Donation from Schoolhouse Supplies!

Back to our event…this coming March 4th, 2012 would have been Courtney’s 32nd birthday. On this day we are planning a big event, on this day we will be gathering together to sort and pack as many Books by the Boxful boxes as we can. On her day we will be prepping to send as many books to children in need as we can. More details to come…but if you want to help us prepare, learn more here.

Little by little,

Kiki

We, like all families across the country, are making changes, improvements, a “foot in the right direction” toward a healthier lifestyle for the new year. One thing that will not change is the bedtime stories…living with a toddler means repetition. Repetition is how they learn, they LOVE to replay movies, reread books, retell stories. I have Don Freeman’s “Corduroy” memorized…right now we are loving this story of a sweet bear finding a home. We read this one every night, and Colin is starting to “read” along with us…it is memorized….So sweet.

Here’s to all the parents out there who are trying to work in their own resolutions while keeping their kids’ routines.

Little by little,

Kiki

As we look forward to 2012, we of course take a look back at 2011. It was a good year for Court’s Kids, we got our book distribution number up to somewhere around 26,000 as we enter our 3rd year of operation and we’ve developed some great friendships/partnerships with organizations who support special education programs across the country. Check out this infographic, courtesy of our friends at WordPress to get a picture of the Court’s Kids blog and our most popular topics.

What are you looking forward to this year? We’re really interested to see how technology moves deeper into the classroom and what that means for books and literacy programs. What effect will e-books have? What about iPads? We’ve read countless articles about how iPads have been adopted in classrooms, more specifically to support the special needs environment. I’ve dabbled a bit with the interactive, digital books for iPad in our home and am amazed at how interactive they are and how they really can make the book come to life. We’ll be watching this trend more and more among others.

Recently I read an article in the NY Times talking about how some parents who love e-readers insist on paper books for their children. It is an interesting situation to think about as a parent. We have Kindles at our house, and Colin recently got a Leap Frog Tag Jr to play with but the paper books are king still. There’s something about physically turning a page and the anticipation of what comes next. I imagine that will stick around a while yet.

As I look forward to 2012 I have many goals, resolutions. There are professional ones like, at my “day job” making sure the massive web overhaul we just completed takes flight, and personal ones like making sure I drag myself out of bed at 5am (why is this the only hour working moms have to exercise?) more times each week for my date with P90X and Jillian Michaels mixed in for variety. For Court’s Kids it is harder to pinpoint a goal or two, I have many…at the root I just want us to keep chipping away at getting books into the hands of kids with special needs and their families. With everything that has to be done and dealt with every day, sometimes the bedtime story is such a monumental moment of peace…we just want to fill home and classroom libraries.

What are your goals for the year?

We hope you achieve them…let’s do it together…

Little by little,

Kiki

As we often turn to books for help with talking about different seasons and events, I thought we’d share some of our favorites for the holidays.

- “Merry Christmas Mom & Dad” – Mercer Mayer – How do you not love Little Critter? He’s trying to be helpful but Christmas is just so fun!

- “Fancy Nancy Splendiferous Christmas” – Jane O’Conner – Nancy learns how to adjust when her plans don’t go exactly as she hoped.

- “Llama Llama Holiday Drama” – Anna Dewdney - Don’t we all sometimes need a cuddle from mama to remind us that “Gifts are nice, but there’s another: The true gift is, we have each other.”

- “The Berenstain Bears and the Joy of Giving” – Stand and Jan Berenstain – Brother and Sister can’t wait for all the presents they will get but something helps them learn the value of giving to others.

It is fitting we end this list with a Berenstain Bears book. That was Courtney’s favorite, she loved those bears and all their troubles and lessons.  Every year, on Courtney’s birthday, we have a celebration with one of our pilot schools and give a new Berenstain Bears book to all the kiddos to take home. Lately, my son Colin has been loving the bears too, particularly the Berenstain Bears DVD Gramma gave us.

Merry Christmas from Court's Kids

Last week he (like 2-year-olds often do) demanded something that I couldn’t figure out. He was adamant about watching the “dancing bears”, I had no idea what he was talking about…and off we went to try and translate what, exactly, that meant. Finally, I pulled out the DVD case with his movies and asked him to show Mommy which movie he wanted. He flipped right to the “Berenstain Bears” DVD, pointed to it, looked up at me and said, “this one, dancing bears”. Like, “jeez mom, am I speaking a different language?”

I had to laugh, not just that he hears “dancing bears” at the theme song but just that I know Courtney would have thought that was hilarious. It was one of those moments that, were she still here, I would have called her and said, “you’re gonna love this…” If I close my eyes I can actually hear her laughing. It is moments like these where I really miss her, we shared everything her and I, and it is hard not having her here to share all of this…especially now that Colin is growing up and is so much fun. I know in my heart she can see him, she’s seeing all of this. I hope she’s proud.

