Aside

Throw an extra dollop of whipped cream on your hot chocolate, snuggle up under your fleece blanket and get ready for some warm fuzzies (can you tell it’s raining at my house?). Because that is what is coming your way when you crack open the gorgeous picture book I have for you today. Liz Garton Scanlon’s text is so touching and the incomparable Marla Frazee’s illustrations are so perfect, and the book makes you feel “hope and peace and love and trust” as you marvel at finding both comfort in the sameness and wonder in the bigness that is ALL THE WORLD.

ALL THE WORLD

    • Publsihed By: Beach Lane Books (September 8, 2009)
    • Suitable For: All ages
    • Topics/Themes: Interconnectedness, Nature, Family, Wonder
    • Opening:
      “Rock, stone, pebble, sand
      Body, shoulder, arm, hand
      A moat to dig, a shell to keep
      All the world is wide and deep.”
    • Synopsis: (from Amazon) Following a circle of family and friends through the course of a day from morning till night, this book affirms the importance of all things great and small in our world, from the tiniest shell on the beach, to warm family connections, to the widest sunset sky.
    • Links to Resources: There is an impressive, 16-page Teacher’s Resource Guide on Liz Garton Scanlon’s website. It has a variety of exercises, from the most simple (comparing size and color), to the much more complex (defining the concepts of hope, peace, love and trust). I also found more great resources on the Teacher Think Tank website, where they developed writing templates to accompany this book. As a writer, I loved hearing the “story behind the story,” from both the author and illustrator, which I found on the Simon & Schuster website here.
    • Why I like this book: This is a book that just makes me gush. Liz Garton Scanlon has taken a mere handful of words, and crafted them into poetry that makes us feel connected in an intimate way to…EVERYTHING. How did she do that? I am in awe. And oh my, Marla Frazee. Her illustrations take us through both the personal and the universal. Again, how did she do that? This book won a Caldecott Honor and about a zillion other awards, and I am not surprised. In addition to gaining the admiration of adults everywhere, ALL THE WORLD is a favorite with kids, too. The lyrical text makes a great bedtime choice, and there are so many layers in the art, they will be finding new gems in it with every reading. This is a book you need to have in your collection!

Go see the other choices for Perfect Picture Book Friday over at Susanna Leonard Hill’s blog. It is a great resource for parents and teachers, especially if you are in search of books on specific topics. Check it out! 0

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When my daughter saw her name splashed across the cover of this book, she insisted we pick it up. Convinced there is but one Lily in the world, she couldn’t wait to get home and see how the illustrator had chosen to portray her. Nevermind that there is a cow featured prominently in the center of the art. Nevermind that this cow is clearly both prancing and dancing, as is referred to in the title. Nevermind that there isn’t a curly-haired, chubby-cheeked little squirt anywhere to be found in the entire book. It was about HER. So after my sweet, self-centered-as-all-three-year-olds-are, little girl got over her disappointment, she fell in love with THIS Lily…the independent, adventurous, dance-until-her-hooves-ache star of this captivating book, PRANCING DANCING LILY.

PRANCING DANCING LILY

    • Published by: Dial (March 30, 2004)
    • Suitable for: Ages 4 and up
    • Topics/Themes: Individuality, Being Different, Independence, Self-Acceptance
    • Opening: “‘Come on in, Rose! Milking time!’ Farmer Gibson called across the pasture. Clang-a-lang. Clang-a-lang. All the cows fell in behind Rose. Except for Lily. Prancing, dancing Lily.”
    • Synopsis:(from the jacketflap) The cows in Lily’s herd are always dignified as they walk from the barn to the pasture.  But Lily would much rather prance and dance!  One day Lily decides to leave the farm and venture out on her own.All over the world-from New York City to Spain to Senegal-Lily learns new dances and makes wonderful friends.  But none of the dances are quite right for a cow, and soon Lily starts to miss home.  Will she ever find a place where she fits in?
    • Links to Resources: Marsha Diane Arnold has a number of suggested activities on her website. Kids can learn to write rhymes and make cow puppets, as well as design their own bookmarks. When I read this book with my kids, it always ends in some display of creative dancing. And I don’t want to give away the clever ending, but let’s just say that the last dance the cows do always requires the whole family to jump in for a demonstration!
    • Why I Like this Book: I just love the strength of the Lily character in this book. She recognizes that she is different from the herd, and isn’t afraid to explore those differences. The lovely Marsha Diane Arnold (side note: if you are in the kidlit world and have not had the chance to interact with her yet, you are missing out! She really is lovely) handles an important message in a witty, fun, and sometimes silly way. Lily goes off on her adventure and in the process recognizes that what was identified in the herd as weakness really could be a strength. She refines that unique “something” about herself and brings it back home in a way that benefits everyone. Okay, and a cow that belly-dances? How could you not love that?

