A Few Favorite Christmas Books

At my most recent visit with the students of Presentation of Our Lady School, I was able to share some of my favorite Christmas Picture Books with grades 1-8.

Grades 1-2 - Two Favorites

They loved how a seemingly insignificant donkey was given a very important job!

Be careful what you ask Santa for - you just might get it!

 We also discussed the meaning of "SPECIFIC."  By the end of the story, they all knew what it meant.  So, they will definitely be very "specific" when they write to Santa this year.

Grades 3-4  FAVORITE

 

 

 

 

 

Always a favorite with children of almost any age, I find, and even although it is a "long" book to read aloud, the story and illustrations are so captivating, that children easily stay engaged throughout.  A perfect Christmas book to read aloud every year.

Grades 5-6 - FAVORITE

So wise...so tender...

A challenging read aloud for this age group in terms of vocabulary, but such a great Christmas story for them to hear.  Not all of them knew who the Magi were, but by the end of the story, we all took time to ponder the whole notion of gift-giving.

Grades 7-8  FAVORITE

What is Goodness? 

An enchanting tale for this older age group, that kept them engaged throughout the telling.  Another tale that I always love to share with children at Christmas time.

What do all these books have in common?  The two most important ingredients of any great children's book (according to Jane Yolen)...

JOY and HOPE!

Picture Book Month

November is officially Picture Book Month -  a great opportunity to celebrate the power of the Picture Book with loved ones of ALL ages.  Picture books are NOT just for little kids.  Here's the letter I like to send home to parents to emphasize just how important it is not to shun those picture books too early in their children's lives.

 Dear Parents,

When I visit schools, I like to tell children that I fell in love with stories as a little girl in Scotland, before I could read or write, by listening to them on the radio during the BBC Children’s Story hour.  Nowadays, I notice that there seems to be less emphasis on the importance of reading aloud to children of ALL ages.  Have you ever felt pressured to stop reading picture books to your child in an effort to expose him or her to the more “advanced” literature of chapter books?  I urge you to continue to share picture books with your child, regardless of age, because:

Good Picture Books have many layers of meaning that the reader or listener can enjoy on many different levels.

Good Picture Books are meant to be READ ALOUD to a loved one, be she five or fifty.

Good Picture Books offer rich, lyrical language that nurtures a life-long passion for stories.

For the past sixteen years, I have been reading Picture Books (mainly fairy tales and folk tales) at an inner city elementary school here in Denver.   The single best way to foster a love of literature is to READ ALOUD to your children (regardless of age) every single day.  Read them stories that are AGE-APPROPRIATE, and stories that you love.  

Picture Books “not only ignite a child’s imagination and curiosity, but inspire them to read more.” Mary Brigid Barrett, President of the NCBLA (National Children’s Book and Literacy Alliance).

For a list of recommended Picture Books to read aloud see: here (my recommended list) and also - here (Bank Street List)

Here's to picture books that help us all - "burn bright in the forests of the night."

 A big thanks to Tattered Cover for mentioning RAJ on NPR recently as a great choice for a Christmas gift! 

School Visits

 A veritable flurry of school visits and book fairs these past few weeks.  

What fun to talk to kids about stories and writing and life!

Star of the show - Carving of The Giant King

A fan of The Giant King carving

One of the teachers at a recent school visit, mentioned that her children were unfamiliar with the whole notion of what a carving was, and so she was pleased I had brought along my beloved carving of The Giant King to show them.  When The Giant King was first published, a friend of mine, had a friend who was a wood carver, and so he asked him to make a carving of the Giant for me.  Children love this carving, and I like to tell them to take a good look at the giant's expression - pleased and proud in a good way - why?  Because someone believes in HIS GOODness.  He is holding the carving that Rabbie made of him - not as he is, but as he could be - a king sitting on his throne with a crown and a cape.  We all need cheerleaders in life, someone who believes in our goodness!  

"As is a tale, so is life.  Not how long it is, but how good it is, is what matters most."  Seneca

Scots English

  A recent article in the New York Times -
 Americans are Barmy over Britishisms got me thinking.

Sometimes when I visit schools, children will ask me what
language we speak in Scotland.  Of course, it is a bit
complicated, because children will often mistake dialect for a
different language.  Thanks to that wonderful movie, BRAVE,
I can now refer to the Scots words - dialect used there, such as:

Crivvens (dear me) 

Jings (oh my!),

Then of course there are the Scottish words I use in Inventor McGregor
 

Thingamabob - what a great word!  Meaning of course, that thing that I cannot remember the name of!

Thingamajig - Same as above!

Wheeched - as in Scottish dancing - to whirl around so fast everything becomes a big blur! 

