March is National Reading Month

 

March is National Reading Month and it’s up to moms and dads to instill a love of reading in their children. To encourage them to improve their reading skills and develop a fondness for books it’s strongly suggested you set some time aside a few times a week for family reading time. This means everyone, including parents, put aside their screens and read a book.

You know your kids, so start out with a time that your children will feel successful  like ten minutes. Each week you want to build that time to a goal of 20-30 minutes so add minutes each week to family reading time.

If you have babies and toddlers who can’t read spend those minutes teaching the alphabet, naming numbers, reviewing colors, and of course reading picture books. Make sure you ask simple questions that your little one can answer by pointing to pictures.

Here are a few suggested books with links to start you and your kids off:

Title: Koolura and the Mayans

Author: Michael Thal

Koolura, a girl with extraordinary psychic powers, is back again with pal Leila. The duo is off to Mexico for Koolura’s father’s wedding. When touring a Mayan archeological dig, the girls uncover a mysterious device that hurtles them 2000 years back in time. They soon discover aliens from the planet Aquari living amongst Mayan natives. Are these Aquarians planning to take over Earth? And can Koolura and Leila stop them in time? 

Awards: 2018 eLit Awards Gold Medal Winner Juvenile/Young Adult Fiction

              2016 Royal Dragonfly Book Awards Second Place Middle Grade Fiction

Title: Goodbye Tchaikovsky
Author: Michael Thal

A violin virtuoso is plunged into a deaf world, necessitating him to adapt to a new culture and language in order to survive.

David Rothman is an overnight success. He performs Tchaikovsky’s Violin Concerto with rave reviews attracting the attention of the Queen of England. His future is laid out for him like a well-lit freeway. Then, on his twelfth birthday, David suffers from an irreparable hearing loss, plunging him into a silent world.

How will David communicate with his friends? What about school? Where does his future lie? The novel shows how an adolescent boy copes with deafness.

Awards: 2015 Royal Dragonfly Book Awards Second Place Young Adult Fiction

Title: Invisible

Author: Jeanne Bannon

Lola’s not pretty. Lola’s not popular. Lola wishes she could disappear … and then one day she does just that… 

For seventeen-year-old Lola Savullo, life is a struggle. Born to parents who are cooler than she could ever be, Lola’s dream of becoming a writer makes her an outsider even in her own home. Bullied and despised at school, Lola only has the support of her best pal Charlie and Grandma Rose. 

When forced to into an embarrassing situation at a summer job, Lola’s only escape is to literally vanish. After discovering the roots of her new “ability” and with Charlie’s help, Lola learns to control her super power. The possibilities are endless. Yet power can be abused, too… 

A coming-of-age story that will warm the heart.

Awards: Jeanne Bannon is a USA Today bestselling and award-winning author.

Title: Anni’s Attic: A Story of the Civil War

Author: Anne Loader McGee

In 1861, with the American Civil War escalating, motherless Jennine Parkington is taken from her home in New Orleans to live on a cotton plantation in Savannah with her cousin Annise–a cousin she intensely dislikes. 

During the more than three years she must spend in Georgia awaiting the return of her father from his covert Northern military duties, Jennine finds her attitude changing about many things, in particular her attitude toward Negroes and the handsome mulatto boy who works on the plantation. As the South sinks slowly to its knees, the two cousins find themselves unwittingly caught in the family’s dangerous espionage and Underground Railroad activities.
In spite of the horror of the surrounding war, Jennine comes to love and admire her independent and fearless cousin, finding comfort and joy in her company and in the mysterious treasures of a long-forgotten secret attic.
Awards: Young People’s Division of the International Peace Award

Title: Guardian Angel

Author: Dr. Bob Rich

1850, a small town in Australia: Glindi, an Aboriginal woman, gives birth to a daughter, the result of a rape by a white man. She names her Maraglindi, meaning “Glindi’s sorrow,” but the girl is a joy to all those around her. She has the gift of love.

During her short life, she encounters everything intolerant, cruel Victorian society can throw at people it considers to be animals. She surmounts the savagery of the white invader by conquering hate with love. Even beyond death, she spreads compassion, then she returns a second time, with an ending that will touch your heart.Maraglindi: child of the land, fruit of an evil deed, and instrument of love.

Excessive screen time for children and adults can lead to a sedentary life-style and obesity. Sleep problems can occur viewing screens before bedtime and can lead to insomnia. School age children watching more than two hours of TV per day can develop emotional, social, and attention problems. Finally, excessive screen time for toddlers has been linked with developmental issues at a later age. So take advantage of National Reading Month and instill your family with a love of reading—it’s a win-win for everyone.