers- and doesn’t everyone crave a bit of comment love??

Follow the The Children’s Bookshelf on Pinterest, where we will be featuring some of our favourite posts from the link-up every week.

By linking up you are giving permission for any of the co-hosts to pin and/or feature your photo on a future The Children’s Bookshelf post.

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Book Review: That’s What I’d Do by Jewel

Jackie Small — Mon, 19 Nov 2012 07:28:43 +0000

When did you start reading to your children?

B2 (our unborn child) listens to stories already. Even before I knew she’d been conceived she was enjoying stories by proxy, as I read daily to Cam (her big sister).

But I recently came across a book that I thought could be ‘our special book’ to enjoy together.

Do you remember Jewel? She was popular in my late teen years, and I loved her soothing, poetic music.

Jewel now has a child of her own, and she was inspired to write her own children’s book, That’s What I’d Do. Given her musical talent, it didn’t come as a surprise to me that the book reads like the lyrics of a song. In fact, in an accompanying CD to the book, Jewel sings the story. It makes a soothing lullaby to play to babies and young children.

With reference to all the wonderful adventures a mother and child get up to during the day, the words express the love and sacrifices of a mother. The book is incredibly heartfelt.

Full of colour and feeling, Amy June Bates’ beautiful illustrations make this such a sentimental book to read to your unborn child or baby.

But what I really love to do, while Cam is having her own nap, is to lie on my bed or couch, play the CD, hold my belly, listen to Jewel sing the story to us and enjoy quality time with my second child.

Book Details:

Author: Jewel

Illustrator: Amy June Bates

ISBN: 978-1442458130

Format: Hardback

Publisher: Paula Wiseman Books (Simon & Schuster),October 2012

RRP: $19.95 (aud)

Suitable for unborn babies +

Book List: Beautiful Children’s Books about Grandmothers

Jackie Small — Sun, 21 Oct 2012 09:35:19 +0000

Grandparents play such an important role in the lives of children, even more so today. Queensland, New South Wales and Western Australia have all officially recognised this by declaring the last Sunday of October Grandparents’ Day (QLD celebrate Grandparents’ Day on the first Sunday in November). I’m sure it won’t take long for the other states to follow.

I thought it would be a lovely gesture for children to share a special book with their grandparents on this day. Below is a list of my favourite grandmother-themed books that you’ll hopefully be able to find at your local bookstore or library.

I have also compiled a special list of grandfather-themed books.

Cooking with Grandma

By Rosemary Mastnak

ISBN:978-1921564192

Format: Hardback

Publisher: Hardie Grant Egmont, September 2009

Matched with whimsical illustrations and creative typography, young Anya stays with her grandparents for the week. Each day Anya and Grandma create a meal and an adventure for Grandpa.

Suitable for ages 2+

Dancing with Grandma

By Rosemary Mastnak

ISBN:978-1921288906

Format: Hardcover

Publisher: Hardie Grant Egmont, April 2008

With delightful illustrations, songs and actions, this is a beautiful book that celebrates the special memories Anya and her Grandma create. They spend quality time together dressing up, dancing and using their imaginations.

Suitable for ages 2+

Nana’s Colours

By Pamela Allen

ISBN:978-0670075379

Format: Hardback

Publisher: Viking Australia (Penguin Books Australia), 2011

Exploring colours and patterns, this simple but colourful book sees each of Nana’s grandchildren bring her a bunch of colourful (stamped) flowers for her birthday.

Suitable for ages 1+

Little Ava Stories

By Elsie Munro

ISBN:978-1921136788

Format: Hardback

Publisher: Windy Hollow Books,

Little Ava Stories truly is a collection of LITTLE stories. The little stories are made up of just a few sentences each. Dedicated to her granddaughter, Elsie has written about the small moments that a grandmother finds warm and amusing.

She has used lino-cut illustrations in natural, earthy colours to convey her stories of playing with leaves in autumn, feeding birds in spring and visiting the beach on a sky blue day.

Little Ava Stories is minimalistic but it is a lovely, sentimental, little book.

