Pippi Longstocking is perhaps my first childhood book friend. Pippi is the ultimate kid’s kid and free spirit. She is able to lift strong policemen, climb tall houses and trees, rescue children from burning buildings and adults from their boring chatter.

Pippi lives all alone in a large yellow and pink house, her mother died when she was a baby and her father is lost at sea somewhere but expected to return. Pippi fills her days with pancakes, games, dancing, and many other antics. Her best friends are a monkey named Nilsson and a white horse she lets in the house and sleep in the living room. She supports herself with her suitcase full of gold coins. Clearly, she needs no one and is very capable of handling every detail of life on her own.

The neighbor children next door, Annika and Tommy, think Pippi’s the most amazing wonder. They weren’t the only ones, my children and their mother, think Pippi Longstocking is simply the best.

Pippi is our go to girl when the world seems dreary and boring. Through all of Pippi’s antics, which in our opinion makes her very endearing, are well placed “lessons” in life. As a mom, I think her messages of confident self-esteem and the knowledge that one has the power to do anything once you put your mind to it, are powerful lessons that I want my children to embrace.

When we check Pippi out from the Blount County Library it is always the “big purple” edition The Adventures of Pippi Longstocking, which contains all of the Pippi Longstocking books. This book is perfect for ages 7 to 10 but younger children often times can easily sit through a reading.

Something To Do

Pippi Longstocking is such a fun book to jump into. There are so many daily events happening within the pages of this favorite read that we often times have difficulty deciding what exactly we should be doing. Some activities we’ve done in the past are walking backwards relay races, making pancakes, and of course a large batch of ginger cookies.

Today though we thought we’d share our love of making ‘long-stockings”. They are perfect for any occasion.

Necessities:

How-to:

Follow me on Pinterest!
Follow Valarie Budayr @Jump into a Book’s board Jump Into a Book Kidlit Booklists on Pinterest. Follow Valarie Budayr @Jump into a Book’s board A Year In The Secret Garden on Pinterest.

The post The Book-Jumper Summer Reading Series: A Day with Pippi Longstocking appeared first on Jump Into A Book.

Welcome to Weekend Links! Is summer whizzing by or what?? Reading is always an important part of our children’s lives no matter what time of year it is and so is helping our young readers learn about other cultures, religions and traditions through the pages of these books. Here are some great booklists and resources to help everyone #ReadYourWorld.

Middle Eastern and Northern African Heritage Month-via @MulticulturKids

Teens can learn about being Amish through the eyes of Ellie– Children’s Book Review and Giveaway at Kristi’s Book Nook

KidLit TV’s Top 10 Summer Reading Books  @NYMediaWorks

The Most Anticipated Children’s and YA Books of Fall 2015 via @publishers weekly

Sadako and the Thousand Paper Cranes by Eleanor Coerr at JIAB

In Memory of Hiroshima Bombing Book List for Kids at PragmaticMom

**************

Follow me on Pinterest!
Follow Valarie Budayr @Jump into a Book’s board Jump Into a Book Kidlit Booklists on Pinterest. Follow Valarie Budayr @Jump into a Book’s board A Year In The Secret Garden on Pinterest.

The post Weekend Links: Booklists that Help to #ReadYourWorld appeared first on Jump Into A Book.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

End of Summer Audrey Press Book Sale!!

Summer is slowly winding down and thoughts are turning to the upcoming school year and reads that will take us into (and through) the colder months ahead. Instead of being sad to see summer go, I choose to Celebrate! And what better way to do it than with an End of Summer Audrey Press Book Sale. For two weeks only readers can get a great deal on two of my most popular books. But don’t delay; this super special sale ends August 14, 2015!

First up The Waldorf Homeschool Handbook: The Simple Step-by-Step guide to creating a Waldorf-inspired #homeschool. And for a limited time, this best-selling book by Donna Ashton, The Waldorf #Homeschool Handbook is now only $17.95 until August 14th, 2015 ! http://amzn.to/1OhTfoT

Enjoy more month-by-month activities based on the classic children’s tale, The Secret Garden! A Year in the Secret Garden is a delightful children’s book with over 120 pages, with 150 original color illustrations and 48 activities for your family and friends to enjoy, learn, discover and play with together. AND, it’s on sale until August 14th ! Grab your copy ASAP and “meet me in the garden!” http://amzn.to/1DTVnuX

Two great children’s books-Your choice, $17.95 each!

The post Book-Jumper Summer Reading: A Norse God and Viking Booklist! appeared first on Jump Into A Book.

I hope all of you are enjoying summer and can you believe this is Week 10 of our Book-Jumper Summer Reading Series??!! What fun it has been!

I can share with you that I’m up to my eyeballs in Norse Mythology. The ever-talented Roscoe Welply and I are working on a new book from Audrey Press all about the Norse Gods. Some of you might not know this about me but my family comes from the Island of Gotland in the Baltic sea. There on this magical island is buried Thor,the hammer god himself. So I guess I can technically say that Thor is a part of my geneology.

Source

Runemarks by Joanne Harris is one of my son’s favorite reads. He has read it several times and has continued on with the series as well. He highly recommends it with five golden stars and thumbs up.

All of us know about the ancient Greek and Roman Gods. We read about their magical world both in school and for pleasure. But now a new realm of Gods has been introduced—the Norse Gods.

Maddy Smith is a unique, chaotic girl in a plain, orderly world. The age of the Æsir—Odin, Frigga, Thor, Tyr—is long gone. 500 years gone to be exact, after Ragnorak, the changing of the worlds. Now the Order rules, under the guidance of the Nameless, and anything seen as demonic or different is cleansed.

But in Maddy’s little town of Malbry she is no more than hated by the rest of her simple villagers. Until One Eye comes along. This mysterious traveller tells her stories of the old age and confirms that she does in fact have powers, powers of the Gods. But old One Eye only tells Maddy half-truths, only trains her in what she needs to know. She does not understand what is going on beneath the Middle World or what is happening at the End of the World where the Order congregates.

Life changes drastically for Maddy when One Eye sends her on a wild goose chase for something called “The Whisperer.” All she has to go on is that it will call to her and that it is very important that she trusts no one and bring the whisperer back to Maddy.

But forces are at work against Maddy and her old friend. The Order has now become suspicious of the town of Malbry and the paranormal activity occurring there. And One Eye’s old friend, Lucky, isn’t quite as dead as One Eye hoped he’d be.

In her journey through the tunnels of the underworld, Maddy uncovers the truth about her birth, her friends, and what is truly going on in the nine worlds. The Æsir are rising, but the Nameless has other plans for the nine worlds. After hearing the first prophecy in five hundred years, Maddy must figure out how to save her friend, herself, and the Nine Worlds from the Chaos that rests in the bottom of the world.

I know this summary is quite vague, but I do not want to give anything away. All the surprises that were around the corner in this book were so exciting to me that I’d hate to deprive you of such a feeling.

We have read books upon books upon books about the Greek and Roman gods and goddesses. Well, Joanne Harris’s Runemarks is the start to the rise of the Norse gods. Well read in classical language and mythology, Runemarks is full of Norse history, but is also an exciting new tale to the old Gods. Her exciting tale of a nearly unknown world summits interest from the very beginning—from the curious Runemarks, to the alternative use of the word faerie, to these new, powerful Gods that we will soon get to know as well as we know Athena and Zeus. May the Greek Gods rest in peace, and may we welcome the Norse Gods with open arms! Be sure to finish out the series with Runelight and The Gospel of Loki.

Something to Do

1. Check out this complete list of Norse runes and their meanings HERE.

Interested in learning more about Norse mythology? Go HERE.

2. Even though in Runemarks, Thor has lost his hammer, we still know it exists. And he’ll need it back eventually so lets help him out by making our own Thor Hammer!

3. Idun is the goddess of healing. She heals the sick, wounded and dying, with her dried apples—the food of the gods. Make your own healing fruit!

***

It’s the End of Summer Audrey Press Book Sale!!

Summer is slowly winding down and thoughts are turning to the upcoming school year and reads that will take us into (and through) the colder months ahead. Instead of being sad to see summer go, I choose to Celebrate! And what better way to do it than with an End of Summer Audrey Press Book Sale. For two weeks only readers can get a great deal on two of my most popular books. But don’t delay; this super special sale ends August 14, 2015.!

First up The Waldorf Homeschool Handbook: The Simple Step-by-Step guide to creating a Waldorf-inspired #homeschool. And for a limited time, this best-selling book by Donna Ashton, The Waldorf #Homeschool Handbook is now only $17.95 until August 14th, 2015 !

Enjoy more month-by-month activities based on the classic children’s tale, The Secret Garden! A Year in the Secret Garden is a delightful children’s book with over 120 pages, with 150 original color illustrations and 48 activities for your family and friends to enjoy, learn, discover and play with together. AND, it’s on sale until August 14th ! Grab your copy ASAP and “meet me in the garden!” http://amzn.to/1DTVnuX

Two great children’s books-Your choice, $17.95 each!

The post Book-Jumper Summer Reading Series: Exploring Norse Runemarks appeared first on Jump Into A Book.

Happy belated birthday to Beatrix Potter!  This week Tuesday July 28th marked the 182nd birthday of this beloved and influential storyteller. Her books are well-loved favorites in our house and the milestone of her birthday reminded me of a lovely guest post from a Jump Into a Book reader that I felt was worth revisiting. Enjoy!

Hello Jump Into A Book Readers!

My name is Karen Meacham and my blog is called Little Acorns.

I am a PreKindergarten teacher at an independent school in the United States, and a mother of three children, ages 14, 12, and 6. As a teacher and parent I am passionate about outdoor education, time for children to play, and reading to children.

In the Spring of 2008, our family had the opportunity to spend a semester in England while my husband was teaching at a local university. We had a fantastic time, and truly felt the semester was a life changing experience for our whole family. Not only did we get to immerse ourselves in a new culture, meeting many kind and helpful people, but we got to see many wonderful places as well.

