We are flying far, far, away from the 3rd to 13th August

Posted on July 31, 2013 by My Imagination Kingdom | 0 comments

Dear Readers and My Imagination Kingdom Customers,

 

We are taking a break from the 3rd to the 13th August to recharge and rejuvenate ourselves in order to serve you better. All orders during this period of time will only be processed after the 13th August.

 

We thank you for your understanding and we look forward to meeting you again when we're back!

 

Have a wonderful National Holiday!

 

Regards,

My Imagination Kingdom

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July New Arrivals!

Posted on July 11, 2013 by My Imagination Kingdom | 0 comments

It's back to school again after a month long exploring the world outside the campus! For the month of July, we have gathered an interesting collection of bed-time lullabies, stories about diversity plus an all-time favourite of Richard Scarry! So scroll down now to find out more about what we have in-store for you!  

Books for Children Aged 1+


*Please note that this is a mini-book (4.2 x 0.5 x 5.8 inches)

In this unique and delightful picture book, the story literally unfolds as pages open dramatically, extending both outward and upward. Monica wants the moon to play with, so her Papa sets out to get it for her. It isn't easy to climb all the way up to the moon, but he finally succeeds -- only to find that the moon is too big to carry home! The way in which this problem is solved is a joyful surprise.

Here is a multi-faceted story that appeals to children visually, verbally and emotionally, and which also contains a first lesson in natural history, depicting the eternal cycle of the waxing and waning of the moon. The simple text, just right for reading aloud or for the beginning reader expresses perfectly the purity of a father's love for his child. Small readers will empathize with Monica"s longing for the moon, and will be reassured by her father's willingness to try to make her wish come true. And, on a deeper level, they will recognize that Papa is not merely fulfilling Monica's whim, but is demonstrating to her that even a seemingly unreachable goal can actually be attained. Papa, Please Get the Moon for Me is a book to be re-read many times, and to be treasured for its beauty and its positive message of love and inspiration.



Embark on a dreamy night-time jaunt with a young boy and the Moon. Overcoming a fear of the dark and discovering the world at night are at the heart of this poetic tale. It includes notes about the moon and plants and animals that thrive in the wee hours.


 

Books for Children Aged 2+


One day three white mice discover three jars of paint--red, blue, and yellow. Both parents and children alike will appreciate this lighthearted presentation of a lesson in color. “Walsh’s cut-paper collage illustrations have bold colors and just the right simplicity for the storyline. A real charmer that’s great fun as well as informative.”



 

Books for Children Aged 3+


“Little one, / whoever you are, / wherever you are, / there are little ones / just like you / all over the world.” So begins the Australian author Mem Fox’s joyful picture book Whoever You Are, a celebration of the world’s diverse cultures, both our similarities and differences. Leslie Straub’s innovative, colorful, folk art–style oil paintings of children from all corners of the globe are bordered with photographs of hand-carved, bejeweled frames—and they all reflect Fox’s message that no matter where we come from, within our hearts “Joys are the same, / and love is the same. / Pain is the same, / and blood is the same.” A gem!




 

Books for Children Aged 4+


The Family Book celebrates the love we feel for our families and all the different varieties they come in. Whether you have two moms or two dads, a big family or a small family, a clean family or a messy one, Todd Parr assures readers that no matter what kind of family you have, every family is special in its own unique way.

Parr's message about the importance of embracing our differences is delivered in a playful way. With his trademark bold, bright colors and silly scenes, this book will encourage children to ask questions about their own families. Perfect for young children just beginning to read, The Family Book is designed to encourage early literacy, enhance emotional development, celebrate multiculturalism, promote character growth, and strengthen family relationships.


 


An illustrated panorama of the animals of Busytown at work, describing the occupations and activities of many of her citizens through detailed drawings with labels indicating processes and equipment used as they perform their jobs.



 

Books for Children Aged 5+

One fine day, from out of town--and without any warning at all--a magic hat appears in the sky. It tumbles and bounces through the air and makes magic wherever it lands. Everyone is delighted as, one by one, the townspeople are transformed into giant playful animals. And then a wizard arrives. . . . 

With irresistible rhyming language and bright, whimsical illustrations, this perfect read-aloud by internationally acclaimed author Mem Fox will weave its way into the hearts of young children everywhere.

