Winnie the Witch

Currently, my daughter is burying her head in the books of Winnie the Witch. I am not surprised as myself was mesmerized by its unique illustration and style at first sight.

Winnie the Witch is a hugely successful series published by Oxford University Press with over 2 million copies sold worldwide. Since its first book, the award-winning title Winnie the Witch, the series has developed into a whole range of picture books, paperback with audio CD and young fictions.

For kids who love funny stories, magic and cat (Winnie has a lovely black cat called Wilbur), Winnie the Witch is definitely THE choice! Once the children are clicked with Winnie in the picture books, they would keep on reading and reading and it really helps in encouraging the transition from picture books to chapter books as they leap with enthusiasm to read Winnie's young fiction.

List of Picture Books:

• Winnie The Witch
• Winnie in Winter
• Winnie Flies Again
• Winnie's Magic Wand
• Winnie's New Computer
• Winnie at the Seaside
• Winnie's Midnight Dragon
• Happy Birthday, Winnie
• Winnie's Flying Carpet
• Winnie's Amazing Pumpkin
• Winnie in Space

List of Young Fiction:

• Winnie Says Cheese
• Whizz-Bang Winnie
• Winnie the Twit
• Winnie's Big Catch
• Mini Winnie
• Giddy Up Winnie
• Winnie Goes Batty
• Winnie's Jokes
• Winnie on Patrol

Joey@Booklodge

An important lesson for my children

Tonight, I was reading "High Flier, The Story of Amy Johnson" to my children. The story is about how Amy Johnson, amid the strong view that women were not as capable as men, became a pilot and tried to break the records for long flights around the world in 1930.

Amy Johnson resisted the norm about what a woman should or shouldn't do and challenged her own ability. I was particularly touched to learn that Amy could accomplish her goal partly because she had always had the strongest support from her father. Ceasing the opportunity, I asked Hillary and Alexis on whether they thought there is any gap between the capability of boys and girls, I could not be more delighted when I heard them both shouted firmly, "No!"

In a society where traditional thinking with biased ideas are still finding ways to creep into our children's mind, I am resolute to act fast and teach them to THINK and to make sound judgment.

Joey@booklodge

The Reading Chain

Last week, I was reading the Oxford Reading Tree "A Day in London" to Hillary during bedtime (probably the 99th times) and on page 12, it said Gran took the children to Trafalgar Square where a statue of Nelson stood. I was caught by surprise when Hillary suddenly asked, "Mummy, who is Nelson - the statue at Trafalgar Square?"

I love it when Hillary asked questions. It opens up our dialogue and I would spend long time, as long as required, to explain whatever the subject was and the values that brought along.

To address her query on Nelson, I got her the book "Nelson" by Usborne and tonight, we read the heroic story of Horatio Nelson together.

Joey@booklodge

Hillary's book shelf

My daughter Hillary is five. She loves books (!!) and is now an
enthusiastic reader. It is my intention to share with you the books she reads and why she loves them so much!

Princess Poppy is a character she always talks about recently. This series has quite a range of books for 3 to 9. Hillary is currently devouring the picture books which include a little letter stored in an envelope at the front page and 50 stickers for her to play with. I am keen to let her read this series as there is always a theme in the story which teaches children a value or virtue. For example, in "Get Well Soon", Princess Poppy was so concerned about her grandpa's sickness that she could not perform well in her gymnastic competition. However, she learned that it was not important at all comparing to Grandpa's health. In another story, the "Mermaid Princess", although all the girls are supposed to compete with each other for the best costume, Princess Poppy gave her tiara to a girl who got lost in the carnival. At the end, Princess Poppy won the prize because of her good deed ...

How nice it would be if Hillary could act as Princess Poppy!! I always ask her a few questions to consolidate the ideas behind the stories and Hillary seemed to get them. Well, education takes time and effort, right?

Joey@booklodge