Suitable for ages 2+

My Grandma’s Kitchen

By Louise Fulton Keats (recipes by Margaret Fulton)

ISBN:978-1742701141

Format: Hardcover

Publisher: Hardie Grant Books, 1 April 2011

My Grandma’s Kitchen is a children’s cookbook which exudes warmth, love and an appreciation for delicious food. It is essentially two books in one; aligned with a gorgeous little story are simple and enjoyable recipes. The story is narrated by Lulu who writes about her adventures in the kitchen alongside her Grandma and brother, George. Told in a child-like-rhyme, the story shares meals eaten, conversations spoken, fancy terminology, and cooking tips and tricks. Read our review of My Grandma’s Kitchen.

Suitable for ages 3+

Spot Loves His Grandma

By Eric Hill

ISBN:978-0723259909

Format: Paperback

Publisher: Penguin Books, March 2008

Also available as a board book

Spot spends time with his grandparents and enjoys helping his Grandma in this board book.

Suitable for ages 1+

My Grandma

By Jeanette Rowe

ISBN:978-0733314612

Format: Paperback

Publisher: ABC Books, April 2005,

This is a great read-aloud book for young children. Lifting the flaps on this cute book will reveal what’s special about Grandma. There is also room for children to add a photo of their own Grandma to the last page.

Suitable for ages: 1+

I Love My Grandma

By Anna Walker

ISBN:978-1741696363

Format: Hardback

Publisher: Scholastic Australia, July 2010,

Our friend, Ollie, spends the day picnicking, painting, playing and singing with his Grandma in this pretty book.

Suitable for ages: 2+

Nanna’s Carrots

Author: Ros Tesoriero (Aunty Rozzy)

ISBN:978-0979985805

Format: Hardcover

Publisher: Aunty Rozzy, January 2009

In her search for Nanna’s Carrots, Harriette finds out that Nanna’s Carrots come in all sorts of shapes and sizes and that they are actually a very versatile vegetable. She is amazed at how many ways she can enjoy Nanna’s Carrots!

Suitable for ages: 2+

I Love Grandma

By Lizi Boyd

ISBN:978-0763637286

Format: Hardcover

Publisher: Candlewick (Walker Books)

A visit to Grandma’s house helps to create some very treasured moments.

Suitable for ages 2+

My Grandma and Me

By Rachel Flynn

ISBN:978-0143502326

Format: Paperback

Publisher: Puffin, March 2009

This grandma always has something special to do at her house. Rachael Flynn invites the reader to think about their own Grandma in her inclusive text.

Suitable for ages: 2+.

Piglet and Granny

By Wild Margaret

ISBN:978-1921504020

Format: Hardback

Publisher: Working Title Press, 29 June 2009

While Piglet waits a long time for her Granny to visit, she fills in the time by practising all the things her Granny has taught her. A sweet book.

Suitable for ages 2+

Grandma’s Place

James Stead and Marjory Gardner

ISBN:978-1921136283

Format: Hardcover

Publisher: Windy Hollow Books, November 2008

Jess shares what is special about her Grandma’s place and invites readers to share their own stories too.

Suitable for ages: 2+

With Nan

Author: Tania Cox

Illustrator: Karen Blair

ISBN: 978-1921136122

Format: Hardback

Publisher: Windy Hollow Books, March 2012

This is a book that demonstrates how much children can learn from their grandparents. Brought to life with beautiful illustrations, Simon takes a walk with his Nan who shows him how to pay attention to the small things in life

Suitable for ages: 3+

Love from Grandma

By Jane Tanner

ISBN:978-0670074099

Format: Paperback

Publisher: Viking Australia (Penguin Books Australia), August 2010

Emily must move away from her Grandma, but a strawberry plant from Grandma keeps her company until her Grandma can visit.

Suitable for ages: 3+

Our Granny

Author: Margaret Wild

Illustrator: Julie Vivas

ISBN:978-1862911956

Format: Paperback

Publisher: Omnibus Books (Scholastic),

< An amusing book that celebrates grandmothers in all their shapes and sizes

Recommended for ages 3+

My Grandma is Wonderful

By Nick Butterworth

ISBN:978-1406312430

Format: Paperback

Publisher: Walker Books Ltd, February 2008

A bold and beautiful tribute to all wonderful grandmas

Suitable for ages: 3+

My Grandma Lived in Gooligulch

By Graeme Base

ISBN:978-0670834983

Format: Paperback

Publisher: Penguin Books Australia, October 1990

A lively tale from Graeme Base about an Aussie Grandma like no other.