Winter's gray chill has set in and everyone misses the sun-especially the baker.  So she decides to bring some warmth to the town by making sun bread.  And as the bread bakes, rising hot and delicious, everyone comes out to share in its goodness.  Everyone, including the sun itself.  With a lilting, rhyming text, colorful illustrations, and a recipe for baking your own sun bread, this tasty treat from the illustrator of the best-selling Abuela is just right for all ages to enjoy.


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Reading Aloud With Mummy Bloggers #2: Winnie & EV & AA from Toddly Mummy

Posted on July 09, 2013 by My Imagination Kingdom | 0 comments

 

 

 

As promised in our last edition of ‘Reading Aloud With Mummy Bloggers’, today, we are extremely pleased to share with you our interview with Toddly Mummy!

 

Here’s a little self-introduction from our guest, Winnie

I'm a born-again drama-mama and creative extraordinaire. I've never considered myself to have much talent in those areas. However, I've learnt that motherhood makes you discover talents you've never expected yourself to have. I work full time and spend the evenings home learning and reading with my kids.


I blog at Toddly Mummy, where I share my thoughts on parenting, fun learning moments of our home learning sessions and our outdoor adventures. I sometimes share about our favourite food too.


I have a crazy love for red bean and I don't like coffee, chilli, chips or chocolate (??!!??). Coincidentally, all starting with the letter C. I love carrots though, and cucumber, and cake.


1. Tell us more about yourself and what you do. 

I'm a full time working mum who used to be a journalist and public relations specialist. Now I'm an educator with a special interest in early childhood literacy. In the evenings, I'm on my second shift, when I home learn or read with my kids.


2. Tell us more about EV and AA!

EV is a bubbly chatterbox of three years old who loves her books, painting, blowing bubbles and doing crazy pretend play with mummy. 

AA is a cheeky one year old explorer who is developing an early love for books, drawing and playing tricks on grown ups.


3. As a Jolly Phonics practitioner yourself and a mother who actively engages EV in home learning, how important do you think reading aloud to EV is in her development journey? How has it helped her? 

I believe that reading aloud is part of a journey to developing a child’s appreciation of books and makes the stories come alive. Listening to stories being read aloud helps develop a child’s literacy, by increasing the kids' awareness of letter sounds (also known as phonemic awareness), rhythm and the way words sound. It also helps in print awareness, that is, understanding that the printed letters and words are representations of what is being spoken, and that pages are read from top to bottom, left to right.

As a strong believer in the importance of reading aloud in the development of literacy, I do pay attention to the way I read, making sure that I pronounce each word carefully and clearly. For example. I would make sure that I pronounce the 'th' in 'three', and when saying 'cat', I would sound the last sound 't' too, so that it does not end up as 'ca'.

Such strategies not only help a child’s reading skills, but also speaking skills. EV started reading independently (http://toddlymummy.blogspot.sg/2012/11/starting-on-road-to-literacy.html) when she was two, and by three, she was able to speak in full sentences and engage in simple conversations. At one and a half years old, AA has also begun to speak words, such as ‘apple’, ‘clock’ and ‘cat’.


4. When did you first start reading to EV? What was your experience like when you first started?

I personally love books, and i wanted to inculcate that love in my kids too. Since EV was six months old, both daddy and I have been reading aloud to her daily. Generally, daddy tends to focus on English books, while I read both English and Chinese books. It is a special bonding time for us as working parents, and we look forward to it every day. Every night, we would sit back, relax and enjoy a book. It could be a simple English tale about a busy spider, or Chinese nursery rhymes. Till today, EV still looks forward to this nightly story time, which has become a family affair.

Between daddy and mummy, mummy is the more dramatic one, often using different voice levels and tones when reading aloud. I adopt different ‘voices’ when reading the lines of different characters too. Combine that with some puppet play and the kids will be chuckling and giggling. Such acting out brings the stories alive for EV and AA, and I believe helped create a love for books.

 

5. Did you face any challenges in keeping EV engaged when you’re reading to her? What tips would you give our readers to help them become better at reading aloud to their children?

