November 9th, 2010 by El Ed Mom

Fans of this site know that I am a huge fan of Mrs. P.  Parents no more excuses about finding time to read to your child, this free website does all the work for you with the amazing Mrs. P.  But now, Mrs. P has an interactive fairy tale book to help kids learn to read!  WOO HOO!!! Check it out…

MrsP.com Releases First Interactive Fairy Tale Book

Kids Learn Reading Skills in Conjunction with Free Website

MrsP.com, the popular, award-winning children’s storytelling website, announced the publication today of its first interactive storybook, which uses Internet technology in a new way to help kids learn to read.  Mrs. P’s Four Favorite Fairy Tales and Funny Stories collects in book form stories and introductions available on video at the free website and at the iTunes Store.  Children will be able to follow along in the book as Mrs. P, played by The Drew Carey Show star Kathy Kinney, reads the stories with them.

“I’m very proud of Mrs. P’s new book because of its unique ability to help young readers improve their skills,” said Kinney. “Children and parents can open the book and read along with me at my website.  We even have a Magic Dictionary at MrsP.com, so if kids comes across a word they don’t know, they can just pause the video and easily find out what it means.” 

Studies have shown one of the most productive ways for children to improve their reading skills, particularly for learning ‘sight words,’ is to see the words as they are read to.  “Everyone’s worried about the Internet making books and reading obsolete.  We’ve found a wonderful way to make them work together,” Kinney said. 

The new book includes “Jack and the Beanstalk” and “The Emperor’s New Clothes,” features 90 original color illustrations and offers new, comic introductions to the stories from Mrs. P. 

“Mrs. P’s Four Favorite Fairy Tales and Funny Stories” will be available to the public at Amazon and other booksellers across the country via online ordering.  Additional information, including a downloadable flyer, can be found at http://www.mrsp.com/Purchase.aspx

Ten percent of all MrsP.com’s after-tax profits from these sales will be donated by Mrs. P Enterprises, LLC to literacy organizations.

“Mrs. P’s Four Favorite Fairy Tales and Funny Stories”

ISBN: 978-0-615-39355-1 Binding: Paperback Trim: Color 8.5 x 8.5 in Pages: 126  and over 90 original color illustration Genre: Juvenile Fiction: Fairy Tales & Folklore – Anthologies Target Audience: Children ages 4 to 10

Cover Price: $19.95

Amazon link: http://www.amazon.com/Favorite-Fairy-Tales-Funny-Stories/dp/0615393551/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1288744154&sr=1-1

Also see Mrs. P’s special video about her new book: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xKFak9xSmUQ

Photos and other info about Mrs. P can be found at her press site. http://www.press.mrsp.com/

October 25th, 2010 by El Ed Mom

Does it always have to be just another manic Monday? Well, stop wishing it were a Sunday and let Amy McCready, founder of Positive Parenting Solutions, help you get a grip on your family’s morning routine and quash the counterproductive chaos.  Seriously those manic mornings can take a toll on your own mood and productivity; Amy has some great tips in her appearance with The Today Show’s Katie Lee Gifford and Hoda Kotb to help with your morning routine:

http://today.msnbc.msn.com/id/26184891/vp/39778257#39778257

October 24th, 2010 by El Ed Mom

I missed being with Alison Rhodes at the ABC Kids Expo this year in Las Vegas.  After seeing the video, I feel like I got a taste of all the new hot trends in baby and kids products!

http://thesafetymom.wordpress.com/

October 15th, 2010 by El Ed Mom

Thank you so much Target, Parenting Magazine & Mom Congress for inviting me to be at your Read Connect Grow events in DC and St. Paul. 

Target is concerned with low reading-proficiency and graduation rates throughout the country.  Target has taken a stand on improving reading in our nation’s communities.  Target’s goal is to expose as many children as possible to the joys of reading, and strive to have them reading proficiently by the end of third grade.  Target plans to donate more than $500 million by the end of 2015 to support education, doubling its support to more than $1 billion. What a commitment to literacy!

“Target’s ties to education run deep, but we are compelled to do more to address the education crisis in the U.S. and put more kids on the path to graduation so they are ready for college, a career and life. The time to act is now, and it starts by reading with a child,” said Laysha Ward, Target’s president of community relations. “Our reading pledge is the first of many steps Target will take to ensure our kids are globally competitive. We need every parent and caring adult to join us in creating a movement that will chart a new course in education and help our children succeed.”

The financial commitment is part of Target’s new reading initiative, Target Read With Me, aimed at helping more U.S. children read proficiently by the end of third grade. Why the focus on third grade? Research shows that reading proficiently by the end of this crucial is a significant milestone on the path to graduation. Indeed, according to Annie E. Casey Foundation, this is when children make the transition from learning to read to reading to learn.

As part of the initiative, Target also announced a reading pledge, a donation of up to 2 million books to kids in need, and plans for an innovative reading center that will reach communities across the country through a physical and virtual presence. What an amazing pledge!

