This book deals with the issue of getting old and dying. I'm always a bit funny about reading books like this, they're sad aren't they...
BOOK REVIEW | Little Bell and the Moon
Little Bell and the Moon by Giles Paley-Phillips and Iris Deppe
This book deals with the issue of getting old and dying. I'm always a bit funny about reading books like this, they're sad aren't they...
This book deals with the issue of getting old and dying. I'm always a bit funny about reading books like this, they're sad aren't they...
BOOK REVIEW | Sir Lilypad
Sir Lilypad - a tall tale of a small frog by Anna Kemp and Sara Ogilvie.
This is a rhyming tale about a small speckled frog with big dreams of being a knight in shining armour.
This is a rhyming tale about a small speckled frog with big dreams of being a knight in shining armour.
A Story Cafe | George and the Dragon
Our latest Story Cafe (we call it Rainbow Cafe here) was all about George and the Dragon by Chris Wormell. I picked this story because Dragons are a big thing in Norwich at the moment. We are about to have 204 dragons sited all over the city for the summer, and families can follow the trail map to see them all.
We have our own dragon too which was decorated using the children's designs, and which will be on display locally.
We have our own dragon too which was decorated using the children's designs, and which will be on display locally.
We followed the usual format for our Rainbow Cafe:
- wait for everyone to arrive
- children play with resources set up to inspire talk about the story
- read the story to children and families, using props
- make some things to take home
- have a drink and a snack
- read the story again using the children's props, or sing, or read a related story
- hand out certificates and evaluations
A Story Cafe | The Paper Dolls
Our latest Story Cafe (we call it Rainbow Cafe here) was all about The Paper Dolls by Juila Donaldson and beautifully illustrated by Rebecca Cobb.
We followed the usual format:
We followed the usual format:
- wait for everyone to arrive
- children play with resources set up to inspire talk about the story
- read the story to children and families, using props
- make some things to take home
- have a drink and a snack
- read the story again using the children's props
- hand out certificates and evaluations
BOOK REVIEW | 100 Great Children's Picturebooks
Wow, I love this book... It's like a potted history of picture books and illustrators over the last 100 years. As I turn through the pages, I recognise so many of the styles and images. The press release from the publisher says it's "a visual feast for nostalgics and fans of children's literature", and they are quite right.
This is not a book to share with a 0-4 year old, it's not a storybook, but it does tell a story. I thought I could make a good guess at the rough period of time when a picture book illustration was published, but this book gave me some surprises. I didn't realise how old some of my favourite illustrations are, for example the Moomins by Tove Jansson (1953), or Little Blue and Littl Yello by Leo Lionni (1959).
This is one of those books that I will keep coming back to, a feast for the eyes...
This is not a book to share with a 0-4 year old, it's not a storybook, but it does tell a story. I thought I could make a good guess at the rough period of time when a picture book illustration was published, but this book gave me some surprises. I didn't realise how old some of my favourite illustrations are, for example the Moomins by Tove Jansson (1953), or Little Blue and Littl Yello by Leo Lionni (1959).
This is one of those books that I will keep coming back to, a feast for the eyes...
Stories and Schemas | Orientation
We've been climbing mountains again, and while on top of a mountain, as you do, I was thinking about how a child with an "orientation" schema (like my son who is now 13 but loves being on top of a mountain), would love being on top of a mountain. And then I thought about which stories might fit nicely with this schema.
Children with an orientation schema like being on top of the slide, hanging upside down on the climbing frame, climbing to the top of the playhoouse at the park... or climbing a mountain and then climbing the biggest rock on top of that mountain! We were on Glyder Fach in Snowdonia at 994 metres and the sticky-out rock is called the Cantilever.
So here are my ideas...
Children with an orientation schema like being on top of the slide, hanging upside down on the climbing frame, climbing to the top of the playhoouse at the park... or climbing a mountain and then climbing the biggest rock on top of that mountain! We were on Glyder Fach in Snowdonia at 994 metres and the sticky-out rock is called the Cantilever.
