Learning Through Horses- Books

I've decided to create a series to document how we incorporate horses into (almost) all our learning. I will link all the posts in this series to this resource page on our site. Feel free to visit often as we will update that page frequently (I hope!).

Books

To spare you from spending all day reading this post, I had Emma pick out her 5 favorite horse reference books. I limited my input to the two newest additions. Your welcome. 

Nonfiction

"I like this book because it has 96 horse breeds and it has 'At A Glance' profiles of the horses"

I like this book because it focuses on horses of North America. Some of the breeds are rare or no longer around, but the information is really interesting.

"I like this one because it has a couple of very good breeds like the Morgan and the Missouri Fox Trotting horse."

Emma got this book when we were doing the Pony Club (which is not longer in operation-so sad). 

Emma uses this one most when looking up horse colors. That's what she told me. 

Emma likes this one, "just to look through because it has pretty pictures in the back."

This has horse breeds as well as basic info for taking care of a pony.

Emma likes this one, "because it has a lot of common breeds."

The details in this book seemed to be pretty good, but we have other books that provide more info about each breed. It has great pictures though, so that's why I think she likes it :0)

The photos in this book are stunning and depict the skeletal system, muscular system and other anatomical aspects of the horse. We are not really at a point where we use this book a whole lot yet, but I am excited for when we are ready!

This book was discovered at our local toy store. Lots of great info and pages for Emma to color. We have dabbled off and on with the evolution of the horse and I think this book might give us a bit more motivation to stick with the subject from beginning to end.  

Fiction

Again, to spare you, we are going to share a few of our favorite horse book authors are rather than list our favorite books.

Marguerite Henry: Misty of Chincoteague series is her most well known set of books. We actually own a lot of her books and have loved them all. We are always on the lookout for more of her books to add to our home library. 

Jessie Haas: We discovered Jessie Haas through the American Girl series about Saige. When we researched Jessie Haas (at Emma's request) we discovered that Jessie Haas has a long list of books about horses. We are on a mission to collect as many of her books as we can. 

Janet Muirhead Hill: Mrs. Hill is a Montana native. She wrote the Miranda and Starlight series that Emma and I both really enjoyed. I think this series will be read again once Emma is older. 

Ruth Sanderson: We found Ruth Sanderson through the Horse Diaries Series. Ruth Sanderson illustrated most of them, and Emma fell in love with her illustrations. We have borrowed many non-horse books just because she illustrated them. She has a bunch of books we would love to own, but have not been able to find yet. 

Emma loves to read. A lot. Most of the time she reads fiction books with horses as the main character. She will also read through her nonfiction horse books if she is looking for the answer to some question that has jumped into her brain. 

On top of the books that we own, just about every visit to the library has us coming home with one or more books about horses. I think we've borrowed all that they have, but we keep borrowing them anyway :0)

Emma working on a horse geography sheet using the book Horses!, pictured above. 

If you haven't figure it out yet, we are pretty unstructured in our learning. This approach doesn't work for everyone, but it works for us. We don't have any one way that we do any of our learning, so let me explain a bit about...

A few ways we use books for learning:

Well, to state the obvious, we used horse books to help Emma learn to read. 

We use horse books to spark interest in other areas. For instance this book (which we read at bedtime over many nights)

Sparked an interest in Austria and World War II. 

Reading about the Spanish Riding School

Creating a map of Austria. 

You can't really see it, but on the map printed out from google maps, we also tracked the route the Lipizzaners and their handlers from the Spanish Riding School had to use to escape during WWII. We used math to determine how many miles they had to travel. We also mapped out the route from where the stud farm is to where the riding school is. Again, we used math. 

Anyway, books are really the basis of just about everything we do. Without books we would be lost. 

Which is why I started this series with books!  

Major Life Theme- Books

We love books.

The missing book list last month wasn't because there was a lack of books read in the this house, it was because there were too many books read to keep up with. If you need proof of how much we love books, here is a link to posts I've written about books (there are 11, 12 if you count this one).

Lately, with Emma's drastic reading improvements, we can't seem to get books into her hands fast enough.

WE. LOVE. BOOKS.

Honestly, I'm not all surprised at how much she reads. She comes from a long line of readers. Both her Memere and Gramma read, her great grandmas on my side both read, her aunties read.

And before I went through the 12 step program, I was a readaholic. I would read so much that Emma would have to tell me, multiple times, that she was hungry before it would penetrate my reading haze.

So I gave up reading fiction books. Unless we are at Gramma's because then I know Emma will get fed. Now I mostly read nonfiction, which is a bit easier for me to put down.

That is, I read nonfiction when I am NOT reading textbooks  

Anyway, I love how much Emma reads. Each morning when she wakes up, she heads to the living room with a book regardless of if I am awake or still sleeping. She will then read till breakfast (which some days means about 2 hours after she wakes up).

Just about every night before bed, Jared or I will read to her for about 10-30 minutes (I love it when Jared reads to her while I clean up after supper), then she reads to herself, in bed, for another 25-30 minutes.

Often times the story that we start reading to her, she finishes on her own before lights out. She reads crazy fast.

Anyway, this long winded post is actually leading up to a project that will be on-going for her. A book timeline. How about I stop typing and just let the pictures do most of the "talking."

The idea started with a picture on Pintrest.

(http://mrsgoins.blogspot.com/p/readers-notebook.html)

Then I remember that a few months ago, Emma and I made an altered book out of a lot of her old art work. A perfect place to keep a timeline of her reading. 

