Wednesday, December 19, 2012

A Few Favorite Christmas Books

At my most recent visit with the students of Presentation of Our Lady School, I was able to share some of my favorite Christmas Picture Books with grades 1-8.


Grades 1-2 - Two Favorites

They loved how a seemingly insignificant donkey was given a very important job!





http://www.lookingglassreview.com/assets/images/My_penguin_Osbert.jpg
Be careful what you ask Santa for - you just might get it!
 We also discussed the meaning of "SPECIFIC."  By the end of the story, they all knew what it meant.  So, they will definitely be very "specific" when they write to Santa this year.

Grades 3-4  FAVORITE






     

Always a favorite with children of almost any age, I find, and even although it is a "long" book to read aloud, the story and illustrations are so captivating, that children easily stay engaged throughout.  A perfect Christmas book to read aloud every year.


Grades 5-6 - FAVORITE

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/5/5f/The_Gift_of_the_Magi.jpg
So wise...so tender...

A challenging read aloud for this age group in terms of vocabulary, but such a great Christmas story for them to hear.  Not all of them knew who the Magi were, but by the end of the story, we all took time to ponder the whole notion of gift-giving.


Grades 7-8  FAVORITE

http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/51IZxQxdN4L._SL500_AA300_.jpg
What is Goodness? 




An enchanting tale for this older age group, that kept them engaged throughout the telling.  Another tale that I always love to share with children at Christmas time.


What do all these books have in common?  The two most important ingredients of any great children's book (according to Jane Yolen)...

JOY and HOPE!