So here are my ideas...
BOOK REVIEW | The Book with No Pictures
This book is amazing - the only problem is, can I read it as well as the author B.J.Novak... I doubt it. If you want to see what I mean, there is a brilliant video online here of the author reading his book. Listen, watch and laugh out loud like all the children in his audience.
AUTHOR ILLUSTRATOR | Herve Tullet
I love these - board books which last, quality ideas and illustrations and they encourage interaction with the book.
Our favourite was"The Good Morning Game". We drew little faces on our fingers (with a washable pen!!) and pretended to be the characters from the story.
Our favourite was"The Good Morning Game". We drew little faces on our fingers (with a washable pen!!) and pretended to be the characters from the story.
Stories and Schemas | Postitoning
Schemas are patterns of repeatable behaviours or actions that children show in their play. Children that have a positioning schema arrange objects or toys in lines or patterns. M does this with all sorts of different things - the wooden tree blocks, the duplo, stickle bricks, tap-a-shape nails...
I've been thinking about what sorts of stories would go with this, or what sorts of stories would inspire children with this schema. Here's a selection of my ideas...
On Hannah's Bookshelf | Where's My Teddy?
This time Hannah has chosen “Where’s My
Teddy?” by Jez Alborough. I remember her Dad reading her this but what does she remember about it?
Read on to find out...Stories and Schemas | part I
The first in a series of posts about children's schemas, and a selection of stories that will accompany their schema and their interests. Do your children find the cardboard box more interesting than the toy inside? Want to know why?
But first - an introduction - what are schemas and how are they useful to us as educators or parents?
Schemas are patterns of repeatable actions or behaviours that children show in their play, for example, always putting the duplo bricks in a neat line, or always filling the shopping bag with all the duplo bricks, or putting all the duplo bricks in a shopping trolley and pushing them around. We might think - WHY??? - build me a nice tower with the bricks... But this is the child's way of learning, exploring and finding out about the world. WE as adults need to look at things differently, not "What is it for?" but "What could it be?" The duplo bricks aren't always going to be used to build something, although that would be nice, they will be TRANSPORTED, CONTAINED, used to make an ENCLOSURE, used to observe a TRAJECTORY (thrown across the room!) or POSITIONED in a nice line.
These words are some of the words associated with schemas - you might notice these in the children you care for -
Rhyming Stories III
One of my favourite rhyming story authors is the New Zealander Lynley Dodd.
She writes and illustrates stories about Hairy Maclary and his friends, as well as Slinki Malinki the cat, Zachary Quack the duck, and Schnitzel von Krumm the sausage dog. This is just a selection; when my children were small they were bought a 5 book collection of Hairy Maclary stories, and they quickly learnt the rhythm of the stories and all the names of Hairy Maclary's friends.
My selection here:
She writes and illustrates stories about Hairy Maclary and his friends, as well as Slinki Malinki the cat, Zachary Quack the duck, and Schnitzel von Krumm the sausage dog. This is just a selection; when my children were small they were bought a 5 book collection of Hairy Maclary stories, and they quickly learnt the rhythm of the stories and all the names of Hairy Maclary's friends.
My selection here:
Book Review | Lili
Fat Fox books sent me a preview of this new picture book, to be published at the end of February. It's called Lili and is written and illustrated by Wee Dee Tan.
It's about a little girl called Lili who finds it hard to make friends. Her beautiful fiery red hair, sometimes small and sometimes big, is literally "fiery". She can keep you warm in the evening chill...
It's about a little girl called Lili who finds it hard to make friends. Her beautiful fiery red hair, sometimes small and sometimes big, is literally "fiery". She can keep you warm in the evening chill...
A Story Cafe | The Tiger who came to tea
It was our latest Story Cafe today at Preschool. I chose one of my all time favourites this time - The Tiger who came to Tea by Judith Kerr.
