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 and related resources for parents, teachers and children.
Some picture book points to remember:
- Having picture books available for young children to look at and listen to is almost as important as having air to breathe and food to eat.
- Set up a bookshelf for your child’s collection.
- Books can be expensive…check out used book stores and consignment shops for discounted picture books.
- The library is an amazing resource for children’s books. You can speak to the librarian about recommendations and story programs.
- Read to your child every day.
This last reminder reminds me that we need to announce the WINNER of the March Positive Parental Participation Reading Challenge. Marcy, over at Orples, is a hands-on grandmother. We’ve connected through Jake’s Sunday Posts and she often writes about the activities she and her grandchildren do together. I know she will enjoy sharing a new picture book with them. Congratulations, Marcy!
National Library Week is April 8-14. To help celebrate, visit the library with your children at least one day next week if you can…and make it a habit to go often. Does your child have a library card yet? Find out how old your child has to be…if he doesn’t have one yet and is old enough, help celebrate National Library Week by signing him up.
A child’s library card is a passport for learning about the world.
Do you want your library to win one of the 25 copies of Show Me How! Build Your Child’s Self-Esteem Through Reading, Crafting and Cooking (MoneyPenny Press, Ltd. 2010)?
Many libraries are very limited in what new materials they can buy for their collections because of reduced revenues. Another way to celebrate National Library Week is to nominate your library to win a copy of this great parent/child activity book? It’s easy! If you haven’t done it already, just leave a comment on this post, naming the library and telling why the people in your community would benefit from having the book available to them. At the end of the month, twenty-five libraries will be chosen through Random.org and the people who did the nominating will get to present the book to their local library.
Do you tweet on Twitter? Are you a fan of Facebook? Have you pinned anything on Pinterest yet? Please help me spread the word by tweeting, posting and/or pinning about the Show-Me-How Library Project.
Thank you, thank you, thank you…and now…are you still there…here is a really special picture book, just in time for Easter.
The Country Bunny and the Little Gold Shoes
Written by Dubose Heyward
Illustrated by Marjorie Flack
Publisher: Houghton Mifflin Books for Children (1939)
Ages: 4 and up
Themes: Mastering tasks and skills, goal-setting, holidays (Easter), overcoming gender discrimination, family, working together.
Opening Line:
“We hear of the Easter Bunny who comes each Easter Day before sunrise to bring eggs for boys and girls, so we think there is only one. But this is not so.”
Synopsis:
A young country bunny sets a goal for herself of becoming one of the five Easter bunnies who deliver Easter eggs all over the world. It seems her dreams will not be realized as the little bunny grows up and becomes the mother of twenty-one baby bunnies. Using ingenuity, common sense and lots of determination, she trains each of her children to master certain skills.
Will Little Cottontail Mother prove that she is the kindest, wisest and fastest bunny in the whole world? Can she complete all of her tasks? Does she win the golden shoes that will enable her to fly? Read this charming story to find out!
Why I like this book:
This book was written over seventy years ago…yes, you know how I love these old classic picture books…and is still relevant today! This is a very modern feminist tale…twenty-nine children and she still has a dream that she realizes…overcoming gender discrimination and economic hardships.
Little Cottontail Mother is a loving and caring mom…but that doesn’t stop her from expecting her children to be responsible and helpful and courteous. She teaches them the life skills they will need as adults.
The illustrations are from the ‘illustrious’ Marjorie Flack…need I say more!
Related Activities
HANDPRINT EASTER BASKETS
I’ve made this craft with kindergarten classes…they really love it! This is a lovely keepsake because it is made from your child’s handprints. Hang on the refrigerator or use as an Easter door decoration. The picture here is from Artists Helping Children.org They have lots of great ideas and instructions on their website.
You will need: Construction paper, tape, glue stick, crayons or markers, scissors
1. Trace at least 8 hands for each basket (these are the handle).
2. Cut out a basket shape and cut a slit in the top (the eggs will slip in here).
3. Lay out the handprints, overlapping slightly, to form a handle shape. Tape them while you are arranging them and then glue in place.
4. Cut out a bunch of Easter egg shapes. Your child can decorate them before sliding them into the slit. Glue in place when they are in the right place.
Gail Terp has an awesome blog post with craft ideas and more here.
Anita Silvey’s Children’s Book-A-Day Almanac did a lovely in-depth review here
Book Reviews for Kids did one here.
Talk with your children about the tasks that Little Cottontail Mother taught her bunnies. What tasks can your child help with at home?
Make a goal chart…Little Cottontail Mother had things she wanted to accomplish…help your child make a chart of tasks and skills he or she wants to master.
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.
And please, don’t forget to leave a comment, nominating your local library to be the recipient of a copy of Show Me How!
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VIVIAN KIRKFIELD - Writer for Children 