One weekend in early March, my husband very kindly kept the children, and my best friend Trish and I ventured to a place I have longed for ages to visit, the Lake District. We took the train, with a day stop in Chesterfield, to Windermere Station. Our bed and breakfast was only a few blocks and a short walk away. After a good night’s sleep and a delicious breakfast, we headed out to one of my most anticipated destinations, Beatrix Potter’s home, Hill Top Farm!

To get to Hill Top Farm we strolled through the town of Bowness-on-Windermere and then took the ferry across Lake Windermere. Despite the fact that it was fairly chilly and raining, we decided to take the footpath the couple of miles up to Hill Top Farm. We like hiking and were not going to be deterred by a little rain. Plus we figured Beatrix Potter certainly wouldn’t have had the option to take a shuttle bus, and we wanted to see the area as much the way she did as we could.

The permitted path led us through some lovely wooded areas, along the road briefly, through some farmland, and up the hill (as the house’s name would suggest) to Hill Top Farm! Upon arrival, Trish and I headed over to purchase our tickets for the house. To keep the numbers of visitors inside the house at any given time, manageable, the National Trust sells timed tickets to Hill Top. Trish and I purchased our tickets and spent the half hour or so until our time to enter the house, strolling around the grounds and exploring a bit of Beatrix Potter’s gardens. It even stopped raining long enough for me to take my hat off for a picture!

We enjoyed exploring the gardens a bit, but because of the time of year, not too much was going on above the surface of the ground. I read that visiting the gardens in the summer is wonderful (late June and early July are said to be the best times to see the garden in its full glory), and that it has a large variety of flowers and vegetables. If you are interested in seeing pictures of Beatrix Potter’s gorgeous garden, there are many available online or you may simply peruse your copy of The Tale of Tom Kitten. Miss Potter used her own garden as a model for the garden in the story!

My name is Karen, and I am a PreKindergarten teacher at an independent school. In our class, we use some Montessori materials and methods, some Waldorf-inspired materials and stories, and some aspects of the Reggio Emilia approach. We also spend lots of time outside in nature, learning and playing! This blog Little Acorns is about my ideas and inspirations, my classroom, and my lovely family! I hope you enjoy reading it as much as I enjoy writing it.

The post Happy Birthday Beatrix Potter! And a Magical Visit to Remember appeared first on Jump Into A Book.

It’s time for Weekend Links! This is my chance to share the best-of-the-best in regards to bookish fun and resources that I have encountered over the course of the week.

Oh my! Can you believe it is almost August already? Summer is slipping by but it’s my hope that all families continue to get outside, experience the world and keep up on their summer reading until that first school bells rings. Speaking of summer adventures and reading, I spotted this on facebook. What a fabulous idea! I gathered a few more for you to enjoy as well. Happy reading!

This last week I was in the lovely state of California and had the chance to enjoy the mighty redwoods. We are so inspired by these incredible trees. They are the oldest, tallest trees on the planet. Some of them are 1000 years old. It’s been a huge challenge to save these glorious trees from the blade of the lumber companies. Muir woods it a save haven for the redwoods. It’s our hope that our booklist will inspire you as well to make a trip to visit these ancient giants and become active in saving them for future generations.

Dance can take so many shapes is a universal language across the globe. My friend Mia at PragmaticMom has a wonderful blog post and booklist on Diversity Dance Picture Books.

The Logonauts has More Great Picture Books about Ramadan and Muslim

I know this is on the minds of MANY parents–Our Favorite Children’s Books for Back to School

World Travel from you Couch? Yes, please! Books that Take Kids Around the World

Global STEM Books for Elementary Students –  via All Donkey Monkey

***
Discover the joys of delving into this timeless children’s literature classic and see the Secret Garden through new eyes and a modern twist!

Kids and nature go hand-and-hand and enjoying the bounty that the great outdoors brings is not just a “summer thing.” The newest book from children’s book authors Valarie Budayr and Marilyn Scott-Waters teaches families everywhere to enjoy not only the great outdoors with month-by-month activities, but to jump deeper into the classic children’s tale, The Secret Garden! A Year in the Secret Garden is a delightful children’s book with over 120 pages, with 150 original color illustrations and 48 activities for your family and friends to enjoy, learn, discover and play with together. Grab your copy ASAP and “meet me in the garden!” More details HERE!

The post Weekend Links: A Summer of Fun, Travel and Reading appeared first on Jump Into A Book.

Today I make my way to revisit an old friend, the redwood trees of Northern California. In celebration of this very fun trip, I’m re-sharing an old Jump into a Book favorite about a great read called Operation Redwood.

This is one of our favorite books and every time we read it we feel that we want to go immediately to visit the redwood trees. Today we’ll be in the Muir Forest doing just that.

Enjoy!

Maybe it was the vivid memory of being a 7 year-old and being in a car that my father drove through the middle of a huge tree. Every time I hear the word “redwood” this memory comes immediately to mind. That’s exactly what happened in the bookstore as I saw Operation Redwood by S Terrell French,a new release on the counter at the bookstore.

I immediately purchased it, took it home, and started turning pages. This is a story that doesn’t disappoint. Twelve year-old Julian Carter-Li accidentally reads an email he shouldn’t be reading only to find himself in a fight to save an old growth stand of the oldest trees in the world; the Redwoods. The story unfolds with a great sense of discovery. The children discover themselves, their values, and their shared love of an old grove of trees which has become a part of their lives.

There are many twists and turns but ultimately it was the vision and spirit of team work that led this group of young people to a brilliant success. The message is loud and clear, anyone can make a difference.

One of the reasons the children felt so connected to this grove of trees was discovery and the sharing of their discoveries. Julian didn’t know that the redwoods were in trouble. He didn’t even know it was an issue. Robin, her sister,best friend had all shared countless memories in the old grove, as well as , two big brothers who had shared a secret treehouse. Only when their sisters reached a certain age would they be told the secret of how to get up the very tall tree and into the treehouse. Julian, together with his best friend Danny, discover how to stand up for what is truly important.

With that said, it is time for us to take a journey into the woods or forest and see what we can share.

Something To Do

Let’s play ‘Into the Forest”. Here’s how we play:

• Go as a family, or a group of friends.
• Bring along any or all of these items;a camera,journal,sketchbook,pencils, and crayons
• Once in the forest, set boundaries so that no one gets lost. Use the buddy system. No one is left alone.

Now we are ready for our Scavenger Hunt. Have a look at the lists below. See how many things you can find. Be sure to look, touch, smell,listen, and watch as much as you can. Please feel free to write down your discoveries,photograph them, or just sit in wonder of sharing such a grand experience.

Look  

Dead tree               Wild flowers           pine cone        Berries          Vine        Poison Ivy

Stream                    Creek                  grass                clover leaf    Moss       Pine tree

Seeds                      pods                    soil                  eroding soil  rock         mud

sand                        fern                 y shaped twig      Trash            acorn        nuts

pine needles          tree blossoms    hole in a tree        tree stump    pond         dark leaves

light leaves            small pebbles     unusual leaves      colored rocks  different shades of color

dew                   tree fungus           season changes     caterpillars       squirrels    bird

ants                    butterfly             snails                      beetles           feather      salamander

lizard                   ladybug               spider                     spider web      birds nest   insects

deer tracks          raccoon tracks      frog                     leaf eat by insect  proof of animals

proof of people

Listen to:

Leaves under your feet           wind in the trees         sound of a bee

birds singing                           crickets                      Water running

Noises in the forests               Wet mud                     rotten wood

Wind blowing                          rocks hitting water       rocks tumbling in water

Smell:

Pine tree        flowers            Mud        grass          water       fresh air         cedar tree

Watch and share:

Animals eating                   leaves falling to the ground      spider web being built

insect in a spider web         An ant moving something         Wind blowing in the leaves

fish jumping                       moving clouds                          sunlight coming through the trees

sunrise                               sunset                                      stars in the night sky

Lightning bugs                     reflections in water                  trail markers

animal homes                       shelters

After all of your discoveries today sit with your family or group and share all of the wonderful moments you felt, heard, touched and smelled. If you have some photos of your walk into the forest that you would like to share please do so here.

You can also download this list to take with or to create a checklist for your Into the Forest adventure.

For more information about the Redwood Forest and where you can see these trees of size of yourself have a look here:

• Big Basin Redwood State Park
• Muir Woods National Monument
• Humboldt Redwoods State Park
• Redwood National and State Parks

***
Looking for a unique way to keep your kids busy this summer…and engaged with nature? The At-Home Summer Nature Camp eCurriculum is available for sale!

This 8-week eCurriculum is packed with ideas and inspiration to keep kids engaged and happy all summer long. It offers 8 kid-approved themes with outdoor activities, indoor projects, arts & crafts, recipes, field trip ideas, book & media suggestions, and more. The curriculum, now available for download, is a full-color PDF that can be read on a computer screen or tablet, or printed out. Designed for children ages 5-11, it is fun and easily adaptable for all ages!

The At-Home Summer Nature Camp eGuide is packed with ideas & inspiration to keep your kids engaged all summer long. This unique eCurriculum is packed with ideas & inspiration from a group of creative “camp counselors.” Sign up, or get more details, HERE

The post Operation Redwood Revisited {Great Fiction Book for Kids!} appeared first on Jump Into A Book.

Welcome to Weekend Links!

I don’t know about you but summer is has been crazy-busy so far! We have mountains of books to read, travel plans galore and I am enjoying yet another batch of baby fox kits who have taken up residence at my house. As always I am determined to provide booklists, activities and giveaways to keep the whole family pulling books from shelves and stories from pages during the lazy, hazy days of summer.

Speaking of giveaways, did you know I have TWO wonderful ones that will be ending TODAY??!! (6/21)

One is a Linda Sue Park Booklist Giveaway. Linda Sue Park has written many children’s books, many of which one lucky reader will win! You can view the booklist and giveaway HERE.

The second giveaway is my Book-Jumper Summer Reading Series Secret Garden Booklist giveaway. More chances to win great books! Read the booklist and view the giveaway HERE.

I have another awesome giveaway running right now that will end June 27th. Again, this booklist and giveaway is based on yet another amazing female children’s literature author. Pam Muñoz Ryan is the author of more that thirty books for young readers, including four beloved novels, Riding Freedom, Esperanza Rising, Becoming Naomi León, and Paint the Wind, which collectively have garnered, among countless accolades, the Pura Belpré Medal, the Jane Addams Award, and the Schneider Family Award. She lives in Southern California with her family. You can visit her at www.PamMunozRyan.com.

