The Gingerbread Man Loose in the School with discussion questions and activities

I had a lot of fun with The Gingerbread Man Loose in the School by Laura Murray.  I used this book for a children's book club book, and found so much that could be talked about and activities that could be done around this adventurous story.

First let me tell you about the book.

I learned that this was Mrs. Murray's first book!  She had been a teacher and this book was an activity she had done with her class at the beginning of each school year!  This is a great book that you can use on the first day of school to start off the year or read it and have fun at any point in the year.

In the book a class bakes a gingerbread man and then they leave for recess, the gingerbread man then explores the school trying to find his class.  He meets the gym teacher, nurse, art teacher and the principle.  I love how the book is an introduction to school and different rooms of the school, and a twist on the original gingerbread man story.  When I presented this book to preschoolers I retold the original story first with puppets, that way they can make guesses about what they think will happen in the book and compare the two stories.

Puppets I made for retelling the original story (condensed) 

Laura does a great job in rhyming and using some great vocabulary words in the rhymes.  I don't think I would have thought to rhyme with "complete" or "explore."  I thought this was very clever and Murray does add in many great vocab words to share and discuss.

The lay out of the book is another point worth sharing.  Unlike most picture books that have one photo per page or page spread, Mike Lowery has done the illustrations for The Gingerbread Man Loose in the School in a comic book style, where there are a typically two to four boxes with illustrations on each page.  I like this layout.  I love that each page isn't in the same format, some pages have three illustrations, some have only one and the timing of each set lets you ask your readers to predict what they think will happen next.

My favorite thing about this book is all the opportunity there is to have open ended discussion with your readers.  There are also many crafts and activities you can do around this book and gingerbread men in general.  Let me dive into sharing some discussion questions I used while reading this book.

Pre-Reading...Before you even open the book here are some questions to get the mind working and predicting:

What do you think will happen in this book?  This is a question that you can ask before reading any book.  Look at the cover, what clues does it give you for what this book is about?  What does the title say about what might happen or who might be in this book?  

Who is the author?  Illustrator?  This allows you to teach the kids what an author does and what the illustrator's job is.

Where do you think a gingerbread man would have the most fun at school?  I loved asking this question and listening to the different responses.  Don't be afraid to ask the kids Why they chose the room they did.  My oldest daughter answered with, "A gingerbread man would have the most fun in the gym and art room. Because they are my favorite places. He'd make a mess and play with the stuff and create portraits and paper-mache" While my youngest chose the playground because he'd have fun playing there.  Let you're child's imagination run wild here.  For teachers you can turn this into a writing assignment for older kids.  Not only where would he have the most fun but describe what the gingerbread man would do.

While Reading Questions:  As I said earlier the layout of the book offers many areas not only areas to ask "What will happen next" questions but many chances for other discussion as well. These questions you can choose some to ask during the reading of the book or save other to ask when you've finished reading and go back to the page you're referring to if you want.

What other ingredients might you need to make gingerbread cookies?     What would you use to decorate a gingerbread man?

The Gingerbread Man broke his toe!  Have you ever broken a bone?  Where can he go to get his toe fixed?  Who could help him?  How will the nurse fix his toe?

Is using the handrail as a slide safe?  What could happen to the gingerbread man by sliding down the handrail?  In my online group I asked the adults to admit to having done this, I never had the guts to and when I read the book to preschoolers I remind them that it's not safe and if Miss Fawn were to try it I'd probably fall and get hurt, but since this is a cookie and he's in a book he can try it and anything can happen.

When he lands in the lunch bag you can ask Do you like cookies with your lunch?  What is your favorite type of cookie?

Post-Reading-Questions: 

Which gingerbread man story did you like better, the original where the fox eats the gingerbread man, or the school one where he becomes part of the class?

What would you do if your gingerbread man came to life?  This was a favorite question of mine to ask because it's completely open ended with no wrong answer.  Asking this in a group setting was interesting to see how many different answers there were.


How would you feel if your gingerbread man ran away?

What was your favorite part of the book?  Why?

What did you think of the illustrations?  This is a good question to ask for any book because you're showing them that they can have their own artist style.