I remember reading Judith Kerr's When Hitler Stole Pink Rabbit at school - Judith Kerr writes of her own experiences in wartime Germany and an escape from the Nazis. The Tiger who came to Tea was published in 1968, so it's a bit older than me, but has withstood the test of time.
I remember reading Judith Kerr's When Hitler Stole Pink Rabbit at school - Judith Kerr writes of her own experiences in wartime Germany and an escape from the Nazis. The Tiger who came to Tea was published in 1968, so it's a bit older than me, but has withstood the test of time.
Rhyming Stories II
When our children were little, they loved rhyming stories. Some of the best sellers at the time were by Jez Alborough. The children loved them and their Dad loved reading them.
Jez Alborough's illustrations are full of expression, you know just what the sheep and the goat and the frog are thinking about the silly duck. And in the "Where's my Teddy" trilogy Eddie and his Mum go from being terrified of the great big bear, to making friends with him.
We read:
Jez Alborough's illustrations are full of expression, you know just what the sheep and the goat and the frog are thinking about the silly duck. And in the "Where's my Teddy" trilogy Eddie and his Mum go from being terrified of the great big bear, to making friends with him.
We read:
Rhyming Stories I
One of my favourite author / illustrator combinations - Julia Donaldson and Axel Scheffler. Their picture books are great for bringing the children an awareness of rhyme. The repeated sections in each story give the children something to remember as they listen, eventually joining in.
Our favourite at the moment - "Superworm"
Superworm is super-long,
Superworm is super-strong,
watch him wiggle! See him squirm!
Hip hip hooray for Superworm!
We have been reading:
Another Aliens love Panta Claus Story Cafe!
We did Aliens love Panta Claus as our Story Cafe this time last year, It's such as great story, the children love it, the parents love it, and it makes a really good read-aloud story. So I decided this had to be the story to use this year as well.
Book Review | What will I be?
What will I be is written by Richard Sinclair and illustrated by Jon Lycett-Smith.
Building Vocabulary | talking stories
Unfortunately, there are many children in the Early Years age group who have delayed communication and language development. And one of the easiest things for all of us to help children with is building vocabulary.
We can do this everyday just by using talk, commenting on what we are doing, where we are going, what's going to happen next and what we might be having for lunch or a snack.
Book Review | Oh Oh Oh
The second installment in the Happy Hooves series has been published, and we have had a chance to look at it already.
Rebecca Elliots' beautiful illustrations once again accompany A. Bogie's rhyming story.
Rebecca Elliots' beautiful illustrations once again accompany A. Bogie's rhyming story.
Book Review | Monsters love Underpants
Monsters love Underpants is written by Claire Freedman and illustrated by Ben Cort.
It's Halloween again...
Last year I put together this selection of picture books for Halloween.
This year, inspiration from some pictures I took last year when reading and playing with the story "Two Little Witches"
This year, inspiration from some pictures I took last year when reading and playing with the story "Two Little Witches"
Spiders and spider's webs | Understanding the World
We've been having fun with everything spidery lately. And with Halloween coming up this fits in nicely. It all started with cleaning windows at home - we had to miss out two windows because spiders had built huge webs right across them and we didn't feel we could destroy them just to clean the windows!
So I went to the library to find some spidery books to share with the children. And I went shopping for plastic spiders, and found a plastic spider's web left over from Halloween a few years ago.
Here's what we did:
So I went to the library to find some spidery books to share with the children. And I went shopping for plastic spiders, and found a plastic spider's web left over from Halloween a few years ago.
Here's what we did:
A Golden Wedding Story | Bewilderwood
My parents are celebrating their Golden Wedding anniversary. They are planning a day out for the family. Their choice of activity - a day at Bewilderwood, an natural adventure park in the woods near here. So off we go - two parents, two sisters, one husband, and four grand children. It's a really hot day in July, but Bewilderwood is in the woods, all shaded, so it's perfect.
