Valarie Budayr's Blog, page 72
June 21, 2015
Weekend Links: The Importance of Reading Aloud & The Last Day on the Giveaways!
Welcome to Weekend Links!
I don’t know about you but summer is has been crazy-busy so far! We have mountains of books to read, travel plans galore and I am enjoying yet another batch of baby fox kits who have taken up residence at my house. As always I am determined to provide booklists, activities and giveaways to keep the whole family pulling books from shelves and stories from pages during the lazy, hazy days of summer.
Speaking of giveaways, did you know I have TWO wonderful ones that will be ending TODAY??!! (6/21)
One is a Linda Sue Park Booklist Giveaway. Linda Sue Park has written many children’s books, many of which one lucky reader will win! You can view the booklist and giveaway HERE.
The second giveaway is my Book-Jumper Summer Reading Series Secret Garden Booklist giveaway. More chances to win great books! Read the booklist and view the giveaway HERE.
I have another awesome giveaway running right now that will end June 27th. Again, this booklist and giveaway is based on yet another amazing female children’s literature author. Pam Muñoz Ryan is the author of more that thirty books for young readers, including four beloved novels, Riding Freedom, Esperanza Rising, Becoming Naomi León, and Paint the Wind, which collectively have garnered, among countless accolades, the Pura Belpré Medal, the Jane Addams Award, and the Schneider Family Award. She lives in Southern California with her family. You can visit her at www.PamMunozRyan.com.
ONE winner will receive a copy of each of these Pam Munoz Ryan books: Esperanza Rising, Echo, Riding Freedom, Becoming Naomi Leon. The Dreamer and Paint the Wind. Giveaway begins Wednesday June 17th and ends June 27th, 2015. You can enter the giveaway HERE.
All three are great opportunities to get some wonderful books into the hands of your young readers.
Reading at any age is soooo important. I recently found some great articles that reinforce this fact so I will post them here for you to read and enjoy:
Why Keep Reading Aloud in the 5th Grade? Monique at Living Life and Learning offers up a great perspective.
@NerdyBookClub Parenting, Bonding, and Reading Aloud by Jenny Houlroyd
@NerdyBookClub Reading Aloud by Debbie Shoulders
TOP TEN Read-Aloud Books for Students with Special Needs by Aimee Owens
Slow Reading Family Style by…ME!
Read Aloud to Ignite a World of Possibility at Huffington Post
Do you read aloud in your family? Which books are the best for reading aloud?
Looking for more ways to not only get your youngsters reading, but get them OUTSIDE as well? Enjoy more month-by-month activities based on the classic children’s tale, The Secret Garden! A Year in the Secret Garden is a delightful children’s book with over 120 pages, with 150 original color illustrations and 48 activities for your family and friends to enjoy, learn, discover and play with together. AND, it’s on sale for a limited time! Grab your copy ASAP and “meet me in the garden!” More details HERE! http://amzn.to/1DTVnuX
The post Weekend Links: The Importance of Reading Aloud & The Last Day on the Giveaways! appeared first on Jump Into A Book.
June 19, 2015
The Book-jumper Summer Reading Series: The Dreamer Book Review and Activity
Welcome to our third week of our Bookjumper Summer Reading Series! This is my way of inspiring parents who are looking for creative ways to keep their kids reading this summer!
Our summer reading program will be a combination of some really neat things. All of our protagonists are girls or women and most of our showcased authors are women as well. I will be offering up a combination of themed weeks, great novels, booklist giveaways, and blog post recaps so be sure and stop by to discover more wonderful ways have A Book-jumper Summer while Exploring Our World and Beyond!
This week I want to focus on the wonderful works of one of our favorite authors, Pam Munoz Ryan.
I’ve known for a long time that I wanted to share The Dreamer by Pam Munoz Ryan with you. The Dreamer is an invitation into the imaginative world of Pablo Neruda. Pablo Neruda is one of my favorite poets !! The Dreamer has allowed me to share my love of this poet with my children as we wander through his world and life in Chile.
It is a tale of day-dreaming, gathering those little items which catch our eye, while guarding and savoring them into a collection of our childhood. Pam Munoz Ryan does an incredible job of weaving facts into an incredible story of magic, nostalgia, and intrigue. Pablo Neruda’s real name was Neftali Reyes. He had a very stern and unbearable father. Protecting him were his step-mother, uncle, and sister. Along with everyday situations in his household and school, we are invited on a wandering journeys to the rainforest where Neftali’s imagination is taken away by all of the fauna, insects, and animals which live in the forest.
Another trip takes us to the ocean where Neftali meets a librarian who gives him his hide-out for the summer. This turns into a spectacular adventure with his sister of trying to save a swan. Later Neftali learns of the movement to kick indigenous people out of their homeland from his uncle. As he grows, he takes up the cause to protect them. Making sure that he doesn’t seek the wrath of his father, he uses a pseudonym. His new last name Neruda was derived from a poet from Czechoslovakia.
One of the elements that makes this book such a treasure to read and hold are the simple but powerful illustrations of Peter Sis. His contributions to this magical story gives us a look into the world of a poet through the heart and eyes.
