20th June World Refugee Day

World Refugee Day unites the globe on 20th June  to honour the strength, courage, and resilience of millions of refugees. This day, established by the United Nations, focuses on understanding and improving the lives of those forced to flee their homes. 

The global theme for World Refugee Day this year is "Courage". This theme honours the immense resilience and strength of individuals who have been forced to flee their homes to escape conflict or persecution

Picture books about refugees are powerful tools to build empathy and introduce young readers to complex global issues. They highlight themes of courage, resilience, and hope. Many of these stories draw on true accounts to explain displacement, while focusing on the universal need for safety, home, and belonging. 

I have written about Refugee Day and Refugee Week several times, but each year I purchase 

new books for the library which provoke me to think that I need to do more with my entitled group

of students who will probably never meet a refugee.

See Pinterest here and here for picture books.

New to the library:

• The Bicycle  by Patricia Mc Cormick & Mevan Babakar

Mevan and her family lived in their beloved Kurdistan. But when they are forced to flee by the Iraqi government, Mevan must leave everything behind. Her family travels from country to country in search of safety; and with each stop, Mevan feels more and more alone. Until … a stranger’s gift changes everything.

• To the Other Side by Erika Meza

A young boy and his older sister have left home to play a game. To win she tells him, they must travel across endless lands together and make it to the finish line. Perfect for opening up conversations about conflict and war, encouraging empathy and understanding.

• A Map for Falasteen by Maysa Odeh

Can a place exist if it's not on a map? At school, Falasteen and her classmates are tasked with finding their families' home countries on a map. This is a story of family, resilience and home always being where the heart is.

• Noah's New Home  by Zeshan Akhter

In a tale of home and healing, Noah's family have taken a journey no one should have to make. They arrive in a different country as refugees. While settling into their new house, Noah misses his Baba, Jida and their old home. When a fireworks display brings back both happy memories and difficult moments of their journey and arrival, his family and their new community support him in facing his fears and feeling hopeful for the future.

•  My Name is Bana by Bana Alabed

When seven-year-old Bana Alabed took to Twitter to describe the horrors she and her family were experiencing in war-torn Syria, her heartrending messages touched the world and gave a voice to millions of innocent children. Written in Bana’s own words, this picture book offers a uniquely intimate child’s perspective on one of the biggest humanitarian crises in history.

• The Endless Sea  by Chi Thai

This picture book tells the moving true story of Chi Thai’s refugee crossing from Vietnam to the UK, at just four years old ... leaving her home behind, and setting out across the vastness of the sea in a tiny boat. It's a deeply personal account, rooted in important history – and yet, her story resonates with those of families all over the world today, forced to make perilous journeys of their own. 

• A Home for Grace  by Kathryn White

No one knows who Grace is. One day, she appeared in a shop doorway in a sleeping bag, with a cat called Luna, surrounded by strange things. When Jess and her mum strike up a friendship with Grace, Jess has questions: why did she leave her home? Does she have enough to eat? And what happens when the cold weather comes?

19th June World Sauntering Day

World Sauntering Day encourages us to break free from the rush of modern life. Take a moment to pause, breathe deeply, and truly observe the world around us. Step outside, explore the neighbourhood, and rediscover the joy of unhurried movement.

I was interested to read about this day because a group of Year 2 students that I have been exploring poetry with this term discovered in the Janeen Brian's poem, Ride the Wind that there are a large number of words for walking and once we started finding synonyms they seemed to be in everything they read. In the poem are the words swaggers; strolls; gambols and tramps Once the students had ascertained the slight differences in meaning they became almost obsessed with ranking the words using criteria such as speed and attitude. A few days later in another poem there was the word amble and they were quick to draw it to my attention. Later someone found traipse and wander. 

We then looked up synonyms for 'walk' on iPads and discovered there are well over 100 words listed. They did sort them depending on the specific speed, purpose, or energy of the movement.  Their categories were  'casual and relaxed'; 'purposeful and energetic'; 'slow and heavy' and 'stealthy and quirky'.

So what does sauntering mean? To saunter means to walk in a slow, casual, and relaxed manner, often without a specific destination or rush.

A stroll is a slow, relaxed, and leisurely walk, typically taken for pleasure, exercise, or to unwind.