Suitable for ages: 4+

Grandma’s Gloves

By Cecil Castellucci

ISBN:978-1406327755

Format: Hardcover

Publisher: Walker Books, November 2010

This is beautiful book for children who have recently lost their grandmother. A little girl remembers what her grandmother taught her, particularly about gardening.

Suitable for ages 5+

Grandma Joins the All Blacks

By Helen McKinlay

ISBN:978-1869506407

Format: Paperback

Publisher: HarperCollins New Zealand, February 2008

All grandmas know how to make things better and this Grandma is no exception. She puts a firecracker under the All Blacks team and even plays for them on game day in this nonsensical story.

Suitable for ages 5+

Mind Your Gramma!

Author: Yvonne Morrison

Illustrator: Nikki Slade Robinson

ISBN:978-1775430414

Format: Hardback

Publisher: Scholastic New Zealand, November 2011

This is an amusing book about a grandma who is always correcting her granddaughter’s grammatical errors. The corrections go over her granddaughter’s head, and she is confused by her grandma’s contribution to the conversation. As readers you will giggle along to the double meanings being portrayed in the story.

Suitable for ages 6+

Ladder to the Moon

Author: Maya Soetoro-Ng

Illustrator: Yuyi Morales

ISBN:978-1406337730

Format: Paperback

Publisher: Walker Books Ltd, January 2012

With dream-like illustrations, this is a magical story about a young girl who joins her grandmother in heaven one special night. Before she must return home, they bring kindness, care and help to the world, and it helps Suhaila learn about the grandmother she never met. Written by Barack Obama’s half-sister

Suitable for ages 6+

Older Readers

Our Gags

Catriona Hoy

ISBN: 978-1921529092

Format: Paperback

Publisher: Walker Books Australia, April 2011

There are three short stories in this illustrated early reader book that describe how helpful Gags (Grandma) can be when a new baby comes along.

Suitable for ages: 6+

The Day Grandma Came to Stay (and Spoilt My Life)

By Diana Kidd

ISBN:978-0207170119

Format: Paperback

Publisher: Angus & Robertson Children’s Books (Harper Collins), October 1990

Grandma-sitting isn’t as bad as it initially seems for Lucy, who gets up to adventures with her grandma and learns about her Italian heritage.

Suitable for ages: 9+

My Gran the Gorilla

By Jackie French

Illustrator: Stephen Michael King

ISBN: 978-0207200120

Format: Paperback

Publisher: HarperCollins Publishers (Australia) , December 2005

Part of the ‘Wacky Families’ series, TJ and her Gran save the day when wombat poachers come to town.

Suitable for ages: 8+

Activity Books

To My Granny: Doodles for You

ISBN: 978-1921848216

Format: Paperback

Publisher: Hardie Grant Books, April 2011

A small format activity book for children to colour and fill in before giving it to Granny as a gift.

Suitable for ages: 4+

I’m Glad You’re My Gran

By Cathy Phelan

ISBN:978-0230746619

Format: Paperback

Publisher: Black Dog Books (Walker Books)

Suitable for ages: 4+

BOOKS ABOUT GRANDPARENTS

Spot Visits His Grandparents

By Eric Hill

ISBN:978-0140558289

Format: Paperback

Publisher: Puffin UK (Penguin), September 1999

Suitable for ages 1+

Spot visits his grandparents and enjoys learning about his mum and he goes through an old family photo album.

Things I Love About Grandparents

By: Trace Moroney

ISBN: 978-1742487090

Format: Hardback

Publisher: The Five Mile Press Pty Ltd, November 2011

Suitable for ages 1+

Trace Moroney writes books that assist parents in helping their children to become positive thinkers. In this book, she looks at the positive aspects of relationships with grandparents.

The Ultimate Guide to Grandmas & Grandpas!

