Author name: FGoldsmith

librarian, professional development trainer, writer

Shaped manipulatives sorted by preschool aged child

Get into Shape(s)!

This has shaped up to be a good year for new kids’ books that focus attention on—shapes! Some shapes—and books—are simple, some simply fun (as well as informative), and some sophisticated—just the way geometric forms run the gamut from easy to grasp to complex. Learning to recognize and name shapes helps build the toddler, preschooler, […]

Get into Shape(s)! Read More »

Yello Butterfly interior spread

Growing Peace Awareness

The International Day of Peace, celebrated each year on September 21, is a United Nations initiative. This year also marks the 75th anniversary of the signing of  the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (in December) and also the United Nations members’ ratification of their obligations under the Genocide Convention. While all of these may sound

Growing Peace Awareness Read More »

Mina Belongs Here interior spread

Stack ‘Em Up for World Kid Lit Month

Our favorite way to celebrate September is to remember that it’s World Kid Lit Month all month long! To help you join the celebration, we’re stacking up a tower of kids’ books in translation and fresh from their publishers this year. Let’s start with Albatros Media’s The Hand Book by Magda Garguláková, illustrated by Vítězslav

Stack ‘Em Up for World Kid Lit Month Read More »

Growing Good Kids Book Award Times Three!

July is a busy month for book awards. One near and dear to us is the Growing Good Kids Award for Excellence in Children’s Literature, sponsored by Junior Master Gardener (JMG) and the American Horticultural Society. JMG develops and publishes resources and curriculum guides to bring children and gardening together in a research-based effort to

Growing Good Kids Book Award Times Three! Read More »

Booking into ALA Annual 2023

In accordance with tradition (to say nothing of popular demand!), Publisher Spotlight put in a grand appearance on the exhibits floor at the 2023 American Library Association’s annual conference. Booth 3122 was the launch pad for nearly two dozen publishers from around the world, eight author signings, host and visitor spontaneous booktalks, and home to

Booking into ALA Annual 2023 Read More »

Count on These Picture Books for More than Number Names

Like literacy, numeracy comprises a diverse set of skills and relies on the development of capacities to observe, reason, and follow models. Merriam-Webster offers a concise definition: numeracy is the ability to understand and work with numbers.  Like alphabet books, counting books come in a wide range of styles and quality. Like the alphabet, however,

Count on These Picture Books for More than Number Names Read More »

Clive Is a Nurse

What Can You Do with a Skill Like That?

If you have had a toddler around your home, you know that dream career considerations can start early in life. Toddlers enjoy acting out the very tasks they find most engaging when they see others do them, from collecting trash (BIG trucks!) to serving in a diner (Little order pads!). By the time youth graduate

What Can You Do with a Skill Like That? Read More »

Food for Hope interior

Feeding Food Awareness

This spring brings a new crop of informational picture books that offer readers of all ages new insights on healthy eating, food access, and food preparation.  Food topics, of course, are of perennial interest and these new books join contemporary classics featuring food heroes, kids’ science related to food topics, and food gardening. Let’s take

Feeding Food Awareness Read More »

California Reading Association

Eureka! Gold and Silver for Many of Our Friends

The votes have been cast by the California Reading Association for the California Eureka Nonfiction Book Awards.  Among the winners this year, we are proud to announce: The Eureka Gold Medal has been awarded to A is for Asian American, by Virginia Loh-Hagan, illustrated by Tracy Nishimura Bishop, and published by Sleeping Bear Press. This

Eureka! Gold and Silver for Many of Our Friends Read More »

Scroll to Top