A home for their hearts Posted December 31, 2008 Share Posted December 31, 2008 I have trouble getting my dc to sit still long enough to listen to a read aloud so I'm needing something that will really catch their attention. I'm thinking chapter books here, not picture books. My dd9 will still and listen better out of all of them. The little ones just tend to cause a distraction so I'm trying to figure out a time that would be best to read to the older two but I need a good book suggestion! HELP! They've seen spiderwick chronicles and really liked it. I'm not up to date on youth fiction but if there is something out there like this I think they may like it. TIA! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nakia Posted December 31, 2008 Share Posted December 31, 2008 We had a really hard time finding a read-aloud chapter book that all of them would sit still for. Mine have liked James and the Giant Peach, Miss Piggle Wiggle, and, most recently Heidi. Those are the ones I can think of right off. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lori D. Posted December 31, 2008 Share Posted December 31, 2008 (edited) REAL LIFE - Henry Huggins series (McCleary) - The Toothpaste Millionaire (Merrill) - Understood Betsy (Fisher) - From the Mixed Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler (Konigsburg) - Little Britches series (Moody) - In the Year of the Boar and Jackie Robinson (Lord) - The Best Christmas Pageant Ever (Robinson) - Anne of Green Gables (Montgomery) - Two Little Indians (Seton) FANTASY - Land of Oz; Ozma of Oz (Baum) -- lively sequels; skip Wizard of Oz (dull/long) - Mrs. Piggle-Wiggle series (Betty MacDonald) - The Wolves of Willoughby Chase (Aiken) - Chronicles of Narnia (Lewis) - Alice's Adventures in Wonderland (Carroll) - Half Magic; Magic by the Lake, Knight's Castle; Time Garden; Seven Day Magic (Eager) - Five Children and It; The Phoenix and the Carpet; The Book of Dragons (Nesbit) - The Father Christmas Letters (Tolkien) - The Ordinary Princess (Kaye) - The Princess & the Goblins; The Princess & Curdie (MacDonald) - Pippi Longstockings; Pippi in the South Seas (Astrid) - The Borrowers (series) (Norton) - Chitty Chitty Bang Bang (Fleming) - Charlie & the Chocolate Factory; Great Glass Elevator (Dahl) - The Never Ending Story (Ende) - The Hobbit (Tolkien) FUN TALL TALE - The Whipping Boy (Fleischman) - By the Great Horn Spoon (Fleischman) - Hitty, Her First Hundred Years (Field) - Holes (Sachar) HISTORICAL FICTION - The Kite Fighters (Park) -- 1400s Korea - Adam of the Road (Gray) -- Medieval England - The Door in the Wall (de Angeli) -- Medieval England - The Master Puppeteer (Paterson) - 1700s Japan - The Sign of the Beaver (Speare) -- Colonial US/Native American - The Great Wheel (Lawson) -- building of the first Ferris Wheel in 1893 - Twenty and Ten (Bishop) -- WWII French children hide Jewish children - The Little Riders (Shemin) -- WWII occupied Europe - Number the Stars (Lenski)-- WWII Dutch girl helps her Jewish friend - Snow Treasure (McSwigan)-- WWII Norweigan children hide the country's gold - Winged Watchman (Van Stockum) -- WWII Nazi occupied Denmark BIOGRAPHY - Robert Fulton, Boy Craftsman (Henry) -- inventor of steam engine as a boy - Land I Lost; Water Buffalo Days (Nhuong) -- memories of pre-war (rural Vietnam) - Carry On, Mr. Bowditch (Latham) early US man who improved naval navigation - Naya Nuki: The Shoshone Girl Who Ran -- friend of Sacajewea - Behind Rebel Lines (Reit) -- teen girl disguised as a boy / Union spy in Civil War - Born in the Year of Courage (Crofford) -- 1850s shipwrecked Japanese teenage fisherboy ANIMALS (real) - The Black Stallion, The Black Stallion Returns, Island Stallion (Farley) - My Side of the Mountain (George) - Summer of the Monkeys (Rawls) ANIMALS (talking) - Trumpet of the Swan (White) - The Mouse and the Motorcycle (McCleary) - Ben and I (Lawson) - The Rescuers, Miss Bianca, Miss Bianca in the Orient (Sharpe) - Basil of Baker Street (Titus) - Mrs. Frisby and the Rats of NIMH (O'Brien) - Wind in the Willows (Grahame) - The Reluctant Dragon (Grahame) - Rikki Tikki Tavi; The Jungle Book; Just So Stories (Kipling) Edited December 31, 2008 by Lori D. fixed typos Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Aurelia Posted December 31, 2008 Share Posted December 31, 2008 The first one DD really paid attention to was Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. Roald Dahl must have known his target audience well, since so many of his books were my favorites (and DH, and my brother's) in elementary school. I'm thinking of checking out James and the Giant Peach or The BFG for one of our next read-alouds. