Martha Washington: America’s First First Lady

Posted on February 22, 2013 by viviankirkfield

Happy George Washington’s Birthday, Perfect Picture Book Friday (over at Susanna Leonard Hill) and The Beauty of a Woman Blogfest II (over at August McLaughlin)

Luckily, I found a book that applies to ALL THREE.

Martha Washington: America’s First First Lady

Written by Jean Brown Wagoner

Publisher: Aladdin (1986)

Ages: 7 and up

Themes:

Believe in oneself, be yourself, strong girls and women, follow your dreams

Opening Lines:

“The Dandridges had company. There was nothing unusual about that. They often had company, but this was someone special. Mr. Dandridges’ sister, Mary, had come from England. She had sailed across the ocean to visit her brothers in Virginia. In 1738, that was a great adventure.”

Synopsis:

This story gives us a picture of the childhood of Martha Washington, America’s original First Lady. It also gives us a picture of life in the early 18^th Century…Martha’s family were wealthy colonists in the New World.

Why I like this book:

This is a chapter book from the 1980’s. Kids learn about the men who have been president of this country…but not much is taught about their wives. This book gives a wonderful picture of the strong young girl who grew up to be First Lady. Martha Washington was a gracious hostess and, although she objected to the rigid life as wife of the president, she had been raised to fulfill her responsibilities and she stood by his side. She stayed with her husband during the harsh winter at Valley Forge and was credited with keeping up the soldier’s spirits.

The line drawings depict the life of a wealthy family in the colonies…Indian scouts interrupt dinner to relay reports and black slaves keep the plantation running smoothly.

How a parent can use this book:

We need to encourage girls to dream and set goals…whichever ones they wish. These days, girls can set their sights on any job in any sector…they can even think about living in the White House…not as a First Lady, but as the President. The book can also be used to compare life now and then…parent and child can make a list of how things were done then and note how things are different these days.

Related Activities:

MARTHA WASHINGTON COOKIES

What a simple recipe…kids will love to help prepare these yummy cookies!

Recipe and photo from: http://www.yummly.com/recipe/Martha-Washington-Cookies-Allrecipes

You will need: 2 eggs whites, 1 cup pecan halves, 1½ tsp vanilla extract, 2/3 cup packed brown sugar, ½ tsp salt, electric mixer, greased cookie sheet.

Directions

Preheat oven to 250 degrees F (120 degrees C).
Beat egg whites and salt until foamy; gradually add brown sugar and vanilla.
Continue beating until stiff peaks are formed. Fold in pecan halves.
Drop by teaspoon onto greased cookie sheet. Bake for 1 hour.

More Martha Washington recipes: http://www.yummly.com/recipes/martha-washington

Some information about Martha Washington: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Martha_Washington

More information about Martha Washington: http://womenshistory.about.com/od/1stladywashing/p/biography.htm

For more quick and easy recipes and other activities that kids love to do, please check out my book. Click this link to purchase a copy

I also wanted to mention that Marilou, over at Spanish Pinay, did a special post, honoring several mommies with the Positive Parental Participation Blogger’s Award:http://spanishpinaynanay.blogspot.com/2013/02/parenting-blog-award-positive-parental.html

Asian Festival of Children’s Content and PPBF

Posted on February 15, 2013 by viviankirkfield

This post has three major parts: an update on the Asian Festival of Children’s Content, my review and activity for Perfect Picture Book Friday and the winner of the $25 check for International Book Giving Day.

Perhaps I need to give you a treat, as Susanna Leonard Hill does, to give you energy to get through this. In keeping with the Asian theme, I give you a serving of Basmati Rice Pudding with Pineapples and Grapes.

The Asian Festival of Children’s Content (AFCC) brings together content creators and producers with parents, teachers, librarians, and anyone interested in quality Asian content for children.

According to the AFCC mission statement, “It provides an opportunity for writers, illustrators, editors, publishers, agents, distributors, parents, children, teachers, and librarians to meet, learn, develop their craft, and discover business opportunities.”

The Asian Festival of Children’s Content impacts 1.5 billion children in Asia as well as their parents, professionals, and businesses involved in their development. I’m immensely honored, extremely excited and somewhat nervous to have been invited to speak on two of the panels at the conference this May. In preparation for my trip to Singapore, I’ve been seeking out books by Asian authors and information about the Asian culture.

Today, as part of Perfect Picture Book Friday, I’m sharing The Inch-High Samurai.

The Inch-High Samurai

Retold/translated by Ralph F. McCarthy

Illustrated by Shiro Kasamatsu

Publisher: Kadansha International (1993)

Ages: 4 and up

Themes:

Self-esteem, believe in oneself, caring about others, inner strength, outward appearances are unimportant, follow your dreams

Opening Lines:

“In Naniwa, in old Japan, there lived a woman and a man who hadn’t any children, so they spent their days alone.

