Wow! Did chapter nineteen surprise you? Why has life lost its value in Jonas’s community? The author begins to show you in chapter twenty when Jonas and the Giver talk about feelings. Here are a few quotes from the book. The first quote refers to Fiona and her work with the elderly: “Fiona is already being…

Zuno is my white labrador. When Zuno and I run together, I put Zuno on a leash. I do this for several reasons: 1)      His safety—I want to keep him away from danger, like cars or other dogs. 2)      Leadership—I want him to go where I go, not after a rabbit or squirrel. Most of…

Zuno learns his ABCs this week as he reads Bill Martin’s Chicka Chicka BoomBoom. Come along with the lowercase letters as a, b, and c agree to meet at the top of the coconut tree. The other twenty-three letters try to join them. Can the tree hold them? Things could get nutty. What’s your favorite letter? …

Do you ever dream of being a superhero or a mighty warrior like Peter and Edmund in C. S. Lewis’s Chronicles of Narnia? Take a look at Psalm 8:2 (NIV): “From the lips of children and infants you (God) have ordained praise because of your enemies, to silence the foe and the avenger.” When you…

This week, we finish The Giver by Lois Lowry. Read chapters nineteen through twenty-three. Get ready because Ms. Lowry packs a punch in chapter nineteen. Parents, if you are reading the novel with your children, read chapter nineteen ahead of time and prepare yourself for questions. For our next book, I am dropping into a…