Families have a lot going on. When you’re trying to raise a reader, summer can be a tough time (although the data about summer learning loss is inconsistent). Plenty of kids want to fling their bookbag into the back of the closet and never crack a cover for the next ninety days. Without the structure […]
I first fell in love with the work of Matthew Cordell when I read his 2018 Caldecott acceptance speech for Wolf in the Snow, followed by the book itself. Cordell says, On the other end of this human spectrum, children rather terrified me. With their keen, sometimes brutal insightfulness, their unpredictability, and their unrelenting energy. […]
Jefferson-Madison Regional Library kicked off its summer reading challenge on June 1. The challenge runs through August 8th. Racking up reading minutes gives readers a chance to come to the library and pick out two books of their own (one book for every 500 minutes read). Today, I logged minutes for four members of our […]
At this time of year, the weeds are the ground cover of a garden and it’s a joy to see green spread and cover the brown patches of winter. Perhaps a better word for weeds is wildflowers or wild plants or uncultivated plants or even “volunteers,” a term usually reserved in gardening for a purposely […]
Early spring is the perfect time to go foraging in your garden. Today, I foraged chickweed and dandelion flowers and greens. The chickweed is simple: clip it (rather than pulling up from the roots), wash it (I like to use a vinegar water soak), and bag it with a few paper towels to absorb moisture. […]
Rachel Vogus' Habits and Hobbies 