May 4 – Petite and Proud Day

About the Holiday

Today is a day for anyone who is on the petite side to stand tall and show the world what you are capable of! Kids especially need encouragement and support as they begin to notice ways in which they can make a difference. Community events and personal ideas for helping others, their school, their town, or even projects close to home are terrific ways that children can get involved. Working for a cause they believe in is a great way to boost their self-confidence and self-assurance while making them proud of what they can accomplish. Today, talk to your kids about how you can help them achieve their goals.

Small

By Gina Perry

A little—and I mean little—girl is out and about in the big—and I mean big—city. All around her are buildings, people, and trees that seem to emphasize her smallness. Standing next to the “wide street. Tall buildings,” she thinks, “I look small.” Compared to the “noisy cars. Speeding bikes,” she even walks small.

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While buying and eating lunch, the little girl is surrounded by more examples of how tiny she really is. Even the ducks at the pond appear bigger than she is with their oversized QUACK! QUACK! Yes, says the girl as she abandons her “huge food” to the gobbling ducks, “I am small.”

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But…in the park she spies a tall slide and with determination climbs the high ladder. At the top and with a Whoosh!, she suddenly says, “I feel big because I can fly.” Down on the blacktop with her colorful chalk, she becomes an artist capable of expressing her big dreams. On the basketball court, she barely comes up to the teenagers’ knees, but, still, the ball she throws rises to the net. “I play big because I am fierce,” she explains.

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When she’s happy, the little girl’s voice rings through the air, and her bravery allows her to swing through it too. She brings her mom flowers because her heart overflows with love, and when she’s just tall enough to ride the Ferris wheel, she soars over the city because she is “BIG!”

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Gina Perry zeroes in on what it means to be a child surrounded by bigness in her profound and encouraging book that shows young readers that size is not only measured in outward ways, but in the intensity of one’s heart, dreams, personality, and self-confidence. Through visual juxtapositions that kids will recognize and appreciate, Perry demonstrates the various meanings of “small” and “big” that influence a child’s thinking and feelings. When the little girl approaches the slide, however, her perspective changes, allowing her and readers to soar.

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Perry’s distinctive illustrations are full of humor and a very welcome cast of diverse characters. Children will love lingering over each page to talk about the ideas of big and small, long and short, wide and tall and the less-concrete ideas of “bigness” of thought and action. Kids will also like following the yellow butterfly that keeps the little girl company from spread to spread.

Small is a wonderful book to give as a gift or to add to home libraries. It also makes a great discussion starter in classrooms, which are full of children in various stages of growth.

Ages 4 – 8

little bee books, 2017 | ISBN 978-1499804010

Discover more about Gina Perry, her books and her art on her website!

Petite and Proud Day Activity

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Weekly Self-Esteem Worsheet

Keeping track of all the things you do that make you happy and proud is a good way of seeing how much difference you make to those around you while raising self-esteem. Print, hang, and fill out this Weekly Self-Esteem Worksheet to remind kids of their accomplishments.

You can find Small at these booksellers

Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Books-a-Million | IndieBound

Picture Book Review

May 3 – It’s Get Caught Reading Month and Interview with Author Jody Jensen Shaffer

Posted by Kath Carroll

About the Holiday

Launched in 1999 by the Association of American Publishers and managed by Every Child a Reader, Get Caught Reading Month hopes to instill a love of reading in every child and encourages people of all ages to read more. Celebrities, authors, illustrators, and others participate by sharing pictures of themselves reading an old favorite or new book on social media. Special materials are available for and programs held in schools, libraries, bookstores, and community venues all month long. Why not join in by finding a new book to love—like today’s book?! For more information and to find resources, visit the Get Caught Reading website.

Penguin Random House sent me a copy of A Chip Off the Old Block to check out. All opinions are my own. I’m partnering with Penguin Random House in a giving away a copy of A Chip Off the Old Block. See details below.

