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“My library is a true community space for my families. Our kids love that they can meet their friends here, including the friends they’ve made within books. Familiar characters like Stanley, Izzy Gizmo, and Arlo the Lion are like spending time with old friends – we’ve had science experiments with Izzy, and we’ve read bedtime stories to our stuffed Arlo! Books like the Stanley series are so important, because it teaches through gentle repetition and familiarity. Toddlers know Stanley and his friends, and are comfortable seeing them do different jobs around their town, but also in Stanley’s routine: he wakes up, heads off to his new career, comes back home to eat dinner, have a bath, and go to bed. Sitting with your little ones to read books like these time and again encourage kids to learn words and put ideas together, and it provides a safe place – on your lap – for kids to explore different ideas, from working in a library (where kids can also ask librarians about what Stanley does, and what they do!) to working on a fire truck. Kathryn O. Galbraith and Adela Pons’ books about the seasons are also great books to introduce the different changes in weather and times of year to toddlers – they’re some of my most popular board books!”―Rosemary Kiladitis, Queens Library, Corona, New York

“During COVID my library was able to take enough precautions near the tail end to be open while also keeping our staff and patrons safe. One day a girl came in, fully masked, carrying a jam jar, full to the brim with pennies, tied with a little ribbon at the top. Zoe, the kid, had desperately been missing the library those months we’d been closed. So, entirely of her own accord, she began collecting pennies. Pennies from the ground. Pennies from other people. Pennies she could donate once the library was open, just to tell us how special we were. It can be easy for us to forget that for the kids, the library can be a second home. One that they’re willing to help out, no matter what. No matter how many pennies they have to collect on our behalf.”―Betsy Bird, Collection Development Manager, Evanston Public Library

“The Matheson Memorial Library in Elkhorn WI is the heart of our community, providing informational, educational, and recreational services, in a friendly and supportive setting, to all families, children, and caregivers of the Elkhorn community and beyond. We are a family gathering place focused on educating, enriching, and entertaining the families, children, teens, and caregivers of the public.

Some of our favorite stories for toddler storytime include the Stanley picture books and board books. Ms. Pattie, Elkhorn Area School District Parent Educator, says she loves to use them in storytime with toddlers because their bold illustrations, simple language, and gentle humor is enjoyed by all, parents and toddlers alike.

When families with toddlers visit our library, we encourage them to hang out in the play area and build socialization skills, to read together on the cushions to model reading behavior, and pick their own books (the board books are handily located in the play area) to build an interest in reading. Don’t forget to stop and chat with our friendly librarians for book recommendations, to find out about library and community programs, and discover new things the library is offering. One tip to make library visits easier is to plan ahead for distractions at stops. We have these built in at our library – the gerbil tank is by the children’s self-check, the wishing well is within sight of the circulation desk if you need some extra help checking out or placing a hold – but you can also bring in a small toy or set up a library ritual so children know what to expect on each part of their library trip.”―Jennifer Wharton, Youth Services Librarian, Matheson Memorial Library

“Stanley’s Library has just the right book for every reader and this delightful new book in the Stanley series is just right for read alouds with young children!  From the comfy padded cover, to the bright bold illustrations, to the good humor and generous double page spreads, Stanley’s Library works well to show readers the friendliness and versatility of public libraries.  Stanley is also a good spirited librarian.  He works hard, appreciates his job, and at the end of the day even enjoys what the library offers himself!  Be sure to introduce your young child to your public librarian and like Stanley, they will match their interests and inclinations with just the right books! “―Maria Simon, Head of Youth Services, Wood County District Public Library

“Stanley is a librarian favorite at my library. From the first Stanley book, we all knew it was the perfect storytime series. Since then we have eagerly anticipated every new Stanley release to see what our favorite hamster is up to now. Stanley’s Library might be my favorite adventure yet because it is a wonderful love letter to libraries, librarians and the power of connecting over books. William Bee portrays a day in the life of a librarian so beautifully and Stanley’s adventures showcase everything I love about my job: connecting with the community, matching books with readers, hosting programs and events, and helping everyone find the joy of reading.”―Sarah Bean Thompson, Youth Services Manager, the Library Center

