This morning I had a few moments of quiet before the kids were up. I took a few of them to check my RSS reader (BTW, if you don’t have an RSS reader you might want to consider getting one so you don’t miss any information from your favorite blogs and sites, you can’t count on Facebook to give you all of the updates anymore! I use the gReader app on my Android as it syncs to Google Reader.)
I noticed that quite a few of my favorite homeschool blogs were linking to their 10 favorite read-aloud books. They’re all part of the iHomeschool network, I’m not. I do homeschool my kids though, all five of them, and I do have 10 books to share, so I’m going to share anyhow.
Now I hear what you’re saying, “But Meg, this isn’t about frugal living!” One could argue that reading good literature leads to hours of frugal fun, but more than that, reading is a HUGE part of our lives. Please forgive me if this post isn’t of interest to you, I promise it’s just a little detour.
BTW, if you haven’t checked it out yet take a peek at my post about reading e-books for free without an e-reader!
Our 10 Favorite REad-Aloud Books
1. The Hundred Dresses
by Eleanor Estes is a sweet book that was always a favorite with my daughters. It’s a book about doing the wrong thing, regret, forgiveness and finally, redemption.
2. The Dragon of Lonely Island
by Rebecca Rupp has been our favorite read-aloud book, in fact I just bought the Kindle version of the book so I can share it with my younger children. This is the story of 3 children who spend the summer at their aunt’s house, on a remote island. They find a friend in the attic and discover that he tells the best stories.
3. Beautiful Stories From Shakespeare
arranged by Edith Nesbit is my favorite book to read to the children. BSFSFC is an anthology of Shakespeare’s child-friendly works that is perfect for introducing your children to real literature. The stories of Shakespeare have been updated and abridged but manage to retain the sense of enchantment I always feel when reading Shakespeare.
4. Where the Wild Things Are
by Maurice Sendak. This is the story of a little boy who doesn’t always like to do what he’s told. Gorgeously illustrated, this is a classic book that I’ve read to my children many, many times.
5. The Going-To-Bed Book
by Sandra Boynton has been one of our favorites for 15 years! Even now my children will bring me this book before bed, we have fun reciting the book from memory and we always whisper the last two pages. It’s the perfect before-bed book for your youngsters.
6. The Story of the World: History for the Classical Child: Volume 1: Ancient Times: From the Earliest Nomads to the Last Roman Emperor, Revised Edition
by Susan Wise Bauer is technically curriculum, but it’s also a great story book. The series consists of several volumes and tells, well, the story of the world in a child-friendly manner. For those who really love the series there is an activity book that goes along with it.
7. The Wonderful Wizard of Oz
by L. Frank Baum is a fantastical story of a far-off land. Chances are you’ve heard of the story, but you really should read the book as it’s better than the movie
!
8. Amelia Bedelia (I Can Read Book Level 2) by Peggy Parish was one of my favorites as a child, and it’s a favorite of my 9 & 7 year olds too. Amelia Bedelia is a helpful person who sometimes (ok, always!) doesn’t do things quite right, resulting in hilarity!
9. The Frog and Toad Collection Box Set (I Can Read Book 2)
by Arnold Lobel, another one of my very favorite book collections as a child. My children have read the collection over and over but still come running when I offer to read it to them. Gentle stories about friendship are at the heart of every Frog & Toad story.
10. Miss Nelson Is Missing!
by Harry Allard is one of our newest favorite reads, specifically because my 9 yr old had a not-so-nice teacher of the same name when she was in school!