Equally as interesting is Pam Munoz Ryan’s telling of what inspired her to write this story. Also in the back are several beautifully selected poems of Pablo Neruda’s. This book is a poetic magical tale that is sure to inspire all of us to look at those simple things around us with the eye of a poet. Life is for living and experiencing and this book is an invitation to do just this.
Something To Do
A Word Box
In the story The Dreamer, Neftali Reyes loves to collect things. One of his most beloved collections are his words. Writing them on a piece of paper, folding it gently , and then placing it in his drawer; Neftali can return anytime he wants to and remember the words that caught his imagination. Let’s remember our friend Neftali by making a word box.
Supplies:
One unfinished wood or paper mache box found in a craft store.
Scrapbooking word stickers
Mod Podge matt finish
Brush
Paper
Instructions:
Taking your wooden box and the word stickers, put words all over your box in a design of your choosing.
Once you’ve finished sticking your words on the box, brush Mod-Podge all over the words and let it dry.
You can use any kind of paper. We like to use paper with pretty colors on one side but white paper works just fine. Cut little pieces of paper that fit into your box. Start writing your favorite words down and saving them in your word box.
Beautiful Spanish Words
The Dreamer uses a beautiful mix of English and Spanish. I liked the way the Spanish was woven throughout the story without it being distracting. Each Spanish word followed with its English meaning. By using the Spanish language in this way, it brought the essence of Chile into the story.
Here’s a Spanish lexicon from The Dreamer. Be sure to write these words on colorful cards and put them into your word box.
Adios:: Good-bye
el viento:: the wind
Porfa :: Please
buena suerte:: good luck
mapuche:: indigenous people in Aranucania
Bravo:: Good Job
la empanadas y el bistec:: Potato turnovers and steak
Aqui Estoy:: I am here.
El pan amasado:: Home made bread
futbol:: soccer
Amigo:: friend
un escondite:: a hideout
una chismosa:: a tattletale
Amor:: Love
Poetry Explorations
In The Dreamer author Pam Munoz Ryan poses many questions to get us thinking in words. Let’s look at those questions and write a short poem about the Wind. Remember when Neftali’s hat and gloves gotten blown away by the wind. What do these questions inspire in you ?
What does the wind give ?
What does the wind take away?
Where is the storehouse of lost and found ?
Let’s experience Time through words. By answering the following questions you can experience time in a new way. Write a little poem about time.
What is the color of a minute? A month ? A Year ?
Reader’s Theater
A great way to instill active reading in our young readers is to practice in a Reader’s Theater setting. Set for four voices, author Pam Munoz Ryan has created this Reader’s Theater edition to her book The Dreamer.
I’d like to know…..
Have you read this book? If so, share your thoughts and comments below!
***Don’t forget! Our Pam Munoz Ryan Great book Giveaway has just begun! Be sure and pop by to enter-to-win SXI great books from this author!
Homeschooling can be complicated and frustrating, especially if you are overloaded with information. The good news is that you don’t have to figure it out alone. Donna Ashton’s The Waldorf Home School Handbook is a simple and step-by-step guide to creating and understanding a Waldorf-inspired homeschool plan. Within the pages of this all-in-one homeschooling guide parents will find information, samples of lesson plans and curriculum, helpful hints and the secrets behind the three Areas for Optimum Learning. Join Donna as she guides you through the Waldorf method and reveals how to educate your children in a nurturing and creative environment. Visit the Waldorf Homeschool Handbook info page HERE-The Waldorf Homeschool Handbook: The Simple Step-by-Step guide to creating a Waldorf-inspired homeschool.
The post The Book-jumper Summer Reading Series: The Dreamer Book Review and Activity appeared first on Jump Into A Book.
June 17, 2015
Author Pam Munoz Ryan Great Book Giveaway
Welcome to our third week of our Bookjumper Summer Reading Series! This is my way of inspiring parents who are looking for creative ways to keep their kids reading this summer!
Our summer reading program will be a combination of some really neat things. All of our protagonists are girls or women and most of our showcased authors are women as well. I will be offering up a combination of themed weeks, great novels, booklist giveaways, and blog post recaps so be sure and stop by to discover more wonderful ways have A Book-jumper Summer while Exploring Our World and Beyond!
This week I want to focus on the wonderful works of one of our favorite authors, Pam Munoz Ryan.
Pam Muñoz Ryan is the author of more that thirty books for young readers, including four beloved novels, Riding Freedom, Esperanza Rising, Becoming Naomi León, and Paint the Wind, which collectively have garnered, among countless accolades, the Pura Belpré Medal, the Jane Addams Award, and the Schneider Family Award. She lives in Southern California with her family. You can visit her at www.PamMunozRyan.com.
I’m happy to share with you today a list of great books by Pam Munoz Ryan. Though this is by no means a complete list of her talents, it is a list of our favorite reads. Not only that but I’m going to give this booklist away. Be sure to enter below for a chance to win these five great titles.
