Category: kids picture books

Best Type of Books to Read with Babies

Posted on | by KD Novelties
Read With Your Baby

If kids always have reading and books as a part of their everyday lives, they are more likely to develop a healthy relationship with both of them. It becomes more likely that children will pick up a book on their own, even if they are not prompted, which can help spark their interest in learning to read while building their literary skills.

One of the best ways to acquaint kids with books and reading is to introduce it an early age. It doesn’t matter how young your child is, it is never too early to bring books and reading into their lives. But since young children may not yet understand books or know how to read, it does help to expose them to books that they will still be able to enjoy and interact with regardless. So what are the best kinds of books for babies?

Board Books

Personalized Board Books for Babies

Board books are a great first-time book for any baby. These books are easy to look at and play with since babies don’t know how to read yet. The stiff pages are safer for babies who are still developing their motor skills, but it also helps kids learn to use their motor skills and allows them to explore the object physically without getting themselves hurt. Babies like to touch, but they also love to feel around with their mouths as well. It is one of the first ways that babies learn what objects are. Let your baby sift through the pages of a board book and there is no need to worry if they explore the books with their mouths, either. Doing so will allow your baby to develop a relationship with books in general, and simply having them around can help establish them as a staple object in the world that they can become familiar with and explore.

High Contrast Illustrated Books
Kids are easily dazzled by color, which is why toys and cartoons are so whimsically designed. It inspires their imagination and grabs their attention. By drawing your child to the pages of a book, they can begin to learn how to explore narratives through images while they develop this part of their brain as well as this particular learning skill. The images in a book can be just as captivating and educational as the words, especially for kids who have not yet learned how to read and whose worlds are still inherently visual. Engaging kids by inspiring this aspect of their brains can also help to harness an interest in books as well.

Word Games
Books that use language in creative ways can be really fun for children, especially for kids who are learning to speak or learning to read. Things like rhyming and sing-alongs are great ways to interest kids as well as teach them. Rhyme and song are great tools to employ when teaching kids something new, because it makes new concepts and ideas easier to remember.  Rhyming and repeating text helps build your baby’s early language skills.

Where Can I Get Baby Books and Sing-Alongs?

Personalized Rhyming Book

Check out our Little Little One personalized book which has repetitive text and rhyming that will grab your baby’s attention and build their vocabulary and memory skills.  We also offer personalized music CD sing-alongs where we insert your baby’s name into the song.  Lastly, we also have personalized baby board books where you can insert your child’s photo.

By adding this bit of personality into learning or reading, kids are more likely to get excited and more readily engage with whatever it is that they are doing.

How Kids Can Get The Most Out Of Picture Books

Posted on | by KD Novelties
Reading With Picture Books

When people think of children’s books, they imagine illustrated pages and scenes dominating the story. These images can help engage children and keep them sitting still and attentive during story time, but these illustrations can be helpful beyond that as well. When it comes to illustrated books, the images are meant to accompany and enhance the story. They are meant to be looked at and explored, and they can help enrich the story as well as a child’s overall reading experience. There are plenty of benefits to exploring the images and illustrations that adorn children’s books, and using them to your advantage can help you boost your child’s reading skill, their relationship with books and can help them develop an understanding and appreciation for art.

Engage Kids with Illustrations
Many adults are familiar with the old adage “Don’t judge a book by its cover” but children do it all the time. Before children enter language, their understanding of the world is defined by their other senses and babies are especially visual learners. Illustrations can be used to entice children into reading certain books, especially if they do not yet know how to read or are still getting a handle on the skill. A book’s illustrated cover can tell them a lot. It will tell them what the story may be about, where the setting might be, and what the overall tone of the book is. For kids, book subjects tend to be positive, but the front cover may divulge whether the book is about an adventure, a how-to book or a book that explores a relationship with others that kids are familiar with.

Enhance Their Reading Skills
Illustrations convey meaning and can help describe the story unfolding, which is helpful for kids. Kids engage with illustrations because they can be understood, which is especially important before kids actually learn how to read, but can be especially helpful as kids are learning to hone their skills. Illustrations can help inform what words are in the text and can guide kids who are just learning to read. This way, the images can be used as a helpful guide that will steer kids in the right direction. It can also be a great way to introduce kids to new things and new concepts. By showing them images that they can understand, kids will be able to better understand and become familiar with ideas and concepts. Kids are still learning how to use their imagination and illustrations can aid in this process when it comes to building this skill.

The illustrated images of books are also integral to kids’ first real interactions with books themselves. Whether they are flipping through the pages on their own or even if someone is reading to them, they are still visually engaged with the images inside. This is the first real personal connection that kids experience when it comes to book reading, and it can foster a life-long love of reading.

