Help kids make choices

Nationally syndicated, Kendal Rautzhan writes and lectures on children's literature. She can be reached via e-mail: kendal@sunlink.net.

October 18, 2008 Last Updated: October 18, 2008 02:00 PM Community

"The Hunger Games," a thought-provoking novel for older children, takes place in a terrifying but believable future America.submitted photo

Learning to make choices begins in early childhood. Children learn a great deal from the choices they make, both good and bad. However, if a parent makes all the decisions for the child, the child can't learn to make choices and this will have crippling results later in life.

Start with simple choices a toddler can make, such as what clothing to wear, offering a couple of suggested snack items and allowing the child to choose what book to read. The earlier you allow children to make choices the easier it will be for the children to handle what life throws at them as they get older.

Remember, too, that no one does everything right, so when your child makes a bad choice, don't come down on the child for that. Help them recognize the lesson learned in the bad choice. Chances are the child will be far less likely to make the same mistake twice.

The following book is available at many public libraries."Rotten Ralph Feels Rotten" by Jack Gantos; illustrated by Nicole Rubel; Farrar, Straus & Giroux; 48 pages; read aloud: age 4 and older; read yourself: age 7 and older.Sarah has cooked a healthy meal for Rotten Ralph the cat, but he isn't interested. Fruits and vegetables? No way! Ralph knows what he wants, and later that night when Sarah is asleep, he sneaks out for the food he loves best — straight out of the garbage can.A green chicken wing, squishy squid, a furry fish, a hunk of blue cheesecake, and a carton of chunky chocolate milk. Delicious! But later that evening, Ralph's stomach begins to ache. Maybe his treats from the garbage can weren't such a good idea after all!Hilarious in every way, children will want to read this one over and over again.

Library: Evans City Public Library, 204 S. Jackson St., Evans CityLibrary Director: Judith PfeiferChildren's Librarian: Patricia PflugChoices this week: "Zoom City" by Thacher Hurd; "It's Okay to be Different" by Todd Parr; "Camp Murphy" by Colleen O'Shaughnessy McKenna

The following books are available at favorite bookstores."The Hunger Games" by Suzanne Collins; Scholastic, 2008; 374 pages; $17.99 hardcover; read aloud: age 12 and older; read yourself: age 12 and olderFrom the ruins of North America, the nation of Panem has emerged. The glorious Capital is surrounded by outlying districts, and life in the 12 districts is hard and cruel. Poverty and hunger abound, and the Capital makes certain it doesn't change. To enforce their power, the Capital televises the annual extreme reality TV show — Hunger Games — where 12 boys and 12 girls between the age of 12 and 18 compete in mortal combat until all but the final victor remains.Sixteen-year-old Katniss Everdeen knows hunger and survival all too well. Living alone with her mother and younger sister, she has learned to hunt illegally for the three of them to ward off starvation. Now, she is a contender in the Hunger Games. Morally opposed and sickened by the games throughout her life, she is now forced to pit her own survival against all the things she really believes in.Unsettling parallels to our present, strong underpinnings of ancient myth, and a terrifying, eerily believable future America combine to create a thought-provoking novel that is guaranteed to leave readers breathless."Gran, You've Got Mail" by Jo Hoestlandt; illustrated by Aurelie Abolivier; Delacorte, 2008; 107 pages; $14.99 hardcover; read aloud: age 8 to 12; read yourself: age 9 to 12.Twelve-year-old Annabelle hasn't written to her 90-year-old great-grandmother, Gran, in a long time. When Annabelle's father buys her a computer and wants her to master the keyboard, Annabelle decides that writing letters to Gran will be the best way for her to learn.At first, Annabelle doesn't think she has that much to write to Gran about, or that Gran will have anything interesting to say to her. But as each correspondence is traded, their friendship grows into one where they are not just friends, but confidantes as well.Long-burdened by the break-up of Annabelle's best friend, Annabelle decides to tell Gran the truth behind what happened. Much to her surprise, Gran understands and relates a similar situation that happened to her many, many years ago. In their exchange, Annabelle grows in more ways than one.A lovely, often funny, but always heartfelt portrayal of the bond between grandparents and grandchildren, this charming and insightful book is simply terrific.