[Loving These Lately] Lawn Mowers, Spirituals, Homeschooling & Hilarity

It’s been an eclectic group of books that’s been getting the most love in our house lately, as you can tell from this post’s title!

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McToad Mows Tiny Island by Tom Angleberger. (Toddler, Preschool, Early Elementary) My boys (especially Toddler Bookworm) have become obsessed with lawn mowers as of late. Their Pop invited them for a ride on his new riding mower (without the blade running), and the rest is history! So of course we’re loving McToad Mows Tiny Island. This one’s hilarious, following a hard working toad whose job it is to mow the grass of Tiny Island on Thursdays. It’s a job that would better be completed with scissors, but the mower takes quite the journey to its work place each week, from the shed to a truck, to a train, to a forklift…. you get the idea. Transportation loving bookworms will adore this one!
It’s a Little Book by Lane Smith. (Baby, Toddler, Preschool) This has been our final book before bedtime lately, and it has the boys in stitches. What’s not to love for a Toddler when the refrain on each page is “NO!” Donkey inquires about the purpose of a book on each spread: “Is it for chewing? Is it for riding?” My bookworms delight in shouting “no” and showing their obvious superiority of intelligence. “It’s for reading… it’s a book, silly!” This is the board book version of It’s a Book (the addition of that word “Little” makes a BIG difference. The board book lacks the social commentary and the word jacka$$).

He’s Got the Whole World In His Hands by Kadir Nelson. (Toddler, Preschool, Early Elementary) In the hands of Kadir Nelson, the familiar spiritual is absolutely stunning! Toddler Bookworm requests this one OFTEN, shouting out “earfh!” in his sweet little toddler accent. The illustrations are impeccably done, drawing the reader (or, singer!) into the beauty and diversity of the earth. Although this was a library book, it has since made its way onto our wishlist for upcoming birthdays/holidays!

This Is My Home, This Is My School by Jonathan Bean. (Any school age) This year we’re doing some “gentle homeschooling” as I’ve termed it with my 3.5 year old Preschool Bookworm. This book has been an encouraging and exciting way to introduce the subtle shift in our approach as we launched into our “school year.” Homeschooled himself, the author shares the vibrant home/school of his upbringing through simple text that brings to life the ins and outs of being educated at home.