Queen Of Christmas Alphabet List
Growing up, my twin sister was a huge fan of Mary Engelbreit’s. She loved her artwork, so she had many of Engelbreit’s books. My sister was sadly killed in a car accident when we were 25, before I had children. As a result, I’ve always tried to find small ways to introduce her interests and passions to my children. I want #thelittleone and #thebigone to have some small idea of the aunt they won’t get to meet. Of course, when I saw Queen of Christmas, I knew it would be a perfect book for me to share with my kiddos.
READING QUEEN OF CHRISTMAS
This story features Ann Estelle, Engelbreit’s ‘queen’. Ann Estelle puts some serious time and effort into creating a fairly epic (and lengthy!) Christmas list. Ultimately, as in many holiday tales, Ann Estelle learns an important lesson about the true meaning of Christmas. Engelbreit’s bright, cheerful illustrations bring the story to life, and truly steal the show in this picture book. My boys and I enjoyed checking out Ann Estelle’s extensive wish list, and poring over the whimsical drawings in the book together.
MAKING A CHRISTMAS ALPHABET LIST
#thebigone is six years old. His first grade class has been concentrating on independently sounding out and writing words lately. Queen Of Christmas inspired a great way for me to get him thinking about spelling and practicing his letter formation. The printable pages of the Christmas alphabet list I created give your child 26 opportunities to think about phonics and writing. They will use the alphabet prompts to create a long list, just like Ann Estelle’s. #thebigone added some color to the letters with crayons. Engelbreit’s art is so colorful, he felt his should be also.
Younger kids who aren’t quite to the independent writing or spelling stage yet can work with you to identify the letters & their sounds. They can draw a picture of what they would put on their list instead of writing. Drawing still helps to strengthen all of their pre-writing skills. Plus, a creative outlet is always a good thing! Be prepared for some crazy ideas… #thebigone’s Christmas alphabet list includes a ‘Yedy’ [yeti], ‘Dobe the hose elf’ [Dobby the house elf, for all you Harry Potter fans out there], and an ‘Umeracin flag’ [American flag]. I let him spell everything independently, to make sure he was really thinking about the letters and their sounds.
Lauri L. Aquino
Love the “Umericin flag”!
Kate
Hahaha, I know, right?! His reading skills are awesome… spelling is taking a little longer to get solid. He’ll get there though!