More Classics to Read Aloud to Your Children

Weekly Trip to the Library
By Maria Lopez, Nanny, Miami FL

When the editor of this blog and Be the Best Nanny Newsletter told me that the Autumn 2011 Be the Best Nanny Newsletter will discuss the importance of reading aloud to children I knew I had to share a book my mom read to me. I find that poetry is better heard than read. By reading the poetry and stories in this book aloud to children you will pass along the love of poetry to those who would most likely not read it themselves.

In his book, More Classics to Read Aloud to Your Children, William F. Russell, compiles classic stories arranged according to age-appropriate listening levels. Kids will love to have you read aloud from this book. All are well-known stories from well-known authors. Many stories, particularly the longer ones, are only excerpts; the editor has deliberately done this to wet the listeners' appetite. Instead of having abridged versions of stories, this book are true excerpts from the author.

There are two of Shakespeare's sonnets, a retelling of Mac Beth, Elizabeth Barrett Browning's How Do I Love Thee? and an excerpt from Little Women. My favorite stories are Pandora's Box, The Emperor's New Clothes, MacBeth, Dick Wittington and His Cat, Little Women, To Build a Fire, and Aladdin and the Wonderful Lamp.

Reading aloud to children is essential for language development and academic success. If you care for children five-years old and up, I highly recommend borrowing More Classics to Read Aloud to Your Children by William F. Russell from the library this week.