ONE winner will receive a copy of  each of these Pam Munoz Ryan books: Esperanza Rising, Echo, Riding Freedom, Becoming Naomi Leon. The Dreamer and Paint the Wind. Giveaway begins Wednesday June 17th and ends June 27th, 2015. You can enter the giveaway HERE.

All three are great opportunities to get some wonderful books into the hands of your young readers.

Reading at any age is soooo important. I recently found some great articles that reinforce this fact so I will post them here for you to read and enjoy:

Why Keep Reading Aloud in the 5th Grade? Monique at Living Life and Learning offers up a great perspective.

@NerdyBookClub Parenting, Bonding, and Reading Aloud by Jenny Houlroyd

@NerdyBookClub Reading Aloud by Debbie Shoulders

TOP TEN Read-Aloud Books for Students with Special Needs by Aimee Owens

Slow Reading Family Style by…ME!

Read Aloud to Ignite a World of Possibility at Huffington Post

Do you read aloud in your family? Which books are the best for reading aloud?

Looking for more ways to not only get your youngsters reading, but get them OUTSIDE as well? Enjoy more month-by-month activities based on the classic children’s tale, The Secret Garden! A Year in the Secret Garden is a delightful children’s book with over 120 pages, with 150 original color illustrations and 48 activities for your family and friends to enjoy, learn, discover and play with together. AND, it’s on sale for a limited time! Grab your copy ASAP and “meet me in the garden!” More details HERE! http://amzn.to/1DTVnuX

The post Weekend Links: The Importance of Reading Aloud & The Last Day on the Giveaways! appeared first on Jump Into A Book.

Welcome to the second week of Book Jumper Summer Reading Series! This is my way of inspiring parents who are looking for creative ways to keep their kids reading this summer!

Our summer reading program will be a combination of some really neat things. All of our protagonists are girls or women and most of our showcased authors are women as well. I will be offering up a combination of themed weeks, great novels, booklist giveaways, and blog post recaps so be sure and stop by to discover more wonderful ways have A Bookjumper Summer while Exploring Our World and Beyond!

This week I want to focus on the wonderful works of author Linda Sue Park.

Linda Sue is an American author of teen fiction. Park published her first novel, Seesaw Girl, in 1999. She has written six children’s novels and five picture books. Park’s work achieved prominence when she received the prestigious 2002 Newbery Medal for her novel A Single Shard. She has written the ninth book in the 39 Clues series, Storm Warning, published on 25 May 2010. Linda Sue Park was born in Urbana, Illinois on March 25, 1960, and grew up outside Chicago. The daughter of Korean immigrants, she has been writing poems and stories since she was four years old, and her favorite thing to do as a child was read.

One of Linda’s amazing books that I have grown to love is A Long Walk to Water: based on a true story
and published by Clarion Books, November 15, 201

A Long Walk to Water is based on the true story of Salva, one of some 3,800 Sudanese “Lost Boys” airlifted to the United States beginning in the mid 1990s.

Before leaving Africa, Salva’s life is one of harrowing tragedy. Separated from his family by war and forced to travel on foot through hundreds of miles of hostile territory, he survives starvation, animal attacks, and disease, and ultimately leads a group of about 150 boys to safety in Kenya. Relocated to upstate New York, Salva resourcefully learns English and continues on to college. Eventually he returns to his home region in southern Sudan to establish a foundation that installs deep-water wells in remote villages in dire need of clean water. This poignant story of Salva’s life is told side-by-side with the story of Nya, a young girl who lives today in one of those villages.

Both Salva and Nya are from Southern Sudan, but they are separated by time and enemy tribes.

Salva, a son of an important leader in the Nuir tribe, is separated from his family during the revolution during the 1980s. For months, he and others separated from their family and their homes by the rebels travel by foot across Sudan in at attempt to reach the refugee camps in Ethiopia. But as one can assume, the road was not easy. Days or weeks without food or water, the threat of being left behind, the danger of lions and other vicious wild animals, an unforgiving river, and the biggest threat of all—days in the desert. Salva experienced loss during this journey, but he also experienced love and learned so much about life. He spent years in an Ethiopian refugee camp, but when the Ethiopian government begins to collapse, where are the refugees to go? Will Salva ever see his family again? Is a better, safer life even a possibility?

Nya is the niece of her tribe’s leader. She walks several miles twice a day to gather water for her family from the only water source around—a dirty pond. Every day she walks back and forth, an easy journey to and a difficult, heavy journey fro. One day a man and his team appear in their village claiming that they can make water come out of the ground that has been dry since the beginning of her people. Is this man magic? Does he even speak the truth? Or are Nya’s beloved people just being tricked with false hope?

The stories of these two Sudanese children are beautiful and wonderfully intertwined. The story of Salva is a true story about a man who survived Sudan and has made a wonderful life in America. However, his story and his life bring attention to a major issue in Sudan since the 1980s: water. Water is either an extremely far walk from a tribe or the water is dirty and carries the threat of disease—or both. People die every day from poor quality of the water, and tribes that do not live near developed areas are sometimes too far away from the medical help that their people need.

Recently, Salva’s organization, Water for South Sudan has been drilling wells in Sudanese communities, giving fresh, healthy drinking water to these tribes and developing their lands. To learn more about Salva’s organization and to learn how to help, please visit http://www.waterforsouthsudan.org.

Somthing To Do-Lessons and Resources from A Long walk To Walk:

H20 For Life: H2O for Life educates, engages and inspires youth to learn, take action and become global citizens.  We provide students with a unique and valuable learning experience through service-learning opportunities focused on the global water crisis. H2O for Life provides a service-learning opportunity for schools, youth groups, and faith-based organizations to raise awareness about the water crisis while taking action to provide funds for water, sanitation and hygiene education for a partner school in a developing country.

In 2007, Patty Hall received a cry for help from a small village in Kenya that was desperate to build a water project. Could she help? She introduced the idea to her school, Highview Middle School in New Brighton MN, to see if they could help raise funds for the project. Staff and students embraced the challenge with open arms. Students learned about the global water crisis and created action plans. Read more about Patty and H20 For Life’s mission HERE.

Support for South Sudan Refugees: As the international community prepares to mark World Refugee Day next month (June 20th), refugees themselves confront the daunting challenges of daily life in encampments.
One such temporary home to at least 8,000 refugees is Lasu, in South Sudan, which the United Methodist Committee on Relief (UMCOR) helps to support. Read more HERE.

According to Water.org, every 20 seconds a child dies from a water-related disease. Surveys from 45 developing countries show that women and children bear the primary responsibility for water collection in the majority of households. This is time not spent working at an income-generating job, caring for family members, or attending school. Learn more HERE.

I found this wonderful water infographic at Kid World Citizen.

Looking for a unique way to keep your kids busy this summer…and engaged with nature? The At-Home Summer Nature Camp eCurriculum is available for sale!

This 8-week eCurriculum is packed with ideas and inspiration to keep kids engaged and happy all summer long. It offers 8 kid-approved themes with outdoor activities, indoor projects, arts & crafts, recipes, field trip ideas, book & media suggestions, and more. The curriculum, now available for download, is a full-color PDF that can be read on a computer screen or tablet, or printed out. Designed for children ages 5-11, it is fun and easily-adaptable for all ages!

The At-Home Summer Nature Camp eGuide is packed with ideas & inspiration to keep your kids engaged all summer long. This unique eCurriculum is packed with ideas & inspiration from a group of creative “camp counselors.” Sign up, or get more details, HERE

The post Honoring Author Linda Sue Park-A Long Walk for Water appeared first on Jump Into A Book.

As usual, I have seen a TON of great activities, booklists and suggestions from other bloggers involving Keeping Kids in the Reading Habit this Summer during this last week and I’d like to share my favorites with you today.  Enjoy!

8 Tips to Prevent the Summer Reading Slide at Growing Book By Book

24 Books That Will Captivate Your Kids This Summer via Huffington Post Parents

Kim at I’m Not the Nanny has an awesome blog post on 18 Diverse Children’s Chapter Book Series for Summer Reading

Multicultural Children’s Blog has their own wonderful reading series called Read Around the World Summer Reading Series. Quality blogger from all over the blogasphere are offering up their choices on multicultural books for kids so please stop by, click a few, and find some excellent new reads!

Hot giveaway and booklistat PragmaticMom! 10 Books to Expose Kids to a Foreign Language

I also wanted to share a few guest posts from last summer’s Discover Your World Summer Reading Extravaganza because there were some true gems during those 2014 summer months. Here are a few

Read A Book, Travel The World & Make A Wish {Guest Post from Gladys Elizabeth Barbieri}

The Adventures of Achilles by Hugh Lupton and Daniel Morden {Guest Post by Hannah Rials}

Stand Tall, but Read All Around! Book Review and Activity {by Shannon Medisky}

AND…::drum roll: my 2015 Book-Jumper Summer Reading Series kicks of June 4th! I promise to offer up exciting, creative, unique and innovative ways to keep your kids reading this summer. There will be many book reviews, giveaways and crafts to keep those little minds active while school is out. The fun starts June 4th so be sure and stop back!

Sale Ends May 31st!

The Waldorf Homeschool Handbook: The Simple Step-by-Step guide to creating a Waldorf-inspired #homeschool. And for a limited time, this best-selling book by Donna Ashton, The Waldorf #Homeschool Handbook is now only $17.95 until May 31st, 2015 ! http://amzn.to/1OhTfoT

Enjoy more month-by-month activities based on the classic children’s tale, The Secret Garden! A Year in the Secret Garden is a delightful children’s book with over 120 pages, with 150 original color illustrations and 48 activities for your family and friends to enjoy, learn, discover and play with together. AND, it’s on sale for a limited time! Grab your copy ASAP and “meet me in the garden!” http://amzn.to/1DTVnuX

 Your choice, $17.95 each!

The post Weekend Links: Keeping Kids in the Reading Habit this Summer appeared first on Jump Into A Book.

