January 7, 2025 PA Promise for Children Releases List of 12 Books for Kids in the Kitchen Pennsylvania’s Promise for Children has released a list of books that will help children learn while in the kitchen. Learn More The list 12 Books for in the Kitchen includes works that are appropriate for infants, toddlers, pre-kindergarten, and kindergarten children. Each month, PA Promise for Children releases lists that are aligned with Pennsylvania Early Learning Standards. The books on the list include: The Doorbell Rang (Pat Hutchins) The Very Hungry Caterpillar (Eric Carle) Pancakes, Pancakes! (Eric Carle) The Kids’ Multicultural Cookbook (Deanna F. Cook) Stone Soup (Marcia Brown) We Eat Dinner in the Bathtub (Angela Shelf Medearis) Lunch (Denise Fleming) Chicken Soup with Rice (Maurice Sendak) A Chocolate Moose for Dinner (Fred Gwynne) The Wolf’s Chicken Stew (Keiko Kasza) Jamberry (Bruce Degen) Pretend Soup and Other Real Recipes: A Cookbook for Preschoolers and Up (Mollie Katzen) For more information, visit PA Promise for Children’s website.
December 23, 2024 PA Promise for Children Releases Booklist on Riding in the Car or Bus Pennsylvania’s Promise for Children has released a list of 10 books for children that revolve around riding in a car or bus. Learn More As part of its Learning is Everywhere Calendar, PA Promise for Children has unveiled a list of books that infants, toddlers, pre-kindergarteners, and kindergarteners can enjoy. Included in the list 10 Books for in the Car or on the Bus are: Cars and Trucks and Things That Go – Richard Scarry The Wheels on the Bus – Paul O. Zelinsky The School Bus Driver from the Black Lagoon – Mike Thaler Wee Sing in the Car – Wee Sing Riding in My Car – Woody Guthrie Don’t Let the Pigeon Drive the Bus – Mo Willem Follow That Bus! – Pat Hutchins Rattletrap Car – Phyllis Root My Car – Byron Barton The Berenstain Bears and Too Much Car Trip – Stan and Jan Berenstain PA Promise for Children’s website also lists additional activities for children if they become bored or restless when traveling.
October 21, 2024 NEA Releases October Calendar for Young Readers The National Education Association (NEA) has released its October calendar as part of Read Across America 2024-25. The calendar features books for varying ages of young readers. Learn More Each month, the NEA features three books – one each for young, middle grade, and young adult readers – that explore a topic relating to diversity and inclusion. October’s theme is Know Your Power. This month, students are encouraged to find and use their unique strengths, interests, and skills to envision and create success for themselves and for a better world. The month’s book for elementary students is “Benita and the Night Creatures/Benita y las criaturas nocturnas” by Mariana Llanos. In that book, the titular character loves to read in bed but keeps getting interrupted by a whistling Tunche, a scary Supay and other monstrous creatures from Peruvian lore. The middle grade selection is “A Little Bit Super: With Small Powers Come Big Problems” by Gary D. Schmidt, Leah Henderson, and other authors. In each of the book’s stories, young characters are coping with a minor superpower. The characters also discover that their powers can change themselves and their community as they find their voice. Sajni Patel’s “A Drop of Venom” is the young adult selection. It follows a teenage girl who has been running from monsters for years and meets another teenage girl, who slays them. Their meeting offers the possibility of a new path forward. About the NEA The NEA aims to ensure that every student has access to age-appropriate books that show they are reflected and respected. It also opposes efforts to limit students’ access to such books.
September 9, 2024 PA Promise Releases Book List for Families and Friends Pennsylvania’s Promise for Children has compiled a list of books that are best for families and friends. Learn More As part of its monthly Learning is Everywhere Calendar, PA Promise for Children has released a printable list of 12 Family and Friends Books. Book List for Families and Friends includes: Ciencia Magica enla sala de estar (Richard Robinson) Please, Baby, Please (Spike Lee and Tonya Lewis Lee) Who’s In My Family (Robie H. Harris) More More More Said the Baby: Three Love Stories (Vera Williams) Annie Rose is My Little Sister (Shirley Hughes) Lion in the Living Room (Caelaach McKinna and A.R. Stone) Crazy Hair Day (Barney Saltzberg) Toot and Puddle, You Are My Sunshine (Holly Hobbie) Guess How Much I Love You (Sam McBratney) Max’s First Word (Rosemary Wells) Hunter’s Best Friend at School (L.M. Elliott) Harold and the Purple Crayon (Crockett Johnson) About PA Promise for Children Pennsylvania’s Promise for Children, also known as PA Promise, is a campaign to help families make good choices about their child’s early learning and choose quality early learning programs that are right for their family. The state’s Office of Early Learning and Development (OCDEL) is the primary partner for PA Promise.
