Asha Loves Science: Over in the Meadow by Najla Ahmad

When I was a child, I loved listening to the original Over in the Meadow poem. My kindergarten teacher had a felt storyboard set for the poem and I remember feeling giddy whenever she brought it out. In today's guest post, Najla Ahmad talks about her children's book Asha Loves Science: Over in the Meadow... a fun, multicultural twist of that old poem. In Najla Ahmad's version of Over in the Meadow, children learn fun facts about animals and a little bit of Urdu... the national language of Pakistan and 22 states in India. Keep reading to learn more!

This is a guest post by Najla Ahmad that first appeared on my blog in 2016.

To learn more about guest posts, please visit the Authors, Publishers, and Sponsors page.

Disclosure: Affiliate links to Amazon are included in this post.

What's an Og? by Mary Barry

Learning about letters and the sounds they make... phonics/phonetics... are important parts of learning how to read.  Engaging children in wordplay with rhyming words is one strategy parents and teachers can use to help their students become more proficient in reading.  In today's guest post, children's author Mary Barry talks about her recently released children's book called What's an Og?... a book full of wordplay and rhymes for the /og/ sound. Keep reading to learn about What's an Og? and how Mary Barry came up with her idea for the story!

This is a guest post by Mary Barry. To learn more about guest posts, please visit the Authors, Publishers, and Sponsors page.  Disclosure: Affiliate links to Amazon are included in this post.

 

How My Parents Learned to Eat by Ina R. Friedman

When I first starting teaching many years ago, studying Japan was a major component of the second-grade social studies curriculum I needed to teach. We would spend roughly a month learning about Japanese history, geography, and culture. At the end of the unit, my students and I would read How My Parents Learned to Eat by Ina R. Friedman together, go to the Japanese restaurant nearby, and learn how to eat with chopsticks. Good times!

Disclosure: Affiliate links to Amazon are included in this post.

If You Give a Moose a Muffin by Laura Joffe Numeroff

If you’ve read the book If You Give a Mouse a Cookie by Laura Joffe Numeroff and enjoyed it, then you need to read her book If You Give a Moose a Muffin. If You Give a Moose a Muffin is about a hungry moose who wants a snack.  Once he gets his muffins, a whole chain of events gets set into motion, and the story ends where it began.  If You Give a Moose a Muffin is a good example of a circle story.  What is a circle story?  How can you use this book to teach circle stories to your students?  Keep reading to find out!

Disclosure: Affiliate links to Amazon are included in this post.

 

The Adventures of Little Miss History by Barbara Ann Mojica

I recently learned about The Adventures of Little Miss History... a children's book series by Barbara Ann Mojica.  Little Miss History is a middle school student who travels around the world to learn as much as she can.  In today's guest post, Barbara Ann Mojica introduces us to Little Miss History and tells us more about the books in her series.  Keep reading!

The following is a guest post written by Barbara Ann Mojica. To learn more about guest posts, please visit the Authors, Publishers, and Sponsors page. Disclosure: Affiliate links to Amazon are included in this post.

The Smiley Girl by Emmanuel Ndayishimiye and Ornella Ngabire

The Smiley Girl by Emmanuel Ndayishimiye and Ornella Ngabire is a children's book about a little girl named Cindy who keeps track of her daily acts of kindness toward others in a special calendar she created. She calls her calendar a kindness calendar.  In today's guest post, author Ornella Ngabire writes about The Smiley Girl and describes what kindness calendars are and how you can use these kindness calendars at home or at school. Keep reading to learn more!

 

The following is a guest post written by Ornella Ngabire. To learn more about guest posts, please visit the Authors, Publishers, and Sponsors page.  Disclosure: Affiliate links to Amazon are included in this post.

 

Where Does Coffee Come From?

If you were to ask a child where coffee comes from, you might get an answer like Starbucks, Dunkin,' or... my personal favorite place... Tim Hortons.  But... if you were to follow up that question and ask where the coffee comes before it gets to Starbucks, Dunkin', or Tim Hortons... you may get a blank stare.  Have you ever wondered where coffee comes from?  Keep reading to find out!

The inspiration for this blog post came from the children's book Slothee Wants Coffee by Nikki Pezzopane and her son Cameron Fica.  Slothee Wants Coffee is about a sloth named Slothee who travels the world in search of the perfect cup of coffee.  

Disclosure: Affiliate links to Amazon are included in this post.