I guess you can say Black Boys Read NOLA started organically. We were living abroad in England for my husband’s job. Being away from New Orleans was a wake-up call. While it was an amazing overall experience, the boys really began to miss being around black people. Don’t get me wrong, there were a lot of black people all over Europe but simply not concentrated the way that they are in a city such as New Orleans. It’s crazy, you know? I believe we tend to take genuinely black experiences for granted when we are among ourselves so frequently in predominantly black cities.

As summer approached, our middle child, Dylan wanted to read 80 books before the summer’s end. While this made us proud, we are quite realistic as parents. We knew that this would be a huge obligation for us as well. After much back and forth, we were eventually able to talk him down to 60 books. As a reward, we agreed to award him with prizes of his choosing at 20 book intervals. Being the efficient parents that we are, we thought to kill two birds with one stone— rekindle their connection with black people through books while meeting Dylan’s 60 book benchmark.

In our efforts to find books that were very diverse, we happened upon lots of black authors and black social media accounts that really highlighted black excellence. Dylan ended up exceeding his 60 book goal and was awarded accordingly. We returned home May of 2018. This was just in time to receive the summer assignments for our sons. (Before I go on, I feel I should mention that the curriculum in England was extremely diverse and showcased people of African descent in an extremely positive light.) We were quite excited to see this, and we were also excited to see what book Dylan was going to bring home next. That said, we returned home to New Orleans, a city that is over 60% black, only to receive a summer reading list for Dylan that caused our jaws to drop. It contained zero books to which he, or any young black male, could relate.

We found this unacceptable. So, we took it upon ourselves to reinforce black positivity with our boys. It’s as simple as that really. Pride in oneself is knowing oneself and the best way to know yourself is to know your history. At school, all our kids get is one month a year, and it usually begins with slavery and ends with Martin Luther King and the Civil Rights struggles of the 50s and 60s. Our rich and colorful history goes back thousands and thousands of years. We built pyramids, invented democracy and dynastic system of rule. We spread rich and diverse culture all over the globe! So why start with the ugliest blemish on our history?

Black Boys Read NOLA seeks to amplify self-pride and dignity through books and history while also exposing our boys to things that most school systems will not. From Congo square, to STEM, to golf and horseback riding, to local musicians and so much more, we aim to show our members that there’s more out there than what the schools are willing to expose them to. Our aim is to show the boys that success can be attained in many ways.  Not just music and athletics. We also aim to modify the way we define success. I think most readers will agree that your salary and success in life are oftentimes mutually exclusive. The preschool to prison pipeline for black males is quite real, especially here in Louisiana. Consequently, we must fight back in any way we can. If these voids continue to exist in society, Black Boys Read NOLA will remain a necessary and vital entity. We are simply filling a demand for diversity and self-dignity in young black males.

I do tons of research and follow many Instagram pages that focus on diverse reading selections. One of my favorite pages to follow is Here Wee Read! We read fiction and nonfiction. However, the boys enjoy nonfiction more. They love to read about people who look like their ancestors and brought change to the world. When I saw a post about Carter Reads the Newspaper I immediately started planning for this to be our next read. The illustrations are breathtaking! My  top reads right now are Carter Reads the Newspaper by Deborah Hopkinson, Whoosh! Lonnie Johnson’s Super-Soaking Stream of Inventions By Chris Barton, Freedom in Congo Square by Carole Boston Weatherford, Charlie Takes his Shot: How Charlie Sifford Broke the Color Barrier in Golf by Nancy Churrin, Mae Among the Stars by Roda Ahmed and Grandad Mandela by Ambassador Zindzi Mandela.

