Shows
Ministry of IdeasChild's PlayWe shouldn’t be dismissive of the popularity of children’s literature among adults, as it is often in these works of fiction that powerful themes such as death, love, and virtue are most deeply and imaginatively explored.Guests
Christina Phillips Mattson, Scholar of Children’s Literature
Casper ter Kuile, Ministry Innovation Fellow at Harvard Divinity
School and co-host of Harry Potter and the Sacred Text
MG Prezioso, Contributing writer for Harvard Political Review
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
2023-01-1329 min
New Books in Popular CultureChild's Play: The Seriousness of Children's LiteratureWe shouldn’t be dismissive of the popularity of children’s literature among adults, as it is often in these works of fiction that powerful themes such as death, love, and virtue are most deeply and imaginatively explored.Guests
Christina Phillips Mattson, Scholar of Children’s Literature
Casper ter Kuile, Ministry Innovation Fellow at Harvard Divinity
School and co-host of Harry Potter and the Sacred Text
MG Prezioso, Contributing writer for Harvard Political Review
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoicesSupport our show by becoming a premium member...
2023-01-1329 min
New Books in Children's LiteratureChild's Play: The Seriousness of Children's LiteratureWe shouldn’t be dismissive of the popularity of children’s literature among adults, as it is often in these works of fiction that powerful themes such as death, love, and virtue are most deeply and imaginatively explored.Guests
Christina Phillips Mattson, Scholar of Children’s Literature
Casper ter Kuile, Ministry Innovation Fellow at Harvard Divinity
School and co-host of Harry Potter and the Sacred Text
MG Prezioso, Contributing writer for Harvard Political Review
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
2023-01-1329 min
Exquisitely Ever AfterEpisode 20: (Special Episode!) Ask Me Anything - Your Questions, Answered!In this special final episode of Season 2, I answer YOUR questions about children’s literature and reading to children. We cover topics such as the importance of reading in the Early Years; what books will hook an 9-year-old reader; how to prepare a child for the arrival of a new baby; and how to teach your child to read using early reader books. Happy Reading and I’m looking forward to talking to you in Season 3! Click HERE for the TRANSCRIPT, the FULL LIST OF BOOKS mentioned in this episode, and all FREE PRINTABLES.
2020-12-2235 minExquisitely Ever AfterEpisode 19: The Twelve BOOKS of ChristmasOn the first day of Christmas my true love gave to me, a gorgeous stack of books beneath the tree! We’re counting down to Christmas with 12 of my family’s favorite Christmas books. In this episode, we discuss the best Christmas books for children, from board books for infants and toddlers to picture books preschoolers and kindergarteners. I also recommend a couple of interactive Christmas picture books to read with your child, as well as some classic Christmas picture books—and some twists on classic Christmas picture books—for the whole family to enjoy. Click HERE for the TRANSCRIP...
2020-12-1739 minExquisitely Ever AfterEpisode 18: Owl At Home and Good Night Owl (Bedtime Book Series: Part 3)In this third installment of our Bedtime Book Series, we are discussing two excellent, engaging, brain-building bedtime books in tandem: Arnold Lobel’s Owl At Home and Greg Pizzoli’s Good Night Owl because one has directly influenced the other. We talk about how Greg Pizzoli found inspiration in many of the amusing scenarios, cozy illustrations, and even some of the turns of phrase that are found in Arnold Lobel’s collection of stories about his Owl. Drawing attention to the connection between books is not only interesting and fun to do as a reader, but it’s also a good way...
2020-12-1133 minExquisitely Ever AfterEpisode 17: Best Books About ShapesToday’s episode is all about shapes! Learning about shapes is foundational to your child’s cognitive development; by teaching your children about shapes from an early age, you are helping: to augment their communication skills, to develop their pre-reading and writing skills, to enhance their creative skills, to develop their logical thinking skills through sorting, and to give them an understanding of the basics of geometry. In this episode, we discuss concept books that will help you teach your younger children to identify and label shapes as well as books for your older children that simply have fun with s...
2020-12-0344 minExquisitely Ever AfterEpisode 16: You Belong Here (Bedtime Book Series: Part 2)One of the tests of a book for me is: Do I see myself giving this book to someone I love and admire? And if so, will their child also love it and benefit from it? You Belong Here, a picture book in verse written by M. H. Clark and illustrated by Isabelle Arsenault easily passes that test and so it’s one of my go-to books to give to expecting parents and grandparents or any person who is just so excited to give a child that sense of belonging. This is the bedtime book that I read to both...