A Chip Off the Old Block

Written by Jody Jensen Shaffer | Illustrated by Daniel Miyares

Rocky had an impressive family. There was Aunt Etna, Uncle Gibraltar, and his Great-Grandma Half Dome. His cousins were pretty well-known too. In fact, “tons of his relatives were rock stars.” Rocky loved hearing his parents’ stories about his family. Rocky wanted to be important too, but his parents thought he was too little. He may have been “just a chip off the old block” like his dad said, “but inside, Rocky was a boulder!”

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Image copyright Daniel Miyares, 2018. text copyright Jody Jensen Shaffer, 2018. Courtesy of Penguin Random House.

Rocky made a plan, and in the morning he hopped on a pickup truck headed for Arizona to join his cousin The Wave. As soon as he got there, though, a gust of wind blew him away. He landed hard and “noticed that a piece of him had broken off.” Undeterred, he caught a flight with an eagle out to Wyoming and another cousin, The Tower. Rocky was almost settled in when a rainstorm washed him over the side.

At the bottom of the long slide down, Rocky hitched a ride on a car bound for Texas. There, he thought he could watch over the sauropod tracks at Dinosaur Valley State Park. But it didn’t take long for an armadillo to dig him out and send him back on the road again. this time he was determined to go to South Dakota. When he arrived, tinier than when he’d begun his trip, he decided that he’d make a terrific souvenir of his cousin Rushmore.

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Image copyright Daniel Miyares, 2018. text copyright Jody Jensen Shaffer, 2018. Courtesy of Penguin Random House.

Just then he heard the news. The park was closing because a crack had been discovered in Abraham Lincoln’s nose. “Rocky was crushed.” His dreams of being important would never come true now. But looking up at his cousin, he realized that maybe he could help. A passing lizard gave him a ride to the top, and Rocky jumped. He tumbled down, down and right into the crack in Lincoln’s nose. “He was a perfect fit! I did it! I did something important! I saved Abraham Lincoln!” Rocky exaulted, excited and proud.

Down below, visitors and park employees cheered. Reporters relayed the news, and photographers took pictures. The park was saved, and it was “all thanks to Rocky, the little pebble that wouldn’t be taken for granite.”

A guide to igneous, metamorphic, and sedimentary rocks, illustrated descriptions of some of the world’s most majestic rock formations, and an Author’s Note about Mount Rushmore follow the story.

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Image copyright Daniel Miyares, 2018. text copyright Jody Jensen Shaffer, 2018. Courtesy of Penguin Random House.

There’s so much to love about Jody Jensen Shaffer’s A Chip Off the Old Block! Part adventure, part educational travelogue, and completely inspirational—with lots of funny wordplay to boot—Shaffer’s story will charm kids. Little Rocky is a sweetie of a go-getter who has big dreams and sets out to achieve them. He overcomes obstacles, setbacks, and disappointments and adjusts to changes with optimism while never losing heart and building up his self-confidence. Kids will cheer when Rocky finally finds the place where he can make the most monumental difference.

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Daniel Miyares’ gorgeous illustrations depict the splendor of Rocky’s magnificent cousins and the landscape they dominate while cleverly tracing his journey from state to state, carried along by a truck and a car, in a backpack, and with the help of some animal friends. Rocky is full of personality and childlike expressions that will endear him to readers. Miyares’ full-color, full-bleed pages will get kids excited to learn more about geology and each rock formation, and will no doubt inspire some vacation wish lists.

A Chip Off the Old Block is a smart and witty book that will excite a child’s imagination. It would be a terrific addition to home bookshelves and should be included in classroom libraries to accompany STEM, STEAM, and English Language Arts lessons and well as fun story times.

Ages 5 – 8

Nancy Paulsen Books, Penguin Random House, 2018 | ISBN 978-0399173882

Discover more about Jody Jensen Shaffer and her books and find teachers’ resources and activities on her website.

To learn more about Daniel Miyares, his books and his art, visit his website.