Exercise their Brain
While many infants and toddlers tend to be visual learners, many kids retain this aspect well into childhood and the rest of their lives. People who are visual learners tend to understand things better when they can imagine scenarios or see them physically unfold. For example, a visual learner will respond better and learn faster by watching someone tie their shoe than by reading a step-by-step set of instructions. Some reluctant readers are reluctant because they do not respond as well to words as they do to images, but using illustrated books to enhance reading can change that. The images in books accompany the story and they help in the telling. Some images display exact events as they were described and may even reveal other additional information that was not inherent in the text.

Using pictures in books can help enhance a child’s reading comprehension skills and will boost their imaginative abilities. Reading picture books can help visual learners visualize what’s written in text, and as they get older they may be able to harness this skill on their own when reading books that do not have images to assist them.

Even kids who are not heavy visual learners can benefit from picture books. Learning visually is a valuable skill no matter what.

Illustrations can help enhance reading for children in other ways, as well. Kids can see new things and explore the world in pictures and images while they learn about distance locales and other cultures. Kids can also develop an understanding and familiarity with art as well.

Visit our website at KDNovelties.com for a selection of personalized picture books that will keep children reading and learning for a lifetime!

10 Ways to Teach Kids About Earth Day – April 22, 2014

Posted on | by KD Novelties
Earth Day 2014
Earth day comes at a time of year when the green starts to finally peek through the layers of melting snow. Teaching kids about Earth Day isn’t just a great way to beckon the spring or to get kids outside, but encourages a healthy respect for the planet we live on. Teaching kids about Earth Day is important. It will not only help them become more enthusiastic about spending time outdoors, but will help foster a positive and responsible relationship with our planet. Today’s kids will soon be responsible for the planet’s well being, so teach them about how important it is to be respectful and responsible about taking care of our universal home.
  
1.     National Geographic is a wonderful way to introduce kids to the world around them. There is so much of the world they have not seen and looking at the vivid images in the pages of National Geographic or National Geographic Kids is a great way to introduce them to the world, it’s beauty, as well as books about the subject that will help encourage them to keep learning.
2.     Picture books and informational books are great ways to introduce kids to the idea of Earth Day while also teaching them about the beauty the holiday is trying to save and protect. Books can also teach them about pollution and its effects. Personalized Books such as My Fishing Adventure, My Camping Adventure or My Tea Party can help inspire kids to look forward to outdoor adventures. When kids see themselves embarking on journeys in these completely personalized books, they will be more excited about returning outdoors. 
My Fishing Adventure Personalized Book
3.     Documentaries. There are plenty of documentaries that are kid friendly while still being informative and captivating. Nature documentaries such as Planet Earth or Disney’s Earth are great ways to garner interest in the world and its natural beauty. Other fun kid friendly movies with a powerful message about conservation and recycling may include movies as both versions of Dr. Seuss’ The Lorax or the animated film Ferngully.
4.     Next, go out and experience the world while bringing kids along, of course! Go for a walk, visit a park, take a stroll through the forest, go on a hike! Take pictures, play I Spy games to identify and spot animals or plants, or any number of interactive activities. Introduce kids to nature and help them develop a personal relationship with it.
My Camping Adventure Personalized Book
5.     Play games! Spend as much time outside as possible. The ability to enjoy the outdoors and even play sports relies on keeping the earth healthy. Find ways to play games in parks or open fields, places where nature is truly at work. For instance, activities such as swimming can be relocated to rivers, lakes or oceans. Make nature a part of children’s lives.
6.     Gardening is a wonderful way to teach kids about the environment, the importance of planting trees and preserving plants, forests, and other natural landscapes. Build a garden in the backyard or partake in the Earth Day tradition of planting a tree.
7.     Begin composting! Have the kids take part in the process. This will teach them about how harmful plastics and other materials are to the earth while others are apart of its natural cycle.
8.     Have them help with recycling. Explain the importance of recycling and why certain materials are recycled while others are not. A bit like composting, having kids help sort through the recycling makes the activity a daily routine, making it a part of their lives, and will inform them of why it is important to recycle in the first place.
9.     Visit a zoo, botanical garden, wildlife reserve, or a national park. Have kids experience the wealth of life that depends on the health of mother earth. Have them listen to the zookeepers and park rangers about saving and protecting the animals as well as the places in which they live. Many species are endangered due to activities such as pollution and the grazing of vast forests. When kids see the animals up close, they can better sympathize with them and understand their story while understanding that earth is our home as much as theirs. They can learn to appreciate the beauty of life while developing a respect for nature.
10.   Volunteer to clean up a local park or other community area. Getting involved is a great way to instill Earth Day spirit. Go to a park or any other natural location you visit frequently and volunteer to help clean it. The people who use these spaces are responsible for keeping them safe and clean. Kids will grow an understanding of personal responsibility while also having fun.
 Teaching kids about Earth Day is important, not just for their own benefit but for our own as well. The kids are our future and they will one day be in charge of taking care of the world we all live in. By dispensing the proper knowledge and encouraging positive action and inspiration, kids will continue these habits throughout their lifetime and will continue to protect our planet.