Spooky, scary, and horror season is upon us. Leading up to Halloween, children and young adults are searching for stories to knock their socks off and give them a fright. We searched high and low for great reads that will give you chills (and maybe consider sleeping with the lights on). Here are six of our favorite spooky stories, some with a bit of humor, for all ages. 

Poultrygeist by Eric Geron, Illustrated by Pete Oswald

Perfect for grades K-3

This spooky, yet humorous, picture book takes a fresh spin on an old joke, "Why did the chicken cross the road".  A chicken bravely crossing the road but is sadly flatted by a semitruck. The animals who have gone before him have to break the news - the chicken is now on THE OTHER SIDE. Your child will enjoy the beautiful and colorful illustrations, along with interactive storyline to discover what really happens on the other side.  

Rowley Jefferson's Awesome Spooky Stories by Jeff Kinney

Perfect for grades 2-6

Rowley Jefferson is b...

Is your bookworm tween looking for their next great read? Or is your child more of a reluctant reader that needs an extraordinary plot that will capture their attention? Either way, we share our top five favorite middle grade reads published in 2021. From magical muses and friendship to historical fiction and team spirit, your tween is sure to find a book they will enjoy. 

Bea is for Blended by Lindsey Stoddard

It has always been Bea, her mom, and her grandma. The three Embers women taking on life together. Until Wendell and his three sons and several pets come along. Now that Wendall and her mom are married and expecting a new baby, they are blending their families into one household. Which means she has to live with Bryce, a bully-follower from her grade. 

In Bea and Bryce's small town, they don't have enough kids to have both a boy's and girl's soccer team, so the girls can play on the boys team but previously the coach never gave them any playing time. This year that all chang...

Disappointment is a normal part of life, and the lockdowns due to COVID-19 caused some major disappointments while disrupting lives everywhere. It’s enough to make anyone feel a little sad and discouraged. But disappointments don't only pop up during global pandemics, they are mixed in with all the joy and excitement life can bring. 

It’s also natural for parents to want to shield children from such unpleasant situations. However, dealing with losses can be a beneficial experience. Otherwise, your sons and daughters may struggle when they run into bigger letdowns as adults.

How can you guide your children without taking over? Try these ideas for helping your kids to deal with disappointment.

Talking with Your Kids about Disappointment

There are major differences between dwelling on disappointments, trying to suppress them, and dealing with them constructively. Your child will probably find it easier to move on if they can talk about their feelings.

Try these techniques to talk wit...

It is important for young girls to see themselves represented in book characters. When young girls can relate to strong female character in a story it helps them build strength, know it is acceptable to be vulnerable, and provides examples of creative solutions in relatable life situations. 

On the flip side, it is also important for readers to see young girls from different backgrounds in a story because it brings visibility to cultural differences, builds empathy, and creates unity.

We picked six girl-power novels for your middle grade reader to find relatable characters and learn from others in a different life situations. 

In a Flash by Donna Jo Napoli

Simona and Carolina's father is a beloved cook in Italy but when the Italian ambassador request his cooking skills in Japan, the girls travel thousand of miles to have an adventure with their Papa. At first, living in Japan is exciting and each sister works to learn the language and customs.

But when WWII comes to their door ...

Graphic novels are one of my favorite type of books because it combines art and text to bring the story alive. Here are my favorite graphic novels for your middle grade reader. 

All's Faire in Middle School 

By Victoria Jamieson

Imogene (Impy) is raised by parents working the Renaissance Faire. She loves all that goes into a fair and can't wait to begin her own training. Impy's quest is to attend public school after being homeschooled her whole life. But public school is not as adventurous as she hoped and there are a ton of rules to follow. Will Impy complete her quest and become a brave knight? Watch the book trailer here. 

Guts

By Raina Telgemeier

It all starts with a stomach ache. Once her family gets over a bug, Raina realizes her stomach pain is not going away. Raina worries about a lot of things - school, friends, siblings, food and most importantly, if someone is going to puke around her. This is the author's true story about dealing with her food and anxiety issues. ...