Would you recommend this book to other people?  Why or Why not?

There are a lot of directions in the book, are you good with finding your way around new places?

For comprehension:

Who did the gingerbread man meet?

What happened in the book?  Go over the sequence of events.

Activities!!  

Be your own illustrator!  Create your own gingerbread man.  As the adult you can decide what materials you want used or let your kids decide how they want to make their gingerbread man.

Baking!  Obviously the book opens with cooking and is a clear activity to go along with the book.  Break out the aprons, dust off that gingerbread cookie recipe and create your own man or girl.  You don't have to stick with gingerbread, have your kids help bake their favorite cookie.

Rhyme Time!  The book is full of rhyming words.  I took a poster-board and wrote down several different rhyming sequence that were in the book then had kids match up the rhyming words.  You could ask further this by having them write their own rhyming word to go on the board or list.

Two different games I designed were for preschool and kindergarten and you can customize this to fit your own grade level.  I did numbers for preschool and had kids take turns rolling a die and coloring in the number they rolled.  They had to count the number of dots on the die and find the corresponding number on their picture and color that in.  In small groups they took turns and helped each other.  For kindergarten I used sight words and flash cards.  You can draw up your own outline and do multiplication, addition, or whatever you want to practice with your kids.  If you want some that are already done I'd recommend the lovely Pinterest.

Fill the gingerbread man with descriptive words. This gets kids working on their vocabulary, and is a fun way to introduce adjectives to the class.  Even with kids who haven't learned what an adjective is or are unsure what "descriptive words" are I found you can coach the kids with asking them to tell me what their gingerbread man would look like, or how the cookie taste.  While doing this with a group add your own words as an adult. I had fun doing this activity in my literacy group and sharing the answers of kids and getting various parents and teachers comments their own descriptions.  Doing this and putting all the words together for everyone to see and hear gets creativity flowing and leads to more thoughtful answers.  So while at first we had words like hot, sweet, amazing, yummy, soft we then started to dig deeper and then words like spunky, animated, fancy, sassy, and squishy were added to the list.  Getting adults to participate in activities like this enhances learning for kids because they see the excitement of adding another word and their vocabulary grows as well.  This could also lead to a deeper discussion: What about the word "gullible" Would you say the gingerbread man in the original story was gullible to believe the fox was going to help him?

One last activity I did with the kid's book club and online was:

I love word games! Boggle has long been a favorite of mine and it's great for kids to have fun spelling and changing letters around without the pressure of a test or grading.

Do you want more activities?  Laura Murray has a wonderful website where she shares some more activities and teaching tools you can use to go with her book and check out all the other adventures her gingerbread man goes on!

Want some other gingerbread books?  Check out these:

Stay warm, have fun, and as always enjoy a good book!

Snow in the forecast?

With the weather cold and fall long gone my kids have started asking, "When will it snow?!"  Personally I have so much going on this month the snow can hold off, but I don't control Mother Nature and snow is said to be in our forecast.  With the kids asking when the snow is coming and the weatherman saying it'll be here soon, I've started collecting some books that address this exact issue and then added a couple for activities once the snow is here and one to thaw out to.

Mama, Will It Snow Tonight?
Written by Nancy White Carlstrom
Illustrated by Paul Tong



Mama, Will It Snow Tonight? addresses the change from fall to winter and waiting snow.  The wind turns cold, the trees are bare and the kids are wondering if there's snow in the air.  The story is poetic.  As we hear the same question being asked and the changes that are seen between the seasons.  Fur on animals becomes thick and changes colors, the harvest is in, and still the little ones wonder when the snow will come.

I like this book so much more because of the illustrations.  The illustrations allow you to see that the children aren't all people wondering this same question; a fox and her pup, a bunny and her kit, and then the little girl and her mom.  "Mama, will it snow tonight?" is asked 12 times in this short book, and if the illustrations didn't show the different mothers and show that they were all wondering and looking for the same thing I would have been a bit frustrated with the redundancy, however knowing that it's from different views allows you to have more pauses while reading, and change your voice with the change of character if you can.

The illustrations are sweet and warm.  You feel the love between the parent and child and the excitement grow and feel the calming effect of watching it snow overnight.

