It’s Showcase Day again here at Simple Kids! Today’s submission is from Jennifer of Gill Gazette. Inspired by this post on button trees, Jennifer and her kids made their own:
Aren’t those so cute? Though the post that Jennifer was inspired by was for button Christmas trees, I don’t see any reason why you couldn’t make a spring or summer button tree. This would be a wonderful addition to your seasonal table. Thank you, Jennifer!
If you haven’t already, you simply must check out the children’s book recommendations from Tuesday’s post on Unsung Favorites of Children’s Literature. The comments evolved into a treasure trove of favorites from the Simple Kids community. Thanks so much to all who have contributed! Next week, one of those commenters will be chosen to receive a new book – one of my family’s favorites.
As we conclude Children’s Book Week, I thought I would share some of the links I’ve come across this week to educate and inspire our collective emphasis on literacy.
- Reading Rockets – Launching Young Readers. A comprehensive site that offers reading techniques and strategies as well as a collection of articles on almost any literacy-related topic you can imagine.
- I Love Storytime: The Best Way To Read To Your Toddler – from the article collection at Reading Rockets. This article offers some practical, simple ways to engage your toddlers in reading. I think this would have been particularly helpful to me when my oldest was a toddler and I hadn’t developed a grasp on reading to squirmy little ones yet!
- How to Create a Literate Home – from PBS.org. Ideas for children from the baby stage up through early elementary
- Literature based crafts and activities – from Skip to My Lou. Fits in perfectly with this week’s discussion on making books more concrete for little ones!
- National Children’s Book Week at Crayola.com – more literature-based activities.
- 2009 Children’s Choice Book Awards - in case you missed the winners.
I’d love to hear if you participated in a special Book Week activity or celebration, and if you have any links related to books, reading, and literacy, please feel free to share them here today!
I did something similar to this with my kids. We pinned buttons onto a styrofoam sphere. Then we put ribbon to hang it from on one end and a little mistletoe to hang from the bottom. It was a Christmas kissing ball. Fun project!
Emily’s last blog post..Best Bosom Friends Forever (BBFF)
@Emily, what a cute idea! I’ve never thought about it, but really the button and styrofoam possibilities are quite amazing. Thanks for sharing this idea!
Megan’s last blog post..SK Showcase and Reading Links
I love the button trees! I was thinking about sewing buttons onto a stretched canvas for a simple sewing project for kids. I think different sized buttons would give a fun 3-D effect. I’ll let you know when I try it out.
Kelly Feinberg’s last blog post..Sew Darn Great Book
@Kelly Feinberg, oh yes, please do! That would be a gorgeous project to show off in our showcase. Sounds fun!
Megan’s last blog post..SK Showcase and Reading Links