Contests | VIVIAN KIRKFIELD – Writer for Children

Work with schools : a librarian's assistant te...

Image by New York Public Library via Flickr

Yesterday was a GREAT day!

Taylor School in Colorado Springs is a tucked away in a lovely residential neighborhood.

As you enter the school, you hear the low hum of children, busy at their appointed tasks.

Smiling faces greet you in the office…these days security is an issue for every school, so visitors need to sign in and get a badge to wear.

I made my way to the first kindergarten class…actually 1½ classes…the teachers split up one of the classes so that every student in the three kindergarten classes can take part in the 2 back-to-back presentations.

The children were excited to hear about KATY AND THE BIG SNOW by Virginia Lee Burton. Several of the children had already heard the story…some of them had the book at home. But these classic picture books were written to be enjoyed over and over again.

It always amazes me how perceptive young children are. I’ll share what one little girl said. “Katy must have a really big gas tank because she plowed all day and still kept going.” And one of the boys observed that the burning house was right in the path of a bunch of skiers and he hoped Katy would clear the road for the fire department really quickly. How many adults would have seen that amidst the busy illustrations on that page?

The craft project consisted of drawing a picture of a street scene and then adding features like houses, trees, clouds, sun, people, and, of course, cotton-ball snow. Watching young children work on a picture is a revelation in creativity. Each child used the cotton balls in a different way…spread out, cut in little pieces, piled up on the sidewalk…some even put some on the house roofs.

I’m looking forward to next Thursday, when I visit with the kindergarteners at Taylor School again.

If you or anyone you know is looking for great picture book recommendations, please stop by my website: www.positiveparentalparticipation.com and take advantage of the wonderful half-price sale going on right now. You can also qualify for a BONUS PRIZE of a Crafty Easter Basket filled with craft supplies for your preschoolers. Purchasers of the book are automatically entered to win, but you can get a free entry by filling out the contact form on the website.

When I was a little girl, there were a few contests around that you could enter and a few shows on TV (most families didn’t even have one) where people could win money and prizes like Queen for a Day and The $64,000 Question…nothing like the contests and shows that are around today where a person can win millions of dollars.

I never realized that there is a whole world of contests out in cyberspace and I am glad to say that there are many moms (especially stay-at-home ones) who not only enter these contests and win prizes for their families, but they also broadcast the news of the contest to others. In order to enter the contest, one has to leave a comment on their blog or website and, for additional entries, you can tweet about it or post it on your Facebook page. I think it is wonderful, especially for those who are not able to get out and about much.

Today I was responding to someone who is now following me on Twitter and I discovered a contest with a fantastic prize…offered by Target to promote their support of reading and literacy program. Kudos to you, Target. It is great when big companies take some of their profits and return them to the community. So I am providing the link to the site where you can enter to win. Best of luck, everyone. I’ll try to pass along other worthwhile contests when I find them.