But every evening, rain or shine, they’d go to Sumiyoshi Shrine and pray for just one tiny little baby of their own.”

Synopsis:

A man and a woman’s prayers are answered when their little baby is born. They love and cherish this child although he never grows much taller than an inch. At the age of thirteen, he leaves his family to pursue his dream of becoming a samurai, one of the brave and noble warriors. After sailing to the Capital in a rice bowl, Inchy Bo introduces himself to the Lord of Sanjo and asks to be taken into the household. The Lord of Sanjo’s daughter is entertained, taught and protected by Inchy Bo. In the end, an encounter with a monster provides the means for the hero to realize his dreams.

Why I like this book:

Ralph McCarthy has done a masterful job of retelling/translating this old Japanese folktale. The text is in both English and Japanese…what a wonderful resource! In the spirit of Tom Thumb, the story encourages us to discount outward appearances and look within for a person’s true worth. The illustrations by Shiro Kasamatsu are vibrant and colorful…I’ve always loved Oriental art.

How a parent can use this book:

Children will love this story…the colorful illustrations and lilting rhyme are charming. More than that, this is a story about setting a goal and facing one’s fears. The main character does not wait for success to come to him…he steps up, speaks out and is willing to take risks to get what he desires. This is good advice for all of us.

Related Activities:

Find step by step instructions with illustrations for this and many Japanese crafts at: http://www.enchantedlearning.com/crafts/japan/

Enchanted Learning Software’s
Origami Samurai Hat
More Kinder Crafts

You can wear this origami Samurai hat. Samurai were ancient Japanese warriors.

To make a Samurai hat wearable by a child, you’ll need a piece of paper about the size of a piece of newspaper, about 20 inches (51 cm) square.

Supplies needed:

A large piece of paper (you can use a sheet of newspaper)
Scissors
Markers or crayons

Start by making a square piece of paper. To start making the square, fold one corner of a piece of paper over to the adjacent side.

To finish making the square, cut off the small rectangle, forming a square (which is already folded into a triangle).

Position the triangle so that the fold (the long side) is on top.Fold one top corner of the triangle over so that it touches the bottom corner.Do the same with the other corner.

Fold both of the tips up (fold at the dotted line pictured on the left), so that they go to the top. For the rest of the detailed illustrations, please click on the link above.

Fold each of the upward-pointing tips outwards. Fold along the dotted line pictured on the left.

There are now two large triangles on the bottom. Fold the uppermost triangle most of the way up over the top half of the hat.

Fold the remaining strip of the triangle up and over the top part of the hat.

Fold the other large triangle up and into the hat.

Decorate your hat with crayons or markers.

For more origami projects, click here.

Perfect Picture Book Friday…come and join Susanna Leonard Hill’s fantastic group of picture book writers, illustrators, librarians and others who love books and kids.

As promised, we are awarding a check for $25 to a literacy organization in honor of International Book Giving Day. Thank you to all who left comments and nominated their favorite charity…and the winner is…The Nooksack Tribe, nominated by Dawn over at Tales from the Motherland. Please email me at vivian@positiveparentalparticipation.com to tell me how to make out the check and where to send it. And Dawn, if you think they would benefit from receiving a copy of Show Me How, I’d be happy to send that along as well.

All around the blogsphere, there were posts yesterday about International Book Giving Day and how others were donating books. Reading them restores one’s faith in the goodness of people…check out a few if you have the time. The first link is the one that explains all about this amazing grassroot’s celebration:

http://bookgivingday.files.wordpress.com/2013/01/press-release-international-book-giving-day-january-143.pdf

http://motherdaughterbookreviews.com/international-book-giving-day-2013/

http://kindergartenbasics.blogspot.com/2013/02/celebrate-international-book-giving-day.html

http://www.alamosabooks.com/event/International-Book-Giving-Day-Nancy-Clancy

https://www.villagehealthworks.org/upcoming-events/165-international-book-giving-day-celebration

No batteries required…powered by a child’s imagination! Click this link to purchase a copy

Tessenjutsu: The Art of Fighting “Japanese” War Fans (lediarunnels27221219.wordpress.com)
Asian Festival of Children’s Content 2013 (sys-con.com)
Perfect Picture Book Friday/ Madlenka (clarbojahn.wordpress.com)
PPBF: Be The Kite…Inspiring Kids to Imagine and Soar (viviankirkfield.wordpress.com)
PPBF! Poopendous! By Artie Bennett (thiskidreviewsbooks.com)

Prince Bear and Pauper Bear…Teaching Kids About Love and Friendship

Posted on February 7, 2013 by viviankirkfield

How can we teach kids about love and friendship?