Bewilderwood was created up by the owner Tom Blofeld, and the park is based on the characters from his books. Bewilderwood is home to Swampy, a Boggle who lives with his mum in a boggle hut and goes fishing. When he goes fishing he has to watch out for Mildred the Crocklebog who lives in the swamp. She's friendly but looks scary, and will spray out water at passer's by.
Bewilderwood was created up by the owner Tom Blofeld, and the park is based on the characters from his books. Bewilderwood is home to Swampy, a Boggle who lives with his mum in a boggle hut and goes fishing. When he goes fishing he has to watch out for Mildred the Crocklebog who lives in the swamp. She's friendly but looks scary, and will spray out water at passer's by.
Book Review | Happy Hooves, Ta dah!
This week we are reviewing Happy Hooves, Ta dah! by A. Bogie and illustrated by Rebecca Elliot. Happy Hooves is going to be a series of books about a donkey and his hooved friends, who use the power of teamwork and friendship to overcome challenges and the first in the series is "Ta Dah!"
A Heuristic Play Story
This is a story about a boy who plays, builds a story and is totally immersed using only what he found around him at that moment.
We're on holiday in France and we stop for a picnic in the woods, under the shade of some pine trees. It's beautifully warm and sunny. The boy finishes his baguette and the rest of his lunch in record time as usual. Then he looks around for something to do. He doesn't have his football. The ground is covered in pine needles, making a soft blanket, it's really spongy and thick.
We're on holiday in France and we stop for a picnic in the woods, under the shade of some pine trees. It's beautifully warm and sunny. The boy finishes his baguette and the rest of his lunch in record time as usual. Then he looks around for something to do. He doesn't have his football. The ground is covered in pine needles, making a soft blanket, it's really spongy and thick.
The boy who really, really, really, loves lizards | John Hamilton
"The Boy who really, really, really loves Lizards" was written by John Hamilton as the final project for his MA in Children's Book Illustration. It was inspired by John's son and his obsession with the lizards, frogs and snakes in the local museum.
Say it like a snake | Simon and Lucy Morse
I'm really interested in the use of picture books to help children with early speech and language difficulties. And this book is perfect...
An End of Term Story...
It's the end of the Summer Term here, and the end of the school year. I'm taking a holiday. It's needed and well-deserved I feel. There might be a few less blog posts or Facebook posts, but having said that I'll probably have time to do some! I'll also be reviewing some great books that I've been sent recently.
The first of these Mr Super Poopy Pants, you can read here.
The first of these Mr Super Poopy Pants, you can read here.
Mr Super Poopy Pants | Rebecca Elliot
We've been reading Mr Super Poopy Pants by Rebecca Elliot - I was sent a copy by the publishers - very excited as I discovered her illustrations and blog a while ago and they are just up my street.
Mr Super Poopy Pants is a story about Rebecca's little boy and his relationship with the new baby who Toby says does nothing else but poop, even though Toby tries to teach him to do something else.
Mr Super Poopy Pants is a story about Rebecca's little boy and his relationship with the new baby who Toby says does nothing else but poop, even though Toby tries to teach him to do something else.
Rainbow Cafe | How do dinosaurs go to school?
We held our last Rainbow Story Cafe of the school year today. Lots of the children are moving on to Infant and Primary schools, and lots of them are really interested in dinosaurs at the moment. So, for this one I decided to combine school transitions and dinosaurs with the story "How do dinosaurs go to school?" by Jane Yolen and Mark Teague.
We read the story, then in our family groups, we made some story props. Here's what we made:
We read the story, then in our family groups, we made some story props. Here's what we made:
Understanding the world | a growing story
In April, we sent for a pack of seed potatoes to grow with the children. We had visions of enough potatoes appearing in the soil to have our own market stall outside - read on to see how it actually worked out...
