Before you hide that favorite picture book on a high shelf in a closet because you've read it fifty times and can't stand to read it one more time, consider this: Researchers have found that children's literature has almost twice as many infrequently used words as found in adult conversation. Even if you did use the rarer words in your conversation, the words might not occur as frequently and certainly not in exactly the same context.  Thus, the repeated exposure of rare vocabulary in a book you reread provides the perfect opportunity for your child to learn new words.  Children draw upon the happenings in a book and the illustrations to learn the meaning of unfamiliar words. 

Except If by Jim Averbeck is a fun spring title to use for repeated readings.  With its brief text and easily understood pictures, your child can readily begin to memorize the story and tell it back to you.  After a couple of readings, begin this process of memorizing by pausing before saying "except if" (which is repeated many times) and point to the words as you say them together.  Despite its limited text, Except If contains plenty of rare vocabulary words for your child to learn: 'scurry', 'slithers', 'craggy', 'shelters', and 'downy.'