We are starting to get into the Christmas mood here at the Let them be Small house and this means, of course, that we are now starting to get stuck into the Christmas books.
We have a good selection of Christmas books up in the loft and I’ll bring them down at the beginning of December, but for now, we have been enjoying one or two that we have been sent, as well as some from the local library.
A story that I had never read, or at least don’t recall reading, is The Nutcracker. We have read it as part of a Christmas Compendium and this year have been enjoying the fabulous Story Orchestra version from Quarto. The Story Orchestra: The Nutcracker is simply beautiful and it has really captured the children’s imagination, particularly Mr D’s.
The book is sumptuously illustrated and each page has music from Tchaikovsky. I do enjoy the peacefulness and calm that classical music can bring and Mr D has been really taken with this book. It is beautiful and the clarity of the sound is perfect.
We have read this story so many times since the book arrived, and the children have since taken out other versions of the Nutcracker from the library (including a peculiar version about the Fairytale Hairdresser and a Hello Kitty version). We have watched YouTube videos of the ballet performances and listened to longer pieces of the music.
The children are really enjoying this story and we have been doing some Nutcracker themed sheets from Twinkl – maths sheets, colouring sheets and sequencing things. This pack here has plenty of things to sit alongside this wonderful book. I’ve had the sheets to hand for the children to do after breakfast when they’re often most receptive to ‘sitting’ and doing something whilst we all finish breakfast together and I can get ready for the day ahead.
I think in the new year we might explore the music in more detail and talk more about why certain music is played at certain times and to represent different characters. For now, however, we will just enjoy sharing this magnificent book together.
This looks lovely, what a great way to introduce children to classical music. I saw The Nutcracker ballet years ago (pre-kids) and loved the story.
the children adore it – it’s such a beautiful book x
What a beautiful book!
Nothing beats the Christmas Carol – need I say Charles Dickens
i really lloved the snowman x
Twas the night before Christmas
i like the snowman classic!
The Snowman
Beautiful story
I like A Christmas Carol as it has meaning to it x
a Christmas carol my favourite
Twas the night before christmas….
The Night Before Christmas. I read it to my girls every Christmas Eve
The Snowman.
i always like the snowman
we love twas the night before xmas
Love any variation on A Christmas Carol
Our favourite has to be the classic – The Night Before Christmas.
”Twas the night before Christmas”. as we were always read it on Christmas Eve by my mum x
The night before Christmas
Has to be the snowman
My favourite Christmas book is Stickman
The Snowman is lovely with such beautiful illustrations
The Snowman
We like T’was the night before Christmas!
The Snowman is my favourite x
A Christmas Carol
My favourite Christmas book is called An Angel Just Like Me as I remember reading it with my gran as a child and it has such a great message to the story
We like The Jolly Postman
The Snowman
My favourite children’s book is The Grinch that Stole Christmas and my favourite older child/adult book is A Christmas Carol
The Snowman is my favourite
Jack Frost
thats not my santa x
twas the night before christmas
’twas The Night Before Christmas, also Puppy’s First Christmas.
The night before Christmas
Love the polar express book
The Snowman
The Children’s book One Snowy Night has been enjoyed by my three children
A christmas carol
A very Marley Christmas – a Christmas version of Marley the dog – my son has loved it since he was 3
Stick Man – my little boy loves it
A Christmas Carol is a classic book
My favourite christmas book is Charles Dicken’s A Christmas Carol
Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer
The Night Before Christmas
Has to be the polar express i love that book.
The Stickman 🙂
Twas The Night Before Christmas
The Polar Express book is one the children remember so I guess that makes it our favourite.
Love this book!
Stickman, it’s a lovely story!
The illustrated poem ‘ Twas the night before Christmas..’
Mogs christmas, grandson loves his story time with grandma
The snowman!
The night before xmas
A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens
the night before christmas
The Snowman – classic, love the music.
a christmas carol is my fav 🙂
The snowman is my fave
Father christmas needs a wee
The Snowman
The Polar Express (it’s also one of my favourite Christmas movies)
Twas The Night Before Christmas
The snowman x
Foxes in the snow is a lovely little book my toddler loves about the first time two fox cubs play in the snow.