Sunday Post: Architecture…Books Create a Strong Foundation

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Jake at Time after Time has a Sunday Post Challenge and every week he provides a theme…this week’s theme is ARCHITECTURE.

Photo courtesy of http://departmentstoremuseum.blogspot.com/2010/06/abraham-straus-brooklyn-new-york.html

 

I held my mother’s hand as we approached the impressive façade of the eight-story building, my older sister excitedly chattering about the dress she was going to buy to wear at her junior high school graduation.  Located in downtown Brooklyn, Abraham & Strauss was a well-known department store with floors and floors of the finest merchandise.

Taking the elevator to the eighth floor, we entered a paradise for book lovers!  Wall-to-wall books…and in between…tables and tables of books.  Admonishing me to stay there and find something to read, my mother and sister left for the dress department.

Perhaps you are shocked and horrified that any mother would leave a nine-year old girl alone in a department store in New York City.  Looking back on the experience, I’m also surprised that she did…but it was another time…over 50 years ago…and people felt a lot safer, even though perhaps they weren’t.

I wandered around, happy as a clam (are clams happy?), picking up this book and that book and just reveling in the ecstasy of having so many books at my disposal.  I finally choose LITTLE WOMEN by Louisa May Alcott, one of my favorites.

I sat down on the floor and proceeded to read the entire book from cover to cover.  When I am engrossed in a book, the world outside of the book ceases to exist for me.

Is it that way for you?  I had no watch…time stood still for me until I finished the last page, closed the book   and crawled out from my quiet little cubbyhole under one of the tables.

“THERE SHE IS!!!!”  I saw my mother and sister running towards me.  Several policemen, uniformed store security guards and sales clerks were with them.  Later, my mother explained that after several hours of shopping for my sister’s dress, they returned to the book department, but couldn’t find me (I am very petite and at age nine, I was even smaller).   Store personnel and the police were called in to help search throughout the entire store because they believed I had walked away from the book department.

Walk away from a book department?  It’s obvious they didn’t know the real Vivian!

I’m sure my mother never did that again…but at no time during the experience was I frightened or concerned.  I didn’t think I was lost in the store…I was lost in the world of the book…and I was very happy to be there.

“Books are like wings…they help children soar!”

Why should we read to young children?

Research shows that young children who are read to on a daily basis have greater school success.  Buildings like the old Abraham and Strauss needed a strong foundation…children need a strong foundation as well…and books contribute a very important part of that.

Why should we limit TV and participate with young children in other activities?

Recent studies point to possible future health problems when kids get too much ‘screen time’.

 

HOLIDAY GIFT IDEA

With the holidays just around the corner, are you wondering what to get for friends who have young children, teachers who teach young children, grandparents or daycare providers?

Show Me How! Build Your Child’s Self-Esteem

Through Reading, Crafting and Cooking

 

A brand-new, signed and inscribed copy is just $19.95 on Amazon (there are several used copies from other book dealers being offered for $50 – $60).  The book contains 100 picture book suggestions with a summary, quick craft project and child-friendly recipe for each recommended title.  In addition, there is a gentle parenting tip and lined space for writing your own notes on every page.

This is a must-have book…you’ll never wonder what to do with your kids…and they won’t have to turn to the TV for entertainment.  Get your copy today!

 

Want more information about Jake’s Sunday Post?

 http://jakesprinters.wordpress.com/

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PPBF: Alexander and the Wind-Up Mouse…Be Thankful for Who You Are

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Today is Perfect Picture Book Friday where I link up with Susanna Leonard Hill’s fantastic group of picture book writers, illustrators, librarians and others who contribute a picture book review.

Alexander and the Wind-Up Mouse

Written and illustrated by Leo Lionni

Publisher: Pantheon Books (1969)

Ages: 3 and up

Themes:

Believing in yourself, friendship

Opening lines:

“Help!  Help!  A mouse!”  There was a scream.  Then a crash.  Cups, saucers, and spoons were flying in all directions.  Alexander ran for his hole as fast as his little legs would carry him.”

Synopsis:

Alexander, a real mouse, is jealous of the toy wind-up mouse who lives in the warm house and is loved by the children.  He courageously asks the powerful lizard wizard if there is some way he can become a wind-up mouse.  When he finds the wind-up mouse has been thrown away, he decides to use his magic wish to turn the wind-up mouse into a real mouse so that the two can live together and be friends.