What an interesting time to be alive! While the adults of the world deal with working from home, unemployment, being an essential worker, home schooling their kids, day-to-day changes from the local and federal government and a thousand more things, our tweens are also trying to figure out who they are as a person and how they fit in during this isolation.

Difficult to say the least. We have a few ideas on how you can help your child manage this strange, new world. 

1. Provide a routine but allow your child to participate in the creation of what that looks like. This gives them a sense of independence and improves their decision-making skills.
2. Set realistic goals for each school day. Online schooling is HARD! Pick 1-3 goals for each day or even 3-5 goals for the week, either way setting expectations is key.
3. Create a checklist for what to complete each day- use stickers or other rewards for completion.
4. Reach out to teachers for support, they want to help our kids succeed.
5. Talk to y
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As humans we are wired to be guided by emotions.  Generations ago, our ancestors used their “fight or flight” instinct to survive. A saber tooth tiger may not be chasing your family today but, helping your tween learn what their emotions and internal intuitions are communicating can feel just as daunting. Many of us deal with negative emotions by trying to ignore them or living in a negative state without a plan to move forward or channeling it into competition and anger with others. A more empowering option is to learn from our emotions.

In order to learn from our emotions, we need to evaluate them. The following steps will help you have an open and honest conversation with your tween (or yourself).

First, have your child describe the feeling or feelings they are going through so you both can identify the emotion.  Next is to clarify the message of the emotion. What is this specific emotion trying to convey? What is the purpose of that emotion?  Evaluate the emotion from a different...

Welcome to 2020! Some of you are (or already have) created resolutions and goals for the upcoming year. On the other hand, some of you may not be the New Year resolution type but believe progress and self-growth happen no matter the time of year.

In either case, are you including your kids in creating and setting goals for themselves? If you are, I applaud you, as goal setting is a powerful thing. It can literally alter our brains. This article from INC Magazine by Geoffrey James, explains beautifully the benefits of goal setting, with the scientific research to back up this amazing phenomenon. James says, “if you strongly desire a goal, your brain will perceive obstacles as less significant than they might otherwise appear”.  Our brains are chemically changing based on what we focus on. This is a huge benefit to teaching your child to goal set.  You child is growing, learning, and reprogramming new thoughts and belief systems every day. By goal setting as a family, you all alter your...

As Thanksgiving approaches many of us feel pressured to constantly be thankful or obligated to publicly count our blessings via social media gratitude challenges. But life happens, things don’t turn out as we expected, and we bite back the urge to whack the next person who ask us what we are grateful for. The example might be a bit extreme but some of us are not great at being grateful. And that’s OKAY.

With all the excitement around the holiday season and end of the year, many of us get caught up in the stress the season can bring. If you are not feeling particularly grateful, then instead take a moment to really feel the feeling you are experiencing. If you are sad, angry, overwhelmed, or whatever feeling is surfacing, allow yourself to really get the message of that feeling. Bring it out. Ask yourself, why this specific emotion?  Listen to the answer. Every emotion has some purpose. Finding the purpose can open the door to new insights. So, experience that negative, awful feeling. ...

October is a time to celebrate and explore spooky side of life. As a parent, one thing that might be a bit horrifying to think about is your elementary or middle school child having their very own cell phone and access to the world at their fingertips. A new cell phone for your tween means new areas your child is exploring without your knowledge. Many kids use various social media applications to communicate with friends using their cell phone.  Providing kids with their own cell phone, means more responsibility and an opportunity to build trust between you and your child. We have put together a few tips, suggestions, and conversation starters to use when discussing social media and phone use.

Tips and Suggestions:

• Remind your child that what they see on other’s profiles is their highlight reel, not necessarily their day-to-day life. Remember that they do not have insight into what is behind the photo. Everyone’s journey is different.
• Remind your child to be careful of what they a
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