Meet Jody Jensen Shaffer

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I’m excited to talk with Jody Jensen Shaffer today about what she loves about writing poetry, fiction, and nonfiction, her favorite childhood memories, and her rescue dog, Sophie.

What was the spark for A Chip off the Old Block?

Hi Kathy! Thanks for having me on your blog. The spark for A Chip off the Old Block was the phrase, “Rocky loved his rock star relatives.” It came to me as I was brainstorming picture book ideas, and it felt like the first line of a story. I loved the word play of the line, so I created a story around it. I just had to discover who Rocky was and what his story would be.

A Chip off the Old Block combines terrific storytelling with science and history. What would you like for readers to take away from the book? How have children reacted to Chip?

Thanks! It was lots of fun to write. I hope readers take away from the book the idea that you’re never too small to matter and to never give up on your dreams. Bonus points if they learn a little about rocks, US landmarks, maps, and natural formations! I’ve been really happy with how Chip has been received by children and adults! One class even did a Google maps tour of the places Rocky visits in his travels.

You write across the spectrum of children’s literature from poetry to nonfiction to fiction. Can you briefly describe what you like about each?

I love writing poetry because of the challenge of the form. It’s like putting a puzzle together, and the pieces are brevity, beauty, meaning, and joy.

I love writing fiction because I can choose any characters I want, put them in any situations I want, and have fun with the language, voice, and story.

I love writing nonfiction because I love learning new things! And my interest in science comes to me naturally because of my dad’s influence. He was a college professor of biological sciences (and a great wordsmith).

You’ve said that you loved being a kid. What’s one of your favorite memories? How does being able to tap into that feeling of childhood influence your work?

I have so many great memories of my childhood: fishing with my family at local ponds, riding bikes to the swimming pool, visiting my dad’s lab at the college, even working our huge garden with my siblings (before we were allowed to ride our bikes to the swimming pool). I feel so blessed to have had the parents I had and the childhood they gave me. It’s easy to recall feelings of being loved and valued. I hope to send that same message to my readers through my writing.

You say you can remember the exact moment you learned to read. Can you talk about that a little?

It’s a very brief memory. I was reading an early chapter book and laboriously sounding out each syllable, index finger on page, when it occurred to me that if I just read “lighter,” the words might come to me more easily. I relaxed, I guess, and the words came. It was like a light switch turned on. From then on, I read fluently.

What’s the best part about being a children’s author? Do you have an anecdote from an author event that you’d like to share?

There are so many great things about writing for children, and I feel really blessed to be able to do it, but if I have to choose the best thing, I’d say it’s being able to play with words for a living. In terms of an anecdote, I was Skyping with a class for World Read Aloud Day recently, and a little guy stepped up to the screen and told me how much he liked one of my less well-known books. I felt his sincerity, and I appreciated him telling me.

In 2017, your book Prudence the Part-Time Cow was chosen to represent Missouri in the National Book Festival in Washington DC that is hosted by the Library of Congress. Can you talk about this honor a little? How was Prudence chosen and what did it mean for you as an author and for the book?

I was super excited to learn that the Missouri Center for the Book chose Prudence for that honor! At the National Book Festival, each state chooses a book to represent it. All the states’ books are displayed together in one room for festival-goers. I didn’t attend the event, but several people who did told me Prudence sold out several times!

You’re a dog lover and have a rescue dog named Sophie. I’d love to hear more about her!

How much time do you have? Just kidding. She’s part long-haired dachshund, part chihuahua, we think. Very friendly, a good walking companion, pretty, and a real cuddler. She sleeps under the sheets with us.

What’s up next for you?

In July 2018, just in time for back-to-school, Beach Lane will publish It’s Your First Day of School, Busy Bus! about a school bus’s first day of school. In 2019, Grosset & Dunlap will release my bobble-head biography, Who Is Jackie Chan? I’ve got more projects coming that have yet to be announced, so I better stop there. I’ll continue to publish poetry in great children’s magazines, too.