Little by little,

Kiki

1. Corduroy, Don Freeman – This is an all season favorite of Court’s Kids and an all time favorite in our home. You start with the hustle and bustle of what looks like Christmas shopping and end with a little girl and a new friend. It is wonderful. We had the honor of receiving a guest post from Mr. Freeman’s son, read it here.

Snow Falling on El Paso, TX - Courtney's Hometown

2. Snowy Day, Moira Fain – A beautiful story of the fun of snowfall and how things are not always as they seem. Check out a recent Readers Reflect post about this book.

3. Owl Moon, Jane Yolen – A little girl’s beautiful description of a snowy walk through the woods, owling with her father. We love Yolen and her stories about dinosaurs in our house, this one is a fun departure. Here’s a look at her wonderful guest post for Court’s Kids.

We’re so lucky to have such great participation from authors and readers describing their favorites, we have many others, what are your favorites?

Little by little,

KIki

Today we are honored t0 welcome Peter DeWitt, Elementary school principal who writes about students’ social and emotional health, for Education Week, you can check out this great blog here. 

As adults we often look at the world around us with different eyes than we used to when we were children. When we were children we had the opportunity to spend hours playing in the woods with friends. During the winter we would sled down big snowy hills and follow it up with a cozy blanket and a hot cup of cocoa. Many of us had childhoods that seemed magical, especially when we reflect upon it on days when we wish we could go back to that time.

Fortunately for me, I get to spend every day looking at the world through the eyes of children because I am an elementary school principal. Walking into the cafeteria during kindergarten lunch I have 60 kindergartners who wildly wave to me with one hand while they eat with the other.

Before becoming a principal I taught primary elementary school for eleven years. Seven of those years were inclusionary education, which brought together children with diverse learning styles. I loved being in the classroom. Each day was an adventure where it was our class against the world. The best part of my day was in the morning when I read to the class.

Like many first grade teachers I did calendar time with my students in the morning. We would sit on a big rug in the front of the classroom with our bulletin board hanging next to us. We would go through the day of the week and the month of the year. We discussed what the weather would be and what our schedule of the day would bring us. And just like any elementary classroom, I would hear about a student’s new puppy or where they went for dinner the night before. As much as it may not have had anything to do with my lesson, it had to do with their lives and they wanted to tell the story.

At the end of calendar time, and the many conversations, I would read a picture book. I love picture books! Children’s authors have a magical way to string together a few words to tell a story. For me, the best part was staring at the full page illustrations. A great picture book can draw us in and take us away.

As a class, we would take a picture walk together through each colorful illustration and we tried to figure out the plot of the book before we ever read a page. Sometimes their guesses were better than the books we read and other times they were completely on target with the plot the author was writing about.

Although it was probably a much shorter amount of time, I felt like I spent hours in the library picking out the best books for my class. One day I came upon a book called Snow Day by Moira Fain. I opened the book to the first page and saw the most amazing illustrations. I loved reading about Maggie, a little girl attending a private school in the 1960’s. Maggie had a flair for getting into trouble and one day forgot to complete her homework. She opted for a pillow fight with her five siblings instead!

Fortunately for Maggie, her town was blanketed with snow overnight and she ended up with a snow day. Instead of completing her homework during the day, Maggie went sledding on school hill with her friends and siblings. She figured she would finish it later that day, and would never run into her teacher. Unfortunately, Maggie ran into Sister Agatha Ann, her elementary school teacher. Her teacher was on school hill enjoying the snow with her colleagues.

As I turned to read the next page, I was met with a poem that I would remember for, what has been, ten years.

When I was young, the snow was deeper

And all the hills seemed so much steeper

The crusty ice I walked upon would never once give in

And every sled race that I ran would surely be a win

It’s good to see the snow again from a child’s point of view

Because what you see is different, when you’re a bigger you.

The truth is, I was fortunate to have a good childhood where I had sled races like the ones that Moira Fain describes in Snow Day. I played hide-and-seek with friends for hours before our parents called for us to come home. Summers were spent in the above ground pool in our backyard or playing baseball in our makeshift field down the road from our house.

As much as I love reading books now, that was not always my reality. I was a struggling learner and many factors interfered with my academic achievement. School was not a place I flourished; it was a place that I felt like a failure. Reading a book only acted as a reminder that I was not as smart as my classmates.

My friends would order books from our book clubs, so I did the same thing. However, they read them and I did not. I was motivated by the cover but struggled with the words inside. I was retained in fourth grade and struggled throughout my educational career. My dad passed away when I was in fifth grade but my mother did a great job raising five children.

After graduating fourth from last in my class from high school, my options were not plentiful but I opted to try out college because all of my friends were going. On my third attempt at a community college I found my strengths. I also ended up getting a job working at an after-school program. It was there that I knew I wanted to work with children.

Reading is powerful. Great books can transport us to another world or take us back to the ones we once knew. For children who cannot read well, books may be a source of pain, but with a good teacher, books can act as an escape for children. Great teachers can inspire even the most struggling learner to pick up a book and read it.

