Beyond the Book Story Kits are a great way to make stories come to life. The story kits are geared towards the toddler and preschool age groups. Each story kit comes in a soft bag which is labeled with the name of the book and the specific contents. Each kit contains a book, a tip sheet and concrete objects that relate to the specific story. Each tip sheet describes implementation strategies, considerations when using the story bags, benefits of including props or concrete objects during story time and tips on how to expand the story experience beyond story time to create more opportunities for learning.

If a person can be in love with a book, then I’m in love with The Canadian Kids’ Guide to Outdoor Fun. It reminds me of my childhood, of summers spent building forts, creating a kids’ only clubhouse, lots of nature hikes, inviting neighbours over to watch a play, doing science experiments, playing games and outdoor cooking. The book also has many modern twists on “how to”. For example, how to preserve a spiderweb, how to stay safe in the woods, how to whistle on a blade of grass and how to make a watermelon pizza.