When I read this book to my girls, aged 9 and 5, they did complain and carry on at bedtime; "Dad can you read us a book?  Mom's book was too short it doesn't count as a real book."  I have to say my heart was so proud that that was their complaint, that they wanted another book to follow this one.  I will say this book while it's not a board book, I could see it reprinted as a board book and be wonderful for babies.  The redundancy is perfect for little ones (0-5 years old) especially those who are talking because they can repeat after you or predict what will be said next.


Here Comes the SNOW
Written by Angela Shelf Medearis
Illustrated by Maxie Chambliss



I have read this book several times over the last two weeks at the preschool.  The kids love it and so do I.

This is an early reader so the words are simple and the sentences short for those kids preschool to first grade who are learning to read and starting to read on their own.  I like to have early readers even if they can't read yet, but have read the book before, to tell me what's happening in the picture and sometimes the kids like to repeat after me.

my dog enjoying the snow

This early reader is a cute story about being ready for the snow and it's not snowing yet.  I always like to read and act out the first few pages dramatically.  "Coats on.  Let me see how you put them on. Okay, Boots on." Stomp, stomp.  "But no snow!  Oh man.  Did you wear your coats and boots today?  Yeah, me too, but do we have snow?  Not yet.  What else do we need?"  Small kids really love when they feel involved with the story.  They absolutely love when they can answer questions.  It makes them feel special to get to say "I wore a pink coat today!"  Let them have that interaction and come back to the book.

Then it does snow in the book and Angela goes on to tell of activities that the kids get to do in the snow and this again leaves the ability to keep reading uninterrupted or to take a small break and ask the child if they've make a snow angel before.

The end of the book is my favorite part.  Playtime is over and the kids have to go back inside, but they are rewarded with hot cocoa!  Yum!
Reading this book while yes it's short and simple it does get you in the mood for a nice snow day and all the fun that can be had.

Wonderful Winter: All Kinds of Winter Facts and Fun
by Bruce Goldstone

This book is a must have in your library, classroom, or to check out and have at home for several winter lessons.  Bruce has done a wonderful job in delivering many interesting facts that you can use to add to your lessons.  For older kids you can read the book cover to cover, but for preschool and kindergarten I'd only take out sections to share with the class.  Talk about hibernation and refer to the six pages where he tells how different animals survive the winter and how the animals living in colder climate are built different from those in warmer areas.  Bruce has this book full of information but the way he has it delivered it's easy and fun to read.  I love it when I learn something new from children's books and this one had a lot of information that was new to me.  Did you know...

By the time a snowflake lands, it usually contains about 200 ice crystals.  

Be sure to break this book out for older kids in science class when you learn about the colors of light!  Goldstone explains why snow is white, but really when you look at it up close a snowflake is clear or sometimes blue.

There is something in the book for all ages!  There are simple parts of what shapes, tastes, and how winter feels and sounds for younger kids.  Then there are in depth parts of the book that go into how a snowflake is formed and why you can see your breath when it's cold for older kids or children who will sit and listen.

The photographs in the book are beautiful and capture the large and small, microscopic, details of winter.

Where does the "Fun" part of the title come in?  At the end of the book there are six fun filled crafts and activities to do.  These can be done at home, or for fun art and science projects in the classroom.  There are instructions to make your own fake snow!  This is wonderful for the kids asking and being disappointed about when it's going to snow, or for those who live in warm climates who don't get or see snow in their area!  Make your own snow globe, ice spikes, and pine cone bird feeder are just a couple of the other crafts.  I think we will be doing some of these this weekend while we are snowed in!

With how much I love Wonderful Winter I'm going to be sure to check out Goldstone's other books as well!


  Snow, Snow  Winter Poems for Children by Jane Yolen
Photographs by Jason Stemple



Being a collection of Poems this is different because it's not so much a story line to follow.  I love some of the poems in here deeply tho and I think it's worth the share.  Have fun with your kids or your class and read one of the poems each day or one a week.  They are beautifully written and capture the feeling of snow and winter.  Jane's note from herself I have to share this quote:

"This is a book for snow lovers and for those who might love snow if only it weren't so cold and wet and sometimes inconvenient."

