February is Black History Month, and I wanted to tell you about a really cool website, Black Heritage Toys. They have economical toys, featuring prominent black figures in history as well as resources for teachers. I’m just going to tell you about the things that you can find on this site to use in [...]

I am so excited to have a great historical fiction author and her books on my blog today and tomorrow. I am even more excited about the book giveaway contest. Clara Gillow Clark has donated a copy of all three Hattie books to give away as prizes to lucky winners who comment on today’s [...]

photo by BlatantNews.com www.flickr.com (photo is in public domain)
One of my favorite lessons plans for Martin Luther King, Jr. Day I found when I was a writing specialist at Fairmount Elementary School. This lesson teaches children about Martin Luther King, Jr. AND teaches them about that elusive 6 plus one writing trait: voice. [...]

photo by jimbowen0306 www.flickr.com
*Picture book for kindergarten students through third graders
*Groundhog teacher as main character
*Rating: A perfect picture book to celebrate Groundhog’s Day or to supplement a weather unit in science!
Short, short summary: Rabbit (and a few other animals) write to Professor W. Groundhog about his weather forecast on Feb. 2. [...]

photo by scalespeeder www.flickr.com
Come on, admit it, how many of you that read The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe by C. S. Lewis went to the back of your closet (of if you were lucky–a wardrobe) and tried to go to the land of Narnia? I’ll raise my hand! I did [...]

I’ve raved about this book Give a Goat by Jan West Schrock before. It shows how a class executed one of their service learning projects through Heifer International. If you want to check out the information about this book from my blog, you can find it under the Give a Goat post. I highly [...]

photo by sczaon www.flickr.com
*Picture book for preschoolers through second graders
*Jewish family (with young boy and girl) as main characters
*Rating: The Miracle Jar is a sweet story full of explanations of Jewish customs and recipes during Hanukkah.
Short, short summary: Sophie and Ruben are excited about Hanukkah and can’t wait to do Hanukkah activities [...]

photo by GraceFamily www.flickr.com
At this time of the year, many teachers and parents are getting ready for teaching about holidays. The three most common holidays to teach and do holiday activities with are Christmas, Hanukkah, and Kwanzaa. But teaching Christmas around the world lesson plans and Hanukkah lessons can often cause controversy in [...]

photo by catnipstudio www.flickr.com
What a beautiful picture book and one of the most delightful Thanksgiving books I’ve seen– An Old-Fashioned Thanksgiving–text by Louisa May Alcott and illustrations by James Bernardin! HarperCollins Publishers have taken this classic tale by the author of Little Women, added Bernardin’s beautiful illustrations, and turned this into a picture book [...]

photo by ahisgett www.flickr.com
Chinese New Year
February 14, 2010
*Picture book for preschoolers through second graders, contemporary, multicultural
*Young girl as main character
*A Gift is a good introduction to the Chinese New Year for young children with wonderful illustrations and a nice family message!
Short, short summary:
A Gift by Yong Chen tells the story of Amy, whose [...]