Scanning book covers, which we then printed (as contact sheet) onto sticker paper.

Sticker paper is awesome. 

Cutting out individual book covers (while listening to an audio book). 

Applying book cover stickers to the cover of her book timeline. That's 35 books that she has read on her own or plans to read in the near future. 

And here is the month of October, so far. These are printed at wallet size.  

I had planned to have a two page spread per month, but that might not be enough space. 

"In Riding Rescue, Comet helps Gina get back on a horse again."

She places the sticker on the page, then writes a little about the book. As she gets older, I'll request that she write a bit more for each book, but for now, one or two sentences is fine.

I realize that the book covers are a bit hard to see with all the commotion in the background, but I'm o.k. with that. Besides, this book timeline will probably be full in a few months, then we can create a new one. 

What have you read lately?

August's Books

I have no idea what this child has read this month. She goes through books so fast, I can't keep up. This will probably be the last month that I even attempt to keep up with it.

Read to Herself
Books by Jessie Haas. We borrowed a bunch of books from the library by this author, and Emma has worked her way through them. Emma got hooked on Jessie Haas after reading the American Girl: Saige books.

Don't Pigeonhole Me by Mo Willems. This is kinda like is autobiography, but Emma flipped through and read all the comics/sketchbook drawings as well as a bit of other stuff.


Audio

Harry Potter- She listened to a few more in the series, currently working on #6.

Inkheart Trilogy- again.

A Dog's Life by Ann M. Martin. She said it was a little slow, but ok.

The Book of Elsewhere by Jacqueline West. The first in a series, and Emma seemed to enjoy it.


Read To Emma

Miranda and Starlight Series. We are finishing up our last book. Oh boy. This ones a big tear jerker. I read it through the other night and I think I cried for about an hour of the 2 hours it took me to read it. There are some interesting moral dilemmas that Miranda ends up facing, so it will be interesting to see what Emma's thoughts are on them.

That's it!

Have you read any good books lately?

July's Books

I did a REALLY bad job of keeping track of Emma's books this month. I had 2 big projects, 2 midterms, and 2 finals this month, so that took up a lot of my attention.

Read/Listened to by Emma

Comics/Graphic Novels

Guinea Pig Pet Shop Private Eye #'s 2-5 by Colleen AF Venable
Grimm Graphic Novels:
Tom Thumb retold by Scott Sonneborn
The Golden Goose retold by Sean Tulien
The Elves and the Shoemaker retold by Martin Powell
Snow White retold by Martain Powell
The Three Little Pigs retold by Lisa Trumbaur

Chapter Books
Martha Speaks - Various titles, she read about 6 of them.
Magic Ponies #4: Show-Jumping Dreams by Sue Bentley
Magic Pony #1: A Dream Come True by Elizabeth Lindsey (I know, confusing that the two series are almost called the same thing).

Picture Books
Boris and the Wrong Shadow by Leigh Hodgkinson
Imogene's Antlers by David Small
Cars and Trucks and Things That Go by Richard Scarry.

E-books Emma started a few e-books but hasn't finished any yet.

Horrid Henry by Francesca Simon
Happily Every Emma by Sally Warner

Audio Books
Harry Potter #2-3 by J.K. Rowling
Inkheart and Inkspell by Cornelia Funke


Read to/With Emma
We started a new series, Miranda and Starlight by Janet Muirhead Hill. We got the 5 book series for a steal when a store selling local made items was going out of business (the owners were retiring). So far, it's a really good, realistic story about a girl who lives with her grandparents (her mother is alive but not a very responsible individual), loves horses, and has a lot of struggles to deal with. Also, written by a Montanan, taking place in Montana. We like it.

There are so many more books that we have read together, or that Emma has read on her own, but I just couldn't keep up with them or her. I also did a bad job taking pictures this month, so no pictures. Sorry!

June's Books

Wow this list got long! I'm thinking that maybe next month we should just mention our favorites, unless you like seeing almost everything we have read and listened too (I'm sure I've missed something along the way). 

Emma Read

Picture/Begginer Books
Biggest, Strongest, Fastest by Steve Jenkins. A non-fiction picture book about different animals. It compares the sizes of the animals to people for reference. Emma picked it up and started reading it while we were rearranging the living room.

What Do You Do With a Tail Like This by Steve Jenkins. More books about animals!

Once We Had a Horse by Glen Rounds. This is one of the books Emma found after learning to navigating the library.

The Three Bully Goats by Leslie Kimmelman. A fun retelling of an old classic. We both misread the title at first, until Emma started reading this to me. Funny. Another book that was read in the car on the way home from the library.

Watch Me Throw the Ball! by Mo Willems. 

What can we say, these books are just awesome. If you have a beginning reader, or a struggling reader, these books are worth a shot. Hilarious, simple, and quick to read. And they always seem to contain a hidden message. Oh, if you happen to be in the Massachusets area, you should check out his exhibits in two different museums: The Eric Carle Museum of Picture Book Art and R. Mitchelson Galleries. I so wish we could go.

More Mo Willems awesomness. If you are looking for books to do lessons with, he has a "Party Kit" for teachers with suggested questions and ideas to go along with each Elephant and Piggie book. A little young for Emma, but I think it would be fun for kids age 4-6.

Visit NBCNews.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

Apparently I'm on a Mo Willems kick right now. Check out this video interview with him and Al Rokar on the Today Show.

I just spent about 2 hours reading about Mo Willems. I want to meet him, he seems like a great guy. I now want all of his books.