Our Discover Your World Summer Reading Extravaganza Series has come to an end and we are SO grateful for the participation and wonderful guest posts from our contributors.

I truly feel that that series was a success, and it wouldn’t have been possible without our contributors fun and fresh kidlit book picks and activities. We are already percolating on ideas for next summer’s reading event!

Below is a list of all of the posts links and bloggers who participated and I encourage everyone to take a peek to see if you missed any and re-read and enjoy and favorites. There were SO many great contributions this summer and we will be working feverishly to put these posts into a free downloadable document to share (more details to come on that).

Shannon Medisky:Stand Tall, But Read All Around

Leanna @ Multicultural Kids Blog: Read Around The World Summer Series

Unconventional Librarian: Brown Girl Dreaming

Shannon Medisky-Dancing Differently:’

Gladys Elizabeth Barbieri: WISH

Discovering the World Through My Son’s Eyes: Fiesta Fiasco by Ann Whitford Paul {Guest Post by Frances from Discovering the World Through Her Son’s Eyes}

If You Were Me and Lived in…by Carole P. Roman {Guest Post from Squishable Baby}

Discovering The Cree Culture in America-Wild Berries by Julia Flett Review & Activity! (Guest Post from Felicia at Stanley and Katrina)

Erik at This Kid Reviews: Peter Lerangis’ Seven Wonder series

Cooking with Books: Lucky Birthday Noodles {Guest Post by Jodie from Growing Book by Book}

Discover Your World Summer Reading Extravaganza: Anna Hibiscus by Atinuke {Guest Post by Sprout’s Bookshelf}

A Peek into Thailand {Guest Post from Stephanie Kammeraad of Mama-Lady Books}

A Chair for My Mother Book Review & Activity {Guest Post from Vicki Arnold}

The Magic Poof-A Visit with Author Stephen Hodges.

Until next summer, keep “discovering your world” through books!

The post Discover Your World Summer Reading Extravaganza Series Recap appeared first on Jump Into A Book.

Send to Kindle

Monday, September 8th is International Literacy Day.

Here are some facts about literacy and the event as well:

Some 775 million adults lack minimum literacy skills; one in five adults is still not literate and two-thirds of them are women; 60.7 million children are out-of-school and many more attend irregularly or drop out.

To raise public awareness of the extraordinary value of the written word and of the necessity to promote a literate society, the following writers are supporting UNESCO through the Writers for Literacy Initiative. UNESCO, The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization, is a specialized agency of the United Nations (UN). Its purpose is to contribute to peace and security by promoting international collaboration through education, science, and culture in order to further universal respect for justice, the rule of law, and human rights along with fundamental freedom proclaimed in the UN Charter. It is the heir of the League of Nations’ International Commission on Intellectual Cooperation. UNESCO’s aim is “to contribute to the building of peace, the eradication of poverty, sustainable development and intercultural dialogue through education, the sciences, culture, communication and information.”

As you know, I am a huge advocate of family reading time and children’s literacy. I have been for as long as I can remember. Using Jump Into a Book, the books I create through my publishing house Audrey Press and now with Multicultural Children’s Book Day, I feel like I am even more determined to share the joys and importance of reading with our children. Even though my own kids are grown, they are still all avid readers; something that I am very proud of. Books can unlock the magic of life, let us travel to faraway places without leaving the couch, allow kids of all cultures to see themselves in the pages of a book and share of the wonder of this Big Ol’ World.

Pair that reading-love with learning activities and, in my opinion, it’s a home run

That being said, it’s time for my weekly installment of Weekend Links. This is my chance to share some of the wonderful book review and reading activities that I have discovered in my weekly internet travels. These are all high quality reading-based blog posts from some of my favorite, and highly respected, reading and play bloggers. Enjoy!

Leanna from All Done Monkey- Cottage Cheese Cake and Learning About Ukraine {Around the World in 12 Dishes} -

Erik at This Kid Reviews Books- Reporting from the National Book Festival.

Growing Book by Book: Alphabet Learning: Apple Stamping and PlayfulPreschool

The Pleasantest Thing: 33 Must-Read Awesome Picture Books!

Boy Teacher Mama: Back to School Rules

Learning with Tangrams! Grandfather Tang’s Story

My Multicultural World: The Land of Vikings and Trolls

Over a Dozen Great Audiobooks for Kids: http://www.whatdowedoallday.com/2014/08/audiobooks-for-kids.html via @momandkiddo

About Parenting: The Librarian of Basra; A True Story About Iraq

Sprout’s Bookshelf: How to start a conversation about #Ferguson with your kids – a list of resources that can help.

A Mighty Girl‘s Pick of the Day – SEEDS OF CHANGE, by Jen Cullerton Johnson, illus. by Sonia Lynn Sadler

Nerdy Book Club: Top 10 Picture Books for Activists in Training by Mathangi Subramanian

What great book links have YOU found this week?

Send to Kindle

The post Weekend Links: Links & Reads to Support International Literacy Day! appeared first on Jump Into A Book.

Send to Kindle

My Discover Your World Summer Reading Extravaganza is winding down, but I continue to be amazed at the high-quality and in-depth book reviews my guest posters have come forth with. This week is no exception either as the always-creative Stephanie from Mama-Lady Book shares an amazing book pick with JIAB readers. Enjoy!

A Peek into Thailand
By Stephanie Kammeraad of Mama-Lady Books

I love sharing stories from around the world with my children and students.  I educate our two children at home, and I love that I can incorporate great books that are both mirrors and windows* for them throughout our days.  I also coordinate and teach at a heritage camp each summer, which is a week-long day camp for children adopted internationally to learn more about their birth country and the birth countries of others.  I’ve had children in my classes over the years who were adopted from China, South Korea, Thailand, Ethiopia, St. Vincent & the Grenadines, Kazakhstan, Russia, Mexico, Peru, Guatemala (where our son was born), and Colombia (where our daughter was born.)  It has been such a delight to discover and share stories and activities with them about these countries!
One of our favorite book discoveries has been The Umbrella Queen by Shirin Yim Bridges, illustrated by Taeeun Yoo.

This heartwarming story is about a little girl named Noot who has shown that she is now skilled enough to paint her own umbrellas, just as her mother does.  The story is set in a tiny village in northern Thailand, where villagers have been making and painting paper umbrellas for hundreds of years.  Noot’s mother shows her how to paint flowers and butterflies on the umbrellas, and although Noot copies her mother’s work beautifully, when she is finally given five umbrellas of her own to paint, Noot paints the elephants that dance into her mind.  All afternoon she sits and joyfully paints elephants on her umbrellas, until her mother notices and sternly reprimands her for deviating from what has always been and must continue to be painted.  Disappointed, Noot concedes, knowing that “Painting umbrellas wasn’t just for fun.  It was work to help feed the family.”

Every day after that Noot dutifully paints her umbrellas with flowers and butterflies, but in the evenings she takes the scraps of bamboo from her father and the mulberry paper from her grandmother to make doll-sized umbrellas just for her, on which she paints the elephants that bring her delight.

The tradition in her village is that every New Year’s Day, the woman who has painted the most beautiful umbrella is chosen as the Umbrella Queen and leads the villagers in a big umbrella parade.  This year, the villagers decide to invite the King to come to choose the Umbrella Queen, as he has decided to spend the winter in his nearby winter palace.  Two weeks before New Year’s Day, the King accepts their invitation!

When the day finally arrives, the villagers set out their most beautiful umbrellas along both sides of the road for the King to inspect as he comes through.  He stops in front of Noot’s house, gives a compliment to her mother for the beauty of her umbrellas, but then notices some tiny umbrellas in the window sill behind her.  Upon questioning, Noot admits to painting them.  When asked why, and what is wrong with painting flowers and butterflies, Noot respectively responds with, “I like elephants.”

The smiling King then takes her hand and pronounces Noot as this year’s Umbrella Queen “because she paints from her heart.”

Shirin Yim Bridges has written this delightful story that I’ve witnessed being enjoyed as a read-aloud by children between the ages of five and ten.  Shirin grew up in a Chinese-speaking family in California, but has traveled the world and lived in many countries.  She is an author of numerous picture books as well as an award-winning publisher of Goosebottom Books, an independent publishing company that has published three different successful non-fiction and historical fiction series: The Thinking Girl’s Treasury of Glorious Goddesses, The Thinking Girl’s Treasury of Dastardly Dames, and The Thinking Girl’s Treasury of Real Princesses.

Although Noot is not a “real” princess or queen, I believe her story is just as important to read, to remind ourselves and our children to be proud of who we are, to be true to ourselves, and to share our talents with those around us.  This reminds me of the famous words of author Marianne Williamson in her book, Return to Love: “We ask ourselves, ‘Who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented, fabulous?’ Actually, who are you not to be? You are a child of God. Your playing small does not serve the world…We are all meant to shine, as children do…And as we let our own light shine, we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same. “ Yes?  Then let’s go!

Let your children’s creativity shine as they paint from their heart!  Here are two activities that you can do as a follow up to reading The Umbrella Queen.

1. Paint nylon umbrellas with fabric markers or acrylic or tempera paint. (I used washable tempera paint with my students.) Just make sure that you lay down a covering for your workspace (newspaper, a plastic tablecloth, etc.) I provided large stencils for the kids to use for those who were interested, but most just painted “free style!” To purchase nylon umbrellas, check out: http://www.orientaltrading.com/diy-white-umbrellas-a2-56_9027.fltr?Ntt=umbrella.

Make and decorate paper umbrellas of various sizes.  Simply cut out a circle (free-hand or by tracing something round), and then make a single cut from anywhere on the outside edge into the center of the circle.

Grab hold of the circle on either side of the slit you just made and place one side over the other, creating a cone.  Glue the cone into place, trim off any edge that you might need to trim off, and you have the umbrella canopy!  Now is the time to decorate it Make and decorate paper umbrellas of various sizes.  Simply cut out a circle (free-hand or by tracing something round), and then make a single cut from anywhere on the outside edge into the center of the circle.