Esperanza thought she’d always live with her family on their ranch in Mexico–she’d always have fancy dresses, a beautiful home, and servants. But a sudden tragedy forces Esperanza and Mama to flee to California during the Great Depression, and to settle in a camp for Mexican farm workers. Esperanza isn’t ready for the hard labor, financial struggles, or lack of acceptance she now faces. When their new life is threatened, Esperanza must find a way to rise above her difficult circumstances–Mama’s life, and her own, depend on it.
Music, magic, and a real-life miracle meld in this genre-defying masterpiece from storytelling maestro Pam Muñoz Ryan.
Lost and alone in a forbidden forest, Otto meets three mysterious sisters and suddenly finds himself entwined in a puzzling quest involving a prophecy, a promise, and a harmonica.
Decades later, Friedrich in Germany, Mike in Pennsylvania, and Ivy in California each, in turn, become interwoven when the very same harmonica lands in their lives. All the children face daunting challenges: rescuing a father, protecting a brother, holding a family together. And ultimately, pulled by the invisible thread of destiny, their suspenseful solo stories converge in an orchestral crescendo.
Richly imagined and masterfully crafted, ECHO pushes the boundaries of genre and form, and shows us what is possible in how we tell stories. The result is an impassioned, uplifting, and virtuosic tour de force that will resound in your heart long after the last note has been struck.
In this fast-paced, courageous, and inspiring story, readers adventure with Charlotte Parkhurst as she first finds work as a stable hand, becomes a famous stage-coach driver (performing brave feats and outwitting bandits), finds love as a woman but later resumes her identity as a man after the loss of a baby and the tragic death of her husband, and ultimately settles out west on the farm she’d dreamed of having since childhood. It wasn’t until after her death that anyone discovered she was a woman.
Naomi Soledad Leon Outlaw has had a lot to contend with in her young life, her name for one. Then there are her clothes (sewn in polyester by Gram), her difficulty speaking up, and her status at school as “nobody special.”
But according to Gram, most problems can be overcome with positive thinking. And with Gram and her little brother, Owen, Naomi’s life at Avocado Acres Trailer Rancho in California is happy and peaceful…until their mother reappears after seven years of being gone, stirring up all sorts of questions and challenging Naomi to discover and proclaim who she really is.
From the time he is a young boy, Neftalí hears the call of a mysterious voice. Even when the neighborhood children taunt him, and when his harsh, authoritarian father ridicules him, and when he doubts himself, Neftalí knows he cannot ignore the call. Under the canopy of the lush rain forest, into the fearsome sea, and through the persistent Chilean rain, he listens and he follows. . . Combining elements of magical realism with biography, poetry, literary fiction, and sensorial, transporting illustrations, Pam Muñoz Ryan and Peter Sís take readers on a rare journey of the heart and imagination.
A sheltered girl. A wild horse. An unforgettable journey.
Maya lives like a captive. At Grandmother’s house in California, everything is forbidden: friends, fun, even memories. And her life is built on lies: lies Grandmother tells her about her dead mother, lies Maya tells to impress or manipulate. But then she moves to the vast Wyoming wilderness where her mother’s family awaits – kind, rugged people who have no tolerance for lies. They challenge Maya to confront the truth about who she is. And a mysterious mustang called Artemisia waits, too. She holds the key to Maya’s freedom. But to find it, Maya will have to risk everything, including her life.
Enter to WIN!
GIVEAWAY DETAILS
ONE winner will receive a copy of each of these Pam Munoz Ryan books: Esperanza Rising, Echo, Riding Freedom, Becoming Naomi Leon. The Dreamer and Paint the Wind. Giveaway begins Wednesday June 17th and ends June 27th, 2015.
Prizing & samples courtesy of Audrey Press
Giveaway open to US addresses only
ONE lucky winner will win one copy of each of the above books.
Residents of USA only please.
Must be 18 years or older to enter
One entry per household.
Staff and family members of Audrey Press are not eligible.
Grand Prize winner has 48 hours to claim prize
Winner will be chosen via Rafflecopter on June 28, 2015
Do your young readers love nature and all of nature’s critters? Experience the magical story of a family of foxes that took up residence right in the front yard of the author and publisher, Valarie Budayr. The Fox Diaries: The Year the Foxes Came to our Garden offers an enthusiastically educational opportunity to observe this fox family grow and learn together.
From digging and hunting to playing and resting, this diary shares a rare glimpse into the private lives of Momma Rennie and her babies. Come watch as they navigate this wildly dangerous but still wonderful world. Great to share with your children or students, The Fox Diaries speaks to the importance of growing and learning both individually and as a family unit. It is a perfect book for story time or family sharing. Not only can you read about the daily rituals of this marvelous fox family, there is an information-packed resource section at the end of the book that includes lots of facts and even a few “fox movies” that you can enjoy with your family. Grab your copy of this beautiful and inspiring book HERE.
The post Author Pam Munoz Ryan Great Book Giveaway appeared first on Jump Into A Book.
June 15, 2015
The Book-Jumper Summer Reading Series: Esperanza Rising Book Review & Activity
Welcome to our third week of our Bookjumper Summer Reading Series! This is my way of inspiring parents who are looking for creative ways to keep their kids reading this summer!