That right there is me!  I love pictures of snow, I love it in movies where it's always so romantic, and I like it when it's not an inconvenience of the schedule.  I will happily watch it snow with a cup of hot tea and a book in my hand curled up with the kids and pets, but when it comes to being out in the snow and shoveling and having to cancel plans I've been looking forward to and the cold...so cold and wet, really why do I live where there's winter?  Because it makes us appreciate the colors of spring and warm temps so much more!

This was published in 1998 back before there were digital cameras with high resolution and megapixels so the photo quality was good for it's time but the photos are aged and not near today's standards, but it's important to remember the advances in photography over the last 20 years!  We have come a long way.  If you have a class of older children or high school age kids even, a fun project would be to give them one of the poems and have them take a photo to go with that chosen poem.

Now once the snow is here and winter is dragging it's feet and you're tired of the short days and long nights and how frigid it feels, it's time to bring out this cute book:

The Thing About Yetis
by Vin Vogel



Have you ever wondered about yetis? What they like to do in the winter?  What do they do in the summer?  How do they stand it when it's so, so, very cold?  Well, if you have asked any of those questions then, this is the book for you!

Vin Vogel has created a cute and funny story about yetis and winter and how even these creatures who love snow and winter get tired of it and become crabby.  He then tells of how they ease their winter woes by remembering days of summer and creating their own summer day inside their home!

Vogel's illustrations of yetis are adorable!  I want one for a pet!! He creates the mood of a winter wonderland of fun, to the frozen tundra, and the brightest of summer days and all the warmth to go with them.

This winter if you are looking for a book to curl up with this is the one.  Then follow it up with some hot chocolate and watch Small Foot to get a different story on yetis.

Some more Yeti books I found while searching around on Amazon that I'm putting on my to read list:



No matter which book you pick to read, or weather you're preparing for a winter storm, wondering where winter is, or shoveling the snow I hope that you make reading a part of your favorite winter activities and find joy between the pages of a good book!  

Too Many Toys

Reading Too Many Toys this week pretty much epitomizes how parents, caregivers, and baby sitters are feeling about now.  The holidays have passed and with them [probably] came a whole slew of toys for your children.  I have for a couple years asked family and friends to not give toys but rather give art supplies, crafts, books, or experiences; for the most part they listened and the girls have gone to the Crayola Factory, painted, tried sewing, painted, covered my house in those cloth bands from the looming thing, and painted some more!  Even with them cutting down on the amount of toys coming in, we still have toys all over the house and David Shannon really does a great job in his book on explaining this issue, and as I said before it really does epitomize life with kids when it comes to toys.  It's a book we can all laugh at and relate to.

Too Many Toys was written and illustrated by David Shannon, who has written and illustrated many wonderful children's books including David Goes To School which I share with you in Kindergarten here we come.

I love how David has such an aptitude for getting inside the mind of a child and at the same time portraying the frustration of a parent.  I admire this talent he has for juggling both sides of the story and Shannon does it flawlessly so that when you're done reading the book both parent and child can sit there and have a better understanding of each other.

Spencer is the main character in the book, a little boy who has as the title says Too Many Toys, they all all over the house, and outside it as well.  I love the way the words can stand alone in the book and paint their own picture in your mind of all of the different toys Spencer has and how he plays with them.

"He had puzzles, board games, and talking books that fueled his mind...and loud, jumpy frenzied video games that didn't."

I love that line, and I think each educator probably has it highlighted and makes sure to emphasize  it when they read the book.

After describing all the different toys and how they are spewing from all parts of the house Shannon goes on to tell how we've reached this predicament as a society.  The way David Shannon writes about Spencer getting toys from everyone and for everything makes you as a parent stop and think about why this is the way it is now.  It was a light bulb going on for me, why is it that little rinky-dink toys are given out everywhere?  Why did doctors, dentist, and even schools stop with just stickers and now there's prize boxes with cheap toys that are taken home?  I remember as a kid being super happy with getting a sticker?  Growing up I use to love getting a kids meal from McDonald's (as an adult this makes me cringe) but I was always so excited for the toy, and many of them are hanging on my Christmas tree or still "alive" in good condition at my great grandma's and are played with because they were higher quality toys that didn't break.  Now on the rare occasion that we eat out the toys are broken before we get back home.  Then we go to fairs and all sorts of activities and again the kids are getting prizes which are cheap plastic toys 90% of the time that they have to have in the moment and then never play with again or are broken.  I'd much rather not get all the small junk and have one good high quality toy that will last a long time.

