kubiac Posted September 30, 2020 Share Posted September 30, 2020 Help! Currently reading aloud the 26 Fairmount Ave series to DS7, and he likes it very much but he is getting worried about what we read after this, and I’m hoping to bring him some options so he can “choose” and have a little buy-in. Here’s the Venn diagram I’m building: * he’s chronologically 7, intellectually 10 and social-emotionally 4 * he strongly prefers non-fiction, including memoirs; he’s good w SOTW * last I heard he cannot tolerate talking animals but that was a couple of years ago * he is quite sensitive and newly diagnosed as ASD. Today he sat for “The Emperor’s New Clothes” as our short story (we do a “novel” chapter and a short story or folk tale or picture book most days) and he thought it was kind of funny until we got to the part where the Emperor was going to walk naked through the streets and then he started screaming and spinning and wouldn’t let me continue. * he’s a fluent and strong independent reader, my goal with read-alouds is family bonding and some emotional and linguistic stretching *if possible* I’m thinking Boy by Ronald Dahl, Farmer Boy by Laura Ingalls Wilder, maybe Little Britches by Ralph Moody, maybe Betsy-Tacy by Maud Hart Lovelace. Any other suggestions? Have you had any success reading COFAs/biographies to this type of kid? TIA for advice and shared experiences 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lori D. Posted September 30, 2020 Share Posted September 30, 2020 So, for the emotional quotient of 4yo -- does that mean he is sensitive to endangerment/harm/death of a character? Because the Little Britches and Farmer Boy do have some endangerment, and the dad dies right near the end of Little Britches. Just as an FYI. I've not worked with a child with those specific needs, so I don't know if any of these ideas would be a fit, but: Nonfiction - Brendan the Navigator (Fritz) -- and other Fritz nonfiction - Robert Fulton, Boy Craftsman (Henry) -- biography, written in a fictional tone realistic fiction - Understood Betsy (Fisher) - Mountain Born (Yates) - Kildee House (Montgomery) - Chucaro: Wild Pony of the Pampa (Kalney) - The Toothpaste Millionaire (Merrill) - My Side of the Mountain (George) -- boy (by choice) lives off the land for a year - The Great Wheel (Lawson) -- building of the first ferris wheel (Irish immigrant; there may be an elderly relative who dies at the very start, but the bulk of the book is about the building of the Ferris wheel once the teen/young man immigrates to America) 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Little Green Leaves Posted September 30, 2020 Share Posted September 30, 2020 My daughter, also 7, is like this too. She loves books in which families/siblings have adventures together-- they feel really safe and secure, I think. She loves Farmer Boy and all the Little House books. She loves Mary Poppins too. And Ramona and Henry Huggins, and the Moomintroll books. 5 Children and It. She's also loved books like Around the World in 80 Days and Journey to the Center of the Earth (abridged versions). I think there is something fun but just a little silly about them which makes them feel safe. For what it's worth, I think the Emperor's New Clothes is a scary story! I was horrified by that kind of thing as a kid too 🙂 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kubiac Posted September 30, 2020 Author Share Posted September 30, 2020 Thank you guys! I’ll look at all of these. I definitely think he’d like biographies of inventors and scientists, and I will try Freddy the Pig to test his “talking animals” rule. I really appreciate the suggestions and the support. XOXO Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lori D. Posted September 30, 2020 Share Posted September 30, 2020 (edited) 19 minutes ago, kubiac said: Thank you guys! I’ll look at all of these. I definitely think he’d like biographies of inventors and scientists, and I will try Freddy the Pig to test his “talking animals” rule. I really appreciate the suggestions and the support. XOXO At a higher reading level -- so good for a read aloud -- might be Ben and Me, and, Mr. Revere and I, both by Robert Lawson. Very humorous, as the first tells of Ben Franklin's inventions -- through the eyes of the mouse who lives with him, while the second tells the story of Paul Revere -- through the eyes of his horse. ETA - PS In answer to your original question -- yes, I think biographies can be super, since he's a nonfiction lover. The only potential problem is that some people had horrific things happen in their childhoods, which they overcame and went on to be successful and famous -- but some of those horrible events might not fly for your DS, even though children's biographies tend to share those horrors with a very light hand and not dwell on it... Good luck in finding what works best for read aloud! 😄 Edited September 30, 2020 by Lori D. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lori D. Posted September 30, 2020 Share Posted September 30, 2020 53 minutes ago, Patty Joanna said: I'd forgotten that--maybe that was why ds wasn't all-in for the follow-on stories. One of the goofy things that happened was when he cried (really little guy-4 or something) when I read Peter Rabbit (Beatrix Potter) to him. It wasn't because Mr. McGregor shot Peter's father--it was because Peter lost his buttons! KIDS. UG! 😢 I have my own Beatrix Potter trauma story (lol). One DS here was extremely sensitive to little animals in peril when he was young. I thought DSs would like this super-sweet little animated version of Peter Rabbit... But in the scene when Peter falls asleep in the garden after eating too much lettuce and Mr. McGregor is coming, DS was literally paralyzed with fear and was crying "Run! Run! Run!" 😱 Gah! I traumatized my child! 😭 After that, we did NOT watch movies of fictional stories, but stuck to nonfiction documentaries and educational videos for several years... 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Publia Posted October 1, 2020 Share Posted October 1, 2020 Betsy-Tacy has an infant death in it--chapter 8, "Easter Eggs"--in case you want to preview it. It's a short episode, but sad. For testing the waters on talking animals, I'd try Winnie-the-Pooh/House at Pooh Corner. Or the Robert Lawson books Lori mentioned. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alisoncooks Posted October 1, 2020 Share Posted October 1, 2020 IIRC, Dahl's Boy has some parts that may upset a sensitive child...? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alisha Posted October 2, 2020 Share Posted October 2, 2020 Both of my boys are like that, as they get older, it gets better. When you mentioned the screaming at the "scary" parts--I could relate! 🙂 Anyway, for nonfiction, I would recommend the Holling C Holling books, Realistic Fiction: Frindle and a few others by that author, HOmer Price and others by that author, That's about all I can recommend. I have a fantasy lover and a mystery lover, so most of my recommendations would be things I've found that work for them. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kiwik Posted October 2, 2020 Share Posted October 2, 2020 15 hours ago, alisoncooks said: IIRC, Dahl's Boy has some parts that may upset a sensitive child...? I wouldn't suggest Boy for a child. In fact they are all a bit much for a sensitive kid though Charlie and the Chocolate Factory works - my ASD child is the less sensitive and he liked all Roald Dahl (I didn't give him Boy or Solo). They both liked the Kate di Camillo books, Mary Poppins, some Enid Blyton, Nanny Piggins and some of E Nesbitt. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Emerald Stoker Posted October 7, 2020 Share Posted October 7, 2020 (edited) A couple of ideas: Gone-Away Lake and Return to Gone-Away, by Elizabeth Enright The Mad Scientists' Club (and sequels) by Bertrand R. Brinley It has been a decade or more since I read these aloud, but my memory is that they are engaging stories without being too stressful. ETA: If it weren't for the talking animals thing, I'd have recommended the Esther Averill series about Jenny the Cat. If he ever changes his mind, you might try those--they were favourites here! Edited October 7, 2020 by Emerald Stoker Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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