Fostering connection through books

We love books! Books inspire us and help us learn more about the world around us.Through books we can dig deeper into subjects we want to learn about and apply what we learn about to what we see in our world.  As a teacher, knowing what everyone is interested in based on the books they choose helps me provide learning opportunities that are engaging to each person, therefore scaffolding their interests and helping them build upon their knowledge of the subject.

                          

A good example of this learning process centers on STB’s love of construction vehicles. For months, he frequently chose books that featured the different types of construction vehicles. As we looked at the pages together he was eager to point out what he saw. Together we worked on expanding what he knew already and adding to his knowledge. We talked about a construction site and what each construction vehicle was used for and how construction workers use the the different machines to get their work done.

When he played outside, he found all the construction vehicles in the yard and mimicked what he saw them doing outside and in books. He filled dump trucks with bark chips and filled the bucket in an excavator with sand. He drove a garbage truck around yard and collected all sorts of items to put into it. When a dump truck came by to visit next door, he was very excited and wanted to see everything it was doing. Every day his fascination about construction vehicles grows.

Books help us come together as a group and connect with each other through the books we are looking at.
During story time each child loves pointing out what they see. Sometimes it can be difficult to remain sitting down as each person eagerly points things out in the book, but it is good practice to learn what it looks like to be part of a group and do things as a group. This is also great practice for taking turns talking and waiting for a person to stop talking before speaking and contributing to the discussion. Through books we can connect on a deeper level as a group and learn more about each other too!