  

And then children like to hear these lovely colorful Scots sayings: 

a pig’s breakfast - or a midden -  so if you say your bedroom is a pig's breakfast - it means it is a mess!

lang may yer lum reek - literally means - long may your chimney smoke - sort of blessing given to the newly married - wishing them  wealth and prosperity so they will always have wood to put on the fire and keep the chimney smoking!

Lollipop lady - the crossing lady in Scotland carried a little Stop sign - looked like a lollipop (sucker) and hence the name.

Peely-wally - pale and sickly looking

Flummox - to trick - Just today, I read to the children at Presentation School - The Woman who flummoxed the fairies.  The children didn't know the word before the story, but it didn't take them long to guess it once I had finished.  A lovely Scottish tale, retold by Heather Forest.

Fun to tell the children that when they go trick or treating this Halloween, they are really saying if you don't give me a treat, then I will do something to FLUMMOX you!

The Enormous Crocodile

I know most teachers and students have been back to school for a couple of months by now, but my storytelling sessions are just beginning next week at the little school I visit.

I love to begin the school year for the Kindergarteners and First Graders with Roald Dahl's fabulous read-aloud  - The Enormous Crocodile.

At a recent writers' conference, I heard editors say that the current picture book market has definitely skewed toward the younger end of the picture book crowd, and that they need picture books to be much shorter than they once were.  I have heard other editors tell me, somewhat apologetically, that the book sellers have told them they need picture books to be short and snappy, as parent don't want to have to read books to their children that are "too long."

 If only those same book sellers could see what I have seen over the past 18 years as I read this book aloud.   It takes about 15 - 20 minutes to read it aloud - about 4 times longer than the picture books we see being published today!  And yet - there is not a sound to be heard as these little ones sit with saucer eyes and hanging jaws - totally spellbound by Dahl's masterful language and Blake's whimsical illustrations.

Children love to be frightened - just a little - as they see that cunning crocodile scheming clever tricks and nasty plans that involve gobbling up little children.  And how they grin when they see him soundly trounced for all his nastiness!

Here's to more picture books that help our children to fall in love with language and experience the sheer delight of a story masterfully spun - no better place to begin than with a Roald Dahl classic such as this.

"Let's Talk Character" - interview for TBA

I recently did an interview with the wonderful Barbara Gruener- counselor and character coach.  She raised some interesting questions that I think are worthy of further elaboration.

Do  I intentionally weave values or virtues into my work?

Often parents or teachers will tell me that they love the fact that my stories have such "great messages."  I know they mean this as a compliment, and so I ever so gently explain that I actually do not set out to do that when I write. Rather, I think of myself as pointing to some truth, some beauty, some little slice of this world that has amazed me, delighted me, or simply made me marvel at the universe, and then I set out to share that whiff of wonder with my readers.

 That marvelous storyteller, John Shea, maintained that one tells a story, "not to educate or indoctrinate, but to illuminate, to enchant the readers into the world of the story, in the hope that when they emerge from the story, they do so, with an enhanced view of the possibilities of their lives."  What a lovely description of....HOPE.  Indeed the best stories do give us a healthy dollop of hope - they "enlarge" our vision of the world - as all "passions" should do.

So, although I do not intentionally set out to "weave a value or a virtue" into my stories, a little part of who I am seeps into every story I write.  And, as I tell children in schools, a fancy way of saying that is - "the color of your thought dyes your soul." Marcus Aurelius.  And so, the color of my soul dyes every story I write.....all the loves and longings, sorrows and sadnesses, hopes and dreams that made me who I am today, do spill out into my writing.   After all, how could that not be so?  Writing (good writing) does  not just come from the head, but also from the heart and soul, and therefore, it must follow that who we are will be quite evident in the stories we choose to tell and write.

Check out the full interview HERE

School Stories

 A recent article in The Guardian about "school stories," got me thinking.

Andy Milligan,w ho won The Guardian Children's Fiction Prize listed his Top 10 "school stories," which a former teacher of his said "were collectively preposterous because school was predictable, safe and filled to the brim with timetabled tedium. The teacher was cross that writers were pulling off some kind of con-trick, and yearned for a book that showed school as it really was." http://bit.ly/Odiuu3

 How odd - surely the lure of stories is that they let children see how things might be, could be, and even will be!  John Shea, that wonderful storyteller, maintains that :

"one tells a story not to educate or indoctrinate, but to illuminate, to enchant the reader or listener into the world of the story in the hope that when they emerge from the story, they do so with an enhanced view of the possibilities of their lives.” 

In other words - great stories give children a big dollop of hope and cheer - a way of dealing with all of life's tears and trials that come their way.

