The Story Blanket

The Story Blanket may be one of my new favorites. It is too long and may be a little abstract for the youngest children, but older children will begin to understand how the people of the town care for each other. Babba Zarrah, the main character has a story blanket which she unravels little by little to make gifts for the people of the village. When all of her yarn is gone and she no longer has a blanket the people of the town find a way to give back to Babba and this circular story begins again.

There are several underlining directions you could go with this story. You may want to talk about how the people of town care for each other and give of them selves. You could also focus on the concept of working together. Children may want to find someone they can help by each of them giving just a little of themselves. Each child may want to donate a square of cloth and make a quilt for someone.

I also like that Babba Zarrah, says, "Every question has an answer." This attitude of "I can find a solution to the problem" is so important for building resilient children.

You might want to follow up with a reading of Joseph Had a Little Overcoat, in which the main character makes various pieces of clothing from an old overcoat. Children could discuss similarities of the two stories.

Momma Loves Her Little Son

John Carter Cash created this story based on words his mother sang to him as a child. Mary Burckhardt illustrated this beautiful book about a mother's love for her son. The more I learn the better I understand that one of the powerful elements of reading a book is the relationship building aspect. This book is perfect for building that relationship. Children who hear this book read will certainly associate a positive feeling with reading and books.

This is a great story to read anytime of the day, but especially at bedtime. During or after the story imagine all the things you and your child could do together or ways to express your love for each other. You may even make your own book to illustrate your love.

While a little wordy for a newborn, this book could be a great gift for someone with a new baby. How wonderful to grow up hearing the message of this book repeated over and over as a child grows.