I am not against having toys, toys are important for children to have developmentally.  And many toys are educational.  However there are many toys that don't require the use of imagination and as I just went on about are cheap, break, and don't hardly get played with.  One example I can give you from a training I did about toys that encourage children to use their imagination or block them from opening their minds and thinking independently are dolls.  Dolls are a wonderful toy and have many benefits of teaching empathy, care-giving, and pretend play; that is if the doll is what many would call "plain" or "old-fashion."  If the doll walks, talks, crawls, eats, and some even poop then that is taking away from the child using their own mind to pretend that the doll is doing those things.  If the doll talks "I'm hungry," then the child doesn't make up their own conversation with the doll where if the doll doesn't the child could pretend the doll is saying, "It's hot outside, let's go for some ice cream!" and then the child is going to act out going to an ice cream stand and going over their choices and engage more.


Having too many toys is also a hazard!  David illustrates the hazards of toys very well, stepping on them, tripping, and just the overall clutter of them.  In the book Spencer's mom finally has had enough of all of the toys and Spencer and her argue over each toy and why he should get rid of it and why he doesn't want to.  This is the part of the book that you really see each reason and the emotions of going through all the toys.  It's funny and relatable.

I love how rich the vocabulary is throughout the book.  Frenzied, convoy, catastrophe, haggled.  The book is full of adjectives and adverbs that really paint wonderful pictures in your mind of all the toys.  David Shannon brings to life all the toys in this house not only with his words but in the colorful and detailed illustrations.  The illustrations drive home the point of there are way too many toys.  I love how many classic toys are hidden in the illustrations.  Fun game to play throughout the book?  I SPY!  Read the book through first but if you're reading this in a waiting room or just want to play a game and really have your kids engaging turn to a page and say "I spy, with my little eye...a toy solider...fake teeth...something red with a ladder, an animal that lives in Antarctica..." The possibilities for a game of I SPY are endless.  I love how many different toys Shannon thought of to include in the illustrations.  Then there are the facial expression that are exaggerated and perfect!  The dad stepping on a LEGO, the mom yelling, the big puppy dog eyes of the boy pleading to keep his toys!  They are great!

While the whole book is fantastic my favorite part that makes you laugh, shake your head, and mutter go figure, is the surprise on the last page of "the best toy EVER!"   Any guesses on what the best toy ever is?

A BOX!  

Again this drives home the point of open-ended toys.  Ones that are the simplest are often the best because they can become anything.  I shared last year about the book NOT A BOX and how much kids love large empty boxes.  Still not convinced that a box is the best toy ever?  Check out this article published December 3, 2018 about how a cardboard box is better than high tech toys according to a group of doctors.

If you are looking for a good funny book to share at bedtime, or to help get your kids to get rid of some of their old toys pick up a copy of Too Many Toys.  It's a great story on it's own, and even better if you are trying to get your kids to make room for the new toys they just got, if you're doing some spring cleaning, or just need them to unclutter their room some.



If you are reading this book to get your kids in the mindset of letting go of toys, I just want to wish you Good Luck! May your nerves be up for the task and your bartering skill be enough, but I do hope and think this book will help.

Happy Reading! 