Don't Let the Pigeon Drive the Bus by Mo Willems. This is the book that made Mo Willems famous. Emma enjoyed it. She read it to me so that I got to enjoy it as well :0)

Robert the Rose Horse by Joan Heilbroner. This was a random grab off the shelf cause it said horse in the title. No clue what Emma thought about it. Now she just reads the books, them puts them on my desk so I can record them. I have three from yesterday to enter (the 26th).

Grandfather Buffalo by Jim Arnosky.

Lost & Found by Shaun Tan. I am not sure if this falls under picture book or graphic novel, but to me it looks more like a picture book, so that's why it's here. The illustrations look all mixed media and fun.

Chapter Books

Magic Ponies #2: A Special Wish by Sue Bentley. More magical tales of Comet the Pegasus in search of his twin sister Destiny.

Saige by Jessie Hass. Emma is still working her way through this American Girl book. It's tough to finish a chapter book when you are reading 3 at the same time! (Also tough to finish it if you loose it in your room somewhere!) We found this book and Emma has finished it, now she's onto

Saige Paints the Sky by Jessie Hass.

Traitor in the Shipyard: A Caroline Mystery by Kathleen Ernst. This is the book Emma picked out when she turned in her summer reading sheet at Barnes and Nobles. She had to start reading it in the car. And while we walked through Sam's Club. Then more while we did actual groceries. She even read some of it out loud to me. Oh, it's also an American Girl book.

Molly the Pony: A True Story by Pam Kaster. This is a true story about a pony with a prosthetic leg (that makes a smiley face 'hoof' print). A great early reader, that may spark some interest in learning more about real horses. She read this to me in the car on the way home from the library.

Lulu Walks the Dogs by Judith Viorst. We loved the Lulu and the Brontosaurus (it's under Read To Emma), that I went to the website and requested that they hold this one for us. Emma read it to herself, but I may have to give it a read before it goes back to the library.

At the base library

Graphic Novels
Amulet books 2-5 by Kazu Kibushi. Emma really enjoyed this series and she is hoping that the author writes more. 

The Princess and the Pea, Repunzel, and The Emperor's New Clothes: Fairy Tale Graphic Novels retold by Stephanie Peters and illustrated by various artists. These were pretty quick reads for her, but she loved them. I could tell by the giggles and the constant, "Mama, listen to this..." 

Horse Angel Comic Book: Ride Into Fear by Pony Club. This is comic about horses. I wish we could find more of them, but it's from the Pony Club mailing program that is no longer open for business. 

Guinea Pig Pet Shop Private Eye: Hamster and Cheese by Colleen AF Venable. The latest find at the library. Emma liked it, read it in one sitting. 


Audio Books

Emily Windsnap and the Siren's Secret by Liz Kessler. Emma listened to this one on her own, well, except for the last 30 minutes or so. At least I know how the book ended...

Harry Potter and the Sorcerers Stone by J. K. Rowling. Yes, we have listened to this entire series, but Emma has been wanting to re-listen to it. So, there you go.

100 Cupboards #3 by N. D. Wilson. As far as we know, this is the last in the series, but we will keep an eye out for more.

Alanna: The First Adventure (Song of the Lioness #1) and In the Hand of the Goddess (Song of the Lioness #2) and The Women Who Rides Like a Man (Song of the Lioness #3) and Lioness Rampant (Song of the Liioness #4) by Tamara Pierce. This series is about a young girl (she's about 10 when the story starts) that wants to be a learn to be a knight, not about the art of magic. Her twin brother wants nothing to do with being a knight, but wants to learn the art of magic. So when the two are sent off to their respective schools, they forge some paperwork so that they are now both boys, and Alanna goes off to become a knight while her twin goes off to learn the art of magic. A great series (I did listen to some of the first one), one that Emma is really enjoying.

Sarah, Plain and Tall by Patricia MacLachlan. This was about a father and his two children in need of a wife/mother. He put an add the paper looking for a wife, and Sarah traveled to them to see if it would work out. Set during the time of horse and wagons. Emma enjoyed it.

Stormchaser (The Edge Chronicles: The Twig Trilogy, Book 2) by Paul Stewart. More adventures of Twig. In this book he goes on an adventure with his Sky Pirate father to the Twilight woods.

Harriet the Spy by Louise Fitzhugh. (Per Emma) About Harriet, who is a spy. Harriet sneaks out and spies on people and writes down in her journal what they do.

Harriet Spies Again by Helen Erickson. I had no idea this was by a different author till I looked it up for this post. I got to listen to a bit of it, but Emma seemed to like it.

Bunnicula meets Edgar Allan Crow by James Howe. We listened to the set a while back (I think on our last trip to AZ) and when Emma saw this in the on-line library, she really wanted to listen to it. It was a quick 2 hours, but she really enjoyed it.

Mary Poppins by P.L. Travers. A oldie but goody. Emma says that it's "WAY different than the first one!" she means the movie. She realizes that the book came first, but still likes the movie better because Mary Poppins is nice in the movie, and they go on a magic carousel. She was sad that the magic carousel was not in the book. *apparently the books are a series. Might have to look into this.

Library books. Public on the left, base on the right.

Books Read to Emma
Stormy: Misty's Foal by Margurite Henry. This was a sad one! I actually cried a few times while reading it out-loud to Emma. All of the books in this story are based on real events, and this one is based on the hurricane that nearly destroyed the wild pony herd in 1962. So, I cried a few times and Emma kinda laughed at me, but I could tell it made her sad as well. The books ends on a happy note though, so that's good. And I think this may have been my favorite one so far.