By being great role models and treating our friends with love and respect
By giving our children respect and attention and expecting the same from them
By reading stories that deliver this important message

Today is Perfect Picture Book Friday…an opportunity for me to share a book with you that teaches kids about love and friendship…come and join Susanna Leonard Hill’s fantastic group of picture book writers, illustrators, librarians and others who contribute a picture book review.

February is a month that is chockfull with special days. Thursday, February 14 is Valentine’s Day…which is all about love…but it is also International Book Giving Day…which is all about getting books into the hands of children who have none.

I want to help young children become lovers of books and reading…and a child must have a book in order to fall in love with it.

Last year, I donated to Reach Out and Read, Sit Together and Read and Books for Africa.

In honor of International Book Giving Day and Valentine’s Day, I am donating $25 to provide books for kids…but I would like your help in choosing where the money goes. Do you have a favorite organization that supports this cause? Please leave a comment on my blog and tell me why your favorite should get the money. I will use Random.org and the winner will be announced in next Friday’s post.

Today’s Perfect Picture Book celebrates love and friendship…and is written by a children’s author and blogger I connected with last year. Emily Lim is now a member of 12×12 and is one of the featured speakers at the 2013 Asian Festival of Children’s Content. If you’d like to find out more about her and the many beautiful books she has written, you can visit her blog. When the book first came out, Emily appeared on TV, talking about how she came to write the book.

Prince Bear and Pauper Bear

Written by Emily Lim

Illustrated by Neal Sharp

Publisher: Mustard Seed Books (2007)

Ages: 2 and up

Themes:

Friendship, love, self-esteem, believe in oneself, caring about others, sharing

Synopsis:

From Amazon’s book page: “Pauper Bear is a sad little teddy bear who longs to be loved whilst Prince Bear is a proud teddy bear who loves himself. When their paths take different turns, the two bears discover that things do not happen as they expect… Prince Bear & Pauper Bear has been awarded the Bronze Medal (Children’s Picture Books category) at the 2008 IPPY Awards (World’s largest independent publishers book awards).”

Why do I like this book:

All kids love teddy bears…and here is a timeless story about two bears who are as different as day and night. Kids will cheer when Pauper Bear is carried home and lovingly cared for by his new owner. The illustrations are sweet and clever and clean and simple, with muted tones (a perfect bedtime story) and bold lines. The pictures are so expressive that we can tell what the teddy bears are thinking, even without reading the words. The author has given us a fresh perspective on the classic story of The Prince and the Pauper, with a book that kids will want to hear over and over again. Unfortunately, the book has limited availability here in the States…I was lucky to get a copy on Amazon and I plan to use it for the fall semester in my school programs.

Related Activities:

TEDDY BEAR PAPER BAG PUPPET

Photo courtesy www.dltk-kids.com

You will need: 1 paper lunch bag, construction paper, markers or crayons, scissors and glue.

A paper bag is an amazing craft resource. Depending on the age of the child, you can make this puppet as simple or as intricate as you wish. If you want templates for the arms, ears, etc…please go to: http://www.dltk-kids.com/crafts/teddy/mbearbag.html

If not, you can just cut out approximate-sized pieces from a piece of construction paper.

Cut out arms, ears, eyes, etc. from construction paper.
Glue onto the paper bag in the appropriate places.
If you’d like to make this a Valentine Bear Puppet, you can cut out a heart and glue onto the front, instead of the bow tie or the stomach…wherever you choose.
Make one with your child so that you each will have one…then you can role-play…retelling the story of Prince Bear and Pauper Bear.

Great teddy bear Valentine’s Day crafts from DLTK: http://www.dltk-holidays.com/valentines/mheartbear.htm

More teddy bear Valentine’s Day drafts here: http://parenting.leehansen.com/holidays/valentine/kids_valentines/index.shtml

And more here: http://dreamlandmagic.soniacjensen.com/valentine/valentine_teddy_pin.html

Wonderful resource website here: http://www.artistshelpingchildren.org/bears-crafts-ideas-activities.html

Last link for teddy bear Valentine’s day crafts here: http://www.ehow.com/info_12100662_teddy-bear-valentine-arts-crafts-preschoolers.html

Okay…I lied…here is one more: http://easypreschoolcraft.blogspot.com/2012/07/teddy-bear-puppet-craft.html

And this one has a template you can print out for a bear with movable arms and legs: http://www.storyplace.org/preschool/activities/takehometeddy.asp