Hello there, reader. We have a sneaking suspicion that because you’re here today, you may enjoy reading books… And that’s great, because we love books, too! Of course, the only thing better than buying a new book for yourself is buying a book for your favorite book lover. But which books make great gifts? We’ve gathered together a shopping list of some books that will …
During the fall season, there’s nothing quite like finding a good book, curling up on a cozy couch, diving into the pages, and then… hurling said book across the room in terror! Halloween might be the climax of the spooky season, but scaring each other with ghost stories is something we can enjoy all throughout the year. But first, you’ll need to find something bone-chilling …
If you were a ’90s kid, you probably got spooked by R.L. Stine’s Goosebumps books. These terrifying books lurked in every library and book fair just waiting to scare unsuspecting readers. But if you were a true Goosebumps fan, your monster blood coursed through your veins, and you knew to be more concerned than usual at the sight of a ventriloquist dummy. (Yikes!) Bravely step …
If you’re anything like us—and hello, you’re here, reading this—you’re probably a book lover. Whether those to-read piles on the brink of teetering over are yours or your bestie’s, parent’s, or partner’s, we’re not here to judge the unread stacks. But when it comes to the great responsibility of sharing the love of books through gifts, there are so many options beyond books themselves. To …
Ever heard of typoglycemia? Even if you haven’t, chances are you’ll recognize one of the viral puzzles used to demonstrate the phenomenon. Starting around 2003, an email began to circulate claiming that scrambled English words are just as easy to read as the original words. However, as interesting as the original email was, it didn’t actually tell the whole truth. There’s more to scrambled words than …
When you come across an unfamiliar word while reading, how do you try to understand its meaning? Chances are you use context clues—even if you’ve never heard of that term. Faced with a sea of unfamiliar words, beginning readers learn many techniques for decoding words and expanding their vocabularies. Teachers use the term decoding to refer to the ability to see a written word and read it …
By Lindsay Barrett If you have an early reader and writer in your life, you’ve likely heard of “sight words.” What are they, why do kids need to learn them, and how can you help without inciting groans of boredom? Here are the basics you need to know, and a handy list of fun practice activities that will have kids too busy moving and creating …
By Lyndsey Gresehover As an English/Language Arts and Reading teacher and blogger for almost two decades, the word gap is a fretful phrase that I hear all too often in education. But the real question is … does it really exist? What is the word gap? This idea came from a study done in the 1990s by two psychologists, Betty Hart and Todd Risley, where …
One of the foundational reading skills that most children learn in early elementary or primary school is how to decode words. While decode sounds like something spies do, decoding is actually the ability to see a written word and read it aloud. This process is often known familiarly as being able to sound out words when reading. Sound complicated? It’s not, we swear! Plus we’re …