Thankfully, we have not faced much issues in keeping EV engaged when reading aloud to her, as it has become a must-do every night. Even AA is beginning to expect it every night before he sleeps. However, kids being kids, they do love exploring at this age, and there are times when they would be attracted by other things, or simply become bored with the books. What we do is to read to them in the same area every night, on a cosy mattress on our bedroom floor. It is familiar territory and minimizes the chances of them being distracted.

 

6. How would you advise our readers to go about using reading to improve their child’s literacy skills? Give us 3 things they can do.

Literacy is more than just reading. Being able to read does not mean that the child has the capability to understand the story. Having phonological awareness does not mean that the child can understand the word or even use it. To gain literacy skills, the child needs to be able to understand the word, be able to comprehend the plot and therefore the story, know that the story has a narrative structure from beginning to end, have print awareness and know that text goes from left to right, understand that different fonts on the cover indicate the title and author of the book, and be able to relate stories to their personal lives.

Visual literacy, or the ability to understand how visuals and images relate to the story, is equally important. More than just the text, the child needs to learn to ‘read’ the visual cues he sees in a book and understand them. For example, when we read the book Jonathan & Martha by Petr Horacek, the cover showed two worms eating from both sides of a pear. We did a short discussion of what we thought of that image, with questions like ‘whose names are Jonathan and Martha’ and ‘why are the worms on both sides of the pear’ and so on. This helps develop an understanding how visuals are related to a story.

Here are some fun ways to build literacy skills (http://toddlymummy.blogspot.sg/2012/11/starting-on-road-to-literacy.html).

 

- tell the story by describing the pictures, rather than read word for word. In this way, the child can see that a story can be told in many ways. Ask questions like ‘what do you think happens next’ to prompt the child’s thoughts and develop visual literacy.

- create crafts related to the story. Some crafts we did include a duck paper craft inspired by Eric Carle's The Ten Ducklings (http://toddlymummy.blogspot.sg/2012/03/craft-fun-10-little-rubber-ducks-paper.html).

- make it relevant to the real world. For example, stand in front of a tree and describe the different parts of it. We did that after reading The Giving Tree by Shel Silverstein. We also went in search of shapes in nature, after reading The Perfect Square by Michael Hall.

Having reading skills is important, but even more precious is understanding the story and loving it, loving books. Most importantly though, is that parents have to demonstrate a love for books too with a reading habit that kids can model after.

 

 

7. How do you go about picking books for EV? Are there any resources or places you go to on the web for recommendations or reviews?

I generally choose beautifully illustrated books with simple storylines, rhymes and vocabulary. Some of the authors we like include Eric Carle, Julia Donaldson and Leo Lionni. Where possible, we also read the Chinese versions of these pleasurable tales. The National Library is a great source for such books.

 

8. Since you do home learning for EV, do you try to pick books for EV that fit into your teaching curriculum for her? If so, can you list some examples of how you have done that?

I like to pick books that fit into our home learning curriculum where possible. For example, in November last year, we read books that started with the letters P, Q, R, S and T (http://toddlymummy.blogspot.sg/2012/11/fun-with-p-q-r-s-t.html), as we went through the alphabets. When we headed to Hong Kong in December, we also did a tot book about the Chinese city.

 

9. What inspired you to start the “My Favourite Children’s Author” series on your blog?

I started this series because I believe that parents have their favourite authors that they love to share with their children. At the same time, they can also share related fun activities that they have done as an extension of the authors’ books.

 

10. Finally, despite all the efforts and time that is needed to make reading to EV and AA a regular activity, we know it must be a rewarding experience for you nevertheless. What do you enjoy most about reading to EV and AA?

I am very happy that EV, as well as AA, enjoy our reading and home learning sessions. The bonding that we have during these times is simply heartwarming and beautiful, and it is really wonderful to watch EV learn. Often times, things may not go according to what I planned. However, I look forward to seeing the bright spark in her eyes when she has that ‘aha!’ moment, or her delightful laughter as she engages in the stories, everyday, not to mention all the hugs and kisses.


 

Thanks Winnie for sharing with us your wonderful journey in reading to EV and AA! Check out Winnie's blog here: http://toddlymummy.blogspot.sg/ and stay tuned for future editions of Reading Aloud With Mummy Bloggers!

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