2019 Reading Challenge for Kids

I love checking off list.  Each year I look for a reading challenge for myself and see how much of it I can do.  I like that it often pushes me out of what I normally would be reading and usually I find a treasure of a book I wouldn't have read otherwise.  This year I read 15 out of 24 on Book Riot's 2018 Read Harder Challenge, I'm also working my way though the 100 books on The Great American Read, and The Gilmore Girls Book List (339 books).  I may never finish these challenges and that's okay, I do it for fun and to read something different.
It's about time for me to find my 2019 Reading Challenge but as I was thinking about that I thought of all the great Children's books I've read this year and how it might be fun for some kids or even adults to have a reading challenge for children.  I came up with a list of 11 categories that would be fun for parents and children of all ages to do.  This is a great beginner's list that can be applied to preschoolers to go through with their parents or a tween could do if they enjoy lists and reading.  I hope you can find some new favorite books with your kids with this challenge and most of all have fun reading!!

2019 Reading Challenge for Kids:

• A book that make you laugh
• A one word title book
• A favorite children's book of a loved one
• A book with a monkey in it
• A book with a title that starts with the same letter as your first name
• A holiday book
• A book about school
• A book with a blue cover
• A book published in 2019
• A book recommended by a teacher or librarian
• A book about an occupation that is an interest to you

Are you looking for your own adult challenge?  Check out these challenges for 2019:

2019 POPSUGAR Reading Challenge

Pingelsister.com 2019 Reading Challenge

2019: 52 Books in 52 Weeks

I'd love to hear what books your kids read for each category, you can share with me in the comments below, or join the conversation around children's books and literacy on Facebook.

The Giving Tree

With the holiday season here there is much talk of giving and receiving.  I wanted to focus on the lesson of giving to others and being thankful for what we have been given so The Giving Tree came to mind.  This classic book does cover the bases of giving to others and being selfless.  I read it with my daughters (again) and we came up with a craft to go with the book that I'll share with you.

This is a book that I'm sure you have read as a child, and now you have probably read to your own children.  If you haven't, then you are missing out of a wonderful heartfelt story, but don't take my word for it alone, The Giving Tree has made the list for Top 100  All Time Best Classic Literature for Children and Young Adults, 50 All-Time Favorite Children's Books, and at the top of the list for 27 Books Parents Should Read to Their Kids Before They Grow Up.  

So what is it about this book that makes it stand up to the test of time?  

I think it's that no matter the age you are when you read it it's going to pull at some part of your heart.  The book has the wants, needs, and desires we all have as we grow in life.  When we are children we are content with what we have around us, but as we grow we want more, friends, money, a house, love, to travel, and then we again become content to just have what we have around us and just be.  

Maybe it's the lessons that can be taken from the book?  Unlike most children's books where there's one strong lesson, The Giving Tree is unique in that you can find a different lesson in the story each time you read it.  There's a lesson of all that trees give us (air, food, shelter) and we just take from them.  There's a lesson to be grateful for what you have, as the boy grows he's not happy with what he has but thinks the next step will make him happy.  Unconditional love is huge in the story, it's of giving all of yourself to someone else and receiving nothing back.   As a parent you understand this.  It grips your heart because you can relate so much to the tree just wanting the child to be happy.

Another thing that helps this book stand the test of time might be the simplicity of the illustrations and the spacing of the sentences.  I'm a huge fan of bright illustrations that capture the attention of kids and adults, but the lack of color and background details in Shel Silverstein's drawings make the relationship between the boy and the tree the sole focus.  There are no distractions. It is just the boy and the tree.  The illustrations and text pop on the white page, and it's easy to read.  The spacing of the text makes the story build as you turn the pages and pulls the reader in with each event.  I find that the illustrations done the way they are allows the reader to use their imagination to picture themselves with a tree.  We all probably have a tree we use to climb as a child, or sit under so having less details on where the tree is allows you to put that tree in your own setting.

I love the emotional depth in The Giving Tree.  The text only uses a couple emotional words but there's more that is implied.   As you read ask your child  how they think the tree feels.  Ask them how they'd feel having been in need/want of something and someone giving them what they needed.  Have conversations around these emotions.  As I said earlier this is a wonderful book even for older children; read the book and have them write a journal response on how they felt, or how they would feel as the tree.  Or to tell of a time they gave to someone knowing they were helping and would not get anything back.
As you are talking to younger children they might respond with just "happy" or "sad" you can expand their vocabulary and empathy by giving them more emotional words.   I think the tree might be curious at to where the boy has gone, and maybe a bit envious that he can travel the world while the tree can only stay in one place.  I think the boy is greedy for only coming to the tree when he's in need of something. 