Our summer reading program will be a combination of some really neat things. All of our protagonists are girls or women and most of our showcased authors are women as well. I will be offering up a combination of themed weeks, great novels, booklist giveaways, and blog post recaps so be sure and stop by to discover more wonderful ways have A Book-jumper Summer while Exploring Our World and Beyond!
This week I want to focus on the wonderful works of one of our favorite authors, Pam Munoz Ryan.
When my intern Hannah and I were planning what books we’d jump into this summer, her eyes popped open and shouts of glee were heard after I asked, “What about Esperanza Rising?” According to Hannah it is one of her all time favorite books which she goes to again and again. I think we can say that Esperanza Rising is a close and dear friend to Hannah.
So thanks to that confession, Esperanza Rising made our summer reading list and our lovely Hannah Rials is sharing her views on one of her favorite reads……oh and by the way, mine too!
From Hannah……
Esperanza Ortega lives a live of privilege in Aguascalientes, Mexico. Her father owns El Rancho de las Rosas where he grows rows of roses and grapes. Esperanza is treated like a princess, with beautiful gifts, loving parents, loyal servants, and wonderful friends.
When bandits kill her father, her mother and her lives are uprooted. Her evil uncles wish to take over the ranch and her eldest uncle to marry her mother, Esperanza, Ramona, and their loyal servants are forced to flee Mexico, leaving an ill Abuelita to heal with her sisters at the convent. With all their papers in order, they sneak out of Aguascalientes by cover of darkness to travel into the United States for work.
Here, Esperanza discovers the hardships of life, responsibility, and so many other experiences that her life of privilege had shielded her from.
She, along with 5 other people, live in a two room cabin with no warm water in California. They work unreasonable hours, but they must work, or there will be no food on the table. Being only thirteen, Esperance lucks out of having real work, instead being charged with watching the babies and sweeping. That is, until her mother falls ill with Valley Fever.
Five months, Esperanza prays for her mother as she heals in the hospital. In less than a year, Esperanza has lost her father, had to leave her abuelita, watched her mother grow weaker, and begin to work with the rest of the women. To her, hope does not exist. Will the valleys, as abuelita says, ever turn into mountain tops?
Esperanza Rising has a special place in my heart. As a child, I read this book several times, and at the time, I was not sure why I was so connected to this novel, with a lifestyle that I could not relate to. It doesn’t matter that I cannot empathize with the situation because I love these characters. Esperanza is alive—her temper, her kindness, her selfishness, her newly learned wisdom. All the characters are so alive, that I believe they are real. And that is what makes this story so amazing. Ms. Ryan based this story off of the life of her grandmother. To her, these are real people, and because of this truth of them, this idol to hold them up to, they are made all the more real for us. I love this book, because I am an only child, because I love my mother and my grandmother who smells like peppermint.
Ms. Ryan also offers interesting insight into the Mexican Repatriation in her Author’s note. This is one note that you don’t want to ignore.
Something To Do Book-Inspired Activities:
Rosehip Tea recipe (like Hortensia makes). Rose hips produce a mild, tangy, fruity tea. Use them solo or combined with a hint of fresh spearmint or peppermint leaves. Chilled and sweetened with stevia, the tea is a vitamin-rich, sugar-free alternative to fruit juices or Kool-Aid that is appealing to kids and adults alike. Grab the full process HERE.
Crochet a Shawl (like Abuelita). Hopeful Honey has great tips on Crochet for Beginners. 
Yarn Dolls (for all of Isabel’s friends). Yarns are fun and easy to make (great project for kids!) Get the full tutorial at Little House Living.
What book-inspired fun will you do today
**Don’t Forget!!!! We have TWO wonderful book giveaways going on and ending SOON. Enter my giveaways here and here.…but don’t delay!
**some of these links are affiliate links
Looking for better guide for successful homeschooling? The Waldorf Homeschool Handbook is a simple step-by-step guide to creating and understanding a Waldorf inspired homeschool plan. Within the pages of this comprehensive homeschooling guide, parents will find information, lesson plans, curriculum, helpful hints, behind the scenes reasons why, rhythm, rituals, helping you fit homeschooling into your life. Discover how to educate your children in a nurturing and creative environment.
Grab your copy HERE: The Waldorf Homeschool Handbook: The Simple Step-by-Step guide to creating a Waldorf-inspired homeschool. http://amzn.to/1OhTfoT
The post The Book-Jumper Summer Reading Series: Esperanza Rising Book Review & Activity appeared first on Jump Into A Book.
June 14, 2015
Weekend Links: Discovering the Best BookLists of Summer for Kids
Welcome to Weekend Links!
I don’t know about you but summer is off-and-running at our house. We have mountains of books to read, travel plans galore and I am enjoying yet another batch of baby fox kits who have taken up residence at my house. As summer starts picking up steam, I want to do my part in providing booklists, activities and giveaways to keep the whole family pulling books from shelves and stories from pages.
Speaking of giveaways, did you know I have TWO wonderful ones running Right.Now??!! One is a Linda Sue Park Booklist Giveaway. Linda Sue Park has written many children’s books, many of which one lucky reader will win! You can view the booklist and giveaway HERE.
