Sleep Books for Kids

March 18 – World Sleep Day

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I'll See You in the Morning by Mike Jolley Picture Book Review

About the Holiday

Established by the World Association of Sleep Medicine, World Sleep Day raises awareness of sleep problems and the remedies and ongoing research focused on helping adults and children get good, healthy sleep every day. This year’s theme is “Good Sleep is a Reachable Dream.”  The day will be observed with publicity, workshops, and speeches around the world on the important issues related to sleep—including medicine, education, social aspects, and driving—and better prevention and management of sleep disorders.

I’ll See You in the Morning

Written by Mike Jolley | Illustrated by Mique Moriuchi

 

Somehow the world seems different in the dark, making sleep elusive—especially for children. Are Mom and Dad still there if I can’t even see my toys? When will the sun come up again? How long is the night? I’ll See You in the Morning is a lyrical little book about nighttime and sleeping that answers these questions in soothing words that are both concrete and metaphorical and at all times familiar to a child. The reader becomes the comforter with such lines as “Don’t be afraid of darkness. / Don’t be afraid, my sweet. / The night is just a blanket / That helps the earth to sleep.”

The sleepy child can be reassured knowing that they are not alone in closing their eyes and drifting into dreamland: “Creatures great and / Creatures small / Will all be sleeping soon. / Under the same blanket… / Under the same moon.” Elsewhere, the child learns that a loved one, only steps away, stays with them until they go to sleep, and that through the night the twinkling stars keep watch.

The floating rhythm of Mike Jolley’s poem will quickly become a favorite part of any child’s bedtime routine. Mique Moriuchi’s soft, dreamy illustrations of a bright, smiling moon lighting the darkness where sheep frolic, kittens watch, bunnies sleep, and a child snuggles happily with his teddy bear are interspersed with all of these characters dancing and soaring together under the same moon. The palette of blues, purples, greens, and yellows unifies the story and creates a visual environment that invites the best, deepest slumber.

Ages Birth – 3

Chronicle Books, 2008 | ISBN 978-0811865432

World Sleep Day Activity

CPB - Pillowcase

Personalized Pillowcase

 

A Pillowcase all your own makes for a good night’s sleep or a fun storage bag for toys, clothes, or other stuff!

Supplies

  • Pillowcase
  • Fabric markers
  • Cardboard, as large as the pillow case or area you will decorate

Directions

  1. Iron the pillowcase
  2. Slip the cardboard inside the pillowcase to keep the markers from bleeding through to the other side
  3. Decorate your pillowcase in any design you like

February 27 – International Polar Bear Day

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Hush Little Polar Bear picture book review

About the Holiday

International Polar Bear Day was established as a day for people to learn more about these majestic animals and conservation efforts to protect them and their environment. You can celebrate by discovering ways to lessen global warming, which is believed to be a factor in the loss of polar bears’ natural habitats.

Hush Little Polar Bear

By Jeff Mack

 

A baby polar bear listens to the voice that tells him to “Hush, little polar bear. Sleep in the snow, and dream of the places where sleeping bears go.” The adorable polar bear, with its eyes shut tight, then dreams of sailing the seas while riding on the back of a whale, following a crab onto the beach, wading through a meadow and chasing butterflies, bounding after cows in a field, and having adventure after adventure. But who is the little girl on a sailboat, hiding behind a sandcastle, near the tree, and always popping up where the polar bear explores?

celebrate-picture-books-picture-book-review-hush-little-polar-bear-with-whale

Copyright Jeff Mack, courtesy of us.macmillan.com

At the end of the book as the polar bear drifts through a window, kids discover that the traveling polar bear has been heeding the wishes of that mysterious little girl. As the bear takes its place cuddled up beside the young sleeper, readers may wonder—who is really dreaming, the girl or the little polar bear?

celebrate-picture-books-picture-book-review-hush-little-polar-bear-on-beach

Copyright Jeff Mack, courtesy of us.macmillan.com

Jeff Mack has created a warm, fuzzy lullaby of a picture book, perfect for bedtime or any snuggle time. The lyrical text invites listeners to float along in the polar bear’s wake as it romps, swings, crawls, and flies through each two-page spread that presents the bear’s and the little girl’s dreamscapes as vividly as the best remembered dreams.

Ages 2 – 6

Roaring Brook Press, New York, 2008 | ISBN 978-1596433687

Discover more about Jeff Mack and his books on his website!

Polar Bear Week Activity

CPB - Polar Bear scarf

CPB - Polar Bear Banner

Polar Bear Scarf or Banner

 

Polar bears aren’t cold in the winter—and neither should you be! Here are directions and printable templates for making a cute scarf to keep you warm, or—if you’d rather—a banner to warm up your room.

Supplies

  • Printable Polar Bear and Igloo Template
  • 1 Strip of blue fleece 4 ½ feet long x 7 inches wide for the scarf
  • 1 Piece of blue scrapbooking paper for a banner
  • Pieces of white, black, blue, and purple fleece or scrapbooking paper to make the polar bear, igloo, snowflakes, and ice floes.
  • String or twine for banner
  • Scissors
  • Fabric or paper glue

Directions for Scarf

To make the fringe at each end of the scarf:

  1. Make 7 cuts about 4 inches long
  2. Tie a knot at the top of each fringe section

To make the pieces for the scarf or banner:

  1. Trace the polar bear and igloo sections from the Printable Template onto white fleece and cut out
  2. Trace the two ice floes onto blue fleece and cut out
  3. Trace the door of the igloo onto blue fleece and cut out
  4. Trace the polar bear’s scarf onto purple (or any color) fleece and cut out
  5. Cut out round snowflakes
  6. Cut out a small circle from black fleece for the Polar Bear’s nose

On one end of the scarf:

  1. Glue the smaller ice floe on one end of the scarf
  2. Tie the bear’s scarf around its neck before gluing the bear to the scarf
  3. Glue the polar bear onto the scarf with its feet on the ice floe
  4. Glue on the polar bear’s nose
  5. Make a small dot for the polar bear’s eye with a marker
  6. Glue snowflakes above polar bear

On the other end of the scarf:

  1. Glue the bigger ice floe to the scarf
  2. Glue the three pieces of the large igloo to the scarf, leaving a little space between sections
  3. Glue the small white door of the igloo on top of the last two igloo sections
  4. Glue the small blue door onto the white door
  5. Glue snowflakes above the igloo

Directions for Banner

  1. Cut a point at the bottom of your banner
  2. Follow the directions above to trace the pieces of the polar bear and igloo from the printable template onto scrapbooking paper
  3. Follow the directions above to glue the pieces of the polar bear and igloo to your banner
  4. Attach string or twine to back of banner to make a hanger

Picture Book Review