What’s your favorite holiday? Do you have an anecdote from any holiday you’d like to share?

I really like Earth Day and Arbor Day. I love helping take care of the earth.

Thanks, Jody! It’s been so great chatting with you! I wish you all the best with A Chip Off the Old Block and all of your books and projects!

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**You can find A Chip Off the Old Block at these booksellers**

Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Books-a-Million | IndieBound | Penguin Random House

(Leaving a review is one of the best ways to support authors and illustrators!)

You can connect with Jody Jensen Shaffer on

Her website | Twitter

Get Caught Reading Month Activity

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Catch the Reading Bug Bookmark and Bookplate

If you love to read, show it with these printable Reading Bug book bling!

I’ve Got the Reading Bug Bookmark | I’ve Got the Reading Bug Bookplate

Picture Book Review

May 2 – It’s Children’s Book Week

Posted by Kath Carroll

About the Holiday

Children’s Book Week is the longest-running national literacy program in the United States. The history of the holiday goes back to 1913, when Franklin K. Matthiews, the librarian of the Boy Scouts of America, toured the country to promote a higher standard in children’s books and proposed a Children’s Book Week. The week is celebrated by authors, illustrators, publishers, booksellers, librarians, and schools with special readings, events, and materials to get kids excited about reading. To learn more and find free, downloadable bookmarks and graphic novel, visit Every Child a Reader.

Disney-Hyperion sent me a copy of the Itchy Book to check out. All opinions are my own. I’m also thrilled to be partnering with Disney-Hyperion in a giveaway of a fantastic prize pack of books and other swag. See details below.

The Itchy Book!

By LeUyen Pham | Elephant & Piggie Like Reading! Series from Mo Willems

Piggie has a question for Elephant: “Do you like books that make you feel things?” Indeed, Elephant does! And Piggie has just the book to give Elephant the feels all over. It’s called The Itchy Book!, and it opens like this:

Dino-Mo, a thoughtful, bespectacled pachycephalosaurus, comes strolling by and notices a sign that reads Dinosaurs Do Not Scratch. “Who knew?” says a tortoise snoozing next to the rock. Dino-Mo is contemplating this new bit of knowledge when a young triceratops comes by whistling a tune. Suddenly, she stops and bends down to scratch her bandaged knee, but before she can get her claws moving, the pachycephalosaurus rushes forwards to stop her.

He shows the triceratops the sign. “But I am ITCHY!” Triceratops tells him. There’s only one thing to do. “Dinosaurs are TOUGH! We do not scratch!” Dino-Mo instructs. The triceratops is doing her best not to think about it when a pterodactyl flies by chased by a bee. The bee catches up to her, and now she has a terrible itch. After a dire warning, Pterodactyl keeps her wings up and toughs it out.

Pterodactyl is ready to do battle against Brontosaurus’s back itch, though and zips up on top to help out. Triceratops thinks this looks like fun and is making the leap when Dino-Mo shouts, “HOLD IT RIGHT THERE!!!” He reminds them all of the sign, and, duly dejected, the three dinos quit their itchfest. But someone else is coming! It’s T-Rex with a scratchy, scratchy tag. He even promises not to eat anyone if they’ll just help with the incredible itching that he can’t reach.

“You tell him,” says Triceratops, and Dino-Mo does. They all acknowledge that “It is tough to be tough.” Only Dino-Mo is itch free, but in a show of solidarity, he asks the other dinos to make him itchy. Triceratops tickles him with a feather. Pterodactyl throws cut grass on him, and Brontosaurus adds an ant. Everyone else is getting itchy just watching all of this, but Dino-Mo doesn’t flinch. Even a wool sweater brings no response.

