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 It’s been a few weeks, so I thought I would revive a fledgling feature on my blog, Story Time with Zoë.  It’s not that we haven’t been reading much lately.  Quite the contrary.  Zoë has moved on to some very interesting chapter books and has thoroughly enjoyed the adventures she is able to take in her mind with these new gems.  Even Zane is stepping up his game.  He just doesn’t realize that maybe he’s not supposed to be reading as well as he is and although he will struggle with new words and how to pronounce them, he has yet to become frustrated in any endeavor.  His latest undertaking is the Book the First Lemony Snicket’s a Series of Unfortunate Events.  Although he needs help with many of the words he has yet to indicate frustration and plows ahead. 

Funny thing.  We have attempted to restrict the television viewing around here with varying degrees of success.  There are many days, I am proud to report, that the television has remained off for the entire day.  Oh there are times when we all break down but the kids seem to appreciate the tv time more and comply without resistance when I ask them to turn it off.  If I had to put a number on it, I’d say on average less than one hour of television per day.  So the other day, I tell the kids to turn off the television and without a complaint they do.  Not two minutes had passed when I walked into the room to find this—–

(Totally unbidden, Zoë and Zane look for a book to read.)

I have got to believe we are doing something right.  Anyway.  To the task at hand.  This week’s edition of Story Time with Zoë brings me back to one of my favorite children’s books by one of my favorite author/illustrator duos, Margaret Wise Brown and Clement Hurd, The Runaway Bunny.  I had Brown’s Goodnight, Moon practically memorized by the time Zoë was just a couple of weeks old.  Margaret Wise Brown’s stories seem to have a magical way of captivating the attention of my kids even after having heard them countless times over the years.  My kids have always made a game of finding the little bunny in each of the colorful illustrations by Hurd in The Runaway Bunny yet for some reason, I am drawn to the pencil drawings.  

So grab the kids and your copy of The Runaway Bunny and enjoy this week’s edition of Story Time with Zoë.

Theodore S. Geisel was born on March 2, 1904 on Howard Street in Springfield Massachusetts.To all of us he is better known as the beloved Dr. Seuss.   His first children’s book was published in 1937.  And to Think I Saw It on Mulberry Street was a labor of love and a model of persistence as it was rejected over 25 times before finally being published.  At the time of his death in 1991 he had illustrated and written 44 books, many of which remain favorites of both children and adults.  Today, March 3, is Read Across America Day.

Dr. Seuss may best be remembered for his book The Cat in the Hat.  What many may not know is how the book came into being.  Geisel, in response to an article in Life magazine, accepted a challenge to write a children’s book that was brightly colored and visually stimulating in direct contrast to the bland primary readers used in the classrooms at the time.  He used just 236 words (sight words) from an elementary vocabulary list and took over nine months to complete the book.  What resulted was arguably one of the most influential primary readers to have ever been published.  It literally changed the way reading was presented in the classroom.  

In the spirit of the day, we have a special Story Time with Zoë.  Mr. Brown Can Moo, Can You?   

Happy Birthday, Dr. Seuss!
 

Langniappe:  Check out the NEA website for scads of information on how to celebrate reading with your child today and throughout the year.  Also, check out Seussville.  It’s pretty cool, too.

It’s funny how something as seemingly insignificant as recording Zoë reading a book can have such a ripple effect on the rest of my kids.  Zane (5), never one to be outdone is selecting and reading books like a madman.  He practices alone on the couch and then brings the book to me proclaiming he’s ready to read go and get the microphone.  He’s not at Zoë’s reading level yet he remains undaunted in his zest to conquer new words, unfazed by the sibling rivalry that is surely brewing.  I’ve struggled through countless books with him and he’s not become frustrated once.  I pray it’s a trend that continues. 

On a recent trip to the library Zane amazed me with his double take, stop what you’re doing when you see something familiar recognition of a book by Todd Parr.  We own a couple of his books and I suppose there are some in his kindergarten classroom.  I asked him how he knew it was a Todd Parr book and he said, “Well, it says it right here on the front.”  I know, ask a stupid question.  But then he went on to explain how almost all of the Todd Parr books use the same bright colors and characters drawn in a particular manner.  So I guess you can judge a book by the cover, at least if it’s a book by Todd Parr.

So, in light of my son’s youthful appreciation of reading and one of his favorite authors this edition of Story Time will be led by none other than Zane.  And this week’s selection:  Things That Make You Feel Good by Todd Parr.  I think Zane did a fantastic job on his first effort.  And I’ve got another page for Mr. Parr on the things that make you feel good side. 

Good 

Listening to your 5 year old son read a book.

I remember the first time Zoë read Go, Dog. Go! by P.D. Eastman on her own.  It seemed to take an eternity, each turn of the page leaving her stumbling over and phonetically attempting to sound out words.  I would start a word giving her the sounds and she would finish it.  We repeated the process page after page my frustration level rising though not in proportion to her excitement level as the end of the book neared.  “Look how much I’ve read, Daddy,” she would exclaim after every couple of pages.  She refused every offer and attempt of mine to take over the reading and let her just listen to the story.  She was on a mission.  By the time she had finished I was completely spent.  She was totally stoked.  “How many pages was that?  Did you see me?  Daddy, look.  I just read this whole book!”  Pride transformed my weariness and my frustration dissipated. 

This week’s Story Time with Zoë brings us back to a great beginner book, the Seuss styled meter and pattern of Eastman’s Go, Dog Go! are the perfect balance of ease and challenge for the young reader.  So grab your copy and your little readers and gather round as Zoë entertains us this week with an oldie but a goodie, Go, Dog. Go!

Last week’s initial offering of Story Time with Zoë was a resounding success.  Dr. Seuss is an all-time favorite of mine and Green Eggs and Ham still ranks as one of my top choices.  All of my kids seem to like his works and I find that the rhyming and meter of his stories lends itself to not only an engaging active listen but also encouraging early reading.  It helps that the stories are fun, timeless and bring to mind some of my most fond childhood memories.  We could read a Seuss book every day and scarcely grow tired of the story.  It is pure joy to be able to pass that on to my children.

This week’s story also reminds me of my youth, of times when what was going on in the world around me didn’t matter because there was a little place nothing short of utopia deep within the heart of the city.  A place where I could lose myself and become a part of someone else’s wonderful world learning to read, count and bang a drum like an animal.   Wait, animal was a Muppet.  Anyway, I’m talking about Sesame Street.  Good times!  (Disclaimer:  I find it very difficult to watch Sesame Street as an adult.  That fuzzy red guy’s voice is like fingers on a chalk board and just the thought of having to sit through an episode today makes me long for a pile of laundry or a trip to the dentist.)  That being said, kids love Sesame Street!  And, this is Story Time with Zoë not Story Time with the Cynic That is Zoë’s Dad.  She gets to pick the books, not me.

This week’s edition of Story Time with Zoë is from the Sesame Street collection of stories, It’s Not Easy Being Big, a story about how Bird Bird finds out that sometimes being big is not as easy as one would expect.  Sorry, Darren.  Zia wasn’t finished with our only copy of Huck Finn and wasn’t willing to share.  We’ll work on Huck–and sharing a little bit later.

So there you have it, this week’s story.  I hope you enjoyed it.  I know Zoë enjoys reading them!  If you missed last week’s story check it out here.