Story Time !

     Story Time !

~Friday Favorites~

My Friday Favorite for this week is story time!

Some of the sweetest memories with my children have been made while all curled up reading books together.
Can you remember your favorite childhood books?  My children sure do, and can even still remember some of them word for word… we may have read ‘Mr. Brown Can Moo, Can You?‘  one or five thousand times.  🙂

Today, since it’s FRIDAY, and maybe you need a little break too… I want to share my favorite AUDIO BOOKS!
Our family has definitely enjoyed some great story times together by listening to someone else read a story!  Maybe it’s the fact that everyone is still all smushed together, piled up on the couch with blankets and pillows and snacks, or in a fort built on somebody’s bed!   This is an especially fun break on a cold, rainy winter’s day.

And if you’re feeling even a hint of guilt in taking an hour or more to do this fun activity, DON’T!!
Listening to a book being read aloud builds so many wonderful skills, and if you have a reluctant reader in the mix, this might be a way to help them appreciate all the joys of a good book without the frustration!  And there are plenty of books that easily tie into history, science & nature study, geography, and even mathematics!  Listen for the connections and talk about them!  This is a great post about some of the amazing Benefits of Audio Books.

Today, I just mostly want to share (or remind) the IDEA of making some audio book/snuggle time part of your week.  You can do it first thing in the morning, after lunch or dinner, at bedtime, or even while driving in the car!  And I want to also add that you don’t have to spend a fortune to find good recordings!  We have found so many great audio books available for free (and to buy inexpensively) !

–Story Nory
(This site has beautifully read stories- from Fairy Tales, to History, to the Classics!  All free!)

–Audible
[Note:  This is an affiliate link to Amazon.  If you purchase anything I receive a small commission at no extra cost to you!]
(Audible has  TONS of easily searchable audiobooks!  Some are free and some are for purchase.  This makes it so quick if you are looking for audiobooks in a certain genre, or certain school subject you want to reinforce!)
*Little House in the Big Woods
*The Chronicles of Narnia
*Hank the Cow Dog
*The Magic Treehouse Series
(These are some of my all time favorites- educational, imaginative, and just the right length.  Great if you have younger and older kiddos!  Even my 3 year old grandchildren love these!)
*Ramona Quimby
*Sir Cumference and All the Kings of Ten
(Just so you can check out a MATH audiobook!!)

-Some of my personal favorites  (freebies)-

-Short Stories-

–Little House In the Big Woods
(LOVE LOVE!!!)

-Feeling stir crazy inside?  Go on a nature walk & then come back in, get cozy with a cup of cocoa, and listen to a classic Thornton Burgess story.   LOVE this one!  🙂

-‘Aunt Jo’s Scrapbag‘

-‘The Velveteen Rabbit‘  (audio)
-‘The Velveteen Rabbit‘  (text to read along if you’d like)

-‘Just So Stories‘   (audio)
-‘Just So Stories‘  (text)

-Longer Stories:
-‘A Little Princess‘
-‘The Secret Garden‘
-‘Little Men‘  (Both boys & girls would love this story I think!  One of my absolute favorites!)

-Picture books read aloud on YouTube for the littles:
-‘The Rainbow Fish‘
-‘Goodnight Moon‘
-‘Go Dog, Go!‘
-‘The Very Hungry Caterpillar‘
-‘Are You My Mother‘
-‘Mr. Brown Can Moo, Can You?‘

HAPPY FRIDAY READING TO YOU !