Misty's Twilight by Margurite Henry. It's that last in the series. We are enjoying it, but I am about ready for something else.

Farm Boy: The Sequel to War Horse by Michael Morpurgo. Emma loved, loved, loved War Horse. She would listen to it over and over again on audio. I picked this sequel up from the library the other day, and we read it over the last 2 days. At bedtime. It was a very short book, and a bit disappointing. I feel like it really wasn't much of a sequel at all. Joey, the horse from the first book, appeared in it, but he wasn't the main character. Emma actually asked if we had to read it.

Lulu and the Brontosaurus by Judith Viorst. A super fun book. Emma and I read this one together (taking turns reading to each other). She and I both loved that the author added little notes throughout the book justifying why she was writing the things she was. A really fun, quick read. Can't wait to see what other ones are out there!

*********************************************************************************
We've signed back up at paperbackswap.com. In Iowa, the libraries were fantastic, so we really didn't need to acquire books any other way. Now we need to start hunting through the thrift stores, and we've decided to start swapping books again. It typically costs less then $3 to ship a book, and for each book we send, we get a credit for any book we want. Not a bad deal. Not as cheap as the library or the thrift store, but we can actually get books we are looking for. For the most part. And it helps us find new homes for books we no longer read. Although it's tough parting with the books sometimes.

***So what do you think, just post about our favorites or keep listing all the books I can remember?***

May's Books

Reading is so much fun! Emma is excited about participating in a few reading programs, so we will be doing a better job of tracking the books she has read.

Reading "Blaze and the Mountain Lion" next to the library books. 

Books Emma has read

Big Bad Wolves at School by Stephen Krensky- This was the picture book Emma was reading while we were doing groceries the other day. 

There is a Bird on Your Head! by Mo Willems

Happy Pig Day by Mo Willems

My Friend is Sad by Mo Willems

We are in a Book by Mo Willems- I think this one is our favorite. "Banana!"

Billy and Blaze by C.W. Anderson. We have read these out loud together in the past, but she has decided to start reading them on her own. We love the illustrations in these books. 

Imogene's Antlers by David Small- A cute picture book about a girl who wakes up one day with antlers on her head. 

Bone: Eyes of the Storm by Jeff Smith- She is taking a while with this one. I think she's a little burnt out on Bone.

Amulet: The Stonekeeper by Kazu Kibuishi- This is a graphic novel, comic, whatever you want to call it, for kids. The story starts out pretty quick, and a bit sad, but it's action packed and we really need to hurry up and borrow the next one!

Magic Ponies- A New Friend by Sue Bentley. This is a new series that Emma decided she would like to read on her own. As our library does not carry paperbacks (seriously!), this is a series we will be purchasing. We have ordered #2 from Barnes and Nobles, and they are holding #'s 3 and 4 for us. She finished this book so quick that I wondered if she actually absorbed any of the book. So I read this one and made a short quiz for her.

My Secret Unicorn: The Magic Spell by Linda Chapman. Another great series that Emma is currently working on. From the sounds of it, very similar to Magic Ponies, but different enough that she is enjoyed it. And she reads so fast! I am not sure if these books are in print anymore, but we are on the look out for them. If you see them, we will pay you back for the book and shipping!

American Girl: Saige by Jessie Hass. Emma just informed me (31May13 6:55pm) that she will be reading this next. She is currently reading it out loud in her room. I love having a book lover for a kiddo!

I'm sure I've missed a few books, but this is still a pretty good sized list!

Audio Books

The Trumpet of the Swan by E.B. White. The story of a trumpeter swan who is born unable to trumpet. His father steals him a trumpet and the young swan decides to use his trumpet to make money to pay off the stolen trumpet. I only listened to bits and pieces, but it seemed like a fun story.

The Disney Fairy Collection- Various Authors- Emma has listened to a bunch of these, though I am not sure which ones. 

Puddlejumpers by Mark Jean- This was a great story about a boy who gets kidnapped by little creatures that jump through puddles. He is suppose to save them, but things go wrong and he ends up in an orphanage. Some happy twists with lots of exciting parts. 

The Enchanted Castle by E. Nesbit

The Edge Chronicles #1: Beyond the Deep Woods by Chris Riddle and Paul Stewart.

Soup by Robert Newton Peck- I am not entirely sure what this one was about, Emma listened to it mostly on her own. I did happen to catch a few bad words though, so be ready for that.

The Tail of Emily Windsnap by Liz Kessler- This story is about a girl who discovers she is a mermaid when she is 12 years old. A fun adventure story.

Emily Windsnap and the Monster From the Deep by Liz Kessler- More adventures of Emily Windsnap. This one touches on peer pressure and making the wrong choices just to make someone like you.

Emily Windsnap and the Castle in the Mist by Liz Kessler. We just started this one, and it sounds to be as good as the other two!

100 Cupboards #1 and #2 by N.D. Wilson. This is a fun series about a boy who moves in with his Aunt, Uncle and 3 cousins. They discover a series of cupboards in the attic that lead to different worlds. After unleashing a long held evil in the first book, it is dealt with in the second book.

Emma has been asking to re-listen to the Harry Potter books, so when it's our turn (currently on the waiting list), we will be listening to these again. 