  My favorite school stories from childhood were probably the Enid Blyton Mallory Towers Series - a boarding school with twins and midnight feasts, completely unrelated to my little Scottish primary school - and that's why I loved them!

 When my girls were little, their favorite "school story" (I'm using the term loosely here) was- of course, non other than - 

As Jane Yolen said, "Literature is prismatic.  Light shines through the excellent books or dances off and the rainbow it gives shine on and on in a child’s life in a thousand different ways."

How can we ever stop loving a little book-loving girl like MATILDA!  Thank you Mr. Dahl!

 

The Corner On Character: The Sandal Artist

 Thanks to the wonderful Barbara at The Corner on Character for including The Sandal Artist in her Perfect Picture Book Friday.   And take a look at the list of other books with similar themes - I love linking up books with similar themes for children.


The Corner On Character: The Sandal Artist: Hooray for the return of Perfect Picture Book Friday ! I have been waiting all summer to showcase this amazing new find. Title : The S...

Passion or Addiction?

I feel lucky to be a person of many passions, but my two most ardent passions are probably reading and writing.  Some years ago, while reading a book about writing, I came upon a quote that ultimately inspired the title of a talk that I give frequently to teachers and parents - Nurturing a Passion for Stories.  The quote (and I cannot now remember who wrote this) is "while our addictions diminish us, our passions enlarge us."

I think this distinction is one that we can and should share with our children.  When I go to schools I love to talk to children about what inspiration is - what inspires me and what inspires them.  I start by telling them that the word itself comes from the Latin word - inspirare - meaning TO BREATHE LIFE INTO.  Isn't that a great definition?

So then they tell me many of the things that inspire them - that make them feel more alive, that BREATHES LIFE INTO them.  Their answers usually run the gamut of: singing, dancing, basketball, horse riding, tennis, biking, art, reading, being with their family or friends or pets, baking a cake or playing the piano. 

And then, we agree that all these things they have mentioned are PASSIONS - they are all the same, because they are all things that they love, but they are also different, because we all love different things.  We talk about Inventor Inventor McGregor and his passions- singing, fiddling, dancing, mending, painting, walking down the winding lane behind his house, inventing, and of course....his family!

Hector McGregor plays a rousing reel or a sweeping strathspey!

 

 

 

 

 

 With older children, I share the quote about addictions diminishing us and passions enlarging us... they usually "get" it at once!  McGregor is a wonderful example of someone who indulges his PASSIONS and in doing so - makes the world a brighter place.....

He invents some helping hands for the triplets!

and monky tails and balloon books!

 Recently, I was exchanging some emails with the wonderful Barbara at The Corner on Character, and she shared an amazing video with me - check it out to see all these kids KNITTING caps for babies in developing countries.  I am an avid knitter and have been since I was 7 years of age - all children in Scotland learn to knit from an early age - so....you could say it is one of my PASSIONS!  But when Barbara mentioned its addictive quality (and I know what she means), I had to share with her how I see knitting - and especially in her case where all these children are knitting for such a great cause, as a PASSION - you are creating all kinds of things that make life better for other people....it is BREATHING life into you and into those who benefit from the knitted piece!

The idea for Inventor McGregor actually came to me when I was in my kitchen caught up in a frenzy of creativity: knitting- well, I had my knitting projects all over the kitchen counter ready to sew up, I had bread baking in the oven, a calligraphy project that I was mulling over  (I was taught Italic handwriting at school in Scotland, so I use it to write out little poems or quotes and give as gifts), and of course, I had several books scattered here and there, along with my writing notebook.  I was having a wonderful time, when it suddenly occurred to me that I had better be careful, because maybe I would "use up" all my creativity on this baking and knitting and calligraphy, and then not have anything left for my writing.  As soon as I had that thought, I sat down and began to write fast and furious - the outline for what became Inventor McGregor

I realized that creativity is of course, INFINITE - and the more you create, the more there is to create...sort of like the magic well in the fairy tales - as long as you keep dipping your ladle into the well, it will never run dry.  Inside all of us, I tell children, there is a magic well - your HEART.

For as long as you keep using it, it will not run out of love - as a matter of fact, it is quite the opposite. I share with children, the example of my grandmother who had 9 children, and my mother who had 3 children.  Yet, my grandmother did not love her 9 children any less than my mother loved her 3 children - a mother will love all the children she is given to love.....

As dear Vincent Van Gogh said, "The best way to know God, is to love many things!"

So, I believe that stories are one such way of teaching our children to LOVE many things, and when they learn to do that, they will discover their own PASSIONS, that in turn, will make the world a brighter place for us all.

At day's end, maybe we should ask our little ones that question, "What inspired you today?  What breathed LIFE into you?"