Here's what we did -
A Story about Playdough...
My Facebook post about using "Kipper's Birthday" by Mick Inkpen prompted some interest in the playdough I made for the accompanying invitation to play.
So here's the recipe plus loads of other ideas for flavours, colours and smells.
So here's the recipe plus loads of other ideas for flavours, colours and smells.
Play spaces for communication
Today, I put on a workshop session for parents to show how we can create play spaces at home, inside or outside, for little effort and cost, to encourage communication from birth. It's part of a series of workshops we are putting on for parents with 0-3 year olds called Talking Together, and this one was called Chatter and Play. A big part of our inspiring talk and communication initiative is the use of stories in play and extending children's learning by taking stories into other areas of their learning.
I set up a selection of play spaces around the hall at school - I'll go in to how and what in a minute... Families came along and we all sat down on the floor together to talk a bit about why we are doing this.
I set up a selection of play spaces around the hall at school - I'll go in to how and what in a minute... Families came along and we all sat down on the floor together to talk a bit about why we are doing this.
Books for | Father's Day
A selection from my bookshelves of books that would be a lovely present for Father's Day or as a story to read on the day itself.
Here are the books I chose:
A Farming Story...
During the Easter holiday, we stayed on a farm in The Howgills in Yorkshire. It's a beautiful area, the weather was amazing, the farmer and his wife were lovely people, and when I got home I found this picture book in a charity shop...
It's about a rescued lamb who Tess the sheepdog looks after. But when he has to go back to live with the sheep, Charlie the lamb thinks he's a sheepdog...
Our holiday was fantastic. As well as getting in lots of hill-walking and mountain-climbing, the children (15 and 12) helped out on the farm every morning. They went off with the farmer, checked on all his lambs in the fields, helped to feed orphaned and weak lambs, and generally chased around in the fresh air! It wasn't all cute and cuddly though, they learnt about real farming, some of the lambs died, some were orphaned and the scarecrow over the rhubarb patch was actually a real crow (not joking!). They absolutely loved it, an amazing, informative and enriching change from city life.
It's about a rescued lamb who Tess the sheepdog looks after. But when he has to go back to live with the sheep, Charlie the lamb thinks he's a sheepdog...
Our holiday was fantastic. As well as getting in lots of hill-walking and mountain-climbing, the children (15 and 12) helped out on the farm every morning. They went off with the farmer, checked on all his lambs in the fields, helped to feed orphaned and weak lambs, and generally chased around in the fresh air! It wasn't all cute and cuddly though, they learnt about real farming, some of the lambs died, some were orphaned and the scarecrow over the rhubarb patch was actually a real crow (not joking!). They absolutely loved it, an amazing, informative and enriching change from city life.
The Elves and the Shoemaker
Traditional tales work really well with the 0-5 age group. As story tellers we can use picture books, tell the story without a book, or use a story map to prompt ourselves. If we have a basket or bag filled with appropriate props, the children will become instantly engaged in the story, excited to see what's in the bag and what's coming out next. Children who have a more kinaesthetic learning style are able to use more physical representations of the story, and may remember it and carry it on in their play afterwards. Whereas, those with a more visual learning style may like to look at the pictures in the book as well.
So, this week we looked at The Elves and the Shoemaker. I have a lovely Ladybird version with touchy, feely items on each page.
The Story - this is a really simple re-telling of the traditional tale. The old shoemaker runs out of leather and money, and mysteriously, new shoes appear in the morning when he and his wife get up...
So, this week we looked at The Elves and the Shoemaker. I have a lovely Ladybird version with touchy, feely items on each page.
The Story - this is a really simple re-telling of the traditional tale. The old shoemaker runs out of leather and money, and mysteriously, new shoes appear in the morning when he and his wife get up...
Rainbow Cafe | and the train goes...
This half term, our regular Story Cafe for the preshoolers and their families, was based on the book "and the train goes..." by William Bee. I was recommended this by a friend whose son loves it, and now I know why!