Please take a moment to visit the blog of the also lovely Susanna Leonard Hill, the host of the wonderful Perfect Picture Book resource for parents and teachers! 0

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Dragons are one of those magical creatures that I think just about every kid finds fascinating. When I was young, we watched that Disney classic, Pete’s Dragon, about a million times. Anyone else remember that one? Well, my pick for Perfect Picture Book Friday reminds me of it, as Pete and the main character in this book have something very unique in common. They both have a dragon that no one else can see.

WHEN A DRAGON MOVES IN

    • Published By: Flashlight Press, (May 1, 2011)
    • Suitable For: 5 and up
    • Topics/Themes: Imagination, friendship, family, beach, dragons!
    • Opening/Synopsis:If you build a perfect sandcastle, a dragon will move in. He’ll settle in all cozy and peep at you from inside… and you’ll wonder how you ever got so lucky.”
    • One day at the beach, a dragon takes up residence in this young boy’s perfect sandcastle. At first it seems the boy has found the perfect pal! But as the day progresses, so does the dragon’s mischief.
    • Links to Resources: Flashlight Press has an activity page for this book, and it includes mazes, puzzles, and drawing pages. There is also a parent/teacher guide to use with the book to talk about the components of a story. I also found this really cute dragon craft that would be fun to make with your kids.
    • Why I like this book: My favorite thing about this adorable book is that we are left to decide on our own what is really happening. Is there a dragon living in his sandcastle? Is it his imagination? Did a dragon’s breath just toast his marshmallow? Or is he pretending? What really happened to those brownies? Who is the actual mischief-maker in this story? The boy, or the dragon? And I just love the large, colorful illustrations of Howard McWilliam. They bring this playful story to life!

Be sure to check out the other choices for Perfect Picture Book Friday over at Susanna Leonard Hill’s amazing blog! 0

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Monday is one of the busiest days of our week. We go from school, to homework, to soccer practice, to guitar practice, and then collapse into bed. Phew! So imagine our dismay when we realized that it was today, a MONDAY, that our special guest Phyllis was going to arrive. It was a slightly breezy 62 degrees when she was plopped onto our doorstep, and we took her out to gently break the news to her…we were not going to be able to see the sights of our lovely town of Clovis, California. Thankfully, Phyllis confessed to us that she was rather exhausted from her whirlwind tour, and would be happy to spend a quiet evening at home with us. We nodded and smiled, not letting on that with four kids, nothing in the Dixon home is ever done quietly. After reading her book, we realized that Phyllis was quite comfortable in the chaos of our home, since she has all kinds of groundhog family that live with her!

                         

When we got home from our busy day, we cleaned up, got in our jammies and spent some quality time with Phyllis. She was a gracious guest, and we enjoyed hosting her. Check out the video below to see what The Dixon family liked best about, APRIL FOOL, PHYLLIS!

       

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I have had trees on the brain lately. Probably because this was my backyard a few months ago:

A huge windstorm blew down the one and only tree in our backyard. We were grateful that it didn’t hit the house on its way down, but were sad to lose our source of shade, especially considering how hot it gets here in the summer. So we have spent the last few months procrastinating researching the types of trees that we might want to replace it with. When we moved here almost 8 years ago, we talked about planting other trees, but never did. We considered planting an avocado tree, but were told it takes seven years to produce fruit. I thought that surely we would have moved on by the time SEVEN WHOLE YEARS! had rolled around. But life happened, the housing market did what it did, and we are still here. I can’t help but think of all the guacamole I could be enjoying if we had just planted that tree.

So that leads me to this week’s Perfect Picture Book about guacamole. Wait. I mean, TREES!

THIS TREE COUNTS!

    • Published By: Albert Whitman & Company (March 1, 2010)
    • Suitable For: Pre-K and up
    • Topics/Themes: Caring for the Environment, Community, Cooperation, Counting
    • Opening/Synopsis:  “Only one tree stood behind Oak Lane School. It needed friends. So Mr. Tate’s class decided to plant more trees. The children got ready to dig. Mr. Tate said, ‘Wait! Our big tree has a story to tell.'”
    • from jacketflap: “If you listen carefully to the lone tree behind Oak Lane School, it has a story to tell, about… one owl, two spiders, three squirrels, four robins, five caterpillars, six ants, seven crickets, eight flies, nine ladybugs, and ten earthworms, all living safe and free in their tree home. What does this tree need? The children know-it needs friends!”
    • Links to Resources: Ashley Formento has a beautiful, 18-page Teacher’s Guide for this book on her website. The Arbor Day Foundation also has an amazing website with lots of ideas on how to connect kids to nature. Or you could just take your kids outside to observe the things they can count on the trees in your yard!
    • What I like about this book: The double meaning of the word “counts” in this book’s title is so clever. You get a book that expresses how much trees matter and their importance to our environment. But you also get a counting book, and my kids enjoyed finding each of the creatures that call this tree home. I am also a fan of the cooperative nature of the story, with the class working together to plant some “friends” for the lone oak tree. There are so many educational nuggets in this book, and combined with the wonderful collage art of Sara Snow, it is a winner!

Now hop on over to Susanna Leonard Hill’s blog and check out the other choices for Perfect Picture Book Friday! 0

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