I have always been fascinated by art and architecture from times gone past. I love that I live in a city that has older architecture on display. But I have always dreamt of someday traveling to Europe to see some of the incredible art and architecture that is even older. One of the most well known architectural marvels in Europe not only contains breathtaking sights, but also means a lot to people all over the world – the Notre Dame Cathedral. I remember watching the horrible fire there years ago, and being deeply saddened by the loss of such a treasure. So I was thrilled when we were given the opportunity to check out this beautiful children’s book about Notre Dame, and the power of hope and community.
Category Archives: Book Based Activities
Activities to use with children’s books
When Pencil Met the Markers
We love books that encourage us to think outside the lines and create new artwork. So we were really excited to read the sequel to one of our favorite books about art supplies from last year. And we were not disappointed! This children’s book about art teaches an important lesson about making mistakes, through adorable characters and awesome artwork.
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There are no mistakes in life. Just embellishment opportunities. – Frank, Trading Spaces
The illustrations that are paired with the story are large and colorful, featuring lots of artwork that will inspire kids to get drawing themselves. And the important message that any mistakes can be turned into something beautiful is a great one for kids to learn in both art and in life.
Related Post: Children’s Books about Art Supplies
Seeing Things Differently
This is a spin on an art project that we have done in the past, that ties in with the story. My daughter drew shapes on a piece of paper in markers, and then asked me to create something out of them. I turned her zig zag line into a mountain range with a sky, and a mountain climber.
Next, she asked me to create a shape with markers. Then she used a pencil and markers to create her own picture.
It was really fun to challenge each other to create something out of something else. And it was really interesting to see how we each saw something different on the paper. You can do this activity one on one, or have a group of kids create a bunch of shapes and swap them.
Related Post: Classic Art Books for Kids
Cooperative Art
Teaching Kids to Deal with Multiple Emotions
Emotions can be a difficult thing to understand – no matter what age you are. We teach kids about feelings early on, but we often teach them in very simple terms. Kids can recognize early on if they are happy, sad, or angry. But what about the times that they feel more than one thing at once? Today I am sharing a fun picture book about emotions that introduces kids to the possibility of feeling multiple things at once.
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Emotion Blocks
I created these printable emotions blocks to use while we explored conflicting emotions. You can download and print your own here. Fold along the lines and create a cube shape, tucking in the tabs and using glue or tape to attach them.
Check out this printable Calm Down Kit for Kids!
New Words
The little girl in the story combines her emotions to create new words. This was perhaps my daughter’s favorite part of the story. We rolled the cubes and tried to come up with new words to combine the emotions that appeared on top. We used a wipe off board and markers to mix the words up and try new combinations. This has given us a new vocabulary for discussing how we are feeling when we have mixed up emotions.
Emotions Dance
Another fun activity from the story that we brought to life was the emotions dance. In the story, the young girl likes to act out her emotions through dance. We are always happy for any excuse to dance and move, so we used our cubes to suggest emotions to dance out. This is a good way to get moving, and think about how we express our feelings through movement.
Related Post: Teach Kids about Feelings with the Moodsters
Creating Two Pictures
Making Summer Treats with an American Girl Cookbook!
When I was a kid, I read a ton of the American Girl books. My sister and I both had our favorites (I loved Molly, she loved Samantha), and we read the books, did the crafts, and put on the plays. I love that these books introduced readers to strong young girls and the historical time periods that they lived in, and I am really excited that my daughter has started showing interest in the American Girl stories. I have also been impressed over the years with their nonfiction books and their quest for teaching young girls all about themselves and what they can do. So we were thrilled when we were given the chance to check out their new Summer Treats American Girl cookbook!
Coding Activities for Kids with How to Code a Roller Coaster
I love that at a young age my daughter is already interested in STEM concepts including engineering and coding. So I am always looking for books that encourage her to dive deeper into STEM topics. So I was thrilled when we had the chance to check out the follow up to How to Code a Sandcastle, and pair it with coding activities for kids!
Standard Disclosure: This post contains affiliate links. I may receive a commission from purchases you make through the links in this post. I received a copy of this book in exchange for my honest review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.
How to Code a Roller Coaster was written by Josh Funk and illustrated by Sara Palacios. Join Pearl, the code loving little girl, and her robot buddy Pascal as they head to the amusement park for the day. They cannot wait to ride the big roller coaster, but decide that the line is too long to wait in right now. So they head out to enjoy the rest of the park, and use code to keep track of their coins and help them decide when to go back to the roller coaster.
