Product envy: "Reading Together" books

Every so often, I come across a product that is so useful, widespread or just plain awesome that I cannot imagine why we don't have it in the U.S.

These books are a great example of this:

The yellow one is from the "Erst ich ein Stück, dann du" ("It's my turn first, then yours" which is a terrible name in English but works nicely in German.) The one on the left is from the similar "wir lesen zusammen" ("Reading together") series. There are lots of books like this available here for early readers. They are meant to be read by parents and kids together, each reading their own passages aloud.

As soon as you open the book, you can figure out who should read which part. The adult segments are more difficult to read and in a smaller font, while the children sections are in a larger easier-to-read font and use vocabulary kids are familiar with, as you can see in this example from the "Geheimnisvoller Besuch in Klasse 1" book above.

Our family has truly enjoyed these books as Rebecca has been learning to read. Her passages are long enough that she is proud about contributing to the story, yet short enough that she doesn't get bored. Incorporating adult sections means that the stories can be more complex and flow better than elementary books alone can. The stories aren't as watered down for the early reader. There are even versions of classic books, such as Heidi and The Jungle Book

I have done a few Google searches and found some similar English books, but nothing seems to be from a major publisher or available in most bookstores. So to all of my writer friends, get on it! This is such a great idea, and I bet American kids would love it, too. (I'd do it myself, but this blog is already pushing the limits of my creative talent.)

If you are interested in the German versions, you can find them on Amazon:

"Erst ich ein Stück, dann du" on Amazon

"Wir lesen zusammen" books on Amazon

Surprisingly important paperwork you should never, ever misplace, Part 1.

A few weeks ago, my daughter finally received her Seepferchen (seahorse) patch by jumping into the deep end of the pool, swimming the entire length of the pool and subsequently retreiving a ring from the bottom of the pool when standing in water which was shoulder-high. It's an important milestone for kids learning to swim.

She was as proud as can be, and so was I, and when I told German moms about her accomplishment, a few of them told me, "Don't lose that piece of paper!" Apparently, this is one of those certificates which you will need to produce in various situations. An acquantaince told me her 18-year-old son had to provide all his swimming certifcates (including the Seepferdchen he'd done at six) in order to go on a sailing trip with his church. Another said her teenage daughter has needed it at school a few times, including in high school

This is an important document which certainly doesn't look all that important to the untrained eye. It's the size of a passport and filled out by hand on the spot.

My husband Christoph, who is everyone's favorite uptight German and my reference for all things official, said it has three features that distinguish essential German documents. Here they come...

1) It is a standardized form, covering various different swimming associations
2) It has an official stamp on it
3) It has an official signature

So hold onto this one, you never know what it will be good for.