The book club’s experience with Carter Reads the newspaper was amazing. The way it is structured was quite advantageous. It is an amalgamation of amazing black characters throughout history, all culminating on the accomplishments of Carter G Woodson. This was a unique opportunity for us to discuss Carter’s accomplishments as well as the history of Black History Month. It also gave us an opportunity to discuss some lesser-known, but equally important, black historical figures in the process.

It’s interesting, one of our boys made the point that Carter had essentially started a book club just like the one that we have at BBR NOLA. Like-minded individuals coming together to further educate themselves and learn from one another all while reflecting on the accomplishments of their ancestors. It’s amazing really. Things have come full circle. We encouraged our members to conduct some further research on the leaders that are mentioned in the back of the book, because, again, our history began long before the year 1 CE. It’s very important that the boys know where we all come from and what we come from. How technologically advanced our civilizations were before colonization. This book does an amazing job at getting that conversation started.

Follow the Black Boys Read Book Club NOLA on Instagram to keep up with all the books they are reading!

As an early childhood professional, picture books have always been my greatest tool in connecting to and communicating with children. It was no surprise to me when it also became my greatest tool as a parent. I’ve been reading to my two-year-old son, Liam, since he was in utero. When I was pregnant, I would get up early in the morning and sit in a rocking chair and read a book to him. After he was born, we continued this tradition, though now it takes place while eating breakfast, in between playing with trucks, and at bedtime. When my position as a curriculum manager took me to the annual conference of the National Association for the Education of Young Children last November, I awaited the opportunity to visit book vendors and search for new reads for Liam. Peachtree Publishing was the first press I visited, and Fabulous Fishes by Susan Stockdale was the first book to catch my eye.

Fabulous Fishes is an unassuming tale about different types of fish.  Kirkus Reviews raved, “Youngsters will tap their toes to [its] rhythm. . .,” and while I agree that Stockdale demonstrates a command of language, the feature of Fabulous Fishes that stands out most to me is its striking message: “No matter what [fishes] look like, they call the water home.” Parents and early childhood professionals alike often struggle to find a language for communicating with children about difference. Difference is inherent to being human, yet it causes so much strife in our world. In the context of Fabulous Fishes, the reader learns that fish can be round, striped, spiked, speckled, and spotted, among other things, yet at the end of the day, they are all fish and they all call the same place home. As an educator, I quickly saw the parallels between the book’s sentiment about fish and people and, of course, wanted to teach with it. As a curriculum manager, I have the unique opportunity to shape activities and learning content used in preschool classrooms across the country, so I wrote a series of activities about exploring difference with children, using Stockdale’s books as the impetus.

Many of Stockdale’s other stories communicate a similar message about creatures and the world in which they live. The next Stockdale book Liam and I read together was Stripes of All Types, which was the 2014 pick for the Pennsylvania One Book, Every Young Child program. Here, Stockdale uses stripes to connect creatures across ecosystems and continents. Stripes are the common characteristic among invertebrates, mollusks, reptiles, amphibians, and mammals. This trend continues in her book Bring On the Birds, in which she describes whooping birds, hanging birds, drumming birds, riding birds, and many more, and yet again, despite these special characteristics, “all of them have feathers and all are hatched from eggs.” With each book, Stockdale reminded me that difference is a unifying feature; she taught me that such diversity is as observable and nuanced as it is essential and defining.

For me, Stockdale’s books spark some obvious conversation starters for talking with children about appreciating and valuing difference. Children as young as two can identify racial and gender differences, and books like Stockdale’s provide a context for helping children understand that difference is not just universal, but shared. Beyond the page, however, Stockdale’s work made me think about our approach to teaching children about difference―what if instead of teaching about difference as looking for something unique, we started to teach about it as looking for something we have (or things have) in common?

With this framework in mind, I developed a series of activities to help children understand how color exists on a continuum and to encourage them to think about why variations of so many common things exist. For example, one activity involves listening to variations of a familiar song, like “Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star” and talking about what we notice about these variations. Another activity invites children to do a picture dictionary scavenger hunt, during which they would choose a picture from the dictionary and look for versions of that item in their school (or home) settings. Such activities will support children’s understanding of difference as something we can notice everywhere, rather than defining it as something that is unusual and other-ly.

