Kids, parents and television:
Parents rightly have varying attitudes towards kids and television. When I was a kid, TV was either family time, or a last resort.
The fact is that your kid is constantly exposed to television advertising and merchandising at school, even if s/he isn't that interested. And even in elementary school, this can define popularity aka coolness.
Fight back!
Your kid can still watch less TV, but be tuned in. Here's a partial list of TV shows that come from good books, or have good associated books:
The Max and Ruby series- Rosemary Wells. Wells' Max and Ruby books are usually very good for preK and K-1- but she also has the Edward the Unready series, the Felix series, the Yoko series, and more titles. If your kid talks about Max and Ruby, this is a great chance to introduce other, more advanced picture books Wells has written and illustrated.
Spongebob- a universal icon of ridiculous fun: introducing Spongebob easy readers and early chapter books can get elementary school boys who "don't like reading" to get interested. With kids who don't like reading, if reading is a family time, they might be more motivated. Get out the popcorn and get out the books, for everyone, adults and kids. For truly reluctant readers, try the Spongebob graphic novels for elementary school kids.
Olivia- Ian Falconer.
Curious George- HA Rey.
With both Falconer and Rey, the original work is much better illustration, and a parent might notice that. But as long as your kids are reading with enthusiasm, remember that kids are less visually acute than adults. Just introduce them to the originals, and let them know that you like the original author / illustrator's work best, and why. And that's a great start on a great visual education.
Dora y Diego
Providence has a huge Hispanic population, and the demand for books about Dora and Diego is so high they're hard to keep on the shelves. Both TV shows focus on the environment and animal life, which is a great opportunity to check out the non-fiction areas at your library. If your kid wants to know more about animals, environments / biomes, and natural history, your neighborhood library has got those books!
Happy reading!
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