Grab hold of the circle on either side of the slit you just made and place one side over the other, creating a cone.  Glue the cone into place, trim off any edge that you might need to trim off, and you have the umbrella canopy!  Now is the time to decorate it using markers, paint, crayons, gluing sequins on, etc.  Once dry, it’s time to attach the pole, which can be a plastic drinking straw, a tooth pick, or a bamboo skewer (most authentic) depending upon the size of your umbrella’s canopy.  Place glue (white or hot) on the top of the “pole” and glue into place.  Voila!  A paper umbrella!

For a further peek into Thailand, my list of recommended picture books set in Thailand can be found here: http://www.mama-lady-books.com/thailand.html.

* “Mirrors, Windows, and Sliding Glass Doors” by Rudine Sims Bishop: http://www.rif.org/us/literacy-resources/multicultural/mirrors-windows-and-sliding-glass-doors.htm

Stephanie Kammeraad is a writer, book-lover, and home educating mama of two.  She is also a passionate multicultural children’s book advocate which you can see on her blog Parenting and Teaching Multiculturally (http://www.mama-lady-books.com/parenting–teaching-multiculturally), on her website Mama-Lady Books (http://www.mama-lady-books.com/), and on her Facebook page (https://www.facebook.com/Mama.Lady.Books).  As a former Special Education teacher, Stephanie now facilitates multicultural story times, school book fairs, and presents professional development sessions for early and elementary educators.  Her husband and children live in Grand Rapids, MI but you can often find them traveling throughout their home state, across the country, and beyond!

Send to Kindle

The post A Peek into Thailand {Guest Post from Stephanie Kammeraad of Mama-Lady Books} appeared first on Jump Into A Book.

Send to Kindle

Can you believe it’s AUGUST already?! Summer is almost over and our Discover Your World Summer Reading Extravaganza is winding down. To say I have been blessed by amazing guest bloggers during this even would be an understatment and today’s post is no different. I’d like to give a huge “Thank You” to Frances from one of my favorite multicultural blogs for being a part of the fun. Welcome, Frances!

Fiesta Fiasco by Ann Whitford Paul {Guest Post by Frances from Discovering the World Through Her Son’s Eyes}

Title: Fiesta Fiasco

Author: Ann Whitford Paul

Illustrator: Ethan Long

Age Range: 4 and up

Grade Level: Preschool and up

Paperback: 32 pages

Publisher: Holiday House 2007

Language: English some Spanish words

About the author

Author Ann Whitford Paul loved reading for as long as she can remember. Her inspiration for writing children’s book came upon years of reading bedtime stories to her three children. She studied sociology at Northwestern University and the University of Wisconsin, and social work at Columbia University.   She’s published 19 different award-winning books.

About the book

Fiesta Fiasco is set in the desert where everyone is getting ready for a party!   It’s Snake’s birthday, and his friends, Iguana, Tortoise, and Rabbit are shopping for presents to bring to his fiesta. Instead of getting gifts for Snake, Rabbit convinces them to buy a shirt, pants, and hat. At the fiesta Snake is disappointed because they’re gifts that he couldn’t use. They weren’t for him after all!   The sneaky Rabbit takes it away, and tries them on. Snake is so upset that he asks Snake to go away.

Review

The children’s book Fiesta Fiasco was given to my son on his birthday as a gift. It could not have come at a better time for both of us! One because it was our child’s birthday, and he just had a fiesta; and two because it was a new book for me to review for the Discover Your World Summer Reading Extravaganza.

My child loves books with animal characters in it, and I love it because although it’s in English it has various Spanish words throughout the book. Therefore, helping my bilingual child expand his Spanish vocabulary words. The glossary at the beginning is a major plus for Spanish vocabulary word building, and pronunciation.

The book’s illustration are colorful and whimsical appealing to our eyes. This is a tale about friendship, learning from our mistakes, and forgiveness. We both enjoyed Fiesta Fiasco!

Activity

With this book the possibilities for activities are endless. Life lessons and relationship skills, science, math, literature and Spanish can be learned from this book.

Little one and I talked about what he got for his birthday fiesta. I asked how would he feel if someone gave him a gift and took it away? We talked about feelings, and how Rabbit made things right by coming back with the gifts that Snake would love to have. Rabbit had made a mistake, and Snake forgave him.

We also talked about the different habitats of the animals. Comparing the desert with the rainforest, and discussed the different types of animals that live there.

We practiced simple math skills with play money. I asked him how many dollars would I need to buy a camisa (shirt)? If it was $6, how many $1 or $5 bills did he need to give me.

We reviewed the Spanish words using flash cards and making mini-books in Spanish.

This book was truly entertaining, and fun! My son laughed most of the time, and I was all smiles!

For more extension activities you can visit the author’s website, and download free printables to use with this book.

Frances is a part-time blogger, mommy and wife of a beautiful multicultural familia. She has a Bachelor’s Degree in Business Administration with a certification in Human Resources. She blogs about heritage, culture, bilingualism, multicultural children’s books, and Discovering the World Through My Son’s Eyes, hence the name of her blog.   You can connect with her onFacebook, Twitter,Google +, and Pinterest.

Send to Kindle

The post Fiesta Fiasco by Ann Whitford Paul {Guest Post by Frances from Discovering the World Through Her Son’s Eyes} appeared first on Jump Into A Book.

Send to Kindle

I received a copy of this series in exchange for a thorough and honest review. The opinions stated herein are 100% my own. This post contains an affiliate link.

***

Do you like going on trips, getting packed up, and discovering new and exciting things? I certainly do. I love meeting new people, learning a new language and experiencing new food!

Here is a way of doing all that and more – minus the packing up and getting on a plane part!

Before we go, how about we make a passport to keep track of all the new places we venture to? Don’t forget to grab your passports and put it in your suitcase. We are going to need it since we are going on a trip around the world!

Carole P. Roman’s new series, If you were Me and Lived in… is a child’s journey around the world. It’s a fun way of learning about different customs, including those from France, Portugal, Russia, Australia, Turkey, India, Kenya, Norway, and South Korea.

When you first open the book, your child will see a map of the country and it’s capital city. Then, it will show him/her where it is located on the globe. The author then gives information a child would be interested in, such as – friends names, what they would eat when they visit, what you would call your mom and dad, popular places to visit, and special holidays and happenings. In the back of each book, it hows how to pronounce each word – so they can say it correctly!

All of the books in this series are interactive. It asks questions…

When Daddy tucks in at night, you always say; “Amo-te paizinho (a-mo-te pa-i-nho)

Can you guess what you are saying to your pai (pay)?

In the list of definitions in the back, it will give your child the answer.

For my family, these books were a great jumping off point for acquiring further information. In the book on France, the author talked a bit about Bastille Day. So, from there, we talked about the French Revolution and Marie Antoinette. I don’t know about your kids, but my kids love to learn about a good beheading.

Sigh.

If you are adventurous in the kitchen, the author talks about the food your child will experience. If you look up some new recipes on the internet, it will add value to the experience. In the book on Kenya, she talks about Chapati being served with a barbecue of beef or goat called nyama choma and mixed vegetables. It can be made very simply.

My Children’s Favorite If Your Were Me and Lived In… Book

We learned all kinds of fascinating things about Kenya! One thing mom liked, most of the toys would be handmade. When we visit Kenya, the kids would be creating their own entertainment by gathering wire, sticks and cloth to make Galimoto. No Nintendo’s, YAY!

Don’t forget to stamp your passport with a drawing of something you learned about the country before you leave. It’s very important so that you child can remember when he or she has been and also make the experience their own!

Lisa aka, The Squishable Baby is primarily interested in the educational development of young children. She is a homeschooling mom to 3 and blogs education, health, and picture books. You can catch her on her blog – The Squishable Baby or on Facebook or Pinterest.

Send to Kindle

The post If you were Me and Lived in…by Carole P. Roman {Guest Post from Squishable Baby} appeared first on Jump Into A Book.

Send to Kindle

Is summer flying by or what??!! Hard to believe in a little over a month our thoughts will be turning to lunches, backpacks, school supplies and homework. In the meantime, Jump Into a Book wants to continue to soak up every drop of this precious summer and that includes continually sharing amazing multicultural children’s books and complimenting activities to cultivate learning and fun time as a family.

Last week we were visited by one of my favorite young bloggers and authors and this week we are honored with another! Felicia “Neighbor Girl” along with her wildly-talented mom and assistant “Cool Mom” have joined us on JIAB and are sharing another wonderful book for the Discover Your World Summer Reading Extravaganza. Felicia currently aspires to be a movie director when she grows up. Her first book is The Perpetual Papers of the Pack of Pets and you may visit her characters online at www.StanleyAndKatrina.com. Enjoy!

DISCOVERING the CREE NATION THROUGH BLUEBERRIES

Title: Wild Berries

Author/Illustrator: Julie Flett

Year Published: 2013

Publisher: Simply Read Books

Pages: 32

Age Level: Pre-school – 3 years. In addition, it is a great way to introduce The Cree culture to older children.

Summary : Share the journey of Clarence and his grandmother picking wild blueberries. As they do their work, they meet ant, spider and fox in a beautifully illustrated landscape, the ancestral home of author and illustrator Julie Flett. This book is primarily written in English with words shared in the Cree n-dialect, also known as Swampy Cree. The publisher has also made “Wild Berries” available completely in the n-dialect.

WILD BERRIES

The illustrations drew us in, and the fact that we knew nothing about Swampy Cree sealed the deal. We do not study much about the Cree culture in America (at least where we live) but over 200,000 Cree live in communities in Canada and the northern United States.

This is a simply written book which contains powerful translations of key words into Swampy Cree on each page. We found it fun to attempt to say the word at first, then checked the pronunciation guide in the back of the book – boy, were we wrong. ;0)

Julie Flett’s illustrations perfectly accompany her text. She also included notes about the specific Cree dialect used in the book, and a recipe for wild blueberry jam in the final pages.

ACTIVITY:

You may, of course, do an activity related to the animals in the book but we wanted to do something related to the culture. We settled on an activity that would get us out in nature (as the book is set), and created a small Teepee, and canoe which we found on ehow. This was our result:

Julie Flett’s illustrations perfectly accompany her text. She also included notes about the specific Cree dialect used in the book, and a recipe for wild blueberry jam in the final pages.

