Book Recommendations for ages 5-8+

As you've likely noticed, blogging has taken a back seat to life this past year.  A lot has changed!  One quick update is we are expecting girl #6 in June!  Yes, another girl, and we couldn't be more thrilled!

One of the questions I get asked a lot is what books my girls have enjoyed reading and that we would recommend.  It is so hard as a parent to keep ahead of your kids once their reading takes off!  Which books and series are suitable and appropriate for their ages?  I have searched high and low for a good book recommendation site (kind of like pluggedinonline for movies, but for books), but so far I haven't found one.  If you know of one, please let me know!  It would be great to have a searchable site with some details about content, etc.

Since I haven't found something yet, I rely on word-of-mouth recommendations from friends I trust.  When picking up a new book, I also read the back, try to scan a few pages throughout the book, and then hand it over to my oldest with the qualifications of "you know what is appropriate--let me know if this book is okay". So far she has demonstrated good judgment, we've had some good conversations about topics that are starting to come up in the "tween" books, and some books we decide to skip. Then she can recommend them to the younger girls! ;-)

I have done a couple of other posts in the past with books we have read and recommend, and you can see those here and here.  I won't repeat those recommendations again here, so be sure to check out those links for other good book choices.

Since I did those last two posts awhile ago, there have been MANY more books the girls have read individually or that we have read together as read-alouds.  So it is high time for a new post! Here is a list of books and series that I have tried to group into rough age groups, but you can certainly go outside these age ranges. 

Early Readers and Short Chapter Books (ages 5-8, or as read-alouds to younger kids)

• Chronicles of Narnia "I Can Read" early readers--a good introduction to Narnia for younger kids, or for them to read on their own. 

• Amelia Bedelia Chapter books--Everyone loves Amelia Bedelia, and now there's a new series of chapter books about Amelia when she was young!  

• Henry and Mudge (a boy and his dog), Annie and Snowball (a girl and her bunny, also with Henry and Mudge), Brownie and Pearl (a girl and her cat), and Mr. Putter and Tabby (an old man and his cat) 

• Arthur Chapter books--Arthur and his friends have adventures in elementary school.  Check the content of these for what you think is appropriate for your kids' ages.  

• Mercy Watson series--Mercy is a pig (a porcine wonder!) who has all sorts of funny adventures, and loves toast with a great deal of butter on it! 

• Berenstain Bears Chapter books--there are "First Time Chapter Books" and "BIG chapter books", about 85-105 pages.  Check the content.

There's more to come!  Stay tuned for more posts with longer chapter books for ages 6-9 and 8-10+!

Do you have any recommendations to share?  

I'd love to hear them!  

FREE Harriet Tubman Animated DVD from Nest

Register at NestLearning.com to receive a FREE animated DVD about Harriet Tubman. You will also get a free downloadable Harriet Tubman activity and coloring book. We have seen several of the other movies in this series, and our girls like them, so I was really excited about this freebie!

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MakaziVille: Online Missionary Game

I discovered a free online game last week that I can't wait to share with you! It is called MakaziVille and I found it through the Duggar Family website. I know it was God who led me to this game at this time. We are currently studying Africa in our homeschooling, so when I saw the link to the game, I was so excited and I checked it out right away.

In MakaziVille, your child travels to Tanzania as a Bible translator and builds up a village including tents, churches, gardens, hospitals, markets, and more! They complete challenges and devotions to earn coins and points used to purchase things needed for the village, and along the way they learn about another culture and translating the Bible into other languages. You as the parent will get email updates about what your child is learning, and there are a few breakout challenges that get emailed to you that your child will need to complete before entering a code to get their reward.My 5 year-old likes to play the game with help from me, but my 7 and 8 year-olds can navigate the game themselves. There are a limited number of challenges that can be done each day, which can help limit game time. Another plus--there are no banner ads that kids can click on to accidentally bring them to another website. There is a leader board option where kids can add their friends' avatars to see their stats, which could add another component of friendly competition. :-) The game was developed by OneVerse, an affiliate of Wycliffe Bible Translators, in cooperation with the Duggar Family. So far we are loving it! If you try it, let me know what you and your kids think!

Giveaway Winner

Congratulations to Mary Anne, the winner of Money Saving Mom's book! Thanks to everyone who entered! And thanks again to Crystal for the opportunity to review her book. For the other 127 people who entered but didn't win, you can get Crystal's book The Money Saving Mom's Budget on Amazon, either paperback for $11.09 or on Kindle for $9.99. You could even use your gift cards earned through Swagbucks and get it for free! ;-)

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Burger King: FREE Fries Friday

Celebrate Free Fries Friday at Burger King! Get FREE fries at Burger King on Friday, December 16th, no purchase necessary! One value size fries per person.

50% off Alex Craft Kits Today

Today on Amazon, get 50% off craft kits by Alex Toys! Orders made today will still arrive by Christmas with free super saver shipping. I love crafty consumables as Christmas gifts for the girls.