The second giveaway is my Book-Jumper Summer Reading Series Secret Garden Booklist giveaway. More chances to win great books! Read the booklist and view the giveaway HERE.
Here are more great booklists and links that I have discovered this week. Enjoy!
12 Empowering Children’s Books To Add To Little Girls’ Bookshelves
Superhero Summer Reading – a great booklist at Growing Book by Book
ABC’s of American History: W is for George Washington from Thaleia at Something2Offer
Children’s Books about Ninjas, Samurai, and Karate – via Leanna at All Done Monkey
African Animals Yoga from Kids Yoga Stories that includes a wonderful resource list for teaching kids about Africa.
Three books for children that take bullying by the horns at Scroll.in
50 Inspiring Children’s Books with a Positive Message « Positively Positive
Making a game out of science fiction for 8-12 year-olds from Zoe at Playing by the Book
The Best Books to Read at the Breakfast Table from KCEdventures
What good booklists did you find this week?
Looking for a unique way to keep your kids busy this summer…and engaged with nature? The At-Home Summer Nature Camp eCurriculum is available for sale!
This 8-week eCurriculum is packed with ideas and inspiration to keep kids engaged and happy all summer long. It offers 8 kid-approved themes with outdoor activities, indoor projects, arts & crafts, recipes, field trip ideas, book & media suggestions, and more. The curriculum, now available for download, is a full-color PDF that can be read on a computer screen or tablet, or printed out. Designed for children ages 5-11, it is fun and easily-adaptable for all ages!
The At-Home Summer Nature Camp eGuide is packed with ideas & inspiration to keep your kids engaged all summer long. This unique eCurriculum is packed with ideas & inspiration from a group of creative “camp counselors.” Sign up, or get more details, HERE
The post Weekend Links: Discovering the Best BookLists of Summer for Kids appeared first on Jump Into A Book.
June 11, 2015
The Book-Jumper Summer Reading Series: Project Mulberry
Welcome to the second week of Book Jumper Summer Reading Series! This is my way of inspiring parents who are looking for creative ways to keep their kids reading this summer!
Our summer reading program will be a combination of some really neat things. All of our protagonists are girls or women and most of our showcased authors are women as well. I will be offering up a combination of themed weeks, great novels, booklist giveaways, and blog post recaps so be sure and stop by to discover more wonderful ways have A Bookjumper Summer while Exploring Our World and Beyond!
This week I want to focus on the wonderful works of author Linda Sue Park. Earlier this week I shared some history about Linda Sue herself and reviewed her wonderful book A Long Walk to Water. We also have have a giveaway going on where one lucky winner will win FIVE Linda Sue Park books! More details HERE.
This week on Book-jumper Summer we’re celebrating the great works of one of my favorite authors Linda Sue Park. Project Mulberry is one of our favorite books. Anyone interested in growing silk worms? Have a look below to find out more about both the book Project Mulberry and the actual project. Enjoy !!
I was walking in the yard the other day and discovered that some how we have a volunteer mulberry tree. Well it’s just huge and it’s growing mulberries.
For someone who walks their yard everyday I don’t really know how I missed this but I did. As the family began picking Mulberries, we were reminded of the most incredible story about a mulberry leaf, silkworm project written by Linda Sue Park (author of The Single Shard) called, Project Mulberry.
Project Mulberry by Linda Sue Park
240 pages for Grades 4-7
Julia, a 7th grader who has just moved to Plainfield Illinois with her family is coming to terms with her new home and school environments. From the moment they meet, Julia and Patrick become best friends. Needing a project to enter in the State Fair, they ask Julia’s mom , who suggests raising silkworms. Julia refuses this idea at first because she is wanting something a little more American. Julia’s parents are Korean and she feels very self conscious about her asian heritage. Julia doesn’t want to be identified or labeled by her culture.
Finally, Julia accepts the project and reluctantly takes on the responsibilities which are needed to complete the project. Each unfolding step into the world of silkworms helps Julia to embrace her heritage and value her friendship with Patrick even more.
Woven into the story are the themes of racism, nature’s cycles, life and death, folk art, family relations, self-acceptance and sustainable farming. At the end of each chapter Julia, the main character, has a discussion with the author Linda Sue Park about the direction the story should take. It opens the door to the inside world of the writer’s process.
Something To Do
As we stood under our mulberry tree remembering this great story, we decided right then and there that we had to grow our own silkworms. I must admit to you that we are at the beginning of this process and are waiting for our little silkworm eggs to arrive. We promise to keep you updated on our progress.
Would you like to join us in growing silk worms? Just leave a comment below and let us know if you will share this experience with us.
Here’s where you can order the silkworms:
The Carolina Company has a silkworm farm kit.
They also offer silkworm eggs and food.
A few weeks ago I saw the most interesting TED talk about what they are now using silk for. It’s amazing and is being used in ways one could not even imagine. It is taking science and technology to a new level. This is a great video for kids probably age 8 and older.
