Joshua makes his own book

Today for his story time, Joshua decided that he wanted to make his own book and read it instead of choosing one from the shelf. I thought this was a great idea and it sounded like a lot of fun. I assembled a little book and then Joshua drew the pictures and dictated what he wanted written on the pages. He knew specifically what he wanted his book to be; his own version of Shel Silverstein's The Giving Tree. There are several ways he made it his own. For one, he was very sure that he wanted his version to be shorter than the original. Also, a hand, rather than a little boy, is the main character that interacts with the tree. It is the hand that picks the tree's apples, swings from its branches, etc. And finally, the tree turns out to be named Joshua -- a little plot twist at the end and everything! And perhaps a deeper meaning...? Anyway, it was so much fun to do this with Joshua. I have fond memories of doing this very thing with my own mother when I was about Joshua's age. She made all kinds of books for me, sometimes with my help, or sometimes on her own, but specifically made for me. She would use me as the main character, put things in the story that she knew I would like, etc. I'm pretty sure she did this for each of us kids as we were learning to read. I loved it as a child and I hope to be able to do the same for my own children. What a warm and fuzzy afternoon this has been!