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KathyBC Posted December 31, 2008 Share Posted December 31, 2008 Little House books, E.B. White (Trumpet of the Swam, Charlotte's Web, Stuart Little) and Farley Mowatt's Owls in the Family were some of our first read-alouds with my oldest. At bedtime, I usually read a picture book (or more) to the youngest first, then send her to play quietly (in her room, if she can't manage to do this successfully downstairs - this does not always go smoothly); then read a chapter book to the older two. It's become a habit and has gotten easier. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ruth Posted January 1, 2009 Share Posted January 1, 2009 By the Great Horned Spoon , by Sid Fleischman One of our favorites, we read it alound in 1 night , even my hubby jumped in and we took turns reading it! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lovedtodeath Posted January 1, 2009 Share Posted January 1, 2009 DD really enjoyed The Twits by Roald Dahl. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mchel210 Posted January 1, 2009 Share Posted January 1, 2009 my kids sat and begged for my fathers dragon! They loved that book. They also really enjoyed charlottes web, homer price and Mr. Poppers Penguins. Good luck. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mallory Posted January 1, 2009 Share Posted January 1, 2009 Have you read the spiderwick books? The movie is pretty accurate, but there is a lot more info in the books. He has also written two or three books beyond spiderwick, but we haven't read those yet. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JudoMom Posted January 1, 2009 Share Posted January 1, 2009 Hits here have been Hank the Cowdog, Mrs. Frisby & the Rats of NIMH, Mr. Popper's Penguins, The BFG, and I read Indian in the Cupboard to my oldest 2 when they were 4&5 and they liked it a lot. They liked the Castle in the Attic, but we thought it started a bit slow. I read at night after dinner. Dh expects all the boys to sit (semi)still, so that helps, and ds3 sits in his lap. We've began reading aloud after dinner about 1.5 years ago, and now they all know what is expected for behavior during this time and they really enjoy it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TracyR Posted January 1, 2009 Share Posted January 1, 2009 We've read the Spiderwick books and have seen the movie. My girls LOVED "Detectives in Togas" and right now we are reading " The 39 Mysteries" right now there are two books out but number three will be out in March of 09. I'm surprised no one has mentioned these books. They are really good stories and are educational all at the same time. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Woodland_Mom Posted January 1, 2009 Share Posted January 1, 2009 Thanks Lauie, for all the suggestions! For what it's worth, my boys, age 8 and 6, have enjoyed "Freckle Juice", "Owls in the Family", and "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory." Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mandy in TN Posted January 1, 2009 Share Posted January 1, 2009 I have trouble getting my dc to sit still long enough to listen to a read aloud so I'm needing something that will really catch their attention. Sitting still is overrated. Let them draw, play with pattern blocks or the like, etc. If you feel that their movement must be restricted, then try listening to CD's in the car.:D Mandy Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JABarney Posted January 2, 2009 Share Posted January 2, 2009 Another vote for Mr. Poppers Penguins! The first book that had us all :rofl: !!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.