The text is easy for kids to understand and introduces lots of coding concepts in a situation that makes sense to kids. The illustrations are bright and colorful, and kids will love the adorable Pearl and Pascal.
Create Your Own Roller Coaster
This fun story inspired my daughter to create her own roller coaster. She is a recent fan of roller coasters, so she was super excited to put her mind to use building her own. We used LEGO blocks and a stamp pad to create our roller coaster plans on a long sheet of paper. She had a lot of fun adding hills and flips with different colors of ink and sizes of blocks.
Have kids come up with a plan for their own themed roller coaster and put pen (or crayons) to paper to bring their creation to life. Inspire them to think outside the box and add different twists, turns, flips, or other surprises to their path. You could even take this one step further and use blocks or a roller coaster building kit to bring their creation to life.
Related Post: How to Code a Sandcastle: Making Coding Fun
Coding a Coaster Game
This coding game for kids uses a die and piece of paper to teach kids about coding. Code tells a computer what to do next, and this game helps them to see that in action. Each side of the die represents a different “code”, and every time the child rolls the die, they will take a different action based on the “code” that comes up.
First I gave my daughter a sheet of grid paper and encouraged her to pick a starting block along the left hand side. Next I had her roll the die and move her crayon the direction that the die told her too. As she continued to roll, her crayon moved along the page. I encouraged her to keep rolling and moving around the board until she made it to the other side.
- forward
- left
- right
- up
- down
- flip
Fair Games
In the book, Pascal and Pearl play a Bullseye game to try to win prizes. We decided to create our own simple game to play on a rainy day. We drew a large bullseye on a piece of paper and stuck it to the wall. Next, we created little balls out of masking tape and marked a spot on the ground a few feet back. We took turns throwing our balls at the target to see who could get the closest. This is a really easy boredom buster that you can create with things you have on hand. You could change this up by making a larger target or adding point values too.
Related Post: The Best STEM Books and Activities for Kids Who Love STEM
Dirt Activities for Kids with “Roy Digs Dirt”!
Spring is here, which means it’s time to start playing in the dirt again! At least, that’s what my daughter thinks Spring means…. So imagine how much she loved today’s book about a dirt loving dog, and the fun mud activities for kids that we paired with it!
Standard Disclosure: This post contains affiliate links. I may receive a commission from purchases you make through the links in this post. I received a copy of this book in exchange for my honest review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.
Roy Digs Dirt was written and illustrated by David Shannon. Roy is a dog who loves dirt. He loves to play in it, smell it, eat it, listen to it, and anything else he can think up. He spends every day digging and playing in the dirt. Unfortunately, playing in the dirt means that he has to take baths, and Roy hates baths.
The text uses the double meaning of “digs” a lot throughout the book, which is a lot of fun to read aloud. Kids will love the happy puppy and his dirt-loving escapades, and may be inspired to have some muddy fun too!
Use Your Senses
The text shows how Roy loves using all of his senses to play and explore in the dirt. While I don’t recommend tasting dirt, there are a lot of other ways that you can use your senses to examine dirt and mud. First, print out this chart. Next, set up an area with dirt and mud. This can be inside in a sensory table or tray, or outdoors. Have kids use their senses of touch, smell, sight, and hearing to explore the dirt and the mud, and then compare them to find their similarities and differences. 
Related Post: Mud Puddle Fun
Dirt Letters
The back of the book features the title spelled out in letters carved in the dirt by mice and Roy. This inspired us to practice our letters in the dirt too. We were able to use a muddy area of our yard and some sticks, but you could also use play dirt for this activity. Mix up a batch of pretend dirt using cocoa powder, flour, and vegetable oil. Start with a 1/2 cup of cocoa powder, mix in 1/4 cup of flour, and then slowly drizzle in vegetable oil until it reaches the desired consistency. Spread the pretend dirt in a tray and provide kids with a stick to draw their letters with.
Flip over a flashcard or call out a random letter and have kids make that letter in the dirt. This was a much more fun way to practice letters than writing them on paper over and over again!
Related Post: Digging for Fun with a Dog Named Doug
Playing in the Mud
The Best Spring Books & Activities for Kids
Spring is here and we are so excited to get outside again. Whether we are jumping in mud puddles, playing in the garden, or walking around the neighborhood, we find lots of ways to take our learning outside. This list has tons of fun Spring activities for kids to keep your family reading, playing, and learning all season long!
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Preparing for Spring with Gardening Activities for Kids!
