Currently located in our school's library, we have a small collection of titles that may be of interest to you as a parent. Many of the books have been selected by teachers and others have been recommended by parents, there is even a video. All of the books and videos are exceptional and focus on a variety of parenting and educational subjects. The next time you are at school, browse through them and check out one to take home with you. If you see a title below that you are interested in but you can't find the time to get to the library, email us and we'll send it home with your child (if it hasn't already been checked out). The partial list below is arranged alphabetically by title.

Books

• 365 TV-Free Activities You Can Do With Your Child
  by Steve and Ruth Bennett
  This book, as the title states, is a compilation of alternative activities you and your children can do instead of watching TV. Recent research has shown that the violent and sexual role models that American media offers is detrimental to children's physical as well as emotional health. Turning off the TV or limiting its use is helpful but needs to be balanced with active and healthy alternatives. If you want to limit the media's influence on your child's growth, this book may help.

• The Adopted One: An Open Family Book for Parents and Children Together
  by Sara Bonnett Stein, 1979
  

• Best Books for Children: A Lively, Opinionated Guide
  by Valerie V. Lexis and Walter M. Mayes, 1998
  Vicki donated this wonderful annotated listing of recommended children's books.

• Choosing Excellence
  by John Merrow
  This book describes what a school needs to exhibit in order to be more than just "good enough." It gives parents specific things to look for to determine if a school is providing an excellent education for their children. Chimacum's Parent Book Club read this selection and found it to be very thought-provoking. The list of questions to ask about schools at the end of each chapter were especially appreciated and led to long discussions and comparisons. The group liked this book so much that they bought a copy for each of the school board members.

• Drawing With Children: A Creative Teaching and Learning Method That Works for Adults, Too
  by Mona Brooks
  With state-mandated standardized testing often leading to standardized curriculum and an emphasis on "the three R's" in public schools, many parents worry that their children's artistic and creative talents are not being nurtured enough. This book offers one way to help.

• The Explosive Child: A New Approach for Understanding and Parenting Easily Frustrated, "Chronically Inflexible" Children
  by Ross W. Greene
  This 1998 book was donated by Susan de Rochefort.

• Eyeopeners 2: Children's Books to Answer Children's Questions About the World Around Them
  by Beverly Kobrin, 1995
  This guide focuses on non-fiction children's books.

• Families Writing
  by Peter R. Stillman, 1989
  This treasure of a book describes how you can incorporate family writing activities to record family stories and events. Anonymous donation, thank you!

• How to Get Your Child to Love Reading
  by Esme' Raji Codell, 2003 (autographed 1st edition)
  This wonderful book is packed full of activities, lists of suggested books, and ideas for both "...ravenous and reluctant readers."

• Learning All The Time
  by John Holt
  Published in 1989, this book discusses how adults can encourage the process of young children learning to read, write, and count at home everyday.

• Love and Anger: The Parental Dilemma
  by Nancy Samalin and Catherine Whitney
  This 1991 book was donated by Susan de Rochefort and was a Child Magazine Book Award Winner. It is, "An honest look at how children can drive the most loving parent to periodic madness, along with practical suggestions for how to cope."

• Math for Smarty Pants
  by Marilyn Burns
  The author of this book is a guru in the world of mathematics for elementary aged children. In Math for Smarty Pants she helps children have fun while learning to see the logic and patterns embedded in mathematical concepts. Working through this book together, you and your child are bound to make some discoveries about math and probably even change the way you view your math-self.

• Punished by Rewards: The Trouble with Gold Stars, Incentive Plans, A's, Praise, and other Bribes
  by Alfie Kohn
  This book deals with the subject of motivation. It is very thought-provoking and led to some interesting discusions when the Parents' Book Club read it. If you are interested in raising children who do things for reasons other than just to get a reward, you would enjoy this book.

• The Read-Aloud Handbook
  by Jim Trelease
  This is a wonderful timeless book that will help you to help your child become a better reader easily and effortlessly. We have several editions of this book.

• Reading Magic: Why Reading Aloud to Our Children Will Change Their Lives Forever
  by Mem Fox
  This Australian author advocates reading aloud to children from the moment they are born. Her book is fun to read and will probably change your view on the importance of reading aloud to your child.

• Read to Me: Raising Kids Who Love to Read
  by Bernice Cullinan
  Yet another book about how reading to your child helps them become good readers themselves. This book includes chapters with age-specific information and suggested books to read aloud.

• Raising Cain: Protecting the Emotional Life of Boys
  by Dan Kindlon and Michael Thompson
  If you have a son and want to do the best you can for him as he grows, this is a "must read!" When I read it I found I hared to put it down, I highly reccomend it (Russ).

• Reviving Ophelia: Saving the Selves of Adolescent Girls
  by Mary Pipher
  Girls can have a very difficult time ahead of them just to get through adolescence - much different than their mothers experienced. If you have a preadolescent daughter, being aware of what may lie ahead can help you be proactive. This is another book that I highly recommend (Russ).

• The I Hate Mathematics! Book
  by Marily Burns
  Math can be loads of fun and this book shows kids how. If your child is skeptical that the words math and fun can be used in the same sentence, then you might try doing some of the activities in this book together... and have fun :-)

• The Schools Our Chldren Deserve: Moving Beyond Traditional Classrooms and "Tougher Standards"
  by Alfie Kohn
  This is one of my favorite books about education written in recent years. If you have heard the saying, "Standardized tests equal standardized minds," and want more for your child. If you understand that every child is unique with highly individual talents and their own distinctive path to success, then you will find this book a very refreshing and interesting alternative to the rhetoric coming from politicians and the media (Russ).

• Tools for Understanding: Multiage Classrooms
  This pamphlet was published by the Washington state Center for the Improvement of Student Learning and explains how and why multiage classrooms work.

• Why Was I Adopted? The Facts of Adoption with Love and Illustrations
  by Carole Livingston, 1990
  This is a children's book to read and discuss together with your child.

• Word Works: Why the Alphabet is a Kid's Best Friend
  by Cathryn Berger Kaye
  This book is about language, reading, and writing. It is full of discussion and activities that you can work through with your budding author so that you become better users of the English language together.

• You Can't Come to My Birthday Party! Conflict Resolution with Young Children
  by Betsy Evans, 2002
  Written for teachers and parents, this book describes a process to turn young children's conflicts into learning experiences.

• Honoring Diversity: The Multiage Classroom
  filmed and produced by Mike Coffey
  This informative video is a documentary about multiage educational philosophy, theory, and practices. Russ' Chimacum classroom (before he came to Swan School) is one of three featured. It was filmed early in 2002.