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At this time of the year, many teachers and parents are getting ready for teaching about holidays. The three most common holidays to teach and do holiday activities with are Christmas, Hanukkah, and Kwanzaa. But teaching Christmas around the world lesson plans and Hanukkah lessons can often cause controversy in the public school classroom because they are so closely connected to religion. Some people don’t even want children to say the pledge of allegiance any more since they have to say, “One Nation, Under God.” So, when it comes to talking about a holiday celebrating when Jesus was born and when the Jewish people had enough oil to light a candle for one day but it stayed lit for eight days, people go crazy.

So, what do you do? You can’t really ignore the season–especially if you teach primary grades. They are excited. They are writing journal entries about seeing Santa Claus on the weekend, playing an angel in the Christmas pageant, or wrapping gifts for the eight days of Hanukkah. You don’t want angry parents knocking down your door. If you are homeschooling, you have an easier time because you control the curriculum, but you may want to expose your child to other traditions and let them know what other people do during this holiday season by teaching about holidays.

photo by scazon www.flickr.com

The first thing I suggest if you are a classroom teacher is to write a letter or e-mail and let parents know what your plans are for the holidays. It is important to let them know that you are planning to teach students Christmas around the world lesson plans or Hanukkah practices or Kwanzaa traditions. You are not teaching them which is the right holiday. You are not focusing on the religious beliefs but rather different traditions that Christians, Jews, and African-Americans have during the holiday season. You are teaching about holidays–not about religious beliefs. A letter or e-mail gives parents a chance to ask questions and voice concerns before you start teaching.

Once you have let parents know (and of course, you have checked with your school’s administration to see if there are any policies), then you can ask students a general question such as: “How do you celebrate holidays at your house?” If you have older students, they can write the answer as a journal entry. If you have younger students, you can do this holiday activity as a shared writing lesson. Make the holdiays personal with students before teaching them about Christmas around the world. Let them share their traditions (especially if you have several cultures represented in your classroom) before you share your teaching about holidays.

photo by soulchristmas www.flickr.com

Next you’ll want to do Christmas around the world lesson plans or Hanukkah and Kwanzaa activities with students that focus on traditions and family practices such as the history of the Christmas tree or the seven principles of Kwanzaa or a dreidel game. Students can even do their own research on holidays or a particular tradition they are interested in. Then students can present their findings to the class. Here are three books you can also share with your students:

photo by ahisgett www.flickr.com

Chinese New Year
February 14, 2010

*Picture book for preschoolers through second graders, contemporary, multicultural
*Young girl as main character
*A Gift is a good introduction to the Chinese New Year for young children with wonderful illustrations and a nice family message!

Short, short summary:
A Gift by Yong Chen tells the story of Amy, whose Mom is missing her relatives back home in China around the Chinese New Year. Soon a package arrives for Mom and Amy. Inside the package is a letter from Amy’s aunt (Mom’s sister) about a rock that Uncle Zhong found in his fields in China and how Uncle Ming turned it into a necklace for Amy for the Chinese New Year. At the end of A Gift, Yong Chen explains more about the Chinese New Year and the symbol of the dragon.

So, what do I do with this book?

1. In 2010, the Chinese New Year will be on February 14. (To see dates for other years, click here.) Make some Chinese New Year recipes with your class or at home with your children. In art, make dragons. Ask students to find a few facts about the Chinese New Year through their own research. You can also make a Chinese New Year information bulletin board. Invite a native from China to be a guest speaker about celebrations and customs for the Chinese New Year.

2. Amy has never met her relatives in China, but she knows all about them from her mom. You may have students in your family who have never met some of their relatives; or if you are at home with your children, you may have relatives living overseas whom your child has not met. Use A Gift by Yong Chen to start a discussion with your children or your class about these relatives. If you are a teacher, ask students to bring in a photograph of a relative they have never met–they can also bring in an old photo of a deceased relative if necessary. Ask the students to share some information about the person in the photo by interviewing their parents.

3. Ask students to draw or write (depending on their age and ability level) about a special gift they have received, what it was, and why it was special.

I love Timeless Thursdays and not just because it is almost Friday. I love revisiting these books that I read when I was younger and that children or teens are still reading today. And how about this series that I thought about while perusing the shelves of the local library? Timeless Thursday is talking Little House on the Prairie books by Laura Ingalls Wilder pictured here.