Why do I like this book:

This book is a Caldecott Honor Award winner!  Mr. Lionni’s simple yet bold illustrations capture the pathos of the story.  And the message is so powerful…children (and adults) often think that ‘the grass is greener’ and that they would be happier being someone else.  Our happiness comes from within ourselves…being someone else cannot make us happier.   When Alexander realizes that he is the fortunate one, he also realizes that life would be sweeter if he had a friend to share it with him.  This is a perfect story for the Thanksgiving season…and I will be sharing it this coming Sunday in my new Show Me How Picture Books and Crafts for Kids series on YouTube.

Related Activities:

PAPER MOSAIC FLOWER FROM THE LIZARD WIZARD’S GARDEN

Photo courtesy of http://www.education.com/activity/article/Paper_Mosaics/

You will need: One piece of dark construction paper, several small pieces of colored construction paper cut into small squares, glue stick and a pair of scissors.

  1. Talk to your child about the illustrations in the book…many of them look like cut-paper collage and mosaic…in fact, if you have old wallpaper sample book or old magazines, you can use those instead of the small pieces of colored construction paper.
  2. Help your child plan out the flower (or whatever your child decides to create on the page)…you can help draw the picture with marker to define each section…or your child might decide to just fill the page with the small cut paper in his own design.
  3. Use a dab of glue to stick each piece onto the paper.
  4. When dry, hang in a place of honor.

Lesson guide for teachers: http://www.scholastic.com/teachers/lesson-plan/alexander-and-wind-mouse-discussion-guide

Dramatization of the story for students: http://www.csuchico.edu/~cguenter/FourArts/DR/DRalex.html

Because November is such a special month and there is so much going on, I want to reshare some links to wonderful events going on in the kidlit/picture book community because I never know when someone new visits my blog who might not know about them.

  1. Picture Book Month: Visit the website of Dianne de Las Casas to join in the month-long celebration of PICTURE BOOKS!  Every day, a different picture book champion (author, illustrator, etc.) is guest posting…you won’t want to miss these….they will inspire you and help you remember just why you love to read and write picture books.
  2.    Picture Books and Crafts for Kids: Please pass the word about this new YouTube series for parents and teachers and kids…every Sunday, I’ll be choosing a picture book to read aloud…and then I’ll do a simple related craft project.  Two weeks ago, I spotlighted Yes We Can by Sam McBratney and last Sunday I read The Little Red Caboose by Marian Potter and we created a geometric-shape train picture.  This coming Sunday, I will be reading Alexander and the Wind-Up Mouse and we will be making the flower mosaic.  Each segment highlight a parenting problem such as setting up good bedtime routines or a children’s challenge like learning to be a good friend and believing in oneself.
  3. PiBoIdMo:  Picture Book Idea Month is the brain-child of children’s author,Tara Lazar.  If you signed up, you are already immersed in the world of picture books…trying to come up with 30 fresh ideas for picture book manuscripts during this month.  But, even if you have not joined the challenge, please run over there…don’t walk… to read an AMAZING guest post EVERY DAY this month…these posts will instruct and educate you…as well as motivate you to write the picture book that every child will want to read over and over again.
  4. Please don’t forget about Reach Out and Read…we need to GAB (Give a Book) before they can ROAR (Reach Out and Read).  If everyone who loves to read donates enough to buy just one book, the New York City Bellevue Hospital program (one of the largest in the country) will be able to replace the books that were lost in Hurricane Sandy.
  5. 12×12 in 2012: November is already half-way gone…and I’ve finished my November picture book draft for Julie Hedlund’s 12×12 Challenge to write a picture book draft each month…hurray!
  6. I also wanted to share an article from the University of New Hampshire’s Penman Review…three tips for writers before their book is published.

 

HOLIDAY GIFT IDEA

I know the media is starting its holiday campaign to turn our young children into super-consumers…but young children don’t need fancy electronic gadgets…they only need a good picture book, a few simple inexpensive art supplies (like paper, crayons or markers, safety scissors and glue stick) and your positive participation.  If you are looking for a great resource that will give you 100 picture book summaries and easy matching craft and cooking activities, you can purchase a copy of Show Me How! Build Your Child’s Self-Esteem Through Reading, Crafting and Cooking.  At under $20, this book makes a PERFECT gift for any parent or teacher of children ages 2-8…as well as for daycare providers and grandparents.  No batteries required…powered by a child’s imagination!   If you order from my website in the month of December, there will be a special bonus gift included with each book (more about that next week)…the price is a little more than on Amazon…but I’m also offering FREE SHIPPING…so it evens out the cost.  Take your pick…whichever site you want to use…just make sure you grab a copy for those special people in your life who would benefit from having this award-winning resource!

