Check Out the We Teach Summertime Learning eBook

Over at We Teach, the amazing leaders put together this beautiful eBook filled with fun ideas for summer learning. Check it out! Baby L and I contributed to it!

Celebrating 100 Followers Today!

Yippee! Tiny Reader officially has 100 followers on Google! Thank you so much, dear readers!

Thank you also to all the Tiny Reader followers on Twitter, Networked Blogs, and Facebook!

Wallwisher! What is it? Read this and find out!

Looking for ideas for fostering a love of reading and writing with babies or little kids?

This is so cool. You can go to this link to see my Wallwisher wall where my blogging friends have been helping me gather up great ideas for reading and writing with tiny readers and writers. Plus, while you're there, you can add your own ideas to the collection.

No further explanation needed! Maybe you'll even make a Wallwisher page of your own? If you do, leave a comment so we can go and visit it.

http://www.wallwisher.com/wall/tinyreader

Happy Reading and Writing!

There's An App for That

I just discovered a whole new genre for babies -- iPhone apps. Yes, that's right. iPhone apps for babies.

I downloaded one app called "Animal Show" just to see what it was, and once I had it on my phone I was dying to try it out, to see what L. would do.

Animal Show, in case you don't know, is just like it sounds. Simple pictures of animals. When you baby touches the screen it switches to a new animal. You can choose between two modes: real or cartoon.

I sat down with Baby L. and I was amazed. Right away, instantly, she understood that if she touched the screen it "turned the page" for her. Amazing!

We played Animal Show for a few minutes and then I put away. Something about the iPhone felt suspiciously like television or video games. I felt guilty sitting with her staring a screen with all her real-life toys and our real-life dog sitting right next to her.

But, the next time we're on the subway, or stuck in a waiting room, those iPhone apps for babies might just come in handy. Leave a comment with your favorite iPhone application for babes so Baby L. and I can try it out the next time we need a little entertainment!

Babies Love Reading: A Google Poem

Babies

Love

Books

Love

Poetry

Love

READING!

I made this myself using Google Search Stories!

* Day 15 of the KidLitosphere Poem-A-Day Challenge for National Poetry Month.

Blogging Awards!

Thanks sooooo much to the blog, Life of a Modern Mom for choosing Tiny Reader for two blog awards! What a HUGE compliment! In exchange for having been selected, I have been asked to pay it forward by selecting my own favorite blogs. And the winners are... (drum roll, please...):

1. a boy, a book, and a dog
2. The Literary Family
3. Two Writing Teachers
4. Mermaids on Parade
5. Dumb Mommy
6. Two Blue Lemons
7. The Reading Zone
8. The Well-Read Child
9. I.N.K. (Interesting Nonfiction for Kids)
10. Poetry for Children
11. The Brooklyn Tart
12. A Year of Reading
13. Baby to Green
14. Literacy Toolbox
15. Teaching Authors: Six Children's Book Authors Who Also Teach Writing

This New Mom Depends on Her Online Friends

I am one of those people who likes to be prepared for, well, everything. I am super-organized, to the point of being a bit obsessive. And I like to know EVERYTHING ahead of time.

When I was pregnant, I read tons of books, went to classes, researched online, talked with every mom I knew, and still I wasn't prepared for mommy-hood.

One of my most valuable resources is a local online listserv that I joined early on called Brooklyn Baby Hui, for moms like me in Williamsburg and Greenpoint. This is a place where I can post any question at all - about pregnancy, about childbirth, about parenting, health, baby gear, things to do in the neighborhood - anything! And the other gals in the neighborhood will do the best they can to share their experiences and point me to other resources. There are also tons of events and activities for new moms to attend. If you live in or near our 'hood, you should join it!

Before Baby L. was born I posted tons of questions on how to find a nanny in our neighborhood, and people sent me recommendations for actual nannies, not just vague suggestions. When I was having trouble breastfeeding, I found support from dozens of other moms who were either having the same problems, or had been through it before. When I wasn't sure what kind of stroller to buy, I was pointed in the right direction (I love my stroller!).

Now that L. is three months old, I find myself answering other people's questions for the first time -about pregnancy, childbirth, breastfeeding. A group of moms have figured out that I'm a reading teacher, and now people email me directly with questions about schools and their child's learning.

Maybe there's something like it in your neighborhood. If not, maybe you should start one! Google Groups or Yahoo Groups are easy places to start. You could always try one of the web resources that are less neighborhood specific, like Urban Baby, Baby Center or Parents Magazine Online.