rhythm | Reading With Rhythm

Many years ago when I was a youngster and just getting started in my career as a Library Dog, the Mom Person and I wrote a story about my job duties. We had a conversation with some of the kids about different jobs that dogs have and what kinds of things were expected of me in my role as Canine Librarian.

At this same time, I started visiting the Life Skills classes at the schools. These are classes for kids with special needs so they can learn at their own pace in their own way. I love visiting these kids! One of my favorites was a high school boy with autism named Paul. He liked to draw pictures of me and play ball.(What more could a girl ask for?!)

He was always drawing something. Draw, draw, draw. One day the Mom Person had the brilliant idea of asking Paul to draw pictures to go with our story! So with the help of his art teacher, Mr Haney, Paul went to work. It took him a long time to finish, but it was fun watching it all take shape.

Then the Mom Person thought it would be fun to somehow publish it all! But she wanted to do it soon, before she lost touch with Paul and while I was still around! ( Dogs don’t live forever, you know!) She didn’t know anything about book publishing, but she found a company called Mill City Press that she liked and set the whole thing in motion — and now the book is here!

We had a book party this weekend to celebrate! Lots of friends and family came!

A great time was had by all!!

Reading With Rhythm, The Tale of a Library Dog, can be found at Amazon and Barnes and Noble. And at our local libraries!! Thanks for letting me share!

Kindergarten day today! I sure like these little guys and girls. They really know how to have a good time. I got to pick the book for today and I chose Give the Dog a Bone by Steven Kellogg. Can you guess why I chose this one?! Mr. Kellogg is a real dog lover. And his illustrations are so funny!! This book is a retelling of the song “This Old Man”. Lots of Nick Nack Paddywack — wacky! The book is a little different from the song. A lot more silly. There are chickens and velociraptors and mean men stealing baby chicks and snowmen and dogs and dogs and more dogs. And LOTS of bones! At the end of the book Mr Kellogg tells us that there are 250 dogs in the book!! We didn’t count them all, tho.

The book and the song are all about counting. And silly words. And rhyming. (I like rhyming). And body motion. It’s fun to act out all the things the old man nick nack paddywacks on. Some of the kids knew the song, and some of them had never heard it. I tried to sing a little for them.

It was a good book for kindergarteners. They liked it alot. And most of the words are pretty simple. Silly, but simple.

I think you should check this one out! And then go give your dog a bone!