1st July International Tartan Day

1st July has been International Tartan Day in Australia since 1996, whereas it is celebrated in April in the United States and Canada. It falls on the anniversary of the repeal of the 1747 Act of Proscription, which had made wearing tartan an offense punishable by law. The earliest known tartan in Scotland can be dated to the 3rd century AD, but it only acquired cultural significance in Scottish Highland culture around the 17th century. Millions of Australians descend from Scottish ancestors, so one aim of Tartan Day is to help them reconnect with their roots. The observance features wearing tartan, parades of pipe bands, Highland dancing, and other Scottish-themed events.

It would be fun to do this using picture books!

This is a perfect first introduction to Scotland for all young children. When Katie meets the Loch Ness Monster in Scotland, fun and adventure soon follow. Katie and Nessie discover how beautiful and stunning the country is as they take in the sights, from the Highlands to the Edinburgh Festival. Features: Loch Ness, Glasgow's Kelvingrove Park and Museum, Edinburgh Castle, Holyrood, The Royal Mile, The National Gallery and Portrait Gallery and Greyfriar's Bobby. And if you can't find this one, try:

Maggie really doesn't like wearing her mittens. Perhaps on her trip around Scotland she'll find a way to get rid of them without Mum noticing. She throws, flings, and catapults the mittens towards a number of potential new owners on their way to Granny's house. But mittens are made to be worn by a child, not a lobster, or the Loch Ness Monster! As the weather turns, Maggie realises that her mittens are useful after all. But is it too late?

Meet Katie Morag: Katie Morag McColl and her family live on the Isle of Struay. There are many adventures to be had on the Isle of Struay. There's her mum and dad's Shop and Post Office, Grannie Island's house across the bay, the dancing classes at the hall - and just wait till the mischevious Big Boy Cousins come to visit - they're lots of fun! There are single story books and windups with several stories.

The heart-warming tale of Greyfriars Bobby, the loyal Skye terrier, is well-known and loved throughout Scotland and the world and he features in many Scottish stories. 

There are several stories about highland cows.

There are stories which feature bagpipes.

You will find stories about puffins,  popular birds found on the coasts of Scotland. Lynne Richards has several.

Scotland’s national animal is the unicorn. The backdrop for Meg McLaren’s stunning picture book, The Wee Unicorn is the glorious Highlands! The region’s Highland Games tradition also serves as inspiration for the fun-filled The Great Highland Games Chase by Kate Abernethy and Laura Darling.

And it is a good day to read a biography about someone who is Scottish. This inspiring picture book tells the true story of world-famous deaf percussionist Dame Evelyn Glennie. As a child, Evelyn Glennie's ears began to hurt. Voices became distant whispers. Ringing phones sounded like muffled crunches in her ears. But when she was told that she would need to wear hearing aids for the rest of her life, Evelyn was determined that this this would never stop her from playing music. Instead of giving up on her dreams, Evelyn found new ways to listen...

And of course it is a good day to practise putting 'wee' in every sentence you utter and 'bonny' occasionally!

July is National Bison Month

Who knew? National Bison Month takes place every July, dedicating an entire month to celebrating the majestic American bison. This observance highlights their historical significance, ecological importance, and ongoing conservation efforts.

It's probably not something we will celebrate here in Australia, despite the fact that there are bison in Australia, as we are on school holidays. Bison are not native to Australia, but there are estimated to be around 350 to 500 American Bison in total here. They exist exclusively in captivity on specialised private farms (raised for meat, dairy, and hides) and in a few select zoos.

In the last order of books, we received The Bison and the Butterfly by Alice Hemming.

This lovely book is a  touching ecosystem story about friends in nature and the nature of friendship. Produced in collaboration with Kent Wildlife Trust's bison rewilding project, this is the heartwarming story of Bison and her forest friends. Bison feels very sad and lonely. She's big and hairy, and sometimes a bit clumsy... and she doesn't know why anybody would want to be her friend. But wise woodpecker knows that everybody likes different things, and that the other animals probably feel a lot differently than she imagines. Soon enough, as Bison eats her breakfast, has her bath and does her - ahem - business, she meets many different creatures who love her exactly because of her big, shaggy ways. As well as celebrating these differences, this enchantingly illustrated book explains to children, in terms that they can relate to, how the different animals within an ecosystem work in harmony and benefit one another, and the power of rewilding to shape these relationships. The book includes a section explaining the science behind rewilding, and shows that, no matter who we are and what we like, we are all worthy of friendship and have a part to play... whether that's in our ecosystem or personal community!

While you're at the library look for Blue Bison Needs a Haircut  by Scott Rothman & Pete Oswald. It will make you smile. Blue Bison prides himself on always looking clean and neat. But he has a growing problem--his hair. With the barber shops and just about everywhere else closed, all Blue Bison can do is ram his ramming rock in frustration. Meanwhile, his hair keeps growing. His dad, Brown Bison, encourages him to be patient and wait, and his mom, Burgundy Bison, tries to explain that sometimes you want something that you really don't need. But all Blue Bison can do is whine and wallow. Could little sister Bubblegum Bison have the solution?

And coming later in the year, this poetry book,  Bison Rule, OK! by Sarah Ziman & Nia Havilliard

They might not really twinkle, 

They might not be on trend,

But you'll never be in trouble

With a bison as your friend!

  

25th June Mitch Lane Day

25th June is Mitch Lane Day. Mitchell Lane is a well-known YouTuber in the cubing (solvers or Rubik's cubes) community. He became famous when he broke a personal record of 6.25 seconds, and his video went literally viral. To honour his achievement, the cubing community unofficially created the holiday. So today, take on the challenge to achieve a personal best (PS) or start learning Rubik's cube!

The World Cube Association governs competitions for mechanical puzzles that are operated by twisting groups of pieces, commonly known as 'twisty puzzles'. The best known of these puzzles is the Rubik's cube.

The Rubik's Cube is a classic 3D combination puzzle invented in 1974 by Hungarian professor Erno Rubik. It features six coloured faces with nine squares on each. With over 43 quintillion possible combinations, the goal is to twist and turn the cube so that each face returns to a single solid colour.

There are two biographies about Erno Rubik:

and in this picture book is a story about children endeavouring to solve the Rubik's cube puzzle.

21st June World Music Day

World Music Day is an annual day of music celebration that takes place on 21st June on the summer solstice. The first occurrence happened in Paris in 1982, originated by Jack Lang, the former Minister of Culture of France. The celebration spread to other countries, where people are encouraged to play music in public, and free concerts are organised in most towns and cities for the benefit of all!

In Australia it will be the winter solstice, not really the weather for outdoor concerts. Even so my daughter is off to a concert on a boat this evening, so perhaps it is. 

I feel very prepared to celebrate this day as I have spent so much time looking at the library's music books in readiness for the Book Week celebrations of Symphony of Stories.

Just put Book Week, music or Symphony of Stories in my search and lots of books will come up.

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!