Early Literacy Tips Video

I stumbled upon a great video for parents about early literacy from the Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh. These years are important ones with your little ones. There are easy ways to incorporate learning into your everyday moments. Before you know it, you'll have raised a reader! :)

Happy 50th Birthday, Amelia Bedelia!

Image from HarperCollins: http://harpercollinschildrens.com/feature/ameliabedeliaday/

Happy 50th Birthday, Amelia Bedelia! The classic, literal-minded early-reader character is celebrating 50 years! There is also a new chapter for Ms. Bedelia, as two new chapter books debuted this year:

Amelia Bedelia Means Business by Herman Parish (Greenwillow Books, 2013)

"Young Amelia Bedelia will do almost anything for a shiny new bicycle. Her parents say they'll split the cost with her, and that means Amelia Bedelia needs to put the pedal to the metal and earn some dough! With Amelia Bedelia anything can happen, and it usually does"-- Provided by publisher.

 Amelia Bedelia Unleashed by Herman Parish (Greenwillow Books, 2013)

Amelia Bedelia's request for a sibling takes her parents by surprise, but she is soon distracted by the possibility of finding the perfect puppy, instead.

Saturday Events

Man in the Yellow Hat Storytime
Join us on Saturday, February 2nd, at 11:00 a.m. in the Youth Activity Room at the Corvallis-Benton County Public Library (645 NW Monroe Ave., Corvallis) for a special storytime for dads (or father figures) and their little ones!

 
 36th Annual Family Fun Day at LBCC
Families are invited to the 36th Annual Family Fun Day at Linn-Benton Community College will be held on Saturday, February 2nd, from 10:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. in the Activities Center gym on the Albany campus.

Everyone is invited to this inexpensive, fun-filled event.  Children ages one to six will enjoy activities such as play dough, an obstacle course, crafts, puppet show, bounce house, face painting, maze and much more.  All proceeds from this event go to provide tuition grants for some of the nearly 2000 parents in Linn and Benton Counties who participate in Parenting Education classes each year.

App Pick: Elmer and Rose

Elmer is a patchwork elephant and the stories of Elmer by David McKee often have a message of the value of uniqueness, friendship, and working together. In Elmer and Rose, Grandpa Eldo asks Elmer and Wilbur to look for Rose, a baby pink elephant. They have to work together to help her get back to her herd.

This story is available as a traditional picture book at the library (click here to place a hold), and as an app for purchase from the App Store here and as an Android app on Google Play here. 

You can also watch a preview here, courtesy of Best Apps for Kids:



In case you're curious, there are other Elmer books and Elmer apps available, too!

Community Event: LBCC's Family Fun Day 2/2

LBCC’s 36th Annual Family Fun Day!


Activities for children ages 1–6!
• Activity tickets just 25¢ each
• Food & drinks
• Used book & toy sale

Saturday, February 2
10 a.m. – 2p.m.
Linn-Benton Community College's Activities Center Gym
6500 Pacific Blvd. SW, Albany

Call 541-917-4897 for information.

Children ages one to six will enjoy activities such as play dough, an obstacle course, crafts, bounce house, face painting, pirate maze and much more. There will also be a used toy and book sale.

Everyone is invited to attend this inexpensive, fun-filled event. Costs include a suggested donation of $5 per family plus activity tickets at .25 cents each. All proceeds from this event go to support parenting programs and to provide tuition grants for some of the nearly 2,000 parents in Linn and Benton Counties who are involved in LBCC Parenting Education each year.

For more information, contact LBCC Family Resources and Education at 541-917-4897. Persons having questions about or requests for special needs & accommodations should contact the Disability Coordinator at LBCC, RCH-105, 6500 Pacific Blvd. SW, Albany, Oregon 97321, Phone 541-917-4690 or via Oregon Telecommunications Relay TTD at 1-800-735-2900 or 1-800-735-1232. Contact should be made 72 hours or more in advance of the event.

Pick of the Week: The Man from the Land of Fandango

The Man from the Land of Fandango by Margaret Mahy, illustrated by Polly Dunbar (Clarion Books, 2012)

Are you ready for a visit from the man from the land of Fandango? He only comes but once every 500 years, the reader learns, but, boy does it look like fun when he gets here! Polly Dunbar's whimsical illustrations depict the fun and frolic of this musical, dancing (on the ceiling, no less!) gentleman's visit. A great rhythmic and imaginative read-aloud.

New Parenting Picks on Autism

Bad Animals: a Father's Accidental Education in Autism by Joel Yanofsky

"A veteran book reviewer, Yanofsky has spent a lifetime immersed in literature (not to mention old movies and old jokes), which he calls shtick. This account of a year in the life of a family describes a father's struggle to enter his son's world, the world of autism, using the materials he knows best: self-help books, feel-good memoirs, literary classics from the Bible to Dr. Seuss, old movies, and, yes, shtick. Funny, wrenching, and unfailingly candid, Bad Animals is both an exploration of a baffling condition and a quirky love story told by the author." Summary courtesy of Syndetics, Inc. Booklist calls Yanofsky's book "a welcome perspective on autism and fatherhood."

The Autism Revolution: Whole-Body Strategies for Making Life All It Can Be by Martha Herbert, M.D., Ph.D.

"Move beyond conventional thinking about autism. . . . After years of treating patients and analyzing scientific data, prominent Harvard researcher and clinician Dr. Martha Herbert offers a revolutionary new view of autism and a transformative strategy for dealing with it. Autism is not a hardwired impairment programmed into a child's genes and destined to remain fixed forever, as we're often told. Instead, it is the result of a cascade of events, many seemingly minor: perhaps a genetic mutation, some toxic exposures, a stressful birth, a vitamin deficiency, and a series of infections. And while other doctors may dismiss your child's physical symptoms--the diarrhea, anxiety, sensory overload, sleeplessness, immune challenges, and seizures--as coincidental or irrelevant, Dr. Herbert sees them as vital clues to what the underlying problems are, and how to help. In The Autism Revolution, she teaches you how to approach autism as a collection of problems that can be overcome--and talents that can be developed. Each success you achieve gives your child more room to become healthy and to thrive. Drawing from the newest research, technologies, and insights, as well as inspiring case studies of both children and adults, Dr. Herbert guides you toward restoring health and resiliency in your loved one with autism. Her specific recommendations aim to provide optimal nutrition, reduce toxic exposures, shore up the immune system, reduce stress, and open the door to learning and creativity--all by understanding and truly meeting your child's needs. As thousands of families who have cobbled together these solutions themselves already know, this program can have dramatic benefits--for your child with autism, and for you, your whole family, and your next baby as well. A paradigm-changing book that offers hope and healing for the millions of families who have autism in their lives, The Autism Revolution shows that there's plenty you can do every day to give someone you love the best possible gift: a life lived to the fullest potential"-- Provided by publisher.

Carly's Voice: Breaking Through Autism by Arthur Fleischmann with Carly Fleischmann

"At the age of two, Carly Fleischmann was diagnosed with severe autism and an oral motor condition that prevented her from speaking. Doctors predicted that she would never intellectually develop beyond the abilities of a small child. Carly remained largely unreachable through the years. Then, at the age of ten, she had a breakthrough. While working with her devoted therapists, Carly reached over to their laptop and typed “HELP TEETH HURT,” much to everyone’s astonishment. Although Carly still struggles with all the symptoms of autism, she now has regular, witty, and profound conversations on the computer with her family and her many thousands of supporters online. In Carly’s Voice, her father, Arthur Fleischmann, blends Carly’s own words w ith his story of getting to know his remarkable daughter. One of the first books to explore firsthand the challenges of living with autism, it brings readers inside a once-secret world and in the company of an inspiring young woman who has found her voice and her mission." (from Amazon.com)

Easy to Love but Hard to Raise: Real Parents, Challenging Kids, True Stories, edited by Kay Marner and Adrienne Ehlert Bashista

Whether it's the challenge of raising a child with an autism spectrum disorder, ADHD, SPD, OCD or another challenge or disability, these parents share their stories of the struggles and joys they've faced.

Far From the Tree: Parents, Children, and the Search for Identity by Andrew Solomon

"Winner of the National Book Award for The Noonday Demon and a board member of the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force, the Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory, and Columbia Medical School, Solomon began seeing illness and identity as related when he covered the deaf pride movement in the 1990s. Here, he expands on this notion by exploring how families deal with children who fall outside the perceived boundaries of normal-those with dwarfism, Down syndrome, or exceptional genius, for instance, or who commit serious crimes-showing how both family and children redefine themselves." (Summary courtesy of Syndetics, Inc.)

Parenting Girls on the Autism Spectrum: Overcoming Challenges and Celebrating the Gifts by Eileen Riley-Hall

"This book is a celebration of all the wonderful and unexpected gifts that having a daughter on the autism spectrum can bring to a family. Each chapter offers encouragement and guidance on issues such as school, friendships, meltdowns, special gifts, family relationships, therapies and interventions. The author's positive, upbeat tone and practical advice and suggestions are guaranteed to provide support to parents, grandparents and family members. This book also gives educators, and anyone else working in a supporting role, an insight into what life is like for girls on the spectrum and their parents." Book jacket.

Everyday Activities to Help Your Young Child with Autism Live Life to the Full by Debra S. Jacobs and Dion E. Betts

"Does your child Struggle with brushing their teeth? Is it difficult to get them dressed and undressed each day? Do they struggle to understand their body's relationship to the world?" Summary courtesy of Syndetics, Inc.