With a bit of a crazed look in his eyes, Dino-Mo recites the mantra “Dinosaurs…Do…Not…SCRATCH!” as the other dinos shower him with itch-inducing things until they’re all just a bundle of itchiness. They’re hanging tough, though. They’re proud. They’re doing what the sign says. Then the tortoise, refreshed from his nap, gets up and wanders away leaving the whole sign exposed. It seems there’s a little more to this dinosaur scratching business than originally thought. Have an itch to find out what? You’ll have to read along with Elephant and Piggie!

LeUyen Pham rocks the prehistoric landscape with her hilarious early reader that will have all ages of kids—and adults too—giggling, laughing, and groaning in sympathy for these dinos with Gigantosaurus-sized itches. As anyone knows, just thinking about scratching makes the problem worse. Throw in a rule about not scratching, and you have Pham’s recipe for a perfectly frantic and giddy story that kids will love to read again and again.

Pham’s expressive dinosaurs—who really want to obey the law etched in stone—are endearing as they tough it out and encourage their friends to do the same. Bold colors, a great dynamic among the dinosaurs, and the cartoon-inspired format will engage kids. Repeated words and phrases as well as speech bubbles color-coded to each dinosaur will guide early readers.

The Itchy Book!, Book 5 of the Elephant & Piggie Like Reading series, is a must for early and emerging readers or for any fan of the Elephant & Piggie books, It’s also a terrific read-together for younger kids. Adding The Itchy Book! to home bookshelves and classrooms will make them richer—and funnier!

Ages 6 – 8 , younger children will enjoy having The Itchy Book! read to them.

Disney-Hyperion, 2018 | ISBN 978-1368005647

Discover more about LeUyen Pham, her books, and her art on her very cool website.

Learn more about Mo Willems and his books, find fun activities, and much “Mo” on his website.

To Learn More about The Itchy Book! visit the book’s Official Site.

Children’s Book Week Activity

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Dino Diorama

Ever get an itch to visit the land of the dinosaurs? With this fun Dino Diorama craft you can make a mini version for your own room.

Supplies

1-pound plastic deli container or glass jar
Three or four small plastic dinosaur toys
Dirt or sand to create a ½-inch ground layer in the bottom of the container
Small rocks or pebbles
Plastic leaves or plants, available from craft or fish tank supply sections of pet stores
Or use succulents in place of plastic plants to make a terrarium diorama
Goo-B-Gone for removing label-glue residue from the deli container (optional)

Directions

Wash the deli container and carefully remove the label
Use Goo-B-Gone to remove any residual glue (optional)
Spread the dirt in the bottom of the container
Place the rocks, plants, and dinosaurs into the container
Put the lid on the container
Or plant the succulents and decorate around them with the rocks and dinosaurs
If using succulents, leave the container open

Picture Book Review

May 1 – National Purebred Dog Day

Posted by Kath Carroll

About the Holiday

Established in 2014, today’s holiday honors purebred dogs and their unique traits. Each breed has particular skills that make them suited to a wide variety of jobs as companions, herders, and helpers. Unscrupulous breeders and puppy mills have diminished the reputation of purebred dogs, but that’s the fault of the people, not the dogs. Today, celebrate the beauty and personalities of purebred dogs by learning a little about your favorite breed or contact a shelter and see how you could help out! Today’s book gives kids another fun way to learn about twenty-six different breeds.

As it’s also Poetry on Your Pillow Day, which encourages people to enjoy a poem in the morning when they wake up and another poem before they go to sleep at night by placing a poem on a child’s, friend’s, or partner’s pillow why not combine the two and pick a poem from today’s book!

Name That Dog! Puppy Poems from A to Z

Written by Peggy Archer | Illustrated by Stephanie Buscema

So, you have a new puppy! The first thing you probably want to do it give your new friend a big hug. The second thing you probably want to do is give your new friend a name! But what? Do you name your pup for the socks on her feet? Or maybe for the way he wags his tail? Or maybe a favorite book character would inspire a good name. Name that Dog! understands the dilemma and gives readers a full alphabet of poetic names to think about. So let’s get started!

