Is it Friday already? I can’t believe it! Time is truly moving at warp-factor (any Star Trek fans out there?) speed.

Photo courtesy: http://www.courrierinternational.com

Well, since today is Friday, I’ve picked out a special picture book to review. I know how overwhelming it can be to walk into the library and have to choose from the thousands that are available. So after you are finished here, please hop over to Susanna Leonard Hill’s blog where you will find a bunch more hand-picked picture book reviews with activities for you and your child. If you are a mom, teacher or librarian, please check out Susanna’s amazing Perfect Picture Book page with over 1000 categorized picture book reviews and activities.

It’s definitely hard to find time to spend with your kids. Especially if you work outside the home. I watch my daughter’s struggle with this. She leaves early in the morning, as soon as her son’s school bus picks him up. And then her day is filled with work-related responsibilities. By 5:30pm, she is zooming to pick Jeremy up at his after school daycare. There is barely enough time to grab dinner, take a bath and brush teeth before it is time for him to go to sleep.

But, whether you work outside the home or at home or even if your ‘only’ job is being a homemaker and parent (please notice the quotes around the word only – being a homemaker and a parent is a full-time job…those who have other jobs must become masters of juggling), I’d like to offer a great parenting tip – if you only have 5 minutes, that is enough time to read a picture book. You will be building a bond with your child and helping increase his/her literacy skills, especially if you take a few minutes to talk with your child about the story after you read it. And here’s a great one to start with!

JOHN, PAUL, GEORGE & BEN

Written and illustrated by Lane Smith

Publisher: Hyperion Books for Children (2006)

Ages: 3-7

Themes: American history, being true to yourself

Opening Lines:

John was a bold lad. At the start of every school year the students were asked to write their names on the chalkboard and every year it was the same story. “John,” his teacher would say, “you have lovely penmanship. Hoh, your confidence is refreshing. But, Joh, c’mon…we don’t need to read it from space!”

Synopsis:

A funny, punny look at five of our Founding Fathers: John Hancock, Paul Revere, George Washington, Benjamin Franklin and Thomas Jefferson.
Why I like this book:

• This book is hilarious! Especially for parents! But kids will enjoy the humor as well
• The text and illustrations remind me of an old newspaper or almanac – with a stencil/woodblock feel
• The content will get kids thinking about history in a whole new way

How a parent can use this book:

• Great read-aloud
• The text is very sparse and large – kids who are just learning to read will enjoy picking out the words they recognize
• Talk about the traits of each of the boys – bold, independent, honest, clever, noisy – how did those traits help the boys when they grew older? How would you like to be remembered?

Related Activity:

STENCILING WITH KIDS

Stenciling is lots of fun. You can buy stencil sets in your local department stores (they have shape stencils and letter and alphabet stencils or you can make them yourself from construction paper or by finding household items of the shapes you want. Cookie cutters make awesome stencils! And so do leaves – why not grab some of those beautiful autumn ones that are starting to cover the ground?

You will need: Stencils, construction paper, markers or crayons.

1. Pick the stencils you want to use and place them on the paper.
2. Use markers or crayons to draw the outlines and then fill in.
3. Makes great wrapping paper for gifts.

Here’s a link for more stencil crafts: http://www.all-about-stencils.com/crafts-for-kids.html

Thank you so much for stopping by – your time is very valuable and I appreciate that you are spending some of it with me.