Audio CDs you like ?

[manhattanmama]

My 4 year old son likes listening to CDs. At the moment, it seems to be his favorite way to pickup information. Currently, he likes LuAnn Adams, WeeSing Nursery Rhymes and some books on CD.

Anybody have some recommendations for CDs or tapes? Looking for educational material or interesting stories.

Thanks.

[USAmma]

Charlotte's Web, read by the author. My dd loved it starting at age 4.

[Mamax3]

Jim Weiss is AWESOME for little ones. My kids love to listen to him tell stories on tape.

www.chinaberry.com sells these (that's where I buy them anyway).

Check your local library for books on tape, I was shocked and surprised at how many my small little library had in stock.

We love books on tape here!!!

Also, we REALLY enjoy Shel Silverstein on CD.

[Lillian J]

When he gets a bit older, a must for a child like that is the Boomerang audio magazine for kids! I can't say enough - it's just fabulous. My son used to carry a backpack full of them whenever we went on a trip - he could sit there and listen to them hour after hour with rapt attention. The producer is a genius with kids. We met him at a homeschool conference exhibit table when my son was about 9. Two weeks later he was still saying in amazement, "I can't believe I met Dave Schmave!" Dave Schmave, the elevator man, is a beloved character on the tapes that the producer plays - tells amazing, moving stories about childhood that kids - and moms! - can really relate to. I believe you can get a sample copy from their website - Lillian

[Lillian J]

And here's a website I posted about awhile back - amazing! It's online, rather than in CD form, but you can download them into your computer:

Kiddie Records Weekly - Classics From the Golden Age
Fabulous forgotten treasures - children's records from the early 40s and 50s, including many classic stories, some of which were extravagant Hollywood productions. Downloadable to listen to FREE.

- Lillian

[Lillian J]

And another I just found out about is really cool too:

Singing Science Records
Listen to educational science-themed kids' folk songs produced in the late 1950s /early 1960s done to popular tunes of the day. Lillian

[MyLittleWonders]

We like Raffi a lot - even my almost 5 year old. Charlotte Mason is another fun one, as is Shake, Rattle n' Read by Jack Hartman and Chicka Chicka Boom Boom & Other Coconutty Songs by John Archambault and David Plummer.

ETA: There'a also the School House Rock cd's and videos! Those are a blast.

[Lillian J]

Originally Posted by MyLittleWonders

We like Raffi a lot - even my almost 5 year old.

When people talk about 80s music, I always say "I don't know much about it - we were mostly listening to Raffi then..." - Lillian

[klondikesky]

Here's what's on my shelf for the girls that we love...

Stories --
Storyteller Heather Forrest Tales Around the Hearth (tales like "The Turnip" and "The Mitten" and The Animals could Talk (Aesop's Fables for young children), these are just wonderful.

The unabridged audio of Winnie-the-Pooh and The House at Pooh Corner by Milne

Abiyoyo by Pete Seeger, the audio and book set

Music --

note: We don't like over-produced music for children. They love interesting voices (even unaccompanied) and to distinguish different instruments. We also favor folk music, classical music, and regional music.

Elizabeth Mitchell's You are my Flower and You are my Sunshine
Elizabeth Mitchell and Lisa Loeb Catch the Moon
Mike and Peggy Seeger American Folksongs for Children with the book by Ruth Crawford Seeger. This is an awesome catalog of traditional folksongs, and the book is great if you want to play these yourself or learn the words. It also includes instructions for fingerplays and dances, etc...
Ella Jenkins You Sing a Song, I Sing a Song and Dance by the Ocean and Sharing Cultures
Smithsonian Folkways Songs for Children
Pete Seeger Concert at Town Hall
Woody Guthrie Songs to Grow On
Harry Connick, Jr. Songs I Heard
Celtic Lullaby from ellipsis arts
Peter, Paul, and Mommy
Not for Kids Only by Jerry Garcia and David Grisman *the authenticity of this cd may offend some parents, 'damn' appears in a song, and one song "Hot Corn, Cold Corn" is about making whiskey (happens to be dh and dd1's favorite, they sing it while they homebrew beer and mead together).
The Wonder of Lullabies and Sing a Song with Baby from natrually you can sing productions (these include songbooks). Wonderful if you want to sing with/to your children, but don't know any songs! (like me)...

Lots of classical music. My girls *love* Bach in particular. We also play lots of Vivaldi, Handel, and Beethoven. Nothing too dark or brooding.

[klondikesky]

Oh, and we also like bluegrass a lot, but go for instrumental cds. The themes can be pretty rough otherwise...

[klondikesky]

One more...

Dh and my good friend Penelope love the cd by They Might Be Giants for children. The title slips my mind, though...

[Pinky Tuscadero]

My kids love old show tunes. Not exactly educational but you'd be surprised at what they learn from "The Music Man", "Oklahoma" and "The King and I". Geography, history, politics, and of course music!

The only kids CD they really like is Philadelphia Chickens. It rocks!

Suzy

[UlrikeDG]

My kids like Jim Weiss, as well! I found them cheapest on Overstock.com and CBD (a Christian book catalog), although a lot of different websites do carry them.

Music CDs:
For The Kids
The Soundtrack from Shrek
Philadelphia Chickens (I don't like that one as well as the kids do)
Celtic Woman

I think there's one more that I'm forgetting, but those are the ones that get the most "mileage" around here. I listened to the samples from the soundtrack from the Curious George movie (which I haven't seen yet), and that will probably be my next purchase.

[MyLittleWonders]

I really like the soundtrack from Curious George - the boys are getting to know some of the songs too! It's upbeat but calm at the same time.

[reeseccup]

We love Philadephia Chickens too !! We also borrow Spanish, German and French stores/songs on cd/tape to listen to.

We also have cds from http://www.pctmusic.com/dvdpromo/jj.php , we have the whole set of the jr.jukebox which are cute and fun.

[reeseccup]

Originally Posted by Lillian J

Singing Science Records

THANK YOU The kids are dancing and LOVING these songs (ok so am I )

[Kleine Hexe]

This is a cool thread. Problem is I want to buy everything.