Of course, when I was little, Laura Ingalls Wilder was actually Melissa Gilbert, and Pa was Michael Landon. I couldn’t wait to tune into the television show and see what Mary, Carrie, Albert, Laura, Ma and Pa were doing. I even wanted to see Nellie and mean old Mrs. Olsen. Oh, I loved that show.

Then I discovered the books, and there are so many of them. Here are the titles of the Little House on the Prairie series:
Little House in the Big Woods
Farmer Boy
Little House on the Prairie
On the Banks of Plum Creek
Old Town in the Green Groves
By the Shores of Silver Lake
The Long Winter
Little Town on the Prairie
These Happy Golden Years
The First Four Years

And a website where you can find fun and games and notes for teachers about Little House books.

What makes us love these books so much? I’ve decided it has to be the characters. We love the Ingalls and the people they come into contact with. We love hearing how they struggle, celebrate, survive, and live as a family. These are character-driven novels, and they are some of the best for kids–especially if you want them to learn about this period in history.

Do you have a favorite Little House book? If so, please share with us and tell us why.

What could be better than two boys and an adventure in Egypt? It’s hard to think of anything! So, join me today with Fiona Ingram while she visits my blog on her WOW! Women On Writing blog tour to talk about her middle-grade novel, The Secret of the Sacred Scarab.

**BOOK GIVEAWAY CONTEST: Please leave a comment or question for Fiona about her book, Egypt, or any of the resources she has for us here. If you are a teacher, home school parent, or librarian, you can use all of Fiona’s information and her book to teach your students and children about Egypt.

The Secret of the Sacred Scarab:
A thrilling adventure for two young boys whose fun trip to Egypt turns into a dangerously exciting quest to uncover an ancient and mysterious secret. A 5000-year-old mystery comes to life when a scruffy peddler gives Adam and Justin Sinclair an old Egyptian scarab on their very first day in Egypt. Justin and Adam embark upon the adventure of a lifetime, taking them down the Nile and across the harsh desert in their search for the legendary tomb of the Scarab King, an ancient Egyptian ruler. With just their wits, courage, and each other, the boys manage to survive. . .only to find that the end of one journey is the beginning of another!

A special treat! An interview with the author:

Margo: Hi Fiona! Welcome to Read These Books and Use Them! Where did you get the idea for The Secret of the Sacred Scarab?

Fiona: Believe it or not, but a family trip to Egypt with my mom and my two nephews inspired the book. We had a wonderful time, filled with exciting and memorable events. And on our return, I decided to do something different. I decided to write my nephews a short story to keep as a souvenir of our holiday. Pretty soon, that short story just ran away with me and turned into a book; and by the end of the book, I knew there was still a lot of story to complete. So, here I am with a book series facing me.

Margo: But how exciting that you have so much to say! How long did you research this book since it is set in Egypt? What are a couple of your favorite research methods?

Fiona: I am a journalist so I tend to “collect” things on any trip—souvenirs, postcards, museum tickets, air tickets, post cards, book marks, and guide books. These act as triggers for my memory. I also scribbled down things on the Egypt trip. Then of course, the real experiences of the place are important—the heat, the people, the customs, the different clothes, the monuments, the endless waves of desert sand, the blinding sunlight. . . Back home, I structured my story and then did solid book research on the places and historical things that would play a part in the unfolding of the plot. I tend to plot the whole story, then create my chapter points, then look up all the information I will need in each chapter. I always do a final “fact check” before completing a chapter. The entire project took about three years from start to finish, from starting the manuscript to finally getting it published.

Margo: Thank you for sharing your process with us. If anyone reading this post is a children’s writer or aspiring to be one, your answer could help them on their journey! What are some challenges of writing a mystery for kids

I am excited to host author and illustrator Rebekah Raye on Read These Books and Use Them today with her new book Bear-ly There, published by Tilbury House. Along with this great publishing company, I’ve got a lot to share with you today, so let’s get started!

CONTEST! CONTEST! FABULOUS CONTEST!!!!! **First of all, Tilbury House is offering some fabulous prizes for ten winners. You can win by commenting on my blog and on any of the other blogs on the tour. You can also win by participating on Twitter! Here’s more information about the contest:

From Tilbury House: We will draw 9 lucky winners from all of those who comment on these participating blog posts, from October 16-30, to win one of the following prizes:

Winners #1 & 2 = A set of four art notecards (two sets available)
Winner #3 = A signed wildlife art print
Winners #4, 5, 6 = An original sketch from Bear-ly There, The Very Best Bed, or Thanks to the Animals (See www.rebekahraye.com for samples of her gorgeous artwork!)
Winners #7, 8, 9 = A copy of Bear-ly There, The Very Best Bed, or Thanks to the Animals, signed by Rebekah.