Liam and I look forward to reading more of Stockdale’s books. While I’ve identified a message in her stories that has framed my professional experience, Liam is captivated by her distinct illustrations and the inclusion of nature facts that end many of her books. He loves to pretend to be many of the animals, especially the birds, and will ask to see specific illustrations by Stockdale’s descriptors―“Liam see ‘dancing bird,’” he’ll say, and then we’ll talk about the blue-footed booby while he dances. With Fabulous Fishes, Stripes of All Types, and Bring On the Birds, he is undoubtedly developing a love for nature that will follow him through life. With Stockdale’s books, Liam is learning how to look closely and pay attention―to see and experience this vibrant world.

Thanks to Teresa Narey for sharing her great ideas of how to explore differences by using picture books with young readers! Check out the rest of Susan Stockdale’s books here. Do you have a favorite book by Susan Stockdale? How do you teach difference with your young readers? Let us know in the comments!

During our most recent trip to our local library, my husband and my nine-year-old son Liam were trolling for new reading material when they spotted a new children’s book on prominent display. Countdown: 2979 Days to the Moon caught their eye immediately. The book had several things going for it. First, it was about the Space Program! Our family  loves anything about space or astronauts, history or science, and this book had it all. After a quick look, my husband noticed the nice balance of text and illustrations, which would keep Liam wanting to read and moving through the book to see what was going to be on the next page.

It was apparent when Liam first cracked open Countdown that it was going to be a book that not only he loved, but that we all loved, even his fourteen-year-old sister. The illustrations are breathtaking, and some of them made him gasp out loud. We each had a favorite page of course. Liam’s favorite shows Apollo 5 blasting off above Earth.

The book follows the Space Program, from Kennedy’s speech announcing America would go to the Moon, to the success of the Apollo 11 mission. The book is 144 pages long, and I am aware of this because Liam was so very proud of himself as this was the first chapter book of this length that he was ever able to read completely on his own. The minute he was done, he checked how many pages it had, clutched to book to his chest, and proudly marched around the house to let everyone know what he had just accomplished.

This book never talks down to children. Using science vocabulary, it marches them right along events in history as if they were there. At times, Liam was so excited he was squirming and jumping up and down as he breathlessly read to find out what happened next. The feeling of accomplishment Liam had as he read words like “gauges”, “atmosphere”, “ignites”, and “trajectory” alongside pictures of rockets and actual astronauts was better than any A+ from any test.  I have been telling anyone who will listen about this book; it’s entertaining, educational, and challenging for kids without being overwhelming.

As a mom, I was overcome with emotion when I saw what this book had accomplished for my son. Liam has struggled for a long time with reading, and this book was the first chapter book he read on his own. Some books are magical. We all know this. Countdown is one of those books. Suzanne Slade and Thomas Gonzalez have managed to come together and create a book that educates, inspires, and reminds children that they can do anything.

For more information about Countdown: 2979 Days to the Moon, check out our blog post and website. You can find Countdown on Amazon or at your local library, indie bookstore, or Barnes & Noble!

Gabe is a reading rebel whose story we had to share. Gabe has been a reader from the moment he could read on his own. In late kindergarten, he began reading books meant for grade levels three and four years ahead of him. Specifically, he began reading Charlie Bumpers.

Once Gabe had read through a few of Charlie’s stories himself, he began sharing them with his friends. On the bus to school one day, Gabe was once again urging his friends to read Charlie Bumpers when a rather unfortunate thing happened. Gabe’s friend got carsick from reading on the bus! Reading was banned thenceforth to Gabe’s dismay. (Like we said—reading rebel).

Since then, Gabe has continued to read, despite the bus ban, and is now inspiring the reading life of his little brother! We’ll let Gabe do some of the talking now, but we wanted you to have that introduction first.

Let us know if you have reading rebels in your life! We’d love to share their stories and hear how reading has impacted them.