Maisy is a much beloved character of the PreK crowd – what’s not to love about sweet Maisy Mouse?  In Lucy Cousins' new book, Create with Maisy, the author shares17 easy craft projects for creative little hands.  Parents, teachers and librarians will have fun helping kids work through any of these projects: all you need are easy to find supplies and imagination -- follow the easy instructions or make changes of your own.  All artwork created can be used to play, as decorations or gifts.  And everyone loves a homemade gift, right?

Now in a library near you!

Tags: Children's books, Pre-K, Recommendations

Little kids love getting dressed by themselves and picking out their own clothes. In Seymour Chwast's new book, Get Dressed!, they will also have fun using their imagination by connecting different outfits and guessing their (very adventurous) uses. Warning: Reading This Book May Inspire Many Games of Dressing Up!

This is a highly interactive book, made of sturdy cardstock, with multiple flaps and a magnetic cover that makes it look like a suit jacket.  Watch this fun book trailer for a peek of what's inside:

Now in a library near you!

Tags: Children's books, Pre-K, Recommendations

Starting school is a major milestone in a child’s (and parent’s) life - it can be a little scary for everyone. But not to worry - from funny frogs to worried mice there are lots of great books to share with the children in your life to help them get used to the idea of going to school. Here are some of my favorites:

With charming rhymes, Esme Raji Codell introduces children and parents to all of the delights and fun that are waiting for them in It's Time for Preschool. I especially like the colorful pictures of lively children and teachers enjoying story time, puppets and snacks!

Is Your Buffalo Ready for Kindergarten is a funny take on traditional first-day jitters. A young girl assures her worried friend the Buffalo that even though he's scared to go to kindergarten, as long as he follows the rules and plays nice he'll have lots of fun with the other kids.

Llama Llama Misses Mama is another installment of the funny (and wonderfully rhyming) series by Anna Dewdney. At first Baby Llama is very excited to start preschool - the friends!  The games!  The songs!  But when it’s time for Mama Llama to go, Baby Llama is worried - will she ever come back?  (Spoiler alert - she does, and Baby Llama learns to love preschool!)

For more great books about starting school for the first time check here: Starting School Booklist!

Have other favorites?  Please share them in the comments!

Tags: Children's books, Pre-K

Did you know that May 23rd is World Turtle Day? Since 1990, the American Tortoise Rescue has designated this date to "bring attention to turtle conservation issues and highlightn ways each of us can help protect these gentle but jeopardized animals." 

How about celebrating World Turtle Day with the children in your life, by reading a turtle book or two? Some of our favorites are:

Scoot! by Cathryn Falwell

Turtle's Penguin Day by Valeri Gorbachev

The Foolish Tortoise by Richard Buckley, illustrated by Eric Carle

And here's a turtle rhyme, brought to us by Children's Librarian Deb Mikus at the Lawncrest Branch of the Free Library:

One baby turtle alone and new
Finds a friends, and then there are two.
Two baby turtles crawl down to the sea.
They find another, and then there are three.
Three baby turtles crawl along the shore.
They find another, and then there are four.
Four baby turtles go for a dive.
Up swims another, and then there are five!

Tags: Children's books, Pre-K, early literacy

It may seem obvious – but wordless picture books are books with no words!

Since there is no text, wordless picture books are a great way to share books with children -- you can even get your child “read” to you. Talk with your child about what is going on in the pictures -- describe what you think the characters are doing or thinking. Try open ended questions that start with one of the 5 w’s (who, what, where, why, when) to encourage your child to interpret what is going on in the pictures. See if you can guess what is going to happen on the next page based on what is happening on the page you are looking at. As they tells you what is happening in the story, it’s a great way for them to learn that stories have a beginning, a middle, and an end. How does the story start (beginning)? What happens next (middle)? How does the story end?    

For more titles, check out this list of Fun Wordless Picture Books!

Have favorites not on the list?  Please share them in the comments!

Tags: Children's books, Pre-K, early literacy