Looking for more ways to not only get your youngsters reading, but get them OUTSIDE as well? Enjoy more month-by-month activities based on the classic children’s tale, The Secret Garden! A Year in the Secret Garden is a delightful children’s book with over 120 pages, with 150 original color illustrations and 48 activities for your family and friends to enjoy, learn, discover and play with together. AND, it’s on sale for a limited time! Grab your copy ASAP and “meet me in the garden!” More details HERE.
The post The Book-Jumper Summer Reading Series: Project Mulberry appeared first on Jump Into A Book.
June 10, 2015
The Book Jumper Summer Reading Series- Linda Sue Park Booklist Giveaway
Welcome to the second week of Book Jumper Summer Reading Series! This is my way of inspiring parents who are looking for creative ways to keep their kids reading this summer!
Our summer reading program will be a combination of some really neat things. All of our protagonists are girls or women and most of our showcased authors are women as well. I will be offering up a combination of themed weeks, great novels, booklist giveaways, and blog post recaps so be sure and stop by to discover more wonderful ways have A Bookjumper Summer while Exploring Our World and Beyond!
This week I want to focus on the wonderful works of author Linda Sue Park.
The New York Times bestseller A Long Walk to Water begins as two stories, told in alternating sections, about two eleven-year-olds in Sudan, a girl in 2008 and a boy in 1985. The girl, Nya, is fetching water from a pond that is two hours’ walk from her home: she makes two trips to the pond every day. The boy, Salva, becomes one of the “lost boys” of Sudan, refugees who cover the African continent on foot as they search for their families and for a safe place to stay. Enduring every hardship from loneliness to attack by armed rebels to contact with killer lions and crocodiles, Salva is a survivor, and his story goes on to intersect with Nya’s in an astonishing and moving way.
In this Newbery Medal-winning book set in 12th century Korea, Tree-ear, a 13-year-old orphan, lives under a bridge in Ch’ulp’o, a potters’ village famed for delicate celadon ware. He has become fascinated with the potter’s craft; he wants nothing more than to watch master potter Min at work, and he dreams of making a pot of his own someday. When Min takes Tree-ear on as his helper, Tree-ear is elated — until he finds obstacles in his path: the backbreaking labor of digging and hauling clay, Min’s irascible temper, and his own ignorance. But Tree-ear is determined to prove himself — even if it means taking a long, solitary journey on foot to present Min’s work in the hope of a royal commission . . . even if it means arriving at the royal court with nothing to show but a single celadon shard.
Sun-hee and her older brother, Tae-yul, live in Korea with their parents. Because Korea is under Japanese occupation, the children study Japanese and speak it at school. Their own language, their flag, the folktales Uncle tells them—even their names—are all part of the Korean culture that is now forbidden. When World War II comes to Korea, Sun-hee is surprised that the Japanese expect their Korean subjects to fight on their side. But the greatest shock of all comes when Tae-yul enlists in the Japanese army in an attempt to protect Uncle, who is suspected of aiding the Korean resistance. Sun-hee stays behind, entrusted with the life-and-death secrets of a family at war.
In a riveting narrative set in fifteenth-century Korea, two brothers discover a shared passion for kites. Kee-sup can craft a kite unequaled in strength and beauty, but his younger brother, Young-sup, can fly a kite as if he controlled the wind itself. Their combined skills attract the notice of Korea’s young king, who chooses Young-sup to fly the royal kite in the New Year kite-flying competition–an honor that is also an awesome responsibility. Although tradition decrees, and the boys’ father insists, that the older brother represent the family, both brothers know that this time the family’s honor is best left in Young-sup’s hands. This touching and suspenseful story, filled with the authentic detail and flavor of traditional Korean kite fighting, brings a remarkable setting vividly to life. AUTHOR’S NOTE.
Julia Song and her friend Patrick want to team up to win a blue ribbon at the state fair, but they can’t agree on the perfect project. Then Julia’s mother suggests they raise silkworms as she did years ago in Korea. The optimistic twosome quickly realizes that raising silkworms is a lot tougher than they thought. And Julia never suspected that she’d be discussing the fate of her and Patrick’s project with Ms. Park, the author of this book!
**some of these links are affiliate links
GIVEAWAY DETAILS
ONE winner will receive a copy of A Long Walk To Water, A Single Shard, The Kite Fighters, Project Mulberry and When My Name Keoko. Giveaway begins June 10th, 2015
Prizing & samples courtesy of Audrey Press
Giveaway open to US addresses only
ONE lucky winner will win one copy of each of the above books.
Residents of USA only please.
Must be 18 years or older to enter
One entry per household.
Staff and family members of Audrey Press are not eligible.
Grand Prize winner has 48 hours to claim prize
Winner will be chosen via Rafflecopter on June 21st, 2015
The post The Book Jumper Summer Reading Series- Linda Sue Park Booklist Giveaway appeared first on Jump Into A Book.
June 9, 2015
Honoring Author Linda Sue Park-A Long Walk for Water
Welcome to the second week of Book Jumper Summer Reading Series! This is my way of inspiring parents who are looking for creative ways to keep their kids reading this summer!
Our summer reading program will be a combination of some really neat things. All of our protagonists are girls or women and most of our showcased authors are women as well. I will be offering up a combination of themed weeks, great novels, booklist giveaways, and blog post recaps so be sure and stop by to discover more wonderful ways have A Bookjumper Summer while Exploring Our World and Beyond!