Author: Sally Lloyd-Jones

Illustrator: Michael Emberley

ISBN:978-0060756871

Format: Hardcover

Publisher: HarperCollins, May 2008,

Playing with your grandparents, looking after them, loving them and enjoying them; this book offers all the guidelines any grandchild would need to make the most of their time with their grandparents.

Suitable for ages 3+

The Big Book of Families

Catherine and Laurence Anholt

ISBN: 978-1406303513

Format: Paperback

Publisher: Walker Books, December 2006

A book full of poems about all family members, including Grandpas and Grannies.

Suitable for ages: 3+

Is your favourite grandmother-themed book missing from this list?

ACTIVITY: STORY SKITTLES [10 SCARED FISH By Ros Moriarty]

Jackie Small — Thu, 19 Jul 2012 04:30:58 +0000

Re-telling a story while playing a game is such a fun reading comprehension activity. Our story skittles were inspired by The Little Book Adventure- Project #5: Play with Your Books.

I’m always looking for creative ways to make use of our growing mountain of toilet rolls. For a while now, I’ve been thinking that they’d actually make a good Skittles set.

10 Scared Fish is one of the shortlisted books for the 2012 Speech Pathology Book of the Year for Indigenous Children. As Cam and I were reading the book, it occurred to me that this book would make a perfect theme for a Skittles set.

I suppose the characters or objects from any counting or number book could be used as inspiration for a Skittles set, but 10 Scared Fish is not your average counting book.

Although there isn’t any counting-back in the book, the scurrying away of animals at the end of the story demonstrates that numbers can decrease just as quickly as they increase. It provides a lovely introduction to the concept of subtraction.

It’s this concept of potential subtraction that lends itself so well to a game of Skittles. It allows children to see numbers build and be taken away with each play of the game.

It was also easy for us to recall/re-tell the story as we played a game of Skittles.

More details about the book can be found at the bottom of the post.

You will need:

15 toilet rolls

Coloured paper

Glue

Images: one turtle, four snakes, 10 fish and one shark- (We used images from the book)

Ball

Preparing your Skittles set:

Jazz up the toilet rolls by covering them in coloured paper (This can be a tedious task. Kids can certainly help but parents might like to prepare this step ahead of time.)

Glue one image to each toilet roll

Attach the shark image to the ball. (We didn’t have a suitable ball, so we covered a ball with two green balloons. The balloons gave us a surface in which we could glue the shark image)

Playing the game:

Set up the skittles (We set our skittles on blue cardboard to represent the waterhole)

Count the creatures waiting in the waterhole

‘One turtle, four snakes and 10 scared fish in the waterhole.’

Along comes the shark- roll the ball towards the skittles

Some great characterisation took place while playing the game. Cam took it upon herself to commentate the game, ‘Are you scared little fishies. I’m coming to get you?’

Watch the creatures swim away.

Count how many creatures swam away and how many bravely stayed in the waterhole.

About the book:

Author, Ros Moriarty, is also the founder of Indi Kindi. Indi Kindi is creating a range of reading and counting materials for Indigenous children to help improve literacy outcomes in their communities. The books are designed with the inclusion of familiar cultural themes to help children learn to turn pages, look at pictures, count, see repetition and use memory. A proportion of income from the sales of these books helps to support the Indi Kindi program.

As you can imagine, the story of 10 Scared Fish is very simple but effective. The story involves counting, but the text is repetitive and also includes some basic prepositions. Images are large which allows children to count along with the story. Also included at the back of the book is a Yanyuwa (Indigenous language of Borroloola, NT) translation of the story.

Matched with bold Indigenous art by Balarinji, this counting book features groups of creatures (whose numbers increase with each page turn) happily swimming in a waterhole. That is, until they are met by a great shark. Then they promptly scurry away.

Book Details:

Author: Ros Moriarty

Illustrator: Balarinji Studio

ISBN : 978-1742379128

Format: Paperback

Publisher: Allen & Unwin, March 2012

RRP: $12.99 (aud)

Suitable for ages: 1+

Also in the series: Kangaroos Hop (A book about animals and verbs)