Tag Archives: literacy

The Best Leveled Bookrooms A-Z

Lee & Low Books has titles at a full range of levels to support read alouds, guided reading, shared reading, intervention, and independent reading. And our newest  TK/PreK Bookroom is now available!

Lee & Low Bookrooms cover a wide range of concepts, themes, and interest areas that appeal to children and fit right into your literacy program. They are also diverseculturally responsive, and authentic, reflecting the many backgrounds, experiences, cultures, and identities represented by today’s students. Continue reading

Encouraging Literacy in the Youngest Readers with I’ll Build You a Bookcase

Slider Image of all four bilingual editions of I'll Build You a Bookcase to the left of image of people of diverse backgrounds in a park surrounding two bookshelves

Last year, we were thrilled to announce our collaboration with William Penn Foundation and OpenIDEO on the Early Childhood Book Challenge. The winning story, I’ll Build You a Bookcase, releases today!

Written by early literacy specialist and parent educator, Jean Ciborowski Fahey, and illustrated by the award-winning Simone ShinI’ll Build You a Bookcase is for children birth to age 3. Told in simple, sweet rhyme, it celebrates the joy of reading and discovering new stories and is designed to inspire parents and caregivers to read to their child every day.

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Social-Emotional Learning & Diverse Books: One Cannot Exist Without the Other

In this blog post, Katie Potter, Senior Literacy Specialist at Lee & Low Books, offers guidance on curating a social-emotional learning library and reinforces the necessary role that diverse books play in building an SEL collection. This blog post first appeared on  the Center Of Responsive Schools’ Two Sides of the Same Coin

As teachers, we know how difficult it is to explain and define emotions in concrete terms. A situation arises and we grapple with how best to approach it with the students. What are the right words to say that will resonate with them after a disagreement? How do we explain empathy or resolve a student conflict in a way that young people will understand? It can be a challenge to act quickly and make a meaningful impact when there is minimal time to prepare.

This is where books can come into play. By allowing the characters and engaging storyline to do the heavy lifting, books can take the onus off of teachers, presenting to children both the problem and the solution in a safe way that will reverberate with them.

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Black History Month Resources Roundup

For Black History Month, we’ve rounded up some of our favorite resources for readers and educators alike. Though this month is dedicated to uplifting Black history, culture, movements, and gamechangers, we must remember that Black history IS American history and should be celebrated all year round.

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Watch the Webinar: Black Lives Matter in the Classroom

We had the largest virtual turnout ever for last week’s webinar, “Black Lives Matter in the Classroom: A Conversation with Experts” with Laleña Garcia and Caryn Davidson, author and illustrator of What We Believe: A Black Lives Matter Principles Activity Book, and Jesse Hagopian and Denisha Jones, co-authors of Black Lives Matter at SchoolAnd as promised, the recording is finally here! If you missed it live (or just want to watch again), you can access the webinar below, or here on YouTube. Keep reading for links to resources and booklists shared during the webinar.

View the slideshow here. Continue reading

6 Books by Black Creators for Middle School and High School

A couple weeks ago, we shared a list of 12 Picture Books by Black Authors and Illustrators. In this blog post, we’re continuing to highlight books with Black characters by Black creators, but this time for middle school and high school.

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Watch our Webinar with EmbraceRace: Finding and Reading Great Stories with Kids

In this webinar, Literacy Specialist Katie Potter joins EmbraceRace in conversation about how to find and share books that develop kids’ racial and social justice sensibilities and help them become the community members our increasingly multiracial democracy needs. You can watch the recording of the webinar here.

Not sure where to begin your search? Start with these booklists featured in the webinar:

Books that inspire resilience in kids of color
Books that encourage kids of all colors to be inclusive and empathetic
Books that support kids to think critically about racial inequity
Books that animate kids (and adults!) to be racial justice advocates for all kids

About EmbraceRace: EmbraceRace is a multiracial community of parents, teachers, experts, and other caring adults who support each other to meet the challenges that race poses to our children, families, and communities.

Have additional questions or comments? Please leave them below in the comments!

Planning a Virtual Author Visit with Lee and Low Authors

As school and event cancellations continue due to the spread of COVID-19, educators, caregivers, and parents are looking for ways to facilitate learning at home. Breaking up the day with online activities and virtual events can be challenging, but we’re here to offer support in any way we can.

Many of our authors and illustrators do virtual visits and can present to your classroom or library via Zoom, Skype, or another platform. Click here to browse our list of available creators.

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Read Poetry with Students: Poetry Resource Guide for Teachers

Just in time for Poetry Month, we are proud to announce that we have officially relaunched our beloved Poetry Resource Guide! Check out our tips and strategies from renowned poet, educator, and literacy advocate Pat Mora about how to use poetry with students in various educational settings. Dive into creative ways to make poetry fun and engaging for young people, not just during Poetry Month but year-round! Read excerpts from the guide below, as well as some of our new and bestselling poetry titles based on universal themes!

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