My daughter is getting more interested in gardening as she grows, so we are spending lots of time digging in the dirt and exploring gardens. After reading the book Badger’s Perfect Garden, we were inspired to plan our perfect garden, engage in garden themed sensory play, and create a garden themed letter matching game. Click here to check them out!
And Then It’s Spring
We love exploring nature while we are outside. So when Spring rolls around, we are excited to see all the new sights in nature. The book And Then It’s Spring inspired us to explore the world around us, and create a fun Springtime scavenger hunt. We also made flower play dough, painted with flowers, and practiced our math and fine motor skills with flower activities. Check them out here!
Search for Signs of Spring with Fun Spring Activities!
As soon as the weather starts to turn, even the tiniest bit, we are ready for Spring to arrive. So we love searching for signs of Spring as soon as possible. The book When Will It Be Spring? inspired us to take a nature walk and search for signs of the changing season, as well as making an easy bird nest craft, practicing contractions, and making our own Spring flower bouquet.
Check it out here!
Good Night, My Love: A Counting Bedtime Story for Kids
I am a big fan of reading before bed. I started reading to my daughter at bedtime on her first night home from the hospital. So it has always been a tradition of ours. Today we have the opportunity to share an adorable new bedtime story for kids that features funny animals, and silly situations that will have them counting, laughing, and falling asleep happy.
Standard Disclosure: This post contains affiliate links. I may receive a commission from purchases you make through the links in this post. I received copies of this book in exchange for my honest review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.
Good Night, My Love was written and illustrated by Debbie Bryant. This colorful bedtime story starts with a young child who claims that she isn’t tired at all. (Which is a conversation that will surely resonate with lots of parents). The mother in the story then settles the child down, tucks her in, and tells her a story that takes her around the world and counts down from ten to one. The rhyming text and vibrant illustrations then count different groups of animals, and show them participating in all kinds of bedtime activities. As the book winds down, the story comes full circle with the young child and her stuffed animals drifting off to sleep as well.
My daughter absolutely adored the animal characters in this book, and seeing them taking part in bedtime traditions that she recognized. She also loved the familiar conversation about not being tired, which is one we have quite often. This is a fun book that helps kids count down from ten, but also helps them to settle in and drift off to a good night’s sleep.
Related Post: The Bedtime Routine That Will Help Your Kids Sleep
Bedtime Routines
My daughter has been a difficult sleeper since she was a baby. I tried establishing routines with her early on in the hopes that it would help, and after a LOT of trial and error, we have finally settled into a good routine. Routines are so important to kids, especially in the early years. This book introduces kids to all kinds of bedtime routines, that they may recognize or already take part in. If you don’t have an established bedtime routine with your kids already, then this book provides as great opportunity to start one.
Take the ideas from the book and develop your own bedtime routine. From bedtime snacks and brushing teeth, to tucking in their stuffed animals and taking a bath, there are all kinds of options included. If your kids are visual learners, you can print out this chart and hang it in your home. Cut out the images that you want to use and hang them where everyone can see them. These will be a solid reminder for everyone of what comes next.
Related Post: Books to End the Bedtime Battle
Counting Game
This book helps kids to count down from ten to one, which provides a great opportunity to play a counting game. I created this
printable matching game
Celebrating Best Friends
I love watching my daughter make friends everywhere she goes. I was an incredibly introverted child, so I am in awe of my daughter’s ability to always put herself out there and meet new people. Young kids have this incredible ability to make friends immediately, which we adults usually have trouble with. Today I’m thrilled to share a beautiful new children’s book about friendship that celebrates the beauty of those young friendships, and the way they develop.
Standard Disclosure: This post contains affiliate links. I may receive a commission from purchases you make through the links in this post. I received a copy of this book in exchange for my honest review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.
My Best Friend was written by Julie Fogliano and illustrated by Jillian Tamaki. This sweet story follows two young girls as they play together and develop a friendship. The girl who is narrating the story shares all of the fun things that they do together, and the reasons that she thinks that the girl is her best friend. The beautiful, detailed illustrations show the girls doing all kinds of creative activities that young kids will recognize and appreciate, from the joy of hiding together in a game of hide and seek, to the complete silliness of inside jokes that have them laughing for a long time.
The real beauty of this book is the surprising reveal at the end of the story. I won’t give it away because it was a beautiful surprise as a parent reading it. But the ending truly highlights the ability of young kids to make friends and enjoy every little detail of their relationships.
Best Friends
Make a list together of the qualities that you think a best friend should have. While your child’s list may be entertaining, it can also open up a conversation about what to look for in friends, as well as the good qualities that make you a good friend too.