It's about a train and all the passengers that are travelling and the text sort of makes you read it in the rhythm of a steam train! As usual we started off by introducing families to the Rainbow Cafe concept - it's just a relaxed and informal family workshop designed to encourage a love of stories, and to inspire families to use stories in lots of different ways at home. Then we read the story. I asked the children what they thought you might need to go on a train journey - a ticket of course - so I gave all the children a ticket at the start of the story. As I read the story, I pull several props out of my story sack at relevant points and the children and their parents join in with the noises.
It's about a train and all the passengers that are travelling and the text sort of makes you read it in the rhythm of a steam train! As usual we started off by introducing families to the Rainbow Cafe concept - it's just a relaxed and informal family workshop designed to encourage a love of stories, and to inspire families to use stories in lots of different ways at home. Then we read the story. I asked the children what they thought you might need to go on a train journey - a ticket of course - so I gave all the children a ticket at the start of the story. As I read the story, I pull several props out of my story sack at relevant points and the children and their parents join in with the noises.
Jack and the Beanstalk
We have been reading Jack and the Beanstalk by Nick Sharratt and Stephen Tucker and the more I thought about the idea, the more ideas I had...
This book is a brilliant version of the story - I love Nick Sharratt's illustrations anyway, in whatever book he illustrates, and this one really allows the children to interact with the story.
This book is a brilliant version of the story - I love Nick Sharratt's illustrations anyway, in whatever book he illustrates, and this one really allows the children to interact with the story.
On Hannah's Bookshelf | The Baby Who Wouldn't Go To Bed
This time, Hannah has chosen "The baby who wouldn't go to bed" by Helen Cooper. I remember this being one of her favourites... But what does she remember!
A Treasure Basket Story
It's a while since I have written about using treasure baskets with babies and children, but it's one of my favourite things to tell parents about as they immediately see the benefits of natural play materials.
This week, parents and their babies, two's and three's, came along to a treasure basket workshop. We all sat on the rugs around a giant basket filled with treasures. The babies and toddlers immediately became engaged in exploring the items in the basket, and most of them were completely engaged for the whole session, up to as much as 45 minutes, while parents watched and commented on the objects they were exploring.
I'm going to use mostly images in this post as they give the best idea of what to put in a basket and how the children learn from the treasures. I'll also add a couple of documents for containing ideas to add to a basket. I'll talk about the theory of treasure baskets and Eleanor Goldschmied (treasure basket pioneer) next time.
This week, parents and their babies, two's and three's, came along to a treasure basket workshop. We all sat on the rugs around a giant basket filled with treasures. The babies and toddlers immediately became engaged in exploring the items in the basket, and most of them were completely engaged for the whole session, up to as much as 45 minutes, while parents watched and commented on the objects they were exploring.
I'm going to use mostly images in this post as they give the best idea of what to put in a basket and how the children learn from the treasures. I'll also add a couple of documents for containing ideas to add to a basket. I'll talk about the theory of treasure baskets and Eleanor Goldschmied (treasure basket pioneer) next time.
A Perfect Day for It | or Why climb a mountain?
Every Easter we go away from the city and the flat countryside of East Anglia and head for the mountains, and this Easter was no different. Except that instead of visiting Mother-in-Law in Wales, we stayed in farm cottage in the Yorkshire Dales.
As I was climbing the dizzy heights of Ingleborough (723 metres, and one of the Dales' Three Peaks) it occurred to me to think about WHY we do this... The main reason, apart from having a great time together as a family and the achievement of getting to the top, is the view, providing it's not cloudy that is!
As I was climbing the dizzy heights of Ingleborough (723 metres, and one of the Dales' Three Peaks) it occurred to me to think about WHY we do this... The main reason, apart from having a great time together as a family and the achievement of getting to the top, is the view, providing it's not cloudy that is!
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