15 Children's Books for the First Day of School

Are you looking for some children's books to read with your students during the first week of school?  Here is a collection of 15 of my favorite back-to-school books you should check out.  Some of these are classics I read with my students back in the 90s.  Others are 'new favorites' I recently discovered.  

Disclosure: Affiliate links to Amazon are included in this post.

Pumpkin Life Cycle STEM Activity ("Pumpkin Jack")

Autumn is the perfect time of year to learn about pumpkin life cycles.  You can find pumpkins at farmer's markets, grocery stores, and roadside stands.  And... you can even find them in coffees, teas, bread, pies, soups, muffins, and more!  Since pumpkins seem to be everywhere and in everything during this time of year, it makes sense to incorporate pumpkin life cycles into your science lessons in the fall instead of waiting until spring when other plant concepts are taught. Keep reading to learn about a fascinating pumpkin life cycle STEM activity and a popular children's book you can use as a part of your science lessons!

Disclosure: Affiliate links to Amazon are included in this post.

All photos in this post are used with the permission of Blakeley Kantor.

Talking to Children About Race

It’s normal and natural for children to observe and point out differences. It’s our responsibility to help them celebrate these differences and understand how they may affect our lives.

-Alanna Ekua Nzoma, M.D., University of Michigan Health

Aditi Wardhan Singh is an avid writer and has written several books for children and adults.  She is known for writing the Sparkling Me series of books for children and Raising the Global Mindset and Strong Roots Have No Fear for parents and teachers.  Aditi Wardhan Singh is passionate about multicultural education and promoting mindfulness, empathy, and community.  In today's guest post, Aditi Wardhan Singh writes about strategies parents and teachers can use when talking to children about race.  She also gives us a quick peek at her children's book How Our Skin Sparkles.  Enjoy!

Disclosure: Affiliate links to Amazon are included in this post.

The following is a guest post written by Aditi Wardhan Singh. To learn more about guest posts, please visit the Authors, Publishers, and Sponsors page.

 

It Smells Like Tuesday by Amy Provinzono-Thomas

Children's author Amy Provinzono-Thomas released her first children's book It Smells Like Tuesday a couple of months ago. It Smells Like Tuesday is a fantasy book about a little boy who takes his favorite scents and bottles them up so he can smell them whenever he wants to remember something special. In this guest post, Amy Provinzono-Thomas tells us more about her new book and shares some of her favorite illustrations with us. Enjoy!

 

Disclosure: Affiliate links to Amazon are included in this post.

The following is a guest post written by Amy Provinzono-Thomas. To learn more about guest posts, please visit the Authors, Publishers, and Sponsors page.  

School is More Than a Building by Kelley Donner

Are you looking for a new children's book to read to your students during the first week of school? A book to make them feel positive about coming back to school? A book to make them feel like a valued member of the school community? Children's author and illustrator Kelley Donner published her children's book School is More Than a Building in May and it would be an excellent read for that first week. In this blog post, Kelley Donner writes about her new book, where the inspiration for the book came from, and the resources you can download to go with it. Keep reading to learn more about School is More Than a Building!

Disclosure: Affiliate links to Amazon are included in this post.

This is a guest post written by Kelley Donner. To learn more about guest posts, please visit the Authors, Publishers, and Sponsors page.

Flashlight by Lizi Boyd

Summertime is here and lots of families are getting excited about going camping.  Some families will camp in tents.  Some will camp in RVs.  And... some brave families will camp under the stars.  Fun times for all!  

Flashlight by Lizi Boyd is a wordless book about a child who goes camping, wanders around in the dark, and gets lost.  Oh no!  How will the child get back to the tent?  Keep reading to find out what happens to the child, to learn more about Flashlight and the importance of wordless books, and to find the directions for a fun, book-inspired art activity!

Disclosure: Affiliate links to Amazon are included in this post.

10 Children's Books About Residential Schools

Conversations have been happening in homes and classrooms across Canada and the United States since the remains of 215 Indigenous children buried at the former Kamloops Indian Residential School were found.  At the time of this post, nearly 1,000 bodies have been found and that number is expected to rise as the grounds of more residential schools in Canada and the United States get searched.  Parents and teachers are finding themselves fielding some hard questions from their children...  Why were these children taken from their homes?  Why were they forced to go to these schools?  Why were they treated so badly there?  Why didn't they all get to go home?

Explaining that Indigenous children were forcibly taken from their families and put into residential schools where they were abused and prohibited from speaking their languages or expressing their culture requires both delicacy and honesty, according to experts.

