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Instagram posts on SpeakingAboutStories will introduce a conversation-starter strategy for read-alouds with your little one. Then, come here for a free download to get you started!
I Lost My Bear
by Jules Feiffer
Age Range/Grade: 4-8; Preschool - Gr. 2
Theme: Finding something you lost
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Losing something important can make us feel frustrated, angry, and embarrassed. This story validates all the ups and downs of caring for something we love.
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Strategy Focus: Relating to others
Pictures help readers make inferences about characters. What is this girl feeling, and how do you know? How does the author alert the reader to the girl's tone of voice, mood, or emotions?
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Float
by Daniel Miyares
Age Range/Grade: 3-8; Preschool - Gr. 3
Theme: Dealing with loss; empathy; resilience
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Something handmade feels extra special, even if it is just
made from newspaper. But sometimes, we can't control what happens to these items. With a little perspective, we can make a choice to go on to create something new.
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Strategy Focus: Understanding perspective
Use the illustrations to decide if a book will be a good choice. These watercolor pictures have enough details to see show distance, movement, reflections, and passage of time.
How did the illustrator do all that?
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Goodnight Moon
by Margaret Wise Brown,
Pictures by Clement Hurd
Age Range/Grade: 3-7; Preschool - Gr. 3
Theme: Getting ready for sleep
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Reinforcing simple routines, this book helps your child feel
safe by recognizing their familiar surroundings, including the watchful bunny who will be there until sleep comes.
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Strategy Focus: Bonding
Sit and snuggle with your child and make story time all about bonding. Use StoryTalk conversations to build inside jokes and special conversations with your child!
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Dr. De Soto
by William Steig
Age Range/Grade: 4 - 7; Preschool - Gr. 3
Theme: Outsmarting a trickster
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Dr. De Soto is a kind dentist who takes good care of his patients. But one day a patient in need makes Dr. De Soto stop and think. Does he have to help every patient who comes to his door?
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Strategy Focus: Let your children do the talking
Staying engaged with a story is the first step to becoming a good reader. Ask questions that will encourage your child to tell you what they imagine when they look at the picture. What are the characters doing? What is happening in the background? These StoryTalk conversations will invest your child in the world of the book.
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Age Range/Grade: 3 - 6; Preschool - Kindergarten
Theme: Reacting to differences
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Charley has friends, but he knows he isn't exactly like them, and his mom says that's ok. Then he meets Emma, who is even "differenter."
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Strategy Focus: Practice appropriate reactions
What if your child encounters someone who looks or acts different from what he or she is used to? How should they be treated? Seeing how Charley interacts with Emma gives children a safe way to try out their own reactions and feelings. Use Storytalk conversations to role play ways to be kind versus ways to be hurtful.
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