2020-11-1923 minExquisitely Ever AfterEpisode 15: Goodnight Moon (Bedtime Book Series: Part 1)There is no other book more closely associated with bedtime in children’s literature than Goodnight Moon, by Margaret Wise Brown and illustrated by Clement Hurd, which is why it is our first choice for our Bedtime Book Series. In today’s episode, we talk about why Goodnight Moon isn’t just an academic favorite, but how this weird little book is actually quietly revolutionary and appeals to the interests and needs of even the smallest children. What’s more, we discuss how Goodnight Moon benefits your child’s cognitive and emotional development, in addition to helping him actually go the you-know-wha...
2020-11-1234 minExquisitely Ever AfterEpisode 14: The GruffaloToday’s episode is actually the response to the most frequently asked question I’ve received since I started this podcast: “What is your favorite children’s book?” In this episode, I explain just why Julia Donaldson and Axel Scheffler’s The Gruffalo is brilliant, engaging, brain-building and deserves a place at the top of your list, too. And don’t forget to click HERE to see our Gruffalo Family Halloween Costume! Click HERE for the TRANSCRIPT, the FULL LIST OF BOOKS mentioned in this episode, and all FREE PRINTABLES. Cl...
2020-10-2929 minExquisitely Ever AfterEpisode 13: Reading The Rainbow - Best Color Books (Part 2)In Part 2 of our color series we discuss books that will help you teach your Preschoolers, Pre-Kindergarteners, and Kindergarteners about the color spectrum and basic color theory, including the concept of primary colors, secondary colors, and mixing colors. Additionally, I recommend picture books that use the concept of color to help your child embrace his or her individuality and promote tolerance and acceptance. Included in this episode are also ideas for hands-on supplemental color activities for you to do with your child that will help you solidify these concepts in your child’s mind and provide you both with some...
2020-10-2239 minExquisitely Ever AfterEpisode 12: Best Color Books for ToddlersToday’s podcast episode is Part 1 of a two-part series on books about colors. This week we are focusing on books that will help you teach your young children to identify and label colors. Naming colors can be tricky for kids under 5 years of age because children usually learn the names of nouns before they learn descriptive words about those nouns, like words that describe color or size or quantity. This week, we discuss the best practices for teaching your child colors, progressing from being able to recognize the color word, to identifying/pointing out the corresponding colored item, and f...
2020-10-1644 minExquisitely Ever AfterEpisode 11: 5 Spooktacular Halloween Books to Read With Your ChildOctober is officially here and that means that Halloween is just around the corner! In this first episode of Season 2, I’m recommending 5 of my favorite Halloween books to read to kids in the days leading up to October 31st. While, admittedly, there are some terrible, cutesy, vapid Halloween books out there—I mean, let’s be honest, how many pumpkin books does the world need?—there are also some really excellent books that are festive and perfect for Halloween in addition to being great for your child’s brain and social-emotional development. Happy October and Happy Reading! Cl...
2020-10-0837 minExquisitely Ever AfterEpisode 10: 21 Best Diverse Board Books for Babies and Toddlers (and Grown-Ups!) | Diverse Books Series (Part 2)In this Final Episode of Season 1, we discuss 21 of the Best Diverse Board Books for Babies, Toddlers, and even Grown-Ups! Studies show that children start to look more at faces that match the faces of their caregivers by just 3 months of age; by 2 years old, they start using race to reason about people’s behaviors; and by two-and-a-half, most children use race to choose playmates. Systemic and structural racism needs to be countered with intentional action from birth and, in order to do so, infants and toddlers should be surrounded with positive narratives and images of Black, Indigenous, and oth...
2020-07-1554 minExquisitely Ever AfterEpisode 9: Picture Books That Will Help You Raise An Inclusive ChildEmbracing diversity and being accepting and inclusive of all kinds of people no matter their race, religion, physical abilities, gender identity, or economic status is crucial to making sure that we raise kind, empathetic people who will flourish in multicultural societies and positively contribute to our global community. If we want to raise people who feel free to express themselves, who feel that they can accomplish anything no matter their race, gender, sexual orientation, religion, or economic status, and who appreciate and respect the contributions to the world made by ALL people, it’s really important that we start send...
