OK, so it's not a living book, but it sure has given big sister a new goal: to read every one of the 57 books in the series! According to hankthecowdog.com, it's the longest audiobook series for children in history! How did I miss these when I was young? They're cute enough for my 8-year-old to enjoy, but when I read them to her, I find they're packed with vocabulary lessons that she's glad to learn. ("But you know what word he meant to use there, don't you?) It kind of goes along with my approach for teaching a spelling list next session: how many wrong ways can you find to spell this word? Hopefully, we can have fun getting to the right spelling, then the combination of the journey and the fun will implant it in the memory.
Here's a sample lesson from Hank:
"Syrup-tish-us Load-er-a-tion." It means, "A secret and rather technical procedure for climbing aboard a pickup that is heading for town, when the driver of the alleged pickup would be less than thrilled if he knew that he was hauling dogs."
You'll notice that the root of the first word is "syrup." ...It oozes along its course, which is a sneaky and stealthy way of moving.
Big sister had saved up enough money to buy a subscription to the newsletter, which included a free book and large poster which arrived in our mailbox in just a couple of days (not glossy, not even multi-colored. they spared every expense in the creation of that piece of merchandise.) I do recommend a visit to the hankthecowdog.com website. The interview (audio) with the author was enjoyable and another of his books has been added to my wishlist:
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