Amble means to walk or move at a slow, relaxed and unhurried pace. It is most commonly used to describe a leisurely stroll without a specific destination or rush.

So saunter, stroll and amble fit in the casual and relaxed category. The students will certainly remember some of these words as even now weeks later someone will say that is a synonym for 'walk' - 'promenade'.

Interestingly when I looked up some of these words in the library catalogue, I found over 100 books with 'walk' in the title, no 'saunter' and no 'amble'.

I'm tempted to put out some picture books with 'walk' in the title or as a theme and ask the students to categorise the walks!

 

13th June National Jane Day

National Jane Day recognises the enduring popularity and charm of the name Jane every June 13. This day is a perfect opportunity to appreciate a Jane in your life, explore the name’s origins, and celebrate the unique personalities behind it. Share your stories and spread some kindness. Little secret...Jane is my middle name.

I just read this! A day to celebrate Jane. How fitting as two days ago children's author Jane Yolen died. She wrote so many of my favourite books and although she was 87 it is sad to think that there will not be any more. Perhaps then it is time to make sure some that are out of print are republished. These are all worth looking for in the library.

And while you are at the library check out some other Janes who make great children's books.

• Jane Cabrera

• Jane Chapman

• Jane Clarke

• Jane Godwin

• Jane Goodall

• Jane Hissey

• Jane Jolly

• Jane McGuinness

• Jane O'Connor

• Jane Porter

• Jane Ray

• Jane Simmons

• Jane Tanner

I'm sure I will have missed someone.

11th June World Wide Knit in Public Day.

World Wide Knit in Public Day was started in 2005 by Danielle Landes. It originated as a way for knitters to come together and enjoy each other's company.

Knitting is not only for grannies. It is a beneficial hobby, and it improves your mental, emotional and physical health.

It is surprising how many children's picture books feature knitting. Even if it isn't central to the story, there is often a character knitting in the pictures. Betsy Bird has made a point of studying these picture book knitters to make sure they are holding the knitting needles correctly. The article also gives examples of books that include knitting that you may not have explored.

In the past children used to love learning to knit, doing French or finger knitting and making pompoms, but in the current crowded curriculum crafts like these are no longer school activities, so when I do a display of 'knitting' or 'craft' books they are not as popular as they once were. 

For more picture books with knitting see this Pinterest.

Book Week Planning for Symphony of Stories Part 8: Little People Big Dreams: Musicians

Recently I have read so much on line about how uninspired teacher librarians are with this year's Book Week slogan: Symphony of Stories.  I'm not sure why, there's so many books featuring music and you should let the books do the display, not spend hours creating unnecessary landfill. You want your books to be borrowed. If you are short of music books, I'm sure you are not short of the very popular Little People Big Dreams books. They are probably the most borrowed books in my library and I keep them in bins altogether so the students can find them easily and without making a mess of the shelves. 

There are now more than twenty titles which feature famous musicians. Type in Little People Big Dreams Musicians and see how many there is. Here's some examples  to get you started. Think about making copies of their covers into music notes or putting them on old CDs or records to make a display with the books.

5th April International Soup Day

My friend at Momotimetoread talked about a new nonfiction book Soup's On on her blog and then Provo Library Children's Book blog talked about all the versions of Stone Soup so last week we put out some soup books in a small display. I haven't written about soup since 2012 when there was no official Soup Day, but now I know it is on 5th April. It is not cold enough in Australia for soup in April, but this last week the weather has been a bit chillier. Elsewhere in the library we have a display of books about knitting, so it is quite fitting to have another winter activity, soup making too.

It is difficult to list all the types of soup invented by mankind during this time. Fans of this dish will certainly name French bouillabaisse, Spanish gazpacho, Georgian kharcho, Bulgarian tarator, Russian cabbage soup, holodnik, uhu, and of course, the unsurpassed Ukrainian borscht. Particularly sophisticated connoisseurs mention Japanese ramen and Chinese danhutan. Light or saturated, simple in preparation or complicated, meat or vegetarian, from potatoes, noodles, rice, or seaweed: they all have contributed to the noble cause of catering and are worthy of being devoted a separate day, which was done. International Soup Day is celebrated annually on April 5. Did you know that Poland is the country that consumes the most soup?

There are more picture books about soup than you would have thought. See this Pinterest. Here's some of the newest: