books to spark imagination
Ages 2 - 12
I once entertained a group of four teenage boys for close to an hour just by passing out these three books. Unfortunately, it was in a church meeting and the sniggering (and occasional outbursts of laughter) were not entirely appropriate!
Ages 3 to 8
The Gift by Michael Speechley is an all around beautiful book that speaks on loss, grief, connection, healing and the beauty that is all around us if we simply look for it.
Ages 2 to 10
This book pretty much requires young readers to pick a side. It’s a fabulous, fun introduction to the art of the real Picasso and Matisse—lots of brilliant illustrations and funny lines.
Ages 2 to 8
Learning to navigate the pressures of life and discovering who they want to become is something that all children have to face, and it can be tough. Being You Is Enough is wonderfully empowering book that helps teach essential truths that all children need to hear.
Things go amusingly awry when a monster writes a letter to his cousin Fred. The letter is accidentally delivered to the little boy under whose bed Fred lives.
A perfect book for helping children and grown ups face their fears and find ways to help each other.
Spring is beautiful in Australians. Beautiful and terrifying! You can be happily walking down the street, a street you walk down every day, and then suddenly silent black and white wings of death attack you from above! That’s right, Magpie Season!
Ages 2 - 9
At the moment they are fascinated with the book Moonwalkers by Matthew Greenwood and Terry Denton. It’s quite a long book but the story and illustrations keep them interested time after time.
When I think of picture books my thoughts always go to the story, which is funny considering we call them ‘picture’ books. But the artwork has a huge impact on our emotions and impressions when reading a picture book, adding depth and feeling. Talking about the artwork is so useful for developing emotional intelligence
ages 2 to 10
ages 2 to 8 years
Feeling lost, unwelcome or out of place is one of childhood’s certainties. They’re feelings that will come to every child in one measure or another. Teens, of course, continue to have those feelings, and so do adults. For displaced people, regardless of age, those feelings are frequently more than an emotional reaction—they can be the cold hard facts of life. Beegu is a displaced alien child who....
ages 3 to 8 years
When I was in my early 20’s I was privileged to teach English in China, an amazing experience filled with people, culture and experiences. And I got to visit the Beijing Zoo.
I had no real interest in the zoo itself, but I’d always wanted to see a panda. So in 42-degree heat and what felt like 110% humidity I made my way across Beijing. And … it was rather disappointing. The panda WAS cute, but
ages 2 to 5 years
Ivy has been obsessed with dance over the last six months—she wants to watch, read, do and live dance. It started when she saw the movie Ballerina and, although I think she might be almost ready to move on, these three books have had a good workout!
As you can probably tell from some of my other posts, we LOVE making/creating/experimenting at home. Besides being great fun, our crafty times educate, strengthen relationships and encourage communication and vocabulary—plus they're great for fine motor skills.
I’m always on the lookout for new inspiration and, although there are millions of activities on offer on the internet, I prefer to use books. ..... this one is chock full of boredom busters, crafts, games and simple science—there's no end of inspiration
ages newborn to 8 years
It’s nice, especially on cool, dark nights, to think about how wonderful it is to dream. To dream about our friends and fun, or dream about places we have never been, or about our hopes and dreams. Dreams that beckon and entice us to a deep and peaceful sleep.
Dream Animals: A Bedtime Journey is just the book for that kind of night. Arrays of ‘animals from long ago’ come to help children on the way to their dreams.
ages 2 to 6 years, up to pre-teen for the books
Ivy and Angus love making music and even though it can get loud—overwhelmingly loud—I love it too, because I know it makes them happy. They do have some simple percussion toys, but they prefer to pull out all the pots and pans or make random objects into drums.
On a recent rainy day, we decided to use some of our unlimited collection of cardboard tubes to make music shakers. If you're looking for an activity that's interesting, fun and
ages 3 to 7 years
Few things are more exciting for children than receiving mail—just for them. The joy of knowing that someone is thinking of you and the excitement of finding out what’s inside makes checking the mailbox a treat. The Jolly Postman combines that with the fun of fairytales!
This was one of my favourite books growing up and it's still a hit whenever I read it aloud.
ages 0 - 6 years
Spring is finally here and while it's still quite cold in Tasmania, the sun is out and we're loving being outside. I'm always on the lookout for new ways to make mess and have fun with the kids, especially outdoors, and found a bit of inspiration while spring cleaning the shed—a shallow plastic container that looked like the perfect size for a mud farm.
I'd had my eye on a muddy farm sensory play activity from The Imagination Tree for a while, so thought I'd give it a try, with minor adjustments to this original recipe:
ages 4 to 10 years
Sometimes we just need an adventure, where we get to try new things, see new places, learn, grow and test our limits. Mostly our adventures are quite small and close to home, but sometimes they're really BIG, taking us to far-off places and distant lands.
Sir Charlie Stinky Socks is a bold brave Knight and one day he decides that it’s time for a really BIG adventure. So
ages 4 to infinity
Everything leading up to our moving was, as it always is, hectic and messy. We didn’t get to do everything we'd have liked before we left, but we did get to visit GOMA’s 10 year anniversary exhibit.
GOMA is one of Ivy’s and my favourite places, we miss it. On our last (final) visit, we bought this fantastic book, 10 Ways to Make Art, from the shop:
ages 2 to 8 years
Sometimes a book with joyful pictures that takes just a few minutes to read can take on extra meaning when read in light of world events. The Fantastic Recipe Machine is like that. It’s about little robots in a factory, turning out unexpected results from funny mixes of ingredients....
ages 2 to 5 years old
My junior kindy kids love these bear-books! We found one of them in a bookshelf at kindy and I raided the bookshelves at home for the others. (The big appeal is that they're ‘scary bear’ books.) And then, because bears became so popular, I went on the hunt for more (They’re not all scary, but they are all great!).
Reading books like these is so important ..... they allow children to encounter a range of emotions
ages 2 to 8 years
Do your little ones have imaginary friends? Some of mine did. It was cute to hear them chatting away to someone invisible—less cute when I once had to wait in the rain because an imaginary friend called Minga had to get in the car first and then took her own sweet time about buckling up her seatbelt! There are lots of good reasons to enjoy the imaginary friend stage, one being...
ages 0 to 7 years
I love it when Ivy says something like ‘remember when we went to that park, that was so cool!’ I love it because we're usually just driving away from the park at the time! She re-tells all the wonderful things that happened, even though I was there the whole time and it was only 20 minutes ago. The talking is lovely and draws us closer together...
ages 4 years to grownup
There’s an architect’s sensibility running through this book—probably because both author and illustrator trained as architects. It has a feel for space and design that's modern yet classic, a bit like an excursion to a modern art gallery. Simple shapes become
ages newborn to 8 years
That's William at playgroup, all dressed up as a pirate and asking: “Who will be my crew?” And, when William's dad was five or six-years-old, he used to leap on to the lounge chair asking exactly the same question:
ages newborn to adult
A board-book all time favourite that invites complex, moral, metaphorical reasoning—and makes you laugh! About a unique relationship between a boy and a duck—is it exploitative or is it synergistic?
Funny bedtime reading that says: “we love books, you and I, and we know how to use them.” Perfect for booklovers who already know that books can be read anywhere in any way + for reluctant readers who need something to inspire without preaching.
ages 2 to 8 years
Ages 3 - 10
A fun book that teaches mistakes can become a thing of beauty when approached with the right attitude. The perfect gift for any child that struggles with imperfection.