Not all adults are as fortunate as I am. They do not get the opportunity to work in a place where hugs and smiles are plentiful and crayons and picture books are just around the corner. However, if you’re willing, you can still buy books that transport you from your stressful lives and take you back to a time when the highlight of your day is sledding down a big snowy hill next to your school.

Fain, Moira. (1998). Snow Day. Walker Books for Children. New York, N.Y. 

Sometimes these libraries can be a bit less intimidating than the actual school library. Narrowing the options a bit can encourage reluctant readers to find something that just might make the difference.  One focus of Court’s Kids is to help keep these libraries stocked. Most of them are supplied by teachers, out of their own pockets. Our goal is just to help out where we can and maybe supply enough for kids to take home and start their own libraries.

Each library is unique but, there’s something for everyone. I remember devouring anything Beverly Cleary wrote…Ramona was my hero. Teachers put a lot of thought into stocking these bookshelves with books they know and hope will be just right for their students. Here’s a great article from Choice Literacy on building classroom libraries, there are some great ideas for selecting books that encourage readers.

What gems did you find in classroom libraries when you were in school? Teachers, what are the most loved books from your library?

Little by little,

Kiki

“…we are thankful Courtney left us her legacy to enjoy holidays and life at every opportunity!”

-Sandi Z & the ECI Team

In honor of Courtney, we at Court’s Kids encourage you to read spooky stories and enjoy some candy (only if your parents say it’s okay!) today.

Little by little,

Kiki

The Crew at Klamath Falls ECI where Courtney worked with the Big Bird she used to decorate at Halloween. Happy Halloween!

In the spirit of Halloween, we’re offering our own little list of fun stories for this spooky holiday…of course there are so many, we encourage any you and your little one love to read, here are a few we like:

- “Corduroy’s Best Halloween Ever” – Don Freeman & Lisa McCue – Corduroy is a constant figure in our house, we love him and his curiosity. In fact, I’m listening to my sweet husband read the original to our guy on the monitor right now. Freeman’s son honored us with a guest post, what a great story of a man and his relationship with his father. We’re so thankful for his support of Court’s Kids.

- “Clifford’s Halloween” – Norman Bridwell – Who doesn’t love this big red dog?

- “The Halloween Hoax” – Nancy Drew and the Clue Crew #9 – Carolyn Keene & Macky Pamintuan – The girls visit the studio of their favorite TV show…is the studio haunted? We add this in honor of our sister-in-law who wrote her thesis on female literary heroes…hooray for adventurous girls! Lindsay wrote a guest post for us too, check it out.

- “The Berenstain Bears Trick or Treat” – Jan & Stan Berenstain – What Court’s Kids book list would be complete with the “Bears”? They were Courtney’s favorite. In this story Brother and Sister go out trick-or-treating by themselves for the first time….I remember the first time I did this with Courtney..it ended in Courtney’s and Lee’s bags getting swiped by some big kids, me bringing Court & Lee home crying, and my Dad marching them back out to replace their candy…not sure I’ll ever forgive myself for that one.

- “You Can’t Scare Me” Goosebumps #17 – R.L. Stine – One of our first guest bloggers and a huge favorite among our readers…Halloween wouldn’t be Halloween without the Goosebumps. We chose this particular story on recommendation from a young reader who graced us with this awesome post.

Have a great week friends, watch spooky movies and read spooky stories!

Courtney keeping inventory of the candy. - Halloween 1983

Little by little,

Kiki

(first published May, 2010)

We have been inviting some of our favorite authors to join our Reader’s Reflect series by giving us a short snippet of how they became writers, what made them love books and writing. I am so honored to present to you our first author, R.L. Stine of the Goosebumps series!  We asked Mr. Stine to tell us how he came to writing. Here’s what he had to say:

“When I discovered an old typewriter in our attic at the age of nine, I don’t know why I found it so fascinating. I dragged it to my room and started to type short stories and joke magazines. I think I knew when I was nine that I wanted to be a writer.
My mother would stand outside my door and urge me to go outside and play. But I always replied, “It’s BORING out there!” And continued to type.

I was a shy, fearful kid. I was afraid of the dark, afraid to go down to the basement, afraid someone was lurking in our dark garage at night. It was terrible at the time, but I guess it was lucky. Now when I sit down to write my scary stories, I can think back and remember that feeling of panic– and use it in my books.”

- R.L. Stine – Author of the Goosebumps series. R.L.’s books are read all over the world. So far, he’s sold over 300 million books, making him one of the best selling children’s authors of all time.

What’s your favorite spooky story?

“Readers Reflect,” is a post by a guest blogger reflecting on a formative book, character, or reading experience that has been particularly meaningful in their life as a reader. To submit your own “Readers Reflect” essay, please contact us at courtskids@gmail.com