After talking about the book, and reading it together a good activity that you can do with children of any age is to list things they are grateful for.  This year for Thanksgiving we made a poster around this idea of a giving tree that the leaves say all the things that we could think of that others have given us, and at the bottom we made hand turkeys that said the things we were thankful for.

So thankful for the people who have come into our lives and for all we have been given sometimes it's small thing that make a big difference.  A candy bar when you're feeling down.  The pets we have either been given or adopted.  A random stranger bought my daughter and I concert tickets to see who is now her favorite band.  That's something she'll remember forever and an experience I couldn't have given her at that time.  My family added us to their Netflix account and a friend gave me her audiobook account so we could watch shows and listen to books that otherwise we would have gone without.  Words of love, support, and encouragement mean the world to us, knowing that you have someone who believes in you really does make a difference.  

You can make your own Giving Tree in your house or classroom where you add leaves to it each time you catch a student spreading kindness to another child (giving them a crayon, helping pick up toys, and so on)  or add leaves for when you feel grateful for something you have.  This is a great way to see how blessed you are, how you have been helped and how you help others.



Random Acts of Kindness can be linked to this book, with how you can help someone else, like the tree helping the boy.  Think of ways you can help someone as a family or separately.  This time of year money is always tight so it doesn't have to cost anything.  Maybe you have a neighbor that you or your kids could shovel their walkway when it snows so they don't have to.  Maybe there's family that just had a baby, you can make a double batch of your dinner and take them one over so they don't have to cook one night.  Donate your used toys, books, and clothes.  If you know of a family that is having a hard time and can use that warp it and leave it on their porch.  Write a card or color a picture to send to someone, or visit and just spend time with those who might be alone.  You don't have to have money to give joy to others, and I think we see that in The Giving Tree, just a smile, a kind word, or helping hand can mean the world to someone.

I hope you all have a warm winter, and Happy Holidays!  

If you didn't click the links or you want more info check out these websites:
Teaching empathy: Evidence-based tips for fostering empathy in children
22 Benefits of Trees
7 Crucial Reasons Why Gratitude Can Change Your Life
How to Appreciate What You Have and Stop Comparing Yourself to Others
103 Random Acts of Kindness – Ideas to Inspire Kindness
randomactsofkindness.org/kindness-ideas

Mummies! Me-oh-my!

 Oh there's witches, and vampires,

Big monsters that go bump in the night,

Werewolves are howling,

So many creepy creatures are out tonight!

Mummies are mumbling incomprehensibly

Wrapped in their bandages

These faceless creatures are out for a night of fright!
-Fawn-

I love that there are tons of legends, cultures, and folk lore that you can look into, and teach about around Halloween.  This does greatly depend on the age of the child you're talking to.  As I've grown I love looking into and learning more about different cultures and learning about the origins of all these eerie curiosities. If you celebrate Halloween or want to look into different cultures or myths there are countless lessons and books you can focus on, but for today I'm going to share just about Mummies.

Let's start with a fun fictional picture book that's great for the little ones and a "spooky" story time.
Where's My Mummy?


Written by Carolyn Crimi
Illustrated by John Manders

The title is such a cute play on words and you know that is the complete theme of the book where could mommy be?  I like that they give you the intro to why mom is missing, they are playing a game of hide and and "shriek" and little mummy starts searching for Mama Mummy.  Where do mummies hide? Well you'll have to look in the deep, dark woods, and the cave, and the slithery swamp, and all over the place.  Little Mummy isn't afraid of these places or the creatures that live in them, he's brave when the blob comes out, and even for Drac, but what creature does give him a scare and make him yell for his mom?  You'll have to read and find out the cute thing that does scare him.
This cute story is a lot of fun to read with your little ones.  I love the sounds and how you can slow down the words and make it nice and spooky then chime in (or have your child help you read) "I'm not scared!" in a big brave voice.  I think this repeating of "I'm not scared!" is empowering and when the little mummy does get scared it's silly and yet Mom is right there.  A very sweet story.
The illustrations are playful.  They are dark and suspenseful when you first get to a new place to look for Mummy, but when the monster that was in that section is revealed it's colorful and funny. I love the details, and emotions in the illustrations.  Your children will be laughing throughout Where's My Mummy? as they watch the bedtime routine for all the spooky characters.