And, anyone who participates in the Twitter Book Party or posts anything on Twitter about the tour, using the hashtag #BearlyThere from October 15-30, will be entered to win a complete set of Bear-ly There, The Very Best Bed, and Thanks to the Animals, all signed by Rebekah! Winners for all 10 prizes will be announced on Oct. 31. US/Canada addresses only.

Bear-ly There, a beautifully-illustrated picture book, is the story of Charlie and a bear who wanted a snack in Charlie’s family’s storage shed. Charlie figures out how to get rid of the bear and get him back to eating blueberries in the forest like he should. The books shows children in a kind and gentle way that wildlife belongs in the wild where everyone, including the animal, is safe. I am lucky enough to have the opportunity to interview, Rebekah Raye, the author, about her book Bear-ly There.

Margo: Hi Rebekah, thanks for stopping by on your tour. I’m sure many people who read your book wonder this: where did you get the idea for Bear-ly There?

Rebekah: It was really based on a true story. Last summer, I had made an appointment with Tilbury House Publishing to come in and discuss some new concepts and ideas I had about another book. I had a couple of ideas that I really liked. The very night before my meeting, we had an incredible first-time black bear visit in the moonlight just at dawn in our backyard–that was both exciting and frightening. I went into my meeting with Jennifer Bunting, Audrey Maynard, and Karen Fiske. I felt very comfortable talking to them about my new ideas but was still bubbling over with excitement about the bear visit that it seemed to be prominent in our conversation. They were quiet as they listened to all of my story summaries. Then after a pause, they thought we should do the story of the bear visit.

Margo: Well, thank goodness for that bear visit then, or we wouldn’t have this delightful story now! Your illustrations are absolutely beautiful. How do you make your illustrations look so real? Do you use models? Photos? Your imagination?

Rebekah: I seem to be most inspired by events, sightings, and actual experiences that I can express in a painting, sculpture, or story. I have learned so much about the animals I paint. I am fascinated by what they look like and how they act. It is important to me to give the animal dignity and respect and love the animal as it is. So, I want my paintings to be a close likeness. For Bear-ly There, my husband, a photographer, was able to photograph the bear that visited us on several different occasions, and I had lots of reference from his photographs. I also had such a memory of the night he came to visit us. My two geese were always modeling for me; the rest of the critters were from past sightings.

Margo: Your paintings are definitely a close likeness, and I love that your two geese model for you! Please briefly explain your writing process for us.

Rebekah: My dearest older friend, Eggie Razi, once told me, “Just do the pictures first, and then imagine telling your story to your children and grandson, and the words will come.” She was right. I love to think of the images first, the characters. Then I take a tape recorder and speak about what’s happening, and it seems to help me write like I was verbally telling the story. I then sketch out sort of a story board. I can then start to see the story change, build. And thank goodness for editors.

Margo: What an interesting writing process. I wonder if a lot of author/illustrators work that way. I think I found a new question to ask. What are two or three lesson plan ideas that teachers can use with Bear-ly There?

Rebekah: I would recommend doing research about the different foods bears like to eat. It is fascinating to note they eat the very things that are bad for our gardens and trees like cut worms and tent caterpillars. I have always loved to combine art and science, so I would have the children draw the bear eating the particular plants and insects–making a poster of the different plants in a detailed drawing, of course with the bear. Maybe ink markers and pastel pencils. I also recommend everyone to visit www.tilburyhouse.com because they specify classroom activities related to the books under TEACHERS TAKE NOTE.

Margo: Rebekah, thanks for letting us know about the Tilbury House site and their resources for teachers. We wish you much luck with your book, your tour, and your future projects!

Don’t forget to leave a comment below to be entered into Tilbury House’s awesome contest. To enter more than once, go to these other blog tour stops for Rebekah and make a comment!