Books Mama read to Emma

Misty of Chincoteague #1 by Margurite Henry. We have finally, finally started this series. We tried it once before, about a year ago, but Emma wasn't really interested in it. Now, she couldn't get enough. Based on real life events of the Pony Penning that occurs each year on the Island of Chincoteague. 

Sea Star: Orphan of Chincoteague by Margurite Henry. A sequel to Misty. This one has Misty flying off to be in the movies leaving behind a sad Paul and Maureen. Sad until they discover an orphaned foal in need of their help.

Stormy: Misty's Foal by Margurite Henry. We just started this one tonight!

Well, that's our list! With me starting classes, I expect I'll miss more what what she is reading and listening too, but I will still do my best to keep wondering minds informed about our reading choices!

April's Books

A typical stack of library books

I did a better job this month keeping track of books, although don't expect much in the "Emma's Reading List" as the kid is a sneaky reader. And pretty fast. She is typically finished reading a book before I even realize she had started.

For a little bit I was worried that she wasn't comprehending what she was reading, so I've "quizzed" her a few times after reading a book out loud to me. She seems to absorb what she's reading pretty well. It will be interesting to see how she does with a longer book.

Anyway, our lists.

Audiobooks
Pinoccio by Carlo Collodi. Wow. Another book that I thought I would know, but was totally blown away by how different this book is from the movie. Thankfully, Emma hasn't seen the movie yet.

Dr. Dolittle by Hugh Lofting. I didn't really listen to this one with my full attention, but Emma really enjoyed it. I've seen the movie with Eddie Murphy, but thankfully, the book was so much better.

Treasure Island by Robert Louis Stevenson. This was a pretty long book, but Emma really seemed to like it. I only listened on and off, but it was all about pirates and treasure, loyalty and dastardly deeds.

Ella Enchanted by Gail Carson Levine. We listened to this in one day as we drove from Iowa to South Dakota. Such a fun story! Ella is "gifted" by a fairy, though it turns out to be a curse. On the day Ella is born, she cried and cried for hours. The fairy pronounced that Ella would always be obedient. She must do anything anyone tells her. Ella fights her "affliction" but becomes ill if she does not obey. With a bit of a Cinderella theme thrown in, this is a great story about overcoming obstacles, being obedient, but not becoming a slave. I think we'll probably listen to this one again at some point, or perhaps read the book.

Wings of Fire (#1): The Dragonet Prophecy by Tui. T. Sutherland. About a world where dragons are at war and a prophecy foretells of 5 dragonets that will bring an end to the war. This was a pretty good story. Also about friendship, loyalty, and accepting others. We are on the look-out for book #2.


Read Aloud (typically read at bed-time)
Wild Horse Summer by Hope Ryden. This is a chapter book about a 12 year old girl from Chicago who is off to spend the summer in Wyoming on her relatives ranch. One of her cousins is the same age, but blind. A very good book about over coming fears, disabilities, and all that good stuff.

American Girl: Saige by Jessie Hass. Emma and Gramma are reading this one together. All I know is that Saige is artistic and loves horses. Emma seems to be enjoying it.

Horse Diaries: Darcy (book #10) by Whitney Sanderson. Emma and Gramma are reading this one together.


Emma's Reading List- Keeping track of this is a little tough, but I will do my best.

Pony Scouts: Pony Crazy by Catherine Hapka. We have read all the books in this easy reader series out loud before, but Emma has started to read these on her own now. The story is about 3 friends who all love horses.

The Perfect Pony by Corinne Demas. This book is a step 3 book. Whatever that means. It's about a girl who is finally allowed to get a pony, but the one she wants has been sold already. The pony, however, ends up deciding who he wants to belong to.

One Whole Day: Wild Ponies by Jim Arnosky. This is a National Geographic Society book. A beautiful picture book about the Assateague Island wild ponies.

When a Dragon Moves In by Jodi Moore. I picked this beautiful picture book up from the library because of the wonderful illustrations (by Howard McWilliam). Emma actually grabbed it up soon after I got home and read it.

Bone by Jeff Smith. She is reading more of the series, not sure which one though. She has asked that we pick up the rest in the series.

Glitterby Baby by Stephen Cosgrove. This is a Serendipity book. We picked it up at good will yesterday and Emma has already read it and enjoyed it. In fact, she started reading it to us in the car on the way home, but finished it up on her own tonight. We have one or two more in the series, but I think we will be on the look out for even more of them.

Starlight: Breyer Stablemates by Kristin Earhart. About a girl who discovers that raising a goal is tough work. Emma has a few of these in the collection. They are short chapter books (34 pages) with bigger print and beautiful artwork. She flies through these books, but it's always fun to listen to her read them.

Snowflake: Breyer Stablemates by Suzanne Weyn. About a trio of girls who find a way to help out a rescued horse.

She is making her way through all of her Breyer Stablemates book. Not sure how many she has read, but she still enjoys them.


What are you reading? Do you have a suggestions for good books?

March's Books

Wow, March flew by. Emma's reading has exploded in the last two months, and I am excited to share the books that she has read on her own, as well as the books we have read together and listened to!

*Disclaimer- I suck at recapping books. I'll do my best, but if you are interested, it may be best to click on the link (or google it) and read the description from there*

Books Emma has read to herself:

Bone Series by Jeff Smith. These are graphic novels that Emma was fascinated with about 2 years ago.   I read them to her, she loved them, we bought the series (or so I thought). The other day I caught her reading one of the books. Unfortunately we seem to be missing a few from the series, not that Emma really minded. 