Skeleton Meets the Mummy


Written by Steve Metzger
Illustrated by Aaron Zenz

Sammy is a skeleton who is excited about going out to get candy with his friend Derek, but before he meets up with his friend and has some fun he has to take soup to his grandma, and walk through the dark forest all alone.  Each noise startles him and he tries to calm his nerves "it's only a bat, a tree, or the wind," but then he's sure something is following him! Sure enough there's a mummy behind him!
What kid (or adult) isn't afraid of walking through the woods at night?  At 30 I can still relate to this book!  That's a bit embarrassing to admit! But it's true.
Sammy runs from the mummy at first but then decides to confront his fear and unravel the mummy.  Who can the mummy be?  Of course the mummy isn't real, and the Metzger ends the book on a funny note with a joke.
This is a great way to tell kids that it's OK to be afraid of something, and you can comfort them with some information like how even some adults are afraid of the dark and that science says that this fear is linked with have a good creative imagination!  You can take time to talk about what they may be fearful of and let them know that that's normal.
The exaggerated facial expression are the focal point of Aaron's illustrations.  With colorful and simple silhouettes all the focus is on how Sammy is feeling.


Now as children get older or question about mummies there are many interesting books you can use to teach the history of mummies and about real mummies!

In my searching for mummy stories of both fiction and nonfiction I came across this awesome chapter book duo:
The Magic Tree House:
Mummies in the Morning (fictional)
Research Guide: Mummies and Pyramids (a nonfiction companion to Mummies in the Morning)

Written by Will Osborne and Mary Pope Osborne
Illustrated by Sal Murdocca

I did not read Mummies in the Morning but I did check out Mummies and Pyramids.  I love how this is a research guide to take kids through how the Osbornes found information to use in their story.  This is a fun and easy way to learn a lot of information about ancient Egypt and all about mummies. They included about everyday life, religion, tomb treasures and robbers.  I found the part about the funerals fascinating and learned a lot there that I didn't back in 6th grade when we studied Egypt.  There are black and white illustrations on every page which will help not only with the point of the text but also to keep readers focused.  I loved studying the art and reading the side notes.

Egyptian Mummies a pop-up book


Written by Milbry Polk
Illustrated by Roger Stewart
Paper-engineered by Jose R. Seminario
Art direction by Jim Deesing

Obviously since this is a pop-up book it's interactive.  Not only are there pictures popping out of the pages but there are little flaps to reveal more information or illustrations.  We often think of pop - up books for small children but this one has small print and a lot of great detailed information packed in it's 8 pages.  This is not a board book for babies and toddlers as it can easily be damaged, no this is aimed for children 7 and older.  Did you know it took at lease 15 days to wrap the body?  This fact along with many other around why Egyptian's preserved their deceased in such a way and how they did it are in these pages.  Take time to check out this fun learning book.  Want to see more of Egypt and the pyramids and tombs?  Check out Egypt Cradle of civilization

Want to move past Egypt and learn about all sorts of Mummies all over the world and how researchers have learned to learn from them without destroying them?
Outside and Inside Mummies


by Sandra Markle

Sandra dives deep into the science of studying mummies.  She tells how the way people have studied these preserved bodies have changed over the years, what we are still learning today and why people want to study these old bodies.  I love how Markle uses photographs to show real mummified bodies and xray images showing not only bones but also inside the body to see lungs and the packages they stuffed inside the body before wrapping.  This is an intense and in depth book that if for those older children who really want to know more, or are studying mummies or love science and medical fields.
A fun science experiment or project for all ages is at the end of the book: Make your own mummy!  (you use an apple!) but it's awesome to give kids a hands on project to go with history and science.


Some other nonfiction Mummy books that are on my list to check out are:


I hope you found these books fun or interesting as I have.  Wrap up your mummy filled week with some mummy movies:


Not sure what to be this year for Halloween?  Why not a mummy?