Reading is a Family Affarir

Every year for Christmas, I get each of the twelve grandchildren at least one book. This is a tradition that I have been doing for several years. It is interesting to think about the age of the child, the child's interest and then what book would be appropriate for that person. Some are easy...

With the little ones two years old and under, I think about what they might like and get a board book or one with lots of pictures. For Bam this year, I got a book way out of his two-year-old reading level.  The book I picked was a small nonfiction book with loads of pictures of horses. I wanted one that he could look at and carry around with him.  He is a fanatic about horses.  It was a hit!

For the four-year-old girls, I picked another nonfiction book, one by Frank Serafini. Those books were taking a closer look at a familiar object. I was hoping it would help with their writing skills, too.

The 11-year-old girls got Mr. Terupt books. This book is one that many fifth graders are reading in their classrooms. I knew both of our girls at this age level would love it because they are both such avid readers.

For the older boys, it was a bit more difficult. For one middle school grandson, I got a book about going into  middle school...it was fiction. For our Freshman grandson, I got one of John Grisham's books for teens. Our high school grandson was a bit more difficult. I knew he had loved the Hunger Games books. Then a friend recommended another series that most lovers of the Hunger Games also loved.  Hopefully, it will be a hit with him!

The most fun this Christmas came after the girls got their new pajamas from Grandma. They all put them on and modeled them for us. Then our eleven-year-old went to my "library" of children's books and picked one that she loved. She brought the book, a blanket, and the two four-year-olds up stairs to the middle of our gathering. There they spread out on the floor while she read to the other two. It was a perfect way for this grandma to see her gifts being used!