11th April Submarine Day

In 1969, a bill to the US Senate designated 11th April as Submarine Day. The observance celebrates the first modern submarine purchased by the United States Navy, the Holland VI. It was designed by Irish-American inventor John Phillip Holland and sold for $150,000 at the time. 

Every so often I get a student ask about submarine books and while the library doesn't have a lot there is enough to answer this request.

• Submarines Up Close  by Andra Selin Abramson

This is a big book and it is old, but it is so very popular. It answers everyones questions and has large pictures.

• Submarines  by Alex Frith Discover the history of submarines, including submarines used in war, and for rescue and exploration, in this exciting, fact-packed book. Combines historical accounts retold as comics, with detailed cutaway diagrams and photos. 

• What's Inside Submarines by David West

Learn all about submarines from the first submarines to submersibles and modern submarines.

• Papa's Mechanical Fish  by Candace Fleming and Boris Kulikov

is based on the real-life inventor Lodner Phillips who creates a submarine that can take his family for a trip to the bottom of Lake Michigan.

• Flying Deep  by Michelle Cosollito and Nicole Wong

Climb aboard Alvin, the famous deep-sea submersible credited with helping to find the Titanic, and take a trip two miles down to the bottom of the ocean.

Now that we have dealt with facts, here's some stories

9th April International Unicorn Day

Unicorns are supposed to look like horses, but with a single horn on their forehead. The first one appeared in early Mesopotamian artworks, in ancient myths in India and China. Later on, the Green historian Ctesias described the mythical creature and the healing properties of drinking from its horn. The unicorn is also mentioned in the Bible, linked to Christ, and people in the Middle Ages believed that unicorn horns could heal sickness! Nowadays, the mysterious animal is a symbol of fantasy and wonder, making appearances on birthday cakes and children's clothing.

The students I teach are besotted with unicorns. The three year old preschoolers yell, 'I need a unicorn book' and they do not mean a Peppa Pig unicorn book and just when I think they have unicorns out of their system because they are reading chapter books they still      to the unicorn chapter book series. I even have books who will read them.

Next term I have given in and put together a 'bin' of unicorn picture books so that the preschoolers make less mess and can find a book easily. The students love Oscar; Sparkle; Uni; Thelma; Grumpycorn and Twinkle (Little Unicorn) and many other 'stand-alone' books.

Now for the series for independent readers:

My Secret Unicorn series is so old and I have been discarding them as they fall apart, but they are still the most borrowed of all the unicorn chapter books.

8th April Dog Farting Awareness Day

It is Dog Farting Awareness Day. Not something I thought I would be writing about. Passing gas is a bodily function we share with many animals, such as dogs! While farting is totally normal, it's important to be aware and monitor any trouble your pups could be encountering.

I've included it on my blog because it is a good excuse to get out all the Walter books. The library has all of the Walter books and a plush toy that makes a 'farting' noise when you squeeze it. The students think it is such fun.

If you do not have access to Walter the Farting Dog read some other books where there is a smelly dog. See:

 

 

3rd April Easter Holidays

As we shelved the last of the Easter picture books at school yesterday, I thought about which were my favourites and then I wondered why they were all old. There has been some new Easter books published, but they seem so 'lightweight' and frivolous compared to those I read and reread each year.

For most children, Easter is associated with the Easter Bunny, chocolate eggs and egghunts, but I do think when reading to students that I should be enhancing their intercultural understanding and their child development, especially when it comes to emotional intelligence.

Three of my favourite books to share are inspired by the cultural practice of egg painting. Decorated eggs are found all over the world in many different countries. They are a wonderful celebration of family, culture and tradition.

• Beautiful Eggs  by Alice Lindstrom. This is a large-format board book, but it is not for very young children. It includes a stencil so that you can make your own beautiful eggs.

• Rechenka's Eggs  by Patricia Polacco is about Babushka, an old woman in Russia who is known for her beautifully painted eggs. One day, she rescues an injured goose whom she names Rechenka. After Rechenka accidentally breaks all of Babushka’s eggs, she suddenly starts to lay her own beautiful eggs so Babushka has enough eggs for the festival. She knows she must free her goose and sadly says goodbye. But Rechenka leaves a special gift.

• P. Zonka Lays an Egg  by Julie Paschkis is inspired by Ukrainian artwork. P. Zonka is a hen who appreciates nature more than laying eggs. When she does lay an egg, its designs reflect the patterns and colors of the natural world. All the other hens agree that P. Zonka’s egg is marvellous and beautiful.

Australian picture books that enable good Easter discussions are

• The Smallest Bilby and the Easter Games

• TheSmallest Bilby and the Easter Tale

• The Smallest Bilby and the Midnight Star

There are three books about Billy, the Easter bilby by Nette Hilton and Bruce Whatley and I particularly like the first two because they give teachers an opportunity to explain why an Easter Bilby would be better than an Easter Bunny in Australia, given the damage rabbits do. They also are stories where there is a problem to solve and the possibilities allow for lots of predicting and discussion.

•  Muddy Footprints  by Mary Small and Pat Reynolds is old, published first in 1987, but is still available to buy and it depicts a very Australian experience of Easter in Autumn, not Spring. I have never read it to a Kindergarten class where the students haven't been thoroughly engaged in what will happen.

And some others. I am not a huge Jan Brett fan, but I do love the sentiment of The Easter Egg.

• The Easter Egg  by Jan Brett. While I am not a huge Jan Brett fan, I do love the sentiment of The Easter Egg. Hoppi is excited to decorate his first-ever Easter egg. He searches for an amazing idea but isn’t sure what to do. Unexpectedly, a blue robin’s egg falls out of its nest. Hoppi takes care of it until the bird hatches. The Easter Bunny loves Hoppi’s kindness and decides the empty blue shell to be the best Easter egg of the year.

• The Easter Bunny's Assistant  by Jan Thomas is a book I like to read to my preschool classes with the help of their teacher. One of us is the Easter Bunny, the other the assistant who happens to be a skunk and we read the corresponding dialogue while the students do the actions eg holding their nose!

• Max's Chocolate Chicken  by Rosemary Wells is also a favourite preschool read, probably because it was my own children's favourite Easter book. My children were so like Max and Ruby!

See, all old! But very good. If you need newer, or you want a laugh try these:

• Bun  by Hana Kinoshita Thomson is not specifically an Easter book, but  it is fun and very young children will enjoy the hunt.

• I Am Not the Easter Bunny by T.L.McBeth Everyone, look! It's the Easter Bunny! He says he’s just a regular old fluffy white bunny, but he’s got a vest and a bow tie, and a big basket full of painted eggs. He MUST be the Easter Bunny! Right?

• The Easter Bunny Hunt  by Stacy Gregg and Sarah Jennings. Easter is here! But where are the eggs? Join Cat and Dog as they search for a much-awaited Easter visitor!  When Dog’s descriptions of the Easter Bunny leave a few imaginative gaps for Cat to fill in, they soon find their home full of many other long-eared, fluffy-tailed creatures who are more than ready to enjoy the celebrations…