2020-07-0856 minExquisitely Ever AfterEpisode 8: Blueberries for SalIn this episode I highlight a picture book that is the perfect read-aloud for a summertime of continued social distancing: Robert McCloskey’s classic, Blueberries for Sal. We discuss how reading Blueberries for Sal can be a great way to help your child slowly ease into independent play, which is crucial for a child’s cognitive and social-emotional development; we talk about how this book promotes good reading comprehension by allowing child readers to practice using prior knowledge to make informed predictions; and we examine why, though it was written in 1948, this book’s depiction of women and girls isn’t s...
2020-06-2427 minExquisitely Ever AfterEpisode 7: How to Read Aloud to Your Active ToddlerA common dilemma for parents of toddlers is that, though they would love to read-aloud to their young children, it’s difficult to get a super active, bursting-with-energy toddler to sit still long enough to get through even one book, let alone several. Having done a lot of research on reading aloud to small children and testing different methods out on my own toddlers, I’ve come up with 6 Simple Strategies to get my little guys to sit still and read with me. In this episode, I’m going to pass these tricks along to you in the hopes that the...
2020-06-1730 minExquisitely Ever AfterEpisode 6: Last Stop On Market Street & Thank You, Omu! | Diverse Books Series (Part 1)In this episode we discuss two brilliant and beautiful contemporary picture books that feature Black protagonists: Last Stop on Market Street, written by Matt de la Peña and illustrated by Christian Robinson and Thank You, Omu!, written and illustrated by Oge Mora. Though each book is different in its characters, setting, story, and art, their underlying messages—of community, of service to others, of acceptance and celebration of diversity, and of inclusion—are the same. We also discuss how by reading these books to our children and by showing them characters who may not look or live or worship...
2020-06-1041 minExquisitely Ever AfterEpisode 5: Best Books for Newborns (And How to Read Them!)Today we put what we learned in Episode 4 into practice and discuss how to read to newborn and infant children with minimum awkwardness and maximum benefits. We discuss 1) how to get your baby accustomed to the sounds of language so she can start figuring out how it works and 2) how to make reading time an enjoyable, comforting, bonding experience for you and your baby. Additionally, we learn what attracts a newborn’s attention—bold objects or patterns, black-and-white designs, brightly colored toys, and conspicuous smiling faces—and talk about what to look for when you choose books and toys for very...
2020-06-0332 minExquisitely Ever AfterEpisode 4: Why You Should Read Aloud to Your NewbornWe all know that reading is incredibly important to a young child’s developing brain, but I get a lot of questions from pregnant people and new parents asking, “When should I start reading to my child?” and “Why should I read to someone who really doesn’t seem to notice or care that I have a book in my hands?” So, in this episode, we’re going to look at a few different books that will give us some concrete answers to these questions with the science to back them up. And tune in next week when we put what...
2020-05-2725 minExquisitely Ever AfterEpisode 3: Help Your Kids Cope with COVID-19 | Books About Separation and Anxiety to Help Your Kids Cope with Social DistancingToday’s episode centers around picture books that deal with separation and the anxiety that can come with it. One of the hardest things for our children right now is the necessary separation from their grandparents, extended family, and friends due to the threat of the corona virus. I’ve compiled a list of 8 children’s books that explore these topics and in this episode I discuss some strategies on how to use these books to help your kids cope with social distancing and anxiety about the global pandemic. I also explain why reading is such an important, helpful tool for child...
2020-05-2143 minExquisitely Ever AfterEpisode 2: Signs of Spring | Springtime Books to Read and Activities to Do (Even While in Isolation/Quarantine)Today’s episode is all about picture books for spring! Since we’re all in isolation, keeping our children engaged, stimulated, and occupied has been a challenge. Reading these springtime books and doing some corresponding spring activities and crafts has been great way to incorporate learning for my preschooler while also involving my toddler without any of us getting overwhelmed. Current brain research tells us that reading aloud to young children is one of the best ways to stimulate language and cognitive skills; to build curiosity, motivation, and memory; and to help our kids grow in empathy. Additionally, these springtime b...
2020-05-2143 minExquisitely Ever AfterEpisode 1: Best Board Books For Toddlers (6-24 months)What makes a great board book? How can you use board books to create an engaging and effective learning experience for your young child? How can you boost your child’s language acquisition and build your child’s confidence during your read-aloud experience? In this first episode of the Exquisitely Ever Podcast, I discuss seven of the best board books for 6-month to 24-month-olds that will keep your toddler engaged and stimulated while also growing his/her brain. Click HERE for the TRANSCRIPT, the FULL LIST OF BOOKS mentioned in this episode, and all FREE PRINTABLES. Click H...
2020-05-2149 min