Are you an introvert or an extrovert? On this episode of the Read-Aloud Revival podcast, Jamie Martin from Simple Homeschool is here to chat about being an introverted mom.Sarah is an extrovert, so we’re comparing what fills us up, what depletes us, and how we can find more calm, less guilt, and quiet joy in mothering– which I think is what we all long for, no matter our personality type.Of course, we also talk books! Some of our favorite authors were introverts (Lucy Maud Montgomery, anyone?), and Jamie and I can’t help but talk about our favorite books whenever we get together.In this episode, you’ll hear:How to find more calm and less guilt as a mama (yes please, right?)The unique challenges that introvert and extrovert moms both faceWisdom from some of your favorite authors (if your favorite authors happened to write books like Anne of Green Gables and Little Women, that is)I also answer a listener question about choosing books for very sensitive kids.Find the rest of the show notes at: https://readaloudrevival.com/127/ To join us for the "Reading as Refreshment" Retreat on 1/31-2/1, sign up at circlewithsarah.com!

This week I’m sharing the second part of a Read-Aloud Revival Premium Master Class all about helping our kids love books by treating their reading lives more like we treat our own.If you want something better than book reports or reading comprehension sheets for your kids, you’re in the right place. If you’re wondering whether you need to do literary analysis (and how to do it without killing your child’s love of the book), you’re in the right place.If you want your kids to read because they love to (and not because they have to), you’re in the right place. This is the second half of this master class. Listen to the first half here. (You don’t have to listen to the first half to understand the second, but you probably want to!)In this episode, you’ll hear:What it looks like for kids to be real readersWhat most of us are getting wrong when it comes to “teaching” literature to our kidsDo your kids need literary analysis? And what should that look like, anyway?I also answer a listener question about … how to know when your child is ready to learn to read.More free resources and booklistsFind the rest of the show notes at https://readaloudrevival.com/126/ To join us for the "Reading as Refreshment" Retreat on 1/31-2/1, sign up at circlewithsarah.com!

In today’s episode of the Read-Aloud Revival Podcast, I’m sharing a master class straight out of Read-Aloud Revival Premium about how to create a book club culture in your home.For most of us, the books we read for school growing up were not the same books we read under our covers with a flashlight past our bedtime.But we can do something better.We can invite our kids into a reading experience that will help them fall in love with books and become readers for life. Less like school, more like your favorite book club.In this episode, you’ll hear:the importance of knowing WHY you want to raise readershow to nurture and protect your kids’ love of readingwhy reading is not broccoli 🥦🤨I also answer a listener question about… what to do when your kids lose interest part-way through a book…Find the rest of the show notes at readaloudrevival.com/125/ To join us for the "Reading as Refreshment" Retreat on 1/31-2/1, sign up at circlewithsarah.com!

Today I want to introduce you to the author of some of my new favorite picture books, Camille Andros.Camille is a writer, a traveler, a former EMT, and a mom of six. Yep, six. (So obviously, we’re kindred spirits, since I have six, too.) 😉In this episode, you’ll hear:about her writing process and how she makes time to writehow deceptively simple picture book writing appears, when it really isn’t so simple at alla positively serendipitous story about her travels in Greece…Find the rest of the show notes at https://readaloudrevival.com/124/. To join us for the "Reading as Refreshment" Retreat on 1/31-2/1, sign up at circlewithsarah.com!

Today, I am excited to introduce you to my favorite read-aloud for Lent and Easter.Amon’s Adventure is a wonderful adventure story that will leave your kids begging for just one more chapter.Amon is a 13 year-old boy during the time of Christ’s persecution, and in this fictional tale, his father has been accused of a terrible crime. It’s up to Amon to navigate the tension in his local community and clear his father’s name. If you want to breathe some life into your family’s experience of Lent and Easter… this story is a great way to do just that. I highly recommend it as a family read-aloud for kids 8+.It’s intense, so I suggest previewing each chapter if you’re reading it aloud to kids younger than that.The author, Arnold Ytreeide, is visiting with me today on the newest episode of the Read-Aloud Revival, and learning more about where this book came for was such a delight!In this episode, you’ll hear:Where this book (and those in his Jotham’s Journey series) came fromIdeas for how best to use this book during LentHow (and why) he tells a story we all know… in a brand new wayFind the rest of the show notes at https://readaloudrevival.com/123/. To join us for the "Reading as Refreshment" Retreat on 1/31-2/1, sign up at circlewithsarah.com!

What’s the best way to introduce your kids to the lives and ideas of those who’ve gone before? In this episode of the Read-Aloud Revival podcast, the RAR Team is talking about using picture book biographies with kids of all ages.And of course, we don’t just give you the why… we also share dozens and dozens of excellent picture book biographies in this new booklist!In this episode, you’ll hear:why picture books are for all ages (no really… all ages)what makes pictures books special (Hint: it has to do with being an invitation)how picture books can help us learn history, research a new subject, discuss difficult topics, and moreFind the rest of the show notes at https://readaloudrevival.com/122/. To join us for the "Reading as Refreshment" Retreat on 1/31-2/1, sign up at circlewithsarah.com!

I ‘ve got a new favorite episode of the Read-Aloud Revival podcast. It’s no wonder, because in this episode, I’m having a conversation with Kate DiCamillo on reading aloud for connection.There is so much packed into this conversation.In this episode, you’ll hear: what Kate really thinks when we ask our kids “what did the author mean?”how books help us jump into the Great Conversation (“unwittingly”, as she says)that stories are smarter than their authors… and what that means for readersFind the rest of the show notes at https://readaloudrevival.com/121/. To join us for the "Reading as Refreshment" Retreat on 1/31-2/1, sign up at circlewithsarah.com!

Today I’ve got a bonus episode of the Read-Aloud Revival podcast—a conversation with Douglas Gresham. Douglas is the stepson of C.S. Lewis, author of The Chronicles of Narnia.In this episode, you’ll hear:what C.S. Lewis was really trying to do with The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobewhat he wishes more people knew about his stepfatherPatti Callahan’s new book, Becoming Mrs. Lewis–what he thinks and about its accuracyFind the rest of the show notes at https://readaloudrevival.com/bonus-narnia/. To join us for the "Reading as Refreshment" Retreat on 1/31-2/1, sign up at circlewithsarah.com!

I ‘m willing to bet you’re like me, and relationships with your kids matter more to you than just about anything else.But we’re all pulled in a million directions. We’re all short on time.You know what, though?I think it’s easier than we think to focus on what matters most.Today I am sharing 3 simple ways to strengthen your relationships with your kids this year. Not one of these is complicated, cumbersome, or expensive.Because nurturing our relationships with our kids is within reach this year, no matter what circumstances we find ourselves in.In this episode, you’ll hear: 3 simple ways to focus on what matters most this yearhow to get out of your own waysome wonderful resources that will make it easy for you to build meaningful connections with your family ⬅︎ (you want to hear about these)Find the rest of the show notes at https://readaloudrevival.com/120/. To join us for the "Reading as Refreshment" Retreat on 1/31-2/1, sign up at circlewithsarah.com!

Reading books together as a family is the best way to connect. We connect with each other, with the books we read, and with the big ideas we encounter there.In fact, there are four steps I like best when it comes to sharing books with our kids:Read aloudShare an experience around the bookTalk about itMeet the author or illustratorFind the rest of the show notes at https://readaloudrevival.com/snowflake/. To join us for the "Reading as Refreshment" Retreat on 1/31-2/1, sign up at circlewithsarah.com!