This post is part of a series for parents and teachers called Perfect Picture Book Fridays hosted by Susanna Leonard Hill.  Click on her link and find lots of other picture book suggestions with summaries and activities.   This is an unbelievable resource for any parent, teacher or children’s librarian.

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Sunday Post: Surroundings…Hurricane Sandy…You Have to Gab Before You Can Roar

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Jake at Time after Time has a Sunday Post Challenge and every week he provides a theme…this week’s theme is SURROUNDINGS.

Photo courtesy of http://www.buzzfeed.com/summeranne/21-pictures-of-children-in-the-wake-of-hurricane-s

Hurricane Sandy affected millions of people…many of them young children.

For some, their surroundings will be changed forever.

Newspaper headlines tell the sad tale.

No date set to reopen hospitals that evacuated during Hurricane Sandy – NY Daily News

http://www.thestreet.com/story/11751677/1/hurricane-sandy-in-pictures.html

http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2012/10/28/nyregion/hurricane-sandy.html

One of the programs hit hardest was the Reach Out and Read program that operates at Bellevue Hospital.  Reach Out and Read is a nationwide literacy program that encourages doctors and pediatricians to interact with their young patients while they examine them.  Books are given to the kids…and parents are encouraged to read them with their children.

http://learningmatters.tv/blog/about-us/about-us-staff/watch-reach-out-and-read/10505/

According to John Merrow, special PBS NewsHour correspondent, “The Reach Out and Read program can be found in 5,000 medical centers across the country. It touches almost four million mostly low-income children, at a cost of $10 per child, per year. Bellevue’s program is one of the largest.”

But Bellevue Hospital was heavily impacted by Hurricane Sandy and thousands of picture books were destroyed.

Watching the news reports, I began to think about what I could do to help.  After all, this is Picture Book Month where people who are passionate about picture books are celebrating their importance.

So I contacted Claudia Aristy, director of the Bellevue Hospital Reach Out and Read program, and offered to send her two copies of Show Me How…she was excited and told me she interested in using it as part of the program with her counselors and families.

I also sent a small check and promised to earmark my book profits in the month of December to help buy new picture books for their program.

If you are moved by the plight of Bellevue’s Reach Out and Read program and want to help, you can visit their website and donate…even just enough to buy ONE book…if everyone did that, they would quickly fill their bookshelves again.

http://www.reachoutandread.org/

WE HAVE TO GAB (GIVE A BOOK)

BEFORE THEY CAN ROAR

(REACH OUT AND READ)

If you are an author or illustrator and would like to donate a copy of one of your books, I’m sure they would really appreciate that…when I spoke to Claudia, she advised me to send my books to her address as the clinic was still closed.  If I receive any book donations, I will pack them up and ship them out directly to her.  Perhaps we can get some publishers interested in joining this campaign!

Because these are the surroundings we want young children to have!

And, since this is Picture Book Month…here is some more Picture Book News!

The second episode of my new Google+/YouTube series: Show Me How: Picture Books and Crafts for Kids has been uploaded.  Believing in oneself is a challenge.  I read “The Little Red Caboose” and make a Geometric Shape Train picture.  I hope you will watch the video…and pass it along to anyone who has young children.

http://youtu.be/BFccffrlej4

Each week I hope to show parents how easy it is to participate with their kids…it takes only a few minutes to read the story…and a few minutes to do the craft activity…but the rewards are SO BIG.  Most of the stories and crafts I will use come from my book, Show Me How! Build Your Child’s Self-Esteem Through Reading, Crafting and Cooking.

There’s a new review of Show Me How on Barbara’s GradeOnederful blog: http://www.gradeonederful.com/2012/11/thank-yous-shout-out-give-away-and-tic.html

I’ll also be joining author and educator Susan Case in a Thanksgiving Week Google+ Hangout today, Monday, November 11 at 3pm EST, for our segment called “Acts of Random Kindness”.  I will be reading “Norman the Doorman”, the story about a very special mouse whose life was devoted to being kind to others.  Susan has a wonderful craft activity to share that will encourage children to embrace kindness and reaching out to help others.

And then on Tuesday, there will be more picture book reading and crafting when I share “The Day No One Played Together” by Donalisa Helsley and make a Story Book of Friends…as part of the Google+ Thanksgiving special: #turkeytalk

Want more information about Jake’s Sunday Post?

 http://jakesprinters.wordpress.com/

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