Thank you Target for including me along with five other amazing Mom Congress Delegates in your “Moms with an Eye on Literacy”, your special literacy advertisement in the November Parenting School Years Magazine!  Thank you for celebrating the accomplishments of Mom Congress Delegates who are leading the fight for early literacy: Jamie Pearce (Idaho), Angeline Gorham (New Hampshire), Liza Weidle (North Carolina), Chanda M. Kropp (Minnesota), Emily Rempe (Ohio) and yours truly, Stacey Kannenberg (Wisconsin).

If you live in NYC, are a mom, teacher or someone who cares about literacy, join Target, Parenting Magazine & Mom Congress on 10/21 to celebrate literacy!  To sign up, visit www.readconnectgrow.com.  Plead time to read with a child at www.Target.com/reading.

September 3rd, 2010 by El Ed Mom

It’s back to school time!  In honor of Heidi and Megan going back to school we are giving away a set of our books!  Feel free to share this great news! 

Leave a comment (including your email address) to be entered to win!  We will ship globally to a winner!  This contest ends September 30th!

August 19th, 2010 by El Ed Mom

Now that summer is ending, many of us are thinking about the upcoming school year and how to create an atmosphere of success for our children. Regardless of age, a blank notebook, a fresh backpack, new pencils, pens, markers, and/or crayons should be joyful and yet, for many children, it elicits feelings of insecurity and fear of failure.  It is up to us, as parents and educators, to make certain that our kids are emotionally, socially, cognitively, and physically ready to meet new challenges.  Children need guidance, time, and reminders in order to successfully transition from the more carefree days of summer to the more rigorous routines of the school year. Proper manners should be reinforced, kindness acknowledged, reading, listening, and practicing skills encouraged and healthy eating and sleeping patterns enforced. Since children mimic our attitudes and behaviors, it is critical to speak in positive ways about the school year, teachers, school, and curriculum.  It is also important to set realistic expectations so that your child/children can tackle their new experiences and challenges with self confidence and with the knowledge that you will be both their cheerleader and confidant. Please note that I am not encouraging parents to make excuses for or to complete assignments for children, but rather, am advocating an environment of open dialogue, where discussions focus on both positive and negative emotions, behaviors, and experiences. 
Creating a solid foundation is critical to buildings constructed from brick and mortar as well as those more gentle structures made up of feelings, ideas, and knowledge.  Let’s work together towards building a foundation that supports a love for learning, a respect for self and others, and a dedication to excellence, diligence, and empathy.

I wish everyone a successful and lovely school year!!

Magical Educating!

Donna Mavrides
Magical Moments
www.magicalms.com

July 29th, 2010 by El Ed Mom

What a fabulous review from Amanda at www.MultiplesAndMore.blogspot.com for the “Let’s Get Ready” series of books! 

And guess what?  YOU can win a set of them!   Just click on the image above and follow the instructions for the giveaway.  Hope you win!

July 22nd, 2010 by El Ed Mom

Let’s Get Ready For Kindergarten! & Let’s Get Ready For First Grade!

Applauded and approved by parents, kids and educators for ages 2-8, these award-winning, state-approved books are perfect to get kids ready for Kindergarten and First Grade!

Let’s Get Ready For Kindergarten!

Teachers at home and in schools love it! It’s not a storybook or a workbook; it’s a book that covers the curriculum: the alphabet and numbers in and out of sequence, left and right, shapes, colors, high frequency words, positional words, opposites, rhyming, let’s read a story and so much more. It’s all in one engaging book illustrated with Mrs. Good, the teacher and six adorable Cedar Valley Kids that you simply read to children to learn.

Let’s Get Ready For First Grade!

Follow along with Ms. Best and six new Cedar Valley Kids and Yodie the Coyote who makes learning vowels and consonants, vowel sounds, compound words, contractions, the solar system, counting money, measuring, fractions, adding and subtracting and more exciting for everyone!

To learn more visit these mom-created, 100% made in USA books, visit: www.cedarvalleypublishing.com

Prize: 1 set of books: Let’s Get Ready For Kindergarten! & Let’s Get Ready For First Grade!
Sponsor: Cedar Valley Publishing
# of Winners: 1
Start/End Dates: 7/14/2010 – 9/30/2010

Click Here to Submit Your Entry

December 2nd, 2009 by El Ed Mom

In first grade, your child will have to interact with his classroom teacher as well as art, music, and physical education teachers. The school day will become longer. He’ll eat at school and go to and from school with limited assistance. He’ll also have some homework assignments. Find out what else your child will learn this year.

Click Here to read more…

October 1st, 2009 by El Ed Mom

Children need to play. This observation might seem obvious, but lately, it is my rallying cry. It has to be. There is so much discussion among parents and educators about the relative benefits of academic versus developmentally appropriate preschools, and as testing rules the day, proponents of the academic model seem to be gaining ground.

But I am a parent, and I have been a preschool teacher for more than twenty years, and my experience and training tell me one thing loud and clear.

Children need to play.

They need to build with blocks, role-play with dolls and cooking tools, assemble tracks for trains, dabble in paint, jump up and down, ride tricycles, smush playdough, dig in sand, splash in water. They need to negotiate with ladders, slides, and each other. Take turns. Dress up. Cook.

Click Here to read more…