More blog stops for Rebekah:

Oct. 21 – Satisfaction for Insatiable Readers – http://insatiablereaders.blogspot.com/
Oct. 22 – On My Bookshelf – http://hollybooknotes.blogspot.com/
Oct. 23 – Nature Moms – http://www.naturemoms.com/blog/
Oct. 24 – Tilbury House on Facebook – http://tinyurl.com/c2cnav
Oct. 25 – Ready Set Read – http://readysetreadreviews.blogspot.com/
Oct. 26 – Mozi Esmé – http://moziesme.blogspot.com/
Oct. 27 – Anastasia Suen’s Picture Book of the Day – http://6traits.wordpress.com/
Oct. 28 – Byron T. Bear Foundation – http://www.byronbear.com
Oct. 29 – Amy Lundebrek’s blog – http://www.amylundebrek.com/blog
Oct. 30 – Get Bear Smart Society – http://www.bearsmart.com/news-room/blog-posts

And the winner is Linda. Check out her blog, “Travels With Children” at http://minnemom.com/ . If you didn’t win a copy of Al Capone Shines My Shoes by Gennifer Choldenko, think about purchasing a copy and giving it to your favorite kid during whichever winter holiday you celebrate!

Now on to Maniac Monday. . .

photo by D’Arcy Norman www.flickr.com

On this Maniac Monday, I want to celebrate the dedication of teachers to their students. There are some absolutely amazing teachers out there that I know do not get enough credit. I’m a big Twitter fan (follow me at www.twitter.com/Margo_L_Dill), and let’s just say these teachers should be the ones that have a million followers! One teacher in particular that I noticed from Twitter is Leigh Brockway. Here are her answers to some questions I asked about technology in her classroom. Just take a look at her answers. She is absolutely amazing!

Margo: Welcome, Leigh! Let’s start with the basics, so people can put you in a setting. Where (school name, city, state) do you teach? What grade/subject?

Leigh: I teach sixth grade in La Puente, CA, a suburb of Los Angeles.

Margo: Sixth grade in California. WOW! I know you must be tired by the end of the day. I used to teach fifth grade in a suburb of St. Louis. Why is it important to use technology in your classroom or with your students?

Leigh: We are preparing our students to do jobs that, for many, haven’t even been created yet. In addition, kids from low socioeconomic backgrounds are at a disadvantage regarding technology in that they don’t have the access that other, more affluent kids have. We have to try to bridge the gap; yet funding for technology in poorer areas seems to be less than it is in more affluent areas. It’s a tough situation. I am continually trying to find donations or buying computers with my own money to give my kids a decent shot and understanding and using different types of technology.

Margo: You make some great points, and all kids need to learn about using a computer today! I admire you so much for going the extra mile to provide that for your students. So, what technology do you have available to you, i.e., computers, smartboards, Internet access, etc.?

Leigh: My school has provided one desktop computer with an Internet connection. In addition, I have purchased three laptops and won a grant to have four more computers. So, the kids have access to eight computers. They are allowed to use my “teacher computer,” but that doesn’t happen in many classrooms.

Margo: Your students are so lucky to have a teacher like you, and so is your district. Congratulations on winning the grant. I know grants are terribly hard to write and very time consuming. How do you use technology in your classroom?

Leigh: I have a few students who bring their own laptops, so we have about one computer for every four students. Each student uses the Internet for research, and we have several class Wikis that we have made. We have a class web blog, and students are able to showcase their work there. We are in the process of getting a class website, but that has yet to be approved by the district. We do have a class web page at Scholastic, but I want each student in my class to have their own web page on a class site. In addition, I borrow LCD projectors from the high school teachers, who have them on occasion. I use them to do powerpoints, show the kids how to create their own powerpoints, how to word process, use Excel spreadsheets, etc. We are in the process of fund raising for our own LCD projector.

We also have a class Twitter page, and some of the students have their own Twitter pages. They had to get parental consent to do so. They are able to Twitter at certain times during class. They absolutely love using Twitter! We do not really use any other social media. Facebook and Myspace are, of course, banned websites on our server.

Margo: I love that your students are using Twitter! As I mentioned earlier, I am a Twitter fanatic, and I can see why students would love using it, too. You are teaching them such important skills, and I know that students love technology. It makes learning more fun for them. You are the perfect example to teachers who feel like they can not provide their students with computers or with technology due to funding. You are showing that it is possible. I hope that people can get some useful tips from you! In closing, please share with us your Twitter and blog addresses.

Leigh: Sure. Our class blog: http://sunkisttigersroom10.blogspot.com/ On Twitter: http://twitter.com/Sunkist_Room10. We actually update the Twitter page more often than the blog.