Twisted Flowers
In the story, one of the little girls teaches the other how to twist trampled flowers together to keep them from falling over. We were inspired by this to create our own “twisted flowers” and practice our fine motor skills! I laid out a wide variety of pipe cleaners in different colors, textures, and styles. Then we created all kinds of different flowers by twisting and tying the pipe cleaners together. My daughter loved creating flowers to give to me, and I loved watching her creativity. They now sit in a vase in my room, brightening up the space and making me smile.
Related Post: Teaching Kids to Be Kind and Play Nice
Making Leaf Hands
In the story, one of the girls painstakingly removes the green parts from leaves to create “creepy skeleton hands”. My daughter was absolutely taken with this page, and insisted that we try the same. It was a bit difficult to find leaves to try this with since we are still in the winter months here, but we managed to get some skeletal looking hands out of the ones we found. This is a great activity for fine motor skills, as the detail work requires a lot of concentration and tiny movements.
Drawing Your Best Friend
In the book, the two girls draw each other in chalk. We decided that this would be a fun activity to try together. So I laid out two sheets of paper and a variety of drawing supplies, and we drew each other. It was a lot of fun trying to capture each other on the page. And of course it lead to lots of giggles. I loved seeing how she saw me, and she loved the picture that I made of her as well.
What are your favorite children’s books about friendship? Share in the comments below, and don’t forget to share this post with your best friend too!
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Dog Books and Activities for Kids
We are a family of dog lovers. We had dogs in my house growing up, and the dogs in our family are some of my daughter’s best friends. So we recognize the power of friendship between dogs and their owners. Dogs can provide comfort and love at the times that we need it most, and we can do the same for them. We were thrilled to have the opportunity to check out these sweet dog books for kids, and pair them with activities that celebrate the kindness of dogs, and the kindness we can show to them.
Standard Disclosure: This post contains affiliate links. I may receive a commission from purchases you make through the links in this post. I received copies of these books in exchange for my honest review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.
Grammy’s Superhero Series: Adventures of a Seeing Eye Dog
Written by Wendy Kerr Sherid and illustrated by Janet M. Jones
Feather’s Playground Adventure
This book introduces the reader to Grammy, her seeing eye dog Feather, and her grandson Callen. On a trip to the playground, Callen meets some new friends and tells them about his Grammy’s dog and her superpowers. When Callen falls and gets hurt, Feather helps Grammy get to him quickly. Callen’s new friends are impressed by Feather’s skills, so Grammy and Callen share all the ways that Feather helps out. This is a great introduction to the ways that Seeing Eye Dogs help the visually impaired.
Feather’s Santa Train Surprise
Feather is back in this adorable Christmas adventure. Grammy, Callen, Feather, and their friends are heading on a train ride with a bunch of Seeing Eye puppies in training. The story is full of examples of how Seeing Eye Dogs help their owners, and gives readers a glimpse into how puppies are trained to become Seeing Eye Dogs.
Grammy and Callen are out running errands, and Feather is busy protecting Grammy and helping her to get around. She stops Grammy from walking in front of a car, helps her find the door handle, and helps her to cross the street safely. When they get home, Callen and Feather drift off to sleep and dream of being superheroes that save the day together. The story and some of the illustrations in this book are inspired by her grandson Callen, and introduce readers to the ways that Seeing Eye Dogs help their owners.
We’ll Get Through This Together!
Written by Ulrike Szalay and illustrated by Roberta Marovelli
This sweet book was written to support the Canines-N-Kids Foundation, whose goal is to end cancer for both kids and canines. The story is told from the perspective of a Labrador as he stays by the side of a sick child and comforts him as he deals with his experiences at the hospital. The text explores the feelings that children may have while entering the hospital and undergoing treatments. It also shows how a dog companion can help those children to feel strong and comforted. The illustrations show the strong connection between patient and canine pal, and reminds the reader that they are not alone. The back of the book also includes information about the foundation and the incredible work that they are doing.
Mr. Scruff
Written and illustrated by Simon James
This adorable book explores the idea that there is a perfect pet out there for everyone, even if it isn’t what you expect. The rhyming text shows all kinds of pet and owner pairings that seem to make perfect sense. Even their names rhyme! But poor Mr. Scruff doesn’t have the perfect owner. Until a young boy named Jim comes along. Jim and Mr. Scruff aren’t alike at all, but Jim knows that they are perfect for one another. The story has an interesting twist, and the illustrations are adorable, featuring sweet dogs and their loving relationships with their owners.
Boomer at Your Service
