“Fort Building Time” by Megan Wagner Lloyd and Abigail Halpin
Some of my most magical memories as a child are time spent building and playing in forts. There was the “stick fort” we had at our family cabin in the mountains, our “hobbit hole” hole fort in the Hollow (true story!), our “tree fort” in our backyard and endless “blanket forts” inside our house. There is just something about having a special place that is all your own as a child. A place where you can hide-away and dream. That is exactly what this book celebrates.
It is broken up into sections based on seasons and shows a diverse group of kids playing in different forts based on that season. For example in winter they have a snow fort and in the fall they have a leafy bough fort. There really isn’t a story to this book, just whimsical text that describes the season and the magic of play and forts. Really, it is just right. Not to mention that the illustrations are perfection! They are playful and bright and are sure to have kids begging to build a fort by the time you are done reading.
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Time to Build a Fort
An obvious and fantastic activity to pair with this book is fort building! As mentioned above, reading this book is sure to have kids begging to build one. It worked like a charm with my kids who spent some of today building a fort inside with dad. When it was finished they read “Fort Building Time” inside and it was pretty much the cutest thing ever. Plus, the fort kept them happily entertained for a while afterwards!
My husband helped them build this fort, but another idea for “fort building time” would be by gathering up a bunch of supplies (such as blankets, ropes and pillows) and inviting your kids to create. I am definitely going to try that approach in the future and am excited to see what they can come up with. It would also be fun to try some of the ideas in the book such as building a fort out of branches or a string that is tied in-between two trees. So many options, so little time. What type of fort will you make first?!
If you give this activity a try and enjoy it please share it on Instagram (I am @booknerdmommy there) with the hashtag #beyondthebook. I would love to see it! Also, if you want to save it for later just pin the image below.
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