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Image copyright Stephanie Buscema, 2010, text copyright Peggy Archer, 2010. Courtesy of Dial Books for Young Readers.

At A meet Aspen, who’s a Yellow Labrador Retriever. How did he get his name? You can see that “yellow hay and sunshine rays / are things she likes to lay in. / And piles of leaves from aspen trees / are what she likes to play in.” Bandit is a Boston Terrier and with two black patches around his eyes, “he sneaks around from room to room, / a bandit in disguise, / Stealing socks and slippers, / baseball caps and soap. / garden gloves and wooden spoons, / keys and jumping rope.”

The way Cocker Spaniel, Elvis, “dances around…” to “music with a rock ‘n’ roll sound” this pup whose “fur’s long and black” may just make you “…wonder / if Elvis is back!” The fancy Poodle, Noodles, isn’t named for the food. Instead, “All over my puppy / are oodles and oodles / of swirls of fat curls that / remind me of noodles.”

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Image copyright Stephanie Buscema, 2010, text copyright Peggy Archer, 2010. Courtesy of Dial Books for Young Readers.

At R you’ll find a Saint Bernard. What name might fit him best? Well, “he’s grown quite big so far. / He’s bigger than his doghouse / And he won’t fit in the car!… / Beef stew and juicy soup bones / Are foods he likes the best. / I have the perfect name for him— / Tyrannosaurus Rex.” From R we race to the last letter: Z, where a Dutch Smoushond is “faster than a mustang. / Faster than a train. / Zip! he’s here. ? Zip! he’s there. / Zipper is his name!”

Along the way, readers meet a host of dogs, including a Dalmatian, Westie, Dachshund, Basset Fauve De Bretagne, Portuguese Water Dog, Rhodesian Ridgeback, Niederlaufhund, Scottie, Chihuahua, and more. Two poems about naming a dog bookend the alphabetic verses, creating a tidy package of puppy love.

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Image copyright Stephanie Buscema, 2010, text copyright Peggy Archer, 2010. Courtesy of Dial Books for Young Readers.

Kids who love dogs will eagerly listen to this collection of poems featuring well-known and more unusual breeds. As each dog’s personality is revealed, readers will giggle at their special talents or the shenanigans they get into. Children with dogs will enjoy recognizing some of their own pet’s traits among the poems, and adults will have fun reading Peggy Archer’s charming rhymes and jaunty rhythms.

Stephanie Buscema accompanies Archer’s poems with sweet, funny, and feisty portraits of each breed of dog showing off their lovable natures. Her vibrant backdrops showcase each dog while also highlighting the humor, mischief, and character expressed in each poem.

Ages 3 – 6

Dial Books for Young Readers, 2010 | ISBN 978-0803733220 (Hardcover) / Scholastic, 2013 | ISBN 978-0545609098 (Paperback)

Discover more about Peggie Archer and her books on her website.

To learn more about Stephanie Buscema and view a gallery of her work, visit her website.

National Purebred Dog Day Activity

I Love Dogs! Word Search Puzzle

Discover the names of eighteen dog breeds in this printable word search puzzle!

I Love Dogs! Word Search Puzzle | I Love Dogs! Word Search Solution

Picture Book Review

April 30 – It’s National Humor Month

Posted by Kath Carroll

About the Holiday

On this last day of National Humor Month (also known as April), take some time to enjoy a laugh with a friend or family member or even a pet. It’s a perfect day to share some laugh-out-loud funny stories like the one in today’s book.

The Wolf, the Duck, and the Mouse

Written by Mac Barnett | Illustrated by Jon Klassen

Early one morning a mouse came face to face with a wolf, “and he was quickly gobbled up.” The mouse was very elegant in his speech and proclaimed, “‘Oh woe!’… ‘Oh me! Here I am, caught in the belly of the beast. I fear this is the end.’” Imagine his surprise when he heard a not-so-elegant voice tell him to “‘Be quiet!’” because the mouse was disturbing his sleep. The mouse demanded to know who was there.