The Bridge of the Golden Wood by Karl Beckstrand

Karl Beckstrand is a prolific author of 30+ multicultural children's stories.  He has written stories that take place in a variety of countries around the world and has written stories in multiple languages.  Four of Karl Beckstrand's books have been featured on Kelly's Classroom Online so far:

🍎 Anna's Prayer (Sweden, United States)

🍎 Ida's Witness (Sweden, United States)

🍎 It Came from Under the High Chair (English, Spanish)

🍎 Great Cape O' Colors (English, Spanish)

Today's blog post is the fifth one about one of Karl Beckstrand's books... The Bridge of the Golden Wood.  The Bridge of the Golden Wood is a modern-day folktale/parable that takes place in China and teaches children about the importance of helping others and saving money.  Keep reading to learn about this book and for some language arts and economics minilessons inspired by the book!

If you are looking for the building bridges STEM activity, it has been moved to its own blog post. Disclosure: Affiliate links to Amazon are included in this post.

How to Make Earth Day Seed Bombs

Earth Day is almost here... are you looking for an easy-to-make craft your students and children can make?  Stevie Rae from 🌱🌍 Funtimes Daily Fun and Learning 🌍🌱 and her family recently made some Earth Day-themed seed bombs using items that can be purchased inexpensively at a dollar store.  In this guest post, Stevie Rae describes how they made their seed bombs and shares some of the photos she took along the way.  Thanks, Stevie!

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

10 Children's Books About the Titanic

On April 12, 1912, the RMS Titanic struck an iceberg in the northern Atlantic and sank to the bottom of the ocean.  Sadly, 1,500 men, women, and children lost their lives that day.  Since then, thousands of books, stories, legends, poems, and movies have been written about it.  Listed below are ten children's books about the Titanic.  Both fiction and nonfiction books are included in the list.

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

How to Make a Mummy STEM Activity

The ancient Egyptians had one wish... they wished they could live forever. They believed pharaohs would need their bodies in the afterlife so, they'd mummify the pharaohs' bodies to prevent them from decomposing and rotting away. Learn about their mummification process with this integrated science, social studies, and STEM project. Keep reading to learn more!

If you are looking for my list of children's books about mummies, it is now a separate blog post.  You can find the list at Six Children's Books About Egyptian Mummies.

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

Watch Over Our Water by Lisa Bullard

The amount of water that we have in the world right now will always be the same.  We will never have any more of it... and we will never have any less of it.  The water is in the rivers, lakes, streams, and oceans.  It's in the air.  It's in the ground.  It's locked in ice.   And... only 1.5% of it is accessible and drinkable.  This poses a serious problem.  If only 1.5% of the world's water is accessible and drinkable, how do we take care of what we have?  How can we make sure it's not wasted?  What can children do to help?

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

Catherine's Pascha by Charlotte Riggle

Easter will be here in less than a month and families all over the world will celebrate it in their unique ways. Easter... also known as Resurrection Sunday and Pascha... is a Christian holiday commemorating Jesus's resurrection from the dead. It is a moveable feast, meaning that it doesn't fall on the same day each year.  

A few years ago, Charlotte Riggle wrote an Easter children's book called Catherine's Pascha. It's told from the point of view/perspective of a child named Catherine who is excited about her church's upcoming celebration.  In Catherine's Pascha, we can tag along with Catherine as she tries to stay up late to go to midnight mass, goes to the church with her family, begs her mom for desserts at the feast, and falls asleep in the car on the way home.  Keep reading to learn more about Catherine's Pascha and some of the traditions Catherine loves.

  

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

Working with Worry by Melissa L. Kilbride and Samantha C. Sweeney

I usually write about children's books and activities on this blog, but every once in a while I find a resource that parents should know about.  I recently learned about Working with Worry: A Workbook for Parents on How to Support Anxious Children by Melissa L. Kilbride and Samantha C. Sweeney and wanted to share it with you.  Working with Worry is a tremendous workbook written for parents whose school-age children... preschool to high school... are grappling with anxiety and worry.  It's packed full of resources, activities, and strategies that can be implemented easily.  Keep reading to learn more about Working with Worry to see it's something you'd like to read!

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

Yuka's Way Home by Abigail Roscoe

Several months ago, I wrote a blog post about reindeer and some interesting and fun facts about them.  Today's blog post is about a children's book about reindeer that I recently learned about... Yuka's Way Home by Abigail Roscoe.  Yuka's Way Home is a fictional animal story about a caribou named Yuka who gets separated from his herd, joins a herd of reindeer, and makes his home with them.  Who is Yuka?  How did he get separated from his herd?  How was able to make his home with the reindeer?  Keep reading to learn more about Yuka's Way Home and for ways you can use it in the classroom!

  

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

I Have Ants in My Pants by Julia Cook

Using children's literature in the classroom can be a powerful strategy to talk with students about difficult topics in a gentle, non-threatening, manner.  For example, children's literature can help you and the students talk about behavior problems that pop up in the classroom without calling children out.  It allows you to focus on a specific character's behavior in the book and analyze the behavior and the effects of that behavior.  It can also lead to discussions about what could the character have done differently and how your students can apply what they learned to their own lives.  

I Have Ants in My Pants by Julia Cook is a newly released children's book that would be a good book to read if you have wiggly and restless students in your class.  It's about a little boy Louis who has difficulty managing his body.  I Have Ants in My Pants depicts some of his behaviors in a lighthearted way, the effects of his behavior, and offers strategies for him to try.  Keep reading to learn more about I Have Ants in My Pants, what can cause children to feel restless, and for strategies you can use to help them.

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

10 Children's Book to Read on Star Wars Day

May 4th of each year is the unofficial celebration of all things Star Wars.  Since 1979, fans of the Star Wars franchise... including yours truly... gather together with friends and families to rewatch their favorite Star Wars movies and talk about galaxies far, far away.  May the 4th was chosen as the date for this because of its wordplay on the well-known catchphrase... May the Force be with you.  (May the Fourth... May the Force...)

Listed below are ten children's books to get your students and children excited about Star Wars Day.  Most of the books are traditional storybooks, but there are some books from other genres on the list as well...  including a cookbook, a STEM activity book, and even a kid's coding book.  Enjoy!

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