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Mission Save the Planet cover. A photo of earth in space with the title superimposed.

Let's Care for the Earth!

Books to build environmental stewardship in kids and tweens

With the Washington Post reporting that DC's climate is going to match that of Mississippi's 60 years from now, it can feel like building environmental stewardship in the next generation is critical and urgent. Fortunately, it can also be fun! Try these books for your budding environmentalist to encourage a sense of gratitude and responsibility for our planet.  Younger Children (birth to 2nd grade)

Lovely cover

Learning About Differences

Not just for adults any more!

In cities like Washington, D.C. there are so many people and they are all unique. This curated list contains a variety of protagonists and thoughts about differences. Let's celebrate the beautiful diversity of our city with diverse reads! Picture books for early readers Lovely by Jess Hong

Girls Who Code logo

Get Reading, Get Coding!

And Get Ready for Girls Who Code at Woodridge

Girls Who Code is an organization founded by Reshma Saurani with the mission of closing the gender gap in technology. Since 2012, Girls Who Code has worked with schools, libraries and other public institutions to bring coding to girls in all 50 states, and several US territories. And now - Woodridge gets to be a part of it! Open to all interested children in Grades 3rd-5th, here are some books to get you and your child acquainted with the world of coding before or after our first meeting on Wednesday, March 6:

HomeGoing

Ghanaian Authors

Ghana Ghana. The first country in Sub-Saharan Africa to gain independence, a regional power in West Africa, and home to 30 million people. Ghana like many other African countries has a rich oral literature history. For this post, I wanted to discover the writings of Ghanaians and I think this selection of books is a good introduction to Ghanaian authors and a peek into Ghanaian culture and history. Each one of these authors were either born and/or raised in Ghana or have a parent who is Ghanaian.

Dinosaurs from Head to Tail book cover

Science Fun 101

Engaging intros to science topics for preK-2nd graders

Why is the sky blue? Why do dogs wag their tails? Why don’t I float away when I hold a balloon? Why? WHY? WHYYYYY? If you have a kiddo in your life, you probably encounter questions like these all the time. These questions are beautiful proof that children are budding scientists, eager to explore how and why things work. But, um, they’re really dang tough to answer.

Famous Fails

Picture Books about Inventors and Inventions

Looking for picture books and nonfiction about about inventors, inventing and building something out of nothing? 

People Holding Hands

Cultural Diffusion

Cultural diffusion is the spreading out and merging of pieces from different cultures. These different cultures all have many diverse types of food, clothing and even languages that people love and enjoy every day. But with these different cultures coming to America, they are bound to be spread, which can be seen as a good thing and a bad thing. It is seemed to be a bad thing because a lot of people are scared to learn and be around different cultures because all they know is their own and may not be open to learning.

Walking in a Winter Wonderland

Wintery Picture Books

let it snow, let it snow, let it snow

I have a confession: I love snow. Okay, so I prefer to be inside while it's happening, but I love the way snow looks as it descends on the city. Here are some picture books that reflect and showcase the childlike joy snow can bring.   Walking in a Winter Wonderland illustrated by Tim Hopgood

What to Expect When the New Baby Comes Home

I'm a Big Sibling!

All about New Babies for Big Siblings

For parents, there’s a lot to take care of with a new baby on the way, but it can be hard on big-siblings-to-be, too! These books can help make understanding the how’s and why’s of the new baby easier on the big sibling. From younger kids who are concerned about how the new baby will change their family to older kids asking about how babies are made, this list has something for everyone. Happy reading -- and congratulations on your new family member(s)!

art

Five Books That Got Me Interested in Reading

Reading used to be a chore for me. I used to cringe every time I had English/Literature class through my elementary/middle school years. I sat in the back and rarely raised my hand. I had done the reading required for that day. I had pretty good "reading comprehension" skills even though I didn't know it was even called that at that age. That wasn't the problem. I just was never interested in the books they had us reading at that time.

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