Rediscovering the "Bone" series by Jeff Smith

The First Dog by Jan Brett. It's fun to watch and listen to Emma read some of her picture books. This book is a cute view on how dog became man's best friend. As always, fantastic illustrations in this book. 

Reading, "The First Dog," by Jan Brett

Rainbow Magic by Daisy Meadows. Another series that we read a year or so ago. I read the first in the series to Emma at bedtime a few nights ago, but had to stop cause my throat was getting sore (dry hotel air will do that to a person). Emma wasn't tired so I suggested she read the rest of the book herself. She did, then decided that she'd like to work on the rest of the series. 

There may be more, but I can't remember. 

Audio Books we listened too:

The 39 Clues. We finished the first series and started on the Cahills vs. Vespers. We really are enjoying these series. Full of history, geography, drama and excitement while also being easy to follow. 

Percy Jackson: The Lightening Thief and The Sea of Monsters. We are really enjoying this series as well. We probably won't listen to the rest of these until Da gets back from his 3 months of training, but that's ok, we have plenty of other books on our list. 

I, Coriander, by Sally Gardner. This was a pretty good story full of magic and mystery. The story takes place during the time of the Puritans, but also in two separate worlds. One of fairies, and one of mortals.  

Bridge to Terabithia by Kathrine Patterson. This was NOT what I was expecting. It was a great book, but I guess I had false ideas about this book. Reminded me a lot of the movie "My Girl." Emma really enjoyed it as did I. 

The Prophet of Yonwood by Jeanne DuPrau. Part of the Ember Series. This one provides a bit of history about how the City of Ember came about. 

Diamond of Darkhold by Jeanne DuPrau. The last in the Ember Series. We liked the entire series. 

King of the Wind by Marguerite Henry. We have loved all the books we've read by this author. This particular book tells of the history of the Arabian horse breed. This would also be a great one for boys who love horses as the main human character is a stable boy who cares for the Godolphin Arabian. 

Read Aloud:

Yatimah (Horse Diaries #7) by Patricia Hermes. This story is about the Arabian horse breed as well. It was fun reading this while listening to King of the Wind (though not at the same exact time). 

Black Cloud (Horse Diaries #8) by Patricia Hermes. This story is about the mustangs. While the parts about Wild Horse Annie are not accurate, the rest is pretty close. The book does explain some real facts about Wild Horse Annie in the back of the book, as well as factual info about mustangs and how they almost became extinct. 

Tennessee Rose (Horse Diaries #9) by Patricia Hermes. This one is about the Tennessee Walker. A good story, we enjoyed it as much as we enjoyed the rest. Can't wait for the next one to come out!

I actually read an adult book this month! (Well, I started one anyway)

Wild Horse Annie by David Cruise and Alison Griffiths. This is a biography of how Velma Johnston almost single-handedly saved the wild mustangs from extinction. A very interesting tale of a women who was forever disabled by a childhood bout of polio, though refused to let it ruin her life. I am still reading this book, but so far I have found it very interesting and one that I think Emma will enjoy when she is a bit older. 

What was your favorite book you read/listened to this month (kids or adults, we still want to know!)?

February's Books

I have been inspired by Charity over at Indietutes to do a blog post listing the books we have read and listening to this past month. I realize I need to read a few more adult books, but why when the kids ones are so much fun!

These are not in order, and as Da would tell you I am HORRIBLE at summarizing a book (there are just so many good parts that you need to know about!) so bare with me here, I'll do my best to keep them short.

Icefall by Matthew J. Kirby- About the second daughter of a Viking king and her siblings. They are trapped in a hidden fortress by the frozen sea, hidden away while there father wages war. They are guarded by her fathers best warriors, but there is a traitor among them. The main character is strong, and kind. I loved this book, as did Emma.

The Land of Elyon Series by Patrick Carmen. There are 5 books in this series, though I think the 4th and 5th were after thoughts. It's hard to know what order to read the last two in. Anyway, this series is about a girl named Alexa who is destine to do great things. With talking animals, mystical lands, and giants, the series is fun and fantastical. We are currently enjoying the 4th book.

Ghost Knight by Cornelia Funke. We love this author. A year or two ago we listened to the Inkheart Trilogy and LOVED it. More recently we listened, multiple times, to Igraine the Brave, which we also loved. Ghost Knight was another good one by Ms. Funke. The two main characters in this story are on an adventure that involves killer ghosts, a ghost knight, a wrongly buried heart, and loyalty. We really enjoyed this one as well.

The City of Ember by Jeanne Du Prau. This is another series that we discovered. We have only listened to the first one so far and we have enjoyed it. Set in an isolated city where electricity provides the only source of light, time is running out for the citizens of Ember. The electricity keeps flickering. Blackouts are getting longer, light bulbs are scarce, as are other supplies necessary for life. The fate of the city lies in an odd discovery made by two twelve year-old children. This is an interesting story, and I think someday when we are learning about atomic bombs, it will be a good book to reread as I have a feeling this might be where the series is leading us. We'll see!

Coraline by Neil Gaiman. This was a fun and creepy book that we didn't finish. Not because we didn't want to, but because we were listening to it on the computer and we didn't finish it before the book expired. We really enjoyed it and I need to remember to re borrow it so we can finish it.

Matilda by Roald Dahl. Loved this book. SO so much better than the movie (not that Emma has seen it yet). About a little girl raised by neglectful, mean, dishonest parents. She goes to a school run by a horrible woman that hates children and swings little girls by their pigtails. Yet she finds hope through her teacher, Ms. Honey, who sees the awesome potential in Matilda. A wonderful story.