Listed below are 10 children's books and Youtube videos written specifically to help children answer some of these difficult questions.  Many of these books are written by residential school survivors or their descendants.  All of these books were written before 2021... long before the remains of the original 215 children were found.

Disclosure: Affiliate links to Amazon are included in this post.

Learning About Dyslexia: The Hoopstar by Chavon D. White

I usually write about books and activities for early childhood and early elementary students, but every once in a while I find a book for the upper elementary grades that teachers and parents should know about.  The Hoopstar by Chavon D. White is one of them.  The Hoopstar is a realistic fiction children's book inspired by real life.  It is about a 12-year-old girl named Brylane who loves to play basketball.  On the basketball court, she is confident and fearless... a true champion!  But on the inside, there is something making Brylane feel less confident, something most of the people around her don't know about...  she has dyslexia.  What is dyslexia?  How does it affect Brylane's life?  How does Brylane overcome having dyslexia to achieve her dreams?  Keep reading to learn about dyslexia and to learn more about The Hoopstar!

Disclosure: Affiliate links to Amazon are included in this post.

 

The Brave Butterfly Gratitude Journal Product Review

Several months ago, I wrote a blog post about Abby Cadet... the young author who wrote and published Living in Two Homes Is Tough when she was 9 years old. Since then, she has written a second children's book and has released a series of gratitude journals for children. (Pretty amazing, yes?)  Today's blog post is a product review of one of Abby Cadet's gratitude journals that can be used at home or at school.  Keep reading to learn more!

This is an unpaid review of a Brave Butterfly Gratitude Journal. I was given a promotional journal in exchange for my HONEST review.  To learn more about product reviews, please visit the Authors, Publishers, and Sponsors page.  Disclosure: Affiliate links to Amazon are included in this post.

10+ Children's Books About Juneteenth

Juneteenth will be here in a couple of weeks!  What is Juneteenth?  Juneteenth is an important day in American history and for Black Americans across the country.  On June 19, 1865... two years, five months, and 18 days after the Emancipation Proclamation was issued... slaves in Galveston, Texas finally learned they were free.  Since then, Juneteenth... named for June + 19th... has been celebrated with festivals, cookouts, picnics, family reunions, fireworks, church gatherings, etc.  There is no one way to celebrate Juneteenth.  Anywhere people gather together to commemorate Juneteenth is a celebration.

Listed below are 10+ fiction and nonfiction children's books about Juneteenth, the Emancipation Proclamation, and Opal Lee... the Grandmother of Juneteenth.  Keep reading to learn about these books.  If you know of a children's book that should be added to the list, tell me in the comments below.  If it's a good fit for this list, I'll add it for you!

Disclosure: Affiliate links to Amazon are included in this post.

All People Are Beautiful by Vincent Kelly

Last month, Vincent Kelly released his children's book called All People Are Beautiful.  All People Are Beautiful is a cheerful, delightful story that will put a smile on your face and make you feel good inside.  It has bright illustrations and features children from all over the world.  Keep reading to learn more about All People Are Beautiful and how you can use it in your classroom.

Disclosure: Affiliate links to Amazon are included in this post.

One Plastic Bag: Isatou Ceesay and the Recycling Women of the Gambia by Miranda Paul

Plastic shopping bags became widely used in the 1980s.  They're popular with manufacturers because they are cheaper to make than paper bags and popular with consumers because of their convenience.  (How many of us have carried four or five bags of groceries in one hand while bringing them into the house, right?)  

Manufacturers have justified making plastic shopping bags by claiming it was good for the environment... it reduced the number of trees being cut each year.  However, plastic shopping bags have actually hurt the environment in large parts of the world.  One Plastic Bag by Miranda Paul is the true story of how plastic shopping bags have wreaked havoc in one community and how a woman named Isatou Ceesay was determined to do something about it.  Keep reading to learn more about One Plastic Bag, how you can use it in the classroom, and for a simple art enrichment activity that repurposes plastic shopping bags.

Disclosure: Affiliate links to Amazon are included in this post.

Six Children's Books About Egyptian Mummies

Several weeks ago I wrote a blog post about How to Make a Mummy and included the step-by-step directions on how to recreate the mummification process to mummify an apple.  This week, I pulled together a list of six popular children's books about Egyptian mummies to help you extend your students' learning in the classroom.  These are nonfiction books that students in second grade and above would enjoy.

Disclosure: Affiliate links are included in this post.