This week I want to focus on the wonderful works of author Linda Sue Park.
Linda Sue is an American author of teen fiction. Park published her first novel, Seesaw Girl, in 1999. She has written six children’s novels and five picture books. Park’s work achieved prominence when she received the prestigious 2002 Newbery Medal for her novel A Single Shard. She has written the ninth book in the 39 Clues series, Storm Warning, published on 25 May 2010. Linda Sue Park was born in Urbana, Illinois on March 25, 1960, and grew up outside Chicago. The daughter of Korean immigrants, she has been writing poems and stories since she was four years old, and her favorite thing to do as a child was read.
One of Linda’s amazing books that I have grown to love is A Long Walk to Water: based on a true story
and published by Clarion Books, November 15, 201
A Long Walk to Water is based on the true story of Salva, one of some 3,800 Sudanese “Lost Boys” airlifted to the United States beginning in the mid 1990s.
Before leaving Africa, Salva’s life is one of harrowing tragedy. Separated from his family by war and forced to travel on foot through hundreds of miles of hostile territory, he survives starvation, animal attacks, and disease, and ultimately leads a group of about 150 boys to safety in Kenya. Relocated to upstate New York, Salva resourcefully learns English and continues on to college. Eventually he returns to his home region in southern Sudan to establish a foundation that installs deep-water wells in remote villages in dire need of clean water. This poignant story of Salva’s life is told side-by-side with the story of Nya, a young girl who lives today in one of those villages.
Both Salva and Nya are from Southern Sudan, but they are separated by time and enemy tribes.
Salva, a son of an important leader in the Nuir tribe, is separated from his family during the revolution during the 1980s. For months, he and others separated from their family and their homes by the rebels travel by foot across Sudan in at attempt to reach the refugee camps in Ethiopia. But as one can assume, the road was not easy. Days or weeks without food or water, the threat of being left behind, the danger of lions and other vicious wild animals, an unforgiving river, and the biggest threat of all—days in the desert. Salva experienced loss during this journey, but he also experienced love and learned so much about life. He spent years in an Ethiopian refugee camp, but when the Ethiopian government begins to collapse, where are the refugees to go? Will Salva ever see his family again? Is a better, safer life even a possibility?
Nya is the niece of her tribe’s leader. She walks several miles twice a day to gather water for her family from the only water source around—a dirty pond. Every day she walks back and forth, an easy journey to and a difficult, heavy journey fro. One day a man and his team appear in their village claiming that they can make water come out of the ground that has been dry since the beginning of her people. Is this man magic? Does he even speak the truth? Or are Nya’s beloved people just being tricked with false hope?
The stories of these two Sudanese children are beautiful and wonderfully intertwined. The story of Salva is a true story about a man who survived Sudan and has made a wonderful life in America. However, his story and his life bring attention to a major issue in Sudan since the 1980s: water. Water is either an extremely far walk from a tribe or the water is dirty and carries the threat of disease—or both. People die every day from poor quality of the water, and tribes that do not live near developed areas are sometimes too far away from the medical help that their people need.
Recently, Salva’s organization, Water for South Sudan has been drilling wells in Sudanese communities, giving fresh, healthy drinking water to these tribes and developing their lands. To learn more about Salva’s organization and to learn how to help, please visit http://www.waterforsouthsudan.org.
Somthing To Do-Lessons and Resources from A Long walk To Walk:
H20 For Life: H2O for Life educates, engages and inspires youth to learn, take action and become global citizens. We provide students with a unique and valuable learning experience through service-learning opportunities focused on the global water crisis. H2O for Life provides a service-learning opportunity for schools, youth groups, and faith-based organizations to raise awareness about the water crisis while taking action to provide funds for water, sanitation and hygiene education for a partner school in a developing country.
In 2007, Patty Hall received a cry for help from a small village in Kenya that was desperate to build a water project. Could she help? She introduced the idea to her school, Highview Middle School in New Brighton MN, to see if they could help raise funds for the project. Staff and students embraced the challenge with open arms. Students learned about the global water crisis and created action plans. Read more about Patty and H20 For Life’s mission HERE.
Support for South Sudan Refugees: As the international community prepares to mark World Refugee Day next month (June 20th), refugees themselves confront the daunting challenges of daily life in encampments.
One such temporary home to at least 8,000 refugees is Lasu, in South Sudan, which the United Methodist Committee on Relief (UMCOR) helps to support. Read more HERE.
According to Water.org, every 20 seconds a child dies from a water-related disease. Surveys from 45 developing countries show that women and children bear the primary responsibility for water collection in the majority of households. This is time not spent working at an income-generating job, caring for family members, or attending school. Learn more HERE.
I found this wonderful water infographic at Kid World Citizen.
Looking for a unique way to keep your kids busy this summer…and engaged with nature? The At-Home Summer Nature Camp eCurriculum is available for sale!
