The May Booklists are Here!
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Song on May Morning
Now the bright morning Star, Dayes harbinger,
Comes dancing from the East, and leads with her
The Flowry May, who from her green lap throws
The yellow Cowslip, and the pale Primrose.Hail bounteous May that dost inspire
Mirth and youth, and warm desire,
Woods and Groves, are of thy dressing,
Hill and Dale, doth boast thy blessing.
Thus we salute thee with our early Song,
And welcom thee, and wish thee long.
John Milton (1608-1674)
May
May is around the corner. I do love the month of May. Growing up that meant the lilies of the valley would be blooming, and they are my very favorite spring flowers. Their little bells seem to be tinkling through the valleys and in the woods, waking up a new world, freshly washed by the April showers. To me May is the embodiment of spring and when it is at its peak. John Milton’s Song on a May Morning is exactly how I feel in May. Like the whole world is brand new and that a new surprise awaits us at every corner of the path. So let’s head down the path and see what May has for us.
A rich booklist
May birthdays are abundant and do not disappoint. From Pope John Paul II and Queen Victoria, artists, musicians and inventors, athletes, adventurers and scientists all abound. May brings us a bouquet of historical figures and events to please every palate and fancy. This month we will be meeting many people who have made a tremendous difference with a life well lived. They followed their dreams and their God given talents. The picture book titles chosen for each day are for all ages, from 0 to 100. So join me in exploring the beautiful lives that bloomed on a May morning.
A Daily Picture Book’s booklists
Each memberships’ booklist has been crafted with care. Each person or event was carefully chosen, first and foremost because of their birthday being in May, but also for what they have brought to the world. Some events are tragic, others are beautiful, all are life and deserve to be remembered. If we forget our past, we have no future. I know this sounds corny but there is so much truth in it. Our lives are built on the shoulders of those who have come before us, through both their mistakes and their triumphs. A Daily Picture Book’s booklists strive to bring history to life by celebrating and commemorating one person or event every day of the year. So let’s create relationships with the people on whose shoulders we stand, let’s discover who they were and what motivated them. Let’s celebrate the good and mourn the bad of human history. Let’s learn from the past to build a better future.
Creating deep, meaningful relationships
The very first goal of my Rule of Six is to help my children create deep, meaningful relationships with the world around them. A Daily Picture Book’s booklists provide exactly that every time we pick up a biographical or historical picture book. Through each picture book we encounter humanity, at its best or at its worst, but always we are able to create a relationship with that person or event. Some become dear friends, others passing acquaintances. But we have met them. We have spent time with them and we have learned a little bit more about what has brought us to where we are today. In this organic and holistic manner we are able to learn so much more than by memorizing dates and bland facts. These encounters become part of who we are and, even if we forget some details, we know what happened.
The booklists
Each booklist is adapted to each membership. The Booklover booklist contains a picture book title for every day of the month. These picture books are about someone whose birthday falls that day, an important historical event, a folktale, a fairy tale, a person whose exact birth date has fallen into the mists of history. Each picture book has been carefully chosen for its language, its illustrations and the meaningfulness of its content. I pre-read each picture book before recommending it. The Bookworm booklist contains 10 picture book titles, spread throughout the month. This averages to two picture book titles a week, creating a great addition to any Morning Time or family read-alouds. And finally, the Bookling booklist is wonderful to get your feet wet. With 5 picture book titles a month, it offers one special reading a week, creating a special day. The booklists are only available through these membership.
Free Picture Book Exploration
Every month I release one free Picture Book Exploration. These follow the exact same pattern as all the other picture book titles offered in the booklists. So if you are not sure if this is for your family, try one, or more, of the free Picture Book Explorations available. For Bookling and Bookworm members this is an extra picture book title for that month. What a great bonus!! I always attach a blog post to each Picture Book Exploration that explores the subject even more in depth.
The activities
Alongside the picture book title two to five enrichment activities are suggested to deepen our relationship with the subject of the picture book. These activities cover a very wide range from geography to timelines and from art to nature journaling. These activities are thought out carefully to add to your existing curriculum. They are there to enrich your enjoyment of the book. I also try to keep them “open and shut” type of activities, but sometimes I do suggest adding a little extra something special that might require some preparation ahead of time. Many free downloads are exclusively available through the booklists. And of course, extra reading material on the subject if I can find it. I will always only recommend something that I have previously read.
Yumminess
And always there is a recipe, or a meal suggestion. Again I try to keep it “open and shut” by selecting easy recipes with basic ingredients. Some more elaborate or historical recipes might require some pre-planning. All are kid approved. And always the recipe ties back in to the picture book. These are especially fun because they really anchor the relationship. It is so funny the number of times my kids will remember someone or an event because of the recipe. It is one of these “mom tricks” that I have acquired along the way and that works in a mysterious way in my children’s brain. But if you want something to be remembered, anchor it with food!
How we use it
Every school morning (Monday-Thursday for us), we include the Daily Picture Book in our Morning Time routine. I follow a simple pattern of “Read It”, “Discuss It” and “Do It”. We read the picture book together, we talk about it, this always happens very organically. Often we have to situate the person in his historical context, usually using notes from the booklist. Then we dive deep into the enrichment activities, sometimes we do them all, sometimes we skip them altogether or only pick one or two that we are interested in. And finally we decide if that day’s recipe is something that we want to create or not. I keep it very simple and adapt the booklist’s suggestions to what is manageable for us that day. The book titles that we cannot get to during our school day or that are not tied to a school day, go into our Daily Picture Book basket, available to be read at any time. And often pop up as a bedtime story.
Books
Where to find all these wonderful books recommended in the booklists? First and foremost from your local library. I don’t trust libraries anymore and I just order books online and swing by to pick them up. I rarely take the kids in. Sad but libraries are no longer the safe places they used to be. If I can’t find a book at the library, I first look it up on Amazon to have an idea of the price (usually checking their used book price), then I head to www.thriftbooks.com hoping that they will have it cheaper than Amazon, ah! And they usually do. This is how I have built our library through the years, it remains cost effective and we greatly enjoy the new books flowing in our home.
When learning is a joy
A Daily Picture Book’s booklists have been a lifeline to us in difficult seasons, such as with a new baby, a move or sickness. They have enabled us to keep on learning and growing in just a few minutes a day, no matter our current season. They are fully part of our education and, in my opinion, the best part, the one that is remembered the most. I am passionate about passing on this simple and very effective way of growing lifelong learners, it is so simple and so very much the best. Picture books are often disregarded as an educational tool, or relegated to toddlerhood, but as we can see through these booklists they need to be brought forward and included in our home education more fully. They are, I believe, the best and simplest educational instrument at our disposal for all ages and in all areas of learning.
Let’s have a lovely learning month of May!
Love,
Mattie