The Witches by Roald Dahl. What can I say, we have fallen in love with his books. I believe he even narrates this story himself. A fun story about a boy who discovers a group of witches while he and his grandmother are on holiday. Unable to escape them, he is turned into a mouse, but that actually helps him out in the end. And he doesn't mind being a mouse, really.

The Borrowers by Mary Norton. We actually read this one as a bedtime story. It may have been last month, I can never keep track. Emma and I really enjoyed this and I hope to find more in the series to read at bedtime.

The White Stallion of Lipizza by Marguerite Henry. I want this book. I would love to add this book to our collection. We inter-library loaned this book and it was so worth it. A great story about determination, passion, and the Lipizzaner horses. We follow the journey of a boy named Hans Hupt who wishes to become a Riding Master at the Spanish Riding School. At the time, only well-to-do boys made it into the school, not a bakers son. Hans did not give up. He spent endless hours researching the breed, how they do their beautiful maneuvers, and managed to teach his old cart horse a few of the moves. Anyway, a great story that I hope we read again soon.

The 39 Clues by various authors. We are currently on book 8. These are books that we only listen to when Da can listen as well, so we are going through them a little more slowly. We love listening to these stories, and it's really interesting how the writing style differs from one author to the next. So far, I think there has only been one where we were not so impressed, but the rest we have really enjoyed. The series is about a sister and brother who are given the choice- Take a million dollars each, or participate in the hunt for the 39 clues which, once collected, will make them the most powerful people on earth. It's a really fun series and I just realized (when looking up the link) that there is an entire world outside of the books dedicated to the series.

The Children of Green Knowe by L.M. Boston. Emma seemed to like this book. It's part of a series and so far we have only listened to the first book. I had a hard time paying attention to this one (I think I was just tired of audiobooks that day), so I didn't follow it as well as she did. You'll need to click on the link to figure out what it's about.

Heidi by Johanna Spyri. This audio was a theatrical thing with different people for different characters and sound effects. Once I got past that, I really enjoyed this classic tale of an orphaned girl sent to live with her grandfather in the mountains of Switzerland. It's a good story. Emma and I really enjoyed it.

Peter Pan by J.M. Barrie. Wow. Having never read the book and only seeing the Disney version (well, and Hook with Robin Williams) this book was a big surprise. And awesome. I love Disney movies, but man did they miss a lot. The book is so much better, with a lot more awesome details and fun. It's also a little darker in spots, but Emma and I both really enjoyed it.

Well, that is a crazy ton of books, but when you listen to 3 or 4 a week, the list gets long. I probably forgot a few, but you get the idea.

What have you read recently?

Hiking in Decorah, November 2012

Talking Out Loud- References

This post is going to be a bit like talking out loud to myself. I am trying to get this whole, structured thing figured out, and sometimes I just have to "say things out loud" so I can make sure it makes sense.

One of the first things I looked into when we found out that we were moving to Montana, was the library. I browsed their website off and on for the months leading up to our move. Within the first week (possible the second), we made a trip to the library and signed up for a homeschooling library card.

What is a homeschool library card?

It's awesome. We get to check out an unlimited number of items for a month at a time. A regular library card gets us, if I remember correctly, something like 10 books for 2 weeks. No where near enough, especially considering the haul we walked away with today.

22 items. Oh, wait. I think Emma has about 5 or so books in the bedroom with her for bedtime reading. So, 27 books.

What do we need 27 books for?

Let's see. We will use this stack of books;
The White Stallion by Laurel Van Der Linde
Lipizzaner: The Story of the Horses of Lipica by Milan Dolene
The Lipizzan Horse by Sarah Maass
Military Horses by Michael Sandler
to learn about the lipizzaner horses.

We will use this stack of books;
Leonardo Beautiful Dreamer by Robert Byrd
Leonardo Da Vinci by Diane Stanley
Leonardo da Vinci by Barbara Witteman
Leonardo's Palette by Gerry Bailey
The Inventions of Leonardo Da Vinci by Margaret Cooper
to learn about Leonardo da Vinci.

This stack;
Eyewitness Travel: Austria
Austria: Enchantment of the World by R. Conrad Stein
Welcome to My Country: Welcome to Austria
to learn about balloons. Kidding! The Spanish Riding School (where the Lipizzaners learn to dance) is located in Vienna, Austria.

This last stack;
Mozart: Piano Sonatas, Vol. 1 (CD)
Mozart: Chamber Music with Piano (CD)
Mozart: Flute Quartets (CD)
The World of the Symphony: Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (CD)
Mozart Finds a Melody by Stephen Costanza
Play, Mozart, Play by Peter Sis
The Magic Flute by Stephen Spender
Mozart's Wig by Gerry Bailey
will help us learn about Mozart, a Viennese.

We have a few random books also; Growing Crystals by Ann O. Squire and Math Curse by Jon Scieszka and Lane Smith. The latter was an impulse borrow. It actually happens to be the only book about math that the library has.

All in all, we are pretty happy with the library. We would like it if there was more selection, but we also have the base library to utilize. I plan to make a stop by the base library tomorrow. I believe they have a few more books on crystals that I would like to check out.

Well, that's about all for now. I might stop back later to talk to myself about the schedule I have planned for next week.

Have a great night!