Margo: Leigh, thank you so much for being with us today! We look forward to all the wonderful things you and your students will be doing with technology. I want to give you a cyber hug for all your hard work and dedication to education.

Reviewed by Margo Dill, www.margodill.com, [email protected]

Photo by Mike Baird www.flickr.com

*Picture book, mostly realistic (contemporary)
*First-grade girl as main character
*Rating: Velma Gratch and the Way Cool Butterfly is sure to touch the hearts of everyone who reads it!

Short, short summary: Velma Gratch wants to be remembered like her older sisters, Frieda and Fiona, but she just can’t seem to figure out how. She tries being the slowest runner so her P.E. teacher will see her. She tries being the loudest singer, so her music teacher can hear her. But she just winds up in the principal’s office. During science, Mr. Plexipuss, Velma’s teacher, is teaching Velma’s class about butterflies. Velma loves this especially since Frieda and Fiona did not study butterflies! When she goes on a field trip to the conservatory, Velma is in for a surprise when she meets her favorite type of butterfly, a monarch. One butterfly hitches a ride, and he does not want to get off!

So, what do I do with this book?

1. If you study life cycles of butterflies, then Velma Gratch and the Way Cool Butterfly is a great book to read during this unit. Alan Madison includes many science terms in his text, and Kevin Hawkes has illustrations of different types of caterpillars on the inside front cover and different types of butterflies on the inside back cover. Very cool! You can do an art/science project with this book also. Assign students a type of butterfly to research, draw, and color or paint. Students should find out facts about their butterflies and try to draw and color them as close to real life as possible. Students can present their butterflies to the class, and/or you can hang them on a butterfly bulletin board.

2. Velma Gratch has a problem in this book that several students in your class might have. She doesn’t feel special in her family. She thinks her sisters are better than her, and some of the adults in the book aren’t helping her out with these feelings either! One activity you can do with your students is ask them to draw the members of their family on one side of a sheet of paper. Write one sentence about each family member and tell why they are special. On the other side of the paper, ask students to draw a self-portrait. Then students should write at least THREE reasons why they are special and different from other members of their family. If they have no siblings, students can still do this activity using their parents, pets, and even cousins if they wish.

3. This story is mostly realistic. But part of the story makes it unbelievable which makes the whole story a fantasy then. This isn’t the kind of fantasy with knights, dragons, or wizards, but it also isn’t realistic fiction due to this one event in the book. Ask students what parts of the book could happen and are realistic. Then discuss which part of the book makes this story unbelievable or unable to happen in real life.

If you have read Velma Gratch and the Way Cool Butterfly, then leave us a comment and let us know how you felt or an activity you did with the book! Thanks!

photo by jmcarthy99 www.flickr.com

*Middle-grade novel, fantasy
*An elementary-school-aged girl as a main character
*Rating: An interesting look at Ireland and Irish legends with a loveable main character.

Short, short summary: Molly O’Malley is going to stay with her Aunt Shannon in Ireland while her parents figure out some things at home. While at Aunt Shannon’s house, Molly discovers that leprechauns are not just Irish folklore when she meets Paddy and befriends him. Paddy has a problem; and once he realizes that Molly can be trusted, he asks her to help. Using some magic, Paddy and Molly soon discover exactly what is taking all the leprechaun’s gold and figure out a way to get the gold back to its rightful owners. In the meantime, Molly and Aunt Shannon develop a relationship while her parents are trying to work things out back home.

So, what do I do with this book?

1. Students can learn a lot about Ireland from this book. Using it as a starting point, they can also do some more of their own research on Ireland or Irish folklore. Students can make a poster, a display, a power point presentation, or even a bulletin board about some of the facts they learn about Ireland.

2. Molly is very trustworthy and honest, and this is why she gains the trust of these magical creatures when other humans aren’t able to. Ask students why Molly is so trustworthy. What is her ultimate goal? Is she after money? What does she want? Molly’s character shapes the story in this book. Ask students to write in their reading response journals about whether or not they think Molly would be a good friend if she was a real person. Ask them to use examples from the text to support their answers.

3. Before reading the chapter titled, “The Choice,” ask students what they think Molly should do with her last wish. Ask students to pretend they are Molly, and write a letter to Paddy explaining her difficult decision and what she must do with her last wish.

For more information on Molly O’Malley and the author, Duane Porter, check out Buried Treasure Publishing.