SUPPORTING ONLIne ACTIVITIES:

Check out this teacher created, elementary level resource that includes the Cree culture:  http://www.spiritsd.ca/learningresources/FNM%20Resources/GR3%20Cree%20and%20Nisga’a%20Integration%20Document,%20Done%20June%2014.pdf

Learn how to tell someone I love you in Swampy Cree: https://www.youtube.com/watch?

/>v=xbMbDUaz_VU

Listen to Cree Champion Pow-wow Singers: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ACtKuFYBuqw

For another great book about blueberry picking, check out Blueberries for Sal.

THE STANLEY & KATRINA GANG

  Stanley (author) is a three-year-old black Labrador/Rottweiler mix who does his best to ignore Katrina. He enjoys snow, attention and turkey.

 Katrina von Cat the Master of Wisdom and Knowledge (author) is an eight-year-old grey tabby cat who loves her toy mouse. She enjoys treats, naps and bossing the dog around. Katrina also enjoys using big words and shares her Words of the Week with free printables and a video.

   Neighbor Girl (Felicia) is the eleven-year-old human who knows Stanley & Katrina the best. She assists them with everything. Neighbor Girl loves writing, reading, acting, singing, reading, gymnastics, karate, doodling, reading, ice skating, painting, reading, directing short films, doing computer stuff, oh… did we mention reading? She currently aspires to be a movie director when she grows up. Her first book is The Perpetual Papers of the Pack of Pets. You may visit her characters online at www.StanleyAndKatrina.com. The pets get excited when humans follow them on Twitter, Facebook, Pinterest or Google+.  

   Cool Mom is Neighbor Girl’s mother and personal assistant when she needs  help. She is also the  web administrator and social media manager for Stanley & Katrina. Visit her hobby project www.kidlitprintables.com.

**Please share this post on Facebook and Twitter and feel free to comment below!

Send to Kindle

The post Discovering The Cree Culture in America-Wild Berries by Julia Flett Review & Activity! (Guest Post from Felicia at Stanley and Katrina) appeared first on Jump Into A Book.

Send to Kindle

I am feeling quite blessed today to have one of my favorite young authors and bloggers join us for the Discover Your World Summer Reading Extravaganza! Erik Weibel blogs at This Kid Reviews Books and is the author of The Adventures of Tomato and Pea. Welcome, Erik!

Peter Lerangis’ Seven Wonder series had been on my To Be Read list for too long! Last month I made it a point to read the three books out in this series.

Series Overview: Jack McKinley is going to die when he turns 14. He is told that when he is 13. Jack meets 3 other kids (Aly, Cass, and Marco) with the same fate. Together, Jack and his new friends realize they have a chance to not die. Jack and the others are Selects – kids with a strange gene called G7W that lets them access more parts of their brain at the same time that everyday people can’t normally access regularly. Right now, it only enhances the Selects’ natural abilities (like Cass’s photographic memory) and causes them to die around age 14. To permanently live, (until a normal death, of course) the Selects must find the 7 Loculi – 7 stone orbs with magical powers. Unfortunately, the Loculi are at the 7 Wonders of the Ancient World – of which only one still stands (The Great Pyramid of Giza).
WHY HAVE I WAITED SO LONG TO READ THIS SERIES!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Book III – The Tomb of Shadows
By Peter Lerangis
352 pages – ages 8+
Published by HarperCollins on May 13, 2014

Summary: Jack, Cass, and Aly, along with their allies at the Karai Institute (KI) (a group devoted to finding the Loculi and finding a cure to G7W) have 2 of the Loculi. Marco has deserted the group to join the evil Massa – a group against the Karai Institute. Jack has evidence that his mother is actually alive, that she faked her death, and has joined the Massa. The Massa have taken over the KI’s Island Base on the remains of Atlantis. Things are looking bleak for the Select. They must go to the land of the dead to get another Loculi (it’s at the Mausoleum at Halicarnassus, which is a gateway to the underworld), but one of the KI team must be sacrificed to get in…
THIS WAS AN AMAZING BOOK!!! It was full of adventure and excitement and mystery! Mr. Lerangis gives you a plot so good that it draws you in, and then he twists it until you can’t leave until that last sentence. Jack is a great main character whom you come to care for. He is an ordinary kid shoved into extraordinary circumstances. I am somewhat jealous about the superpowers, but I am glad that I won’t die by age 14 (well, at least not by G7W). Mr. Lerangis has me hooked into the world of the 7 Loculi! I feel like I’m there as I learn about the 7 Wonders of the Ancient World – most of which I had no idea about. I really enjoy reading this series. I would recommend this book to any kid looking for a great adventure story with a great plot and setting!
I give this book 6 out of 5 stars!

Erik is an twelve-year-old middle schooler that loves to read. He started his blog, This Kid Reviews Books when he was nine. Erik writes a monthly book review column for a local free newspaper. He has a black belt in TaeKwon-Do and in his spare time enjoys building things out of LEGOs. He hopes to be an inventor and a published author when he grows up.

***************
Connect with Erik:
blog www.ThisKidReviewsBooks.com
Facebook https://www.facebook.com/Thiskidreviewsbooks
Twitter @ThisKid_Erik

Send to Kindle

The post TOMB OF SHADOWS (7 Wonders Book III) Guest Post from This Kid Reviews Books appeared first on Jump Into A Book.

Send to Kindle

Our Discover Your World Summer Reading Extravaganza is rolling right along and I am truly hoping JIAB has shown reading families some wonderfulnew  summer reading ideas thanks to the amazing book bloggers who have graced the pages of this blog over the last month and a half.

Today is no exception and I am pleased to have Mary Kinser from Sprout’s Bookshelf join us with her take on a great multicultural book called Anna Hibiscus. Thank you, Mary!

In my house, we’re always on the lookout for fun, interesting kid’s books set in Africa. Fortunately there are lots more on the shelves these days than there used to be. Unfortunately many are too advanced for my five-year-old Sprout, or they deal with topics that he’s just not ready for yet.

So you can imagine how thrilled I was to find the Anna Hibiscus books by Atinuke. This is a funny, upbeat series set in modern-day Africa, featuring a multi-racial, multi-generational family. How much more awesome could you get?? And even more fortunately, Anna Hibiscus is geared toward the younger spectrum of readers, which means these work as read-alouds for kiddos my age, and as great stories for emerging readers as well.

Anna Hibiscus features adorable illustrations of Anna and her family – her mother, who is Canadian, and her father, who is African, plus her extended family and baby brothers, twins named Double and Trouble. I love the feeling of family and community the pictures give – breaking down any barriers readers might experience when thinking about life in Africa, and showing the common themes that run through any small child’s everyday world. Each story in the book tells about a different aspect of Anna Hibiscus’ life, whether it’s watching her mischievous brothers while on vacation, or preparing the house for a visit from a favorite Auntie. There are lots of sweet moments and plenty of laughs too – enough to keep kiddos wanting to turn pages.

Atinuke, the author of the Anna Hibiscus titles, is a Nigerian storyteller. Like Anna Hibiscus, Atinuke lived much of her early life in a big house in Africa filled with extended family. But later she moved to England to attend boarding school, and England became her home. She wrote the Anna Hibiscus books in an effort to share stories about growing up in Africa with children from the UK. And luckily for all of us, the books have spread to the US as well.

I love reading the Anna Hibiscus stories with Sprout. His eyes light up as we read about life in Africa (Atinuke doesn’t define what country Anna Hibiscus is from – which works for us, as it could easily be Ethiopia, the land of Sprout’s heritage!). It’s so great to share stories that are on his level, that present a positive family dynamic and show so many commonalities between everyday life no matter where you’re raised. Truly, when you read about Anna Hibiscus and her incredible family, you just want to join in the fun!

There are currently six books in the Anna Hibiscus series, and each is even more charming than the last. But our hearts will always belong to the first book, just titled Anna Hibiscus, which we read on vacation last summer and have continued to love ever since. In fact, as I’m writing this post, Sprout saw our copy of Anna Hibiscus sitting by my computer and yelled, “I love this book!”. So what better endorsement could you ask for?

Activity

The last story in Anna Hibiscus is all about our heroine’s deep desire to see snow. And even though I’m not much of a crafty mom, I did stumble across a perfect idea to connect with the reading by doing an activity with Sprout. Jump over to Red Ted Art to find this great tutorial on making a homemade snow globe. It’s simple and fun, a great chance for kids to get creative and even satisfies that longing to see snow that sometimes crops up on a hot summer day!

Sprout wanted to make his snow globe Star Wars-themed – hence the LEGO Luke Skywalker – and as such we opted to put in silver stars and moons (made from foil) rather than snow. (And since Sprout’s in a big dinosaur phase, he had to add an Apatosaurus figure too. ‘Cause even Jedis can get a little help from a prehistoric pal.) You could absolutely go the traditional route with a holiday theme and some glitter, in keeping with Anna Hibiscus’s wish to see the white stuff. Here’s a few pics of our snow globe in action – it was pretty hard to get good pics because the second we put this bad boy together, Sprout was shaking it up constantly!

Bio

By day, Mary Kinser is a Collection Development Librarian. By night, she’s a curator for Zoobean. And all around the clock she’s the mother of a gorgeous five-year-old boy from Ethiopia, lovingly nicknamed Sprout. She writes about diversity and adoption in children’s literature at her blog Sprout’s Bookshelf. You can also find her on Facebook, Twitter, and pinning all things kidlit at Pinterest.

Send to Kindle

The post Discover Your World Summer Reading Extravaganza: Anna Hibiscus by Atinuke {Guest Post by Sprout’s Bookshelf} appeared first on Jump Into A Book.

Send to Kindle

We are so excited to be participating in Multi-Cultural Kids Blogs Read Around the World Summer Series.   You can find great reads on their Pinterest Page or just click on the logo below.

One of our favorite books is Starry River of the Sky by Grace Lin.

The moon is missing from the remote Village of Clear Sky, but only a young boy named Rendi seems to notice! Rendi has run away from home and is now working as a chore boy at the village inn. He can’t help but notice the village’s peculiar inhabitants and their problems-where has the innkeeper’s son gone? Why are Master Chao and Widow Yan always arguing? What is the crying sound Rendi keeps hearing? And how can crazy, old Mr. Shan not know if his pet is a toad or a rabbit?