More About Books

So, I have decided to make a list of books to read/listen too with Emma. This list is mostly for myself, but I thought I would post it here so 1.) I don't loose the list, and 2.) Just in case anyone else is interested in a list of books to read.

These books are in no particular order. We will read them or listen to them as they become available.

1. The Harry Potter Series (1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7)
2. The Underland Chronicles (1, 2, 3, 4, 5)
3. The Chronicles of Narnia (1, 2, 3, 4, 5)
4. Charlotte's Web
5. Stewart Little
6. The Borrowers
7. The Black Stallion
8. The Little House on the Prairie Series (1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9)
9. The Velveteen Rabbit
10. Huck Finn
11. Tom Sawyer
12. Snot Stew
13. Fantastic Mr. Fox
*updated 3Oct12*
14. The Spiderwick Chronicles (1,2,3,4,5)
15. The 39 Clues (1,2,3...)
*Updated 12Nov12*
16. The Wolves of the Beyond (1, 2, 3, 4, 5)
17. Horse Diaries (1, 2, 3...)
*Updated 17Dec12*
18. The Enchanted Forest Chronicles (1,2,3,4)
19. Once Upon a Marigold
20. A Mouse and His Child
21. Black Beauty
22. War Horse (one of Emma's favorites)



I need to make breakfast, but I will update this list as I find more books that I think we might enjoy. I would love suggestions, so please leave me a comment or send me an e-mail letting me know what your favorite book was as a kid.

Thanks!

Picking up and Playing

This last week Emma and I have cleaned her room. We moved her mattress from her loft bed back to the floor (she moves around way to much while she is sleeping and I kept envisioning her falling out of the loft) and turned the loft into a reading nook.

There are area rugs up there for her to sit on, if she could find a spot.

We donated, consigned or tossed a large portion of her toys and clothes. We also donated or consigned over half of her books. We donated most of her items to the Salvation Army before we discovered the Youth and Shelter Services. Now all of our items to be donated will go there. 

For anyone who may be concerned that Emma would be devastated by the loss of all that stuff, fear not. She was in on every aspect of the purge. I let her pick out what she kept and what was to find new homes. There was very little complaining as I explained the the toys, books and clothes that we donated would go to kids that may not have any of those things.

We went through about 8 (big) boxes of books and she got to keep 10 books from each box. We also kept all of the horse books. We have not counted, but I would guess that she still has over 100 books. I am thinking about making 12 boxes of books, and swapping out the book selection each month. We would probably keep out her absolute favorites all the time though.

We went through her closet and only kept clothes that she wears regularly. Anything that was uncomfortable, or just too small was donated or consigned.

We have more toys to purge, as I remember that we have a few containers in the basement, but we did go through a lot of the toys in her room. We have talked about a one-for-one swap from now on. For every new toy that comes into the house, one toy needs to find a new home.

It may sound pretty extreme, but even though we had 3 or 4 trunk loads of stuff to donate and consign, Emma still has plenty to do.

Floor- legos, lunch box with black and white beans, tinker toys (and Da's Calvin and Hobbes comics)

1st shelf- cd player, cd's and audio books, barbies (in the red case) dolls, and games

2nd shelf- horses and art/craft items

3rd shelf- bowl of rice, globe, balance scale with baskets of rocks, coloring books and paper, puzzles

Top shelves- the very top shelves are where we have decided to store all of our creative stuff that we do not use on a regular basis. 

We mostly play pony-opolly and the guess game. We also have more "adult" games in the other room like Blockus that we also play. Though not often enough.

Her bin of cards and other smaller games. We love scrabble slam and the color cubes. The pick-up words game is really interesting and we have played a few times. 

Since cleaning up her room (and the rest of the house for that matter) Emma has been doing a lot more playing and a lot less TV watching.

Landscape created for the herd

Snowy mountain with a horse climbing over the top.

A banana tree

And a girly standing in the background

As a family, we are trying to get better about playing together more often. One of Emma's favorite games to play right now is an old card game we got from Gramma called Shufflers.

"The spotted dog scampered in the barn..."

"The skinny boy with thick glasses disappeared by the lake and the babysitter..."

There are three categories of cards- Blue borders are subjects, green borders are verbs, and red borders are phrases. We also made our own coma, period, and 'and' cards. There are different ways to play, but Emma's favorite is to shuffle the cards and then pass out all the cards. Then we each take turns adding a card to create a sentence. There are 32 cards (not including our made up cards) and Emma likes to try to make a story using all of the cards. It really is pretty fun and Emma will actually try to sound them out occasionally. 

Another game we like to play is Scrabble Slam.

I realize that my almost 6yo's hand writing is not that far from mine. Either she has really good penmanship or mine is really bad.  

The last time we played, Emma wanted to keep track of the words we made. We made the word 'crow' (towards the bottom of the first row) and Emma wanted to know if we could make the word 'book.' Yes we can, and it only took us 4 turns. 

When I spelled barf, Da laughed (he was doing homework on the couch). So Emma started laughing then said, "Wait, what does barf mean?" Of course that lead to more laughing by everyone :)

Another fun game is:

Pick-up words is played the same way as pick up sticks, but there are words on each stick. You get points based on the color of the word (we don't really keep points yet). There is a bonus stick that one can use to push other sticks out of the way, if they are lucky enough to be the one to free it. We have fun playing the game, then I get a little caught up in making stories. Emma plays along for a few minutes then gets bored. 

They don't really make sense, but I still like it :)

We have really enjoyed the purging that we have been doing throughout the entire house. We are slowly realizing that less can indeed be more.