This 8-week eCurriculum is packed with ideas and inspiration to keep kids engaged and happy all summer long. It offers 8 kid-approved themes with outdoor activities, indoor projects, arts & crafts, recipes, field trip ideas, book & media suggestions, and more. The curriculum, now available for download, is a full-color PDF that can be read on a computer screen or tablet, or printed out. Designed for children ages 5-11, it is fun and easily-adaptable for all ages!
The At-Home Summer Nature Camp eGuide is packed with ideas & inspiration to keep your kids engaged all summer long. This unique eCurriculum is packed with ideas & inspiration from a group of creative “camp counselors.” Sign up, or get more details, HERE
The post Honoring Author Linda Sue Park-A Long Walk for Water appeared first on Jump Into A Book.
June 7, 2015
Let the Book Jumper Summer Reading Series BEGIN! Revisiting The Secret Garden
Welcome to the first week of The Book-Jumper Summer Reading Series! This is my way of inspiring parents who are looking for creative ways to keep their kids reading this summer. We are already off to a running start with a great book review of A Year in the Secret Garden and a book giveaway as well!
Our summer reading program will be a combination of some really neat things. All of our protagonists are girls or women and most of our showcased authors are women as well. I will be offering up a combination of themed weeks, great novels, booklist giveaways, and blog post recaps so be sure and stop by to discover more wonderful ways have A Bookjumper Summer while Exploring Our World and Beyond!
This week I want to take a look back to a wildly popular series I did earlier this Spring. Jump Into A Book readers loved it and I had a blast creating it as well. Every Wednesday readers could drop by here and find new and special happenings in the Secret Garden. There were crafts, great food, fun and laughter.
Here’s a recap of some of our more popular Secret Garden Wednesdays. These are too much fun not to read!
Secret Garden Wednesday: Building a Bee Watering Hole
Secret Garden Wednesday: Robin Cake
Secret Garden Wednesday: Studying the Class of Hunger
Secret Garden Wednesday: Planting Time
Secret Garden Wednesday: Book-Inspired FUN
Secret Garden Wednesday: Perfectly Good Porridge
Secret Garden Wednesday: Garden in a Jar
Secret Garden Wednesday: Rosapalooza
Secret Garden Wednesday: Sticky Toffee Pudding
Secret Garden Wednesday: Strawberry Fields Forever
Which of these Secret Garden Wednesdays were your favorite?
Intrigued by the book?
Enjoy more month-by-month activities based on the classic children’s tale, The Secret Garden! A Year in the Secret Garden is a delightful children’s book with over 120 pages, with 150 original color illustrations and 48 activities for your family and friends to enjoy, learn, discover and play with together. AND, it’s on sale for a limited time! Grab your copy ASAP and “meet me in the garden!” http://amzn.to/1DTVnuX
The post Let the Book Jumper Summer Reading Series BEGIN! Revisiting The Secret Garden appeared first on Jump Into A Book.
Weekend Links-the “Best Books for Kids” Pinterest Board
“The best book recommendations come from other people. Consider this board to be a collection of the best books you read with or to your child, or that your child enjoys. From picture books, easy readers, graphic novels, historical fiction, biography, non-fiction, chapter books, easy chapters books, young adult and more, I’d love to get your favorite books!”
For quite some time now a bunch of bloggers and book lovers (me included) have been adding our book reading gems to the Best Books for Kids Pinterest that was created and organized by the wonderful Mia Wenjen from PragmaticMom.com. This Board has over 100 contributors almost 800 Pins and over 29K Followers.
I’ve gotten to where I faithfully Pin my kidlit book picks to this Board, but it’s been awhile since I’ve actually looked at the other picks from the other contributors. Once I settle into my nice comfy chair and a steaming cup of tea, what I found within the Pins of this Board did not disappoint. Here are my top picks for some great summer reading for your family:
2015 Children’s and Teen Choice Book Awards & Kid Lit Blog Hop from PragmaticMom
10 Children’s Books About Composers from Look, We’re Learning!
Alice(s) In Wonderland at Julia’s Book Bag
12 Great Fiction Books For Your Teen from Home & Plate
2015 Non-Fiction Picture Books for Kids: Sports, Science, Bios, History and More!-A Book Long Enough –
Middle School Summer Reading List for Grades 6-8 from The Jenny Evolution
See for yourself and follow along!
Follow PragmaticMom’s board Best Books for Kids on Pinterest.
Looking for a unique way to keep your kids busy this summer…and engaged with nature? The At-Home Summer Nature Camp eCurriculum is available for sale!
This 8-week eCurriculum is packed with ideas and inspiration to keep kids engaged and happy all summer long. It offers 8 kid-approved themes with outdoor activities, indoor projects, arts & crafts, recipes, field trip ideas, book & media suggestions, and more. The curriculum, now available for download, is a full-color PDF that can be read on a computer screen or tablet, or printed out. Designed for children ages 5-11, it is fun and easily-adaptable for all ages!
The At-Home Summer Nature Camp eGuide is packed with ideas & inspiration to keep your kids engaged all summer long. This unique eCurriculum is packed with ideas & inspiration from a group of creative “camp counselors.” Sign up, or get more details, HERE
The post Weekend Links-the “Best Books for Kids” Pinterest Board appeared first on Jump Into A Book.