But one day, a mysterious lady arrives at the Inn with the gift of storytelling, and slowly transforms the villagers and Rendi himself. As she tells more stories and the days pass in the Village of Clear Sky, Rendi begins to realize that perhaps it is his own story that holds the answers to all those questions.

You can read the full book review complete with activities here.

Send to Kindle

The post Read Around the World Summer Series: Starry River of the Sky appeared first on Jump Into A Book.

Send to Kindle

Book review from Hannah Rials

Breadcrumbs by Anne Ursu

The winner of numerous awards and recipient of four starred reviews, Anne Ursu’s Breadcrumbs is a stunning and heartbreaking story of growing up, wrapped in a modern-day fairy tale.

Hazel and Jack are best friends.

They do everything together, and have always been each other’s rocks through the hardest parts of their lives—Hazel’s dad leaving and Jack’s mom’s mental absence. They live in their own story worlds, thriving in the imaginary. It doesn’t matter that Hazel is adopted with dark Indian skin or that Jack sometimes feels invisible; they just fit together. Then one day, a mischievous piece of glass falls into Jack’s eye, and everything changes. He no longer acknowledges Hazel and mysteriously disappears to go visit his elderly aunt. But Hazel doesn’t buy it, and Jack’s friend Tyler proves her suspicions. Jack has willingly gone into a magical forest with the White Witch. Now to save her friend and remind him what he is made of, Hazel must journey into the wild forest where nothing makes sense and there are no rules. Dangers await every turn, and without Jack, Hazel’s not quite sure how to survive. She just wants her best friend back. She encounters fantastical horrors that make her reality seem like a fairy tale. She faces, witches, wizards, evil huntsman, and helpful wolves all to find Jack, who’s nearly been turned to ice by the unfeeling White Witch.

Will Hazel be able to remind Jack what he’s made of? That he’s not invisible like he believes? But is Jack the only person Hazel is saving on this journey? Follow Hazel through the dangers and excitement of the forest to save her best friend and find herself in a world where finding yourself is never easy.

Enchanting! That’s one word…deep is another. On the surface, Breadcrumbs is a story about Hazel saving her best friend: the princess saving the knight. Once you delve farther into the story, you discover that Hazel is not only saving Jack, but also finding herself, her place in the world. I love how Anne Ursu discreetly intersperses various fairytales into Hazel’s story but with a different twist. The kindly wood axe man is actually evil. Warlocks, which are supposed to be good, try to steal your greatest desires. The kindly helpful couple captures young, lost girls and turns them into flowers. And the wolves, known for their ferocity in Narnia and many other stories, are there to help Hazel along her way. You have to appreciate the irony and the deeper message this book sends. Hazel finding her place in the world despite what society dictates will hopefully give kids the courage to find themselves during a time when societal pressures make being an individual nearly impossible.

Grab your copy of Breadcrumbs here.

**some of these links are affiliate links

Something to Do:

Make a snowflake: Craft from In My Own Style

Rice Krispie baseball snacks—Jack’s favorite!

Photo source

1. Make rice krispy like you normally would, but this time, cut it out into circles.
2. Set them apart.
3. Ice the tops with white icing and let harden a few minutes.
4. With either a red gel pen or just plain old red icing draw the stitches of the baseball.
5. Let harden and serve at your leisure!

 

Born in the hills of Louisiana and raised in the mountains of Tennessee, Hannah Rials is a seventeen year old aspiring author and editor. She’s been writing short stories since she was a little girl, but for the past several years, she has been writing, editing, and reediting a novel of her own that she hopes to publish in the near future.  Hannah has always loved reading and the world of books. With a librarian grandmother who can tell the most magical stories, how could she not fall in love with the written word. Her library collection and love for books grows every day. You can connect with Hannah on her author page on Facebook or on her blog.

Send to Kindle

The post Breadcrumbs by Anne Ursu {guest post from Hannah Rials} appeared first on Jump Into A Book.

Send to Kindle

I am so happy to be able to welcome the funnest librarian on the planet, Pam Margolis from the Unconventional Librarian and her post; Kid Writing and Biographies: Brown Girl Dreaming by Jacqueline Woodson to the Discover Your World Summer Reading Extravaganza!

I believe that growing up in the South during the civil rights era is akin to growing up in different country. We all know that people of color were not treated well in the South. It’s difficult to imagine that there was a time when literature for children did not include people of color. Of any color.

Jacqueline Woodson, a powerful voice for multicultural children and teens, was born in Ohio in the 60s. Her childhood was spent in South Carolina and Ohio before finally settling in New York City. Imagine watching the differences in the interactions between Whites and Blacks from a child’s perspective. Woodson’s sensitivity to a child’s thoughts is uncanny. There are many ways to incorporate family projects into the reading of this book.

What I love about Brown Girl Dreaming is that not only is it an autobiography (written in free verse) but it’s also a tale of the civil rights movement told through the voice of a child. Even the youngest child will understand the meaning of the behaviors described in the book. For example:

In the stores downtown

we’re always followed around

just because we’re brown.

Any point in the book is a great opportunity to discuss race, our differences, and similarities. There are so many teachable moments in this book. In addition to discussing civil rights, the book would also make a great study of Black literature, for example, young Jackie discovers Langston Hughes:

I loved my friend.

He went away from me.

There’s nothing more to say.

The poem ends.

Soft as it began—

I loved my friend.

–Langston Hughes

I remember when I first discovered Langston Hughes and this sad poem. I was instantly moved. Fortunately, young Jackie is discovering her writing voice and she writes a poem in response to Hughes:

I love my friend

and still do

when we play games

we laugh. I hope she never goes away from me

Because I love my friend.

-Jackie Woodson

She was in fourth grade, when she wrote that, can you believe it? Wouldn’t this make a great lesson on poetry writing or writing your own biography? When given the proper tools, children are amazingly astute writers.

The book will be published in August; perhaps writing could be a late summer project for your family? If your family can’t wait until August to learn more about Jacqueline Woodson, there are many books to become acquainted with:

Picture Books:

This is the Rope (a story of migration)

Each Kindness (a story on bullying)

Middle Grade:

Locomotion

Feathers

Young Adult:

Hush

Miracles Boys

Many of Woodson’s books are multiple award winners, so I’m sure you’ll find at least one good book for your family to enjoy together.

p.s. I’ve had the pleasure of meeting her twice and I’m proud to say I acted like a complete idiot each time (gabbing and fawning all over her); but I don’t care. Good authors are my rock stars.

Brown Girl Dreaming could also be the title of my autobiography. What could the title of yours be?

READ. ALL. THE BOOKS!!!

PammyPam

Pam, a.k.a. An Unconventional Librarian, is a curator of YA and children’s literature, a book blogger, coffee drinker and cupcake lover, who seeks multicultural books that appeal to all kids. Pam is also building a Harry Potter collection to enter the record books and she thinks being a little silly never hurts. You can connect with Pam on her website Pinterest page or on her Facebook page.

Send to Kindle

The post Kid Writing and Biographies: Brown Girl Dreaming by Jacqueline Woodson {Guest Post from The Unconventional Librarian} appeared first on Jump Into A Book.

Send to Kindle

Can you believe school is DONE?!!? Ack! Now everyone is kicking into “summer reading gear” and Jump Into a Book is no different.

This year I decided to “mix it up” a bit and invite some of the many amazing bloggers and reading/play advocates that  I know to stop by and share their knowledge and creativity with the JIAB readers. PLUS it will offer kids and parents some cool new reading ideas and activities for summer.

Summer reading programs are abundant after school ends. It’s our goal to not only create an ongoing summer reading booklist with activities option for parents, but also work to keep the focus on helping our young readers be Global Citizens. We would like to focus on books that will help our kiddos explore their world and keep our initiative of multicultural books for kids in the forefront of people’s minds too. To acheive this, I created the Discover Your World Summer Reading Extravaganza.

This fun summer reading and activity event will run from June 1 to Sept 1 and we encourage your to keep stopping by Jump Into a Book during this time to view all of the booklists, book reviews, crafts, recipes and activities my guest bloggers will be sharing! Here is our first guest for the Discover Your World Summer Reading Extravaganza, Shannon Medisky of SCIKite.com

Dancing Differently 101

By Shannon Medisky

Maybe it’s the teacher in me. Yeah, I left the classroom, but my desire to make everything a learning opportunity certainly hasn’t gone poof! Summer provides the perfect opportunity for me to share this with my kids, and Giles Andreae’s book called Giraffes Can’t Dance provided the perfect platform for a new kind of lesson: how to dance differently than everyone else.

In the book, Gerald, a tall and clumsy giraffe, is an outsider. Surrounded by a wide variety of different jungle animals, everyone can dance beautifully-everyone, that is, except for Gerald. The ending of the book is no surprise: Gerald learns to dance in his own unique way.

But what is a surprise is just how enjoyable is to read this book aloud! Andreae is clearly adept at writing in rhyming prose, something that’s not easily done. And, as a result, this book is just as fun to read as it is to listen to. The words of the story literally glide off the tongue as kids are genuinely sucked into poor Gerald’s plight. Mid-way through the book, a tiny cricket speaks softly to Gerald at his lowest point. He
encourages Gerald to block out the negative words of all the other bullying animals, and instead listen to his own “different” song. In the end, this process enables Gerald to dance beautifully but differently as he embraces his own moves, his own way, instead of trying to copy everyone else. This is definitely a skill and a truth I want to impress upon my own kids, and fortunately I was able to create a number of fun activities to do just that. Though Gerald has an awful time at the annual “Jungle Dance,” it provides a perfect opportunity to get kids up and active while exposing them to a wide variety of different styles of music! I found 5 different pieces of music: a waltz, a rock and roll song, a tango, a cha-cha and a Scottish reel. And after we read the book aloud together, we listened-and danced-to the different styles of music. As both boys got caught up in the fun, they began to realize there was no “right” or “wrong” way to dance to the different types of music. Instead, they were too caught up in having fun with each other. Just like Gerald at the end of the book, my boys were realizing that everyone really can dance when they find music-their own music-that they love.

Like I shared earlier, once a teacher, always a teacher and so I couldn’t let this activity stop without bringing it to a thoughtful and thought-provoking close, too. I invited my now exhausted kiddos to take a seat and close their eyes, just like Gerald did in the story. I asked them to remember something that they struggled to do, something that was hard for them or something that they did differently than everyone else. Next, with their eyes still closed, I asked them to practice doing that same thing right now inside their head, only this time focus on
enjoying doing it and doing it their way.

Then, I had them continue to sit quietly, eyes still closed and listen to the sounds-the music-that was all around them right in that moment. It was a way to practice positive thinking, visualization and mindful relaxation, but only after I’d
physically worn them out first!

Shannon Medisky is on a mission to inspire innovative thought in kids while simultaneously igniting a passion for science. In short, Shannon seeks to make science go BOOM! So children’s futures can take off, too.

A former classroom teacher and current writer, Shannon presents science concepts in fun, easy-to-understand ways, helping kids to understand that science isn’t just a “what” but “how” also. Additionally, she challenges kids to think critically, creatively and differently, encouraging an entrepreneurial approach to learning and failure along the way. The result is true education reform one child at a time, empowering kids to affect positive change in their own lives now while simultaneously equipping them for what lies ahead.

Her articles have been featured in many prominent magazines such as Exceptional Parents, Adoptive Families, Hybrid Mom, Mothering and Focus on the Family’s Thriving Family.

To learn more about Shannon, visit ShannonMedisky.com or connect with her on Facebook.

Send to Kindle

The post Dancing Differently 101-Giraffes Can’t Dance Book Review & Activity {Shannon Medisky} appeared first on Jump Into A Book.

Send to Kindle

Is your family kicking into “summer reading gear?” Since I have always tried to offer ideas and books on Jump Into a Book to keep families reading, I really wanted to do something different this summer. This year I decided to “mix it up” a bit and invite some of the many amazing bloggers and reading/play advocates that I know to stop by and share their knowledge and creativity with the JIAB readers.

PLUS it will offer kids and parents some cool new reading ideas and activities for summer.

This summer, not only do we want to keep kids reading, we want to also work to keep the focus on helping them be Global Citizens. We would like to focus on books that will help our kiddos explore their world and keep our initiative of multicultural books for kids in the forefront of people’s minds too. To achieve this, I created the Discover Your World Summer Reading Extravaganza.

This fun summer reading and activity event will run from June 1 to Sept 1 and we encourage your to keep stopping by Jump Into a Book during this time to view all of the booklists, book reviews, crafts, recipes and activities my guest bloggers will be sharing!

Today our guest for the Discover Your World Summer Reading Extravaganza is bilingual children’s author and educator Gladys Elizabeth Barbieri from Chucko’s Books.

Read A Book, Travel The World & Make A Wish

I’m a sucker for picture books, especially books that encourage children to learn about other worlds and cultures. When I came across the picture book Wish: Wishing Traditions Around the World by Roseanne Thong and illustrated by Elisa Kleven, I immediately bought it. Not only is it multicultural in nature, it’s about wishes, one of my most favorite things. I also got to meet the author, Roseanne Thong. Not only did she autograph my book, she is also really sweet and warm, another plus!

Wish is a book that invites young children to “travel” to fifteen countries by reading about the many and different ways people make wishes worldwide. The illustrations are breath taking and lyrical. My first graders were so enchanted by the illustrations that during free time many opted to recreate the artwork in their writing journals. I read the book to my first graders over a period of a week so that they could really absorb the information presented.

We traveled to far off places like Iran, Russia, Brazil and Guatemala. Many were familiar with Guatemala since it is a Spanish speaking country. A little girl eagerly said, “My mom is from El Salvador and that’s close to Guatemala.” My soccer fans were excited when we read about Brazil because of the World Cup. “I hope Mexico beats them because they’re the team to beat,” was a shared sentiment. We learned that in Iran, families celebrate the New Year by eating seven dishes on a special tablecloth to represent love, health, happiness, prosperity, joy, patience and beauty. In Russia, if you find a coin you make a wish and put it in your left shoe.

In addition, impromptu geography lessons were occurring as the students asked where a particular country was on the map and how close or far they were in relation to the United States. After reading the book, the students wrote about their wishes, the importance of wishes and how they hoped they would manifest. Some of their wishes broke my heart and gave me a sobering glimpse of the challenges they faced in their young and fragile lives.

I wish I could see my mom every day.

I wish my dad came to visit me.

I wish I had a house and a room with a bed.

I wish I had a puppy.

I wish I had a jetpack to go to space.

I also asked parents to write their wishes for their children. A parent volunteer assembled the star cut outs and made a “wish” mobile.

They were hung in class and every morning the kids would send magic to their wishes. On the day of our end of the year class celebration, I handed my first graders their wish mobiles and parents read their wishes aloud to their children. It was an immensely powerful activity and there was not a dry eye in the class. Even some of my little first graders started to cry as they felt the array of emotions from the adults. Our school principal graciously stepped in on behalf of the parents who were unable to attend the ceremony. Based on what was shared, I know that all parents, no matter where they come from, have similar wishes for their children: A life full of joy, love, health and a college education for a brighter future.

Author Bio:

Gladys Elizabeth Barbieri has been an elementary school teacher for almost 20 years. She loves to teach beginning reading and every night makes wishes when the stars come out and dance. She is also a bilingual children’s author. To read more about her adventures in first grade you can read her blog: https://gebarbieri.wordpress.com

Website: http://www.chuchosbooks.com

Twitter: @chuchosbooks

Send to Kindle

The post Read A Book, Travel The World & Make A Wish {Guest Post from Gladys Elizabeth Barbieri} appeared first on Jump Into A Book.

Send to Kindle

The Internet is just a buzzin with planning, thoughts and activity prep for the upcoming summer reason. If you are like me, this time of year when school and is ending and summer is beginning is met with with a mixture of excitement and dread. Excitement for all the fun family plans, adventures and travel you may be working on, but also dread for the time of year when reading activity slides and our young ones are easily bored stiff.

As usual, I have seen a ton of great activities, booklists and suggestions from other bloggers and I’d like to share my favorites with you today. I would also like to share and remind readers of some of the top booklists and summer reading activities that have appeared right here on JIAB, and post that will Build a Summer Reading List So Kids Can Discover our World. Enjoy!

We’ve done a whole series called Read Around the Continents over the course of these last 12 months and these blog posts are chocked full of great book suggestions about different cultures and continents:

Read Around the Continents: North America/United States 

Read Around The Continents: Eastern Europe

Read Around The Continents: Australia/Oceania Reading List

Read Around The Continents: 24 Children’s Books About Western Europe

Speaking of Global Booklists…here’s an awesome one!

Crafty Moms Share: Asian-Pacific American Heritage Month. Lots of great booklist ideas!

I see a few favorites on here, how about you? ‘37 Children’s Books that Changed People’s Lives’ by Riffle Childrens.

A Mighty Girl Heroes: Inspiring the Next Generation of History Makers has a list of great books featuring Mighty Girls.

27 Vintage Books Every Child Should Read from No Time for Flash Cards.

Summer Reading Tree: Forming “Roots” for Motivated Readers

Summer Reading Tree- 15 Green Books for Kids

The A-Z Summer Reading Tree: 26 Ways To Encourage Reading This Summer

25 Books That Diversify Kids’ Reading Lists This Summer via @Mind Shift

What good summer reads have you found?

Send to Kindle

The post WEEKEND LINKS-Build a Summer Reading List So Kids Can Discover our World appeared first on Jump Into A Book.

Send to Kindle

It’s no surprise that reading is a huge part of our summer and I know that is also the case with many of our readers. At Jump Into a Book we are always looking for ways to encourage families to “pull books off shelves and stories off pages.”

The following is a short, simple list of tips, ideas, activities, and booklists to help reinforce summer in a fun, interactive, and family-orientated way.

The Leaves of the A-Z Book Jumper Tree

A. A summer of reading starts Special Reading Place. Where’s yours?

B. Be a Dream Collector (with some help from a Big Friendly Giant).

C. Challenge yourself: Try a new skill or craft.

D. Discover the wonders of the sky and space.

E. Explore your world with my Read Around the Continents series of booklists

F. Fight for what’s right Stand Tall against bullying.

G. Go Rediscover the Library: Check out your local library and sign up for kid’s reading hour.

H. Have a books swap and trade books with friends.

I. Investigate a good mystery!

J. Jump Into a Book-Create a fun bookjump with Wee Gillis.

K. Knights! Learn about Knights and Princesses and times long ago.

L. Love Louis Sachar? Here are some “Holes” inspired activities!

M. Multicultural children’s books are so important these days. Kids need to see themselves within the pages of a book. Here is a HUGE booklist that involve diversity in children’s literature.

N. Nature, Nature, Nature: There are soooo many amazing books and activities for kids about Nature!

O. Oceans away! Discover great books about pirates and our oceans.

P. Poems, Poems, and more Poems!

R. Read Around the Continents: Visit places like South America and Africa through the pages of a book.

S. Scissors! Ever tried “Painting With Scissors” with Henri Matisse? Here’s your chance!

T. Talk, snuggle, play and reconnect with your family over a good book.

U. Unicorns! Don’t believe in Unicorns? You might after reading this.

V. Vary your reading. Read a science book, then a fiction book and maybe even a about about being an author yourself!

W. Wonkalicious! Team up with Willy Wonka and Charlie and The Chocolate Factory for some wonkalicious activities!

X. eXplore: Explore what life was like during the early days of our country and during the buffalo days.

Y. Your Imagination is your guide to all the wonders of the world. Start by pulling books of shelves and stories of pages today.,

Z. EnthuZiasm! Read can be fun if you work with your kids to help make it enjoyable and interesting. Read on!

And please feel free to print off, share, and Pin to Pinterest our gorgeous Book Jumper Tree poster.

Send to Kindle

The post The “Leaves” of The A-Z Summer Reading Tree (The 2014 Edition!) appeared first on Jump Into A Book.