Book Week Planning for Symphony of Stories Part 1: What is a symphony?

I have begun to think about library displays for Book Week. I love the theme, Symphony of Stories which encourages me to think of music, orchestras and stories. So many great pieces of music are already attached to stories, think Peter and the Wolf, The Carnival of Animals, the opera Hansel and Gretel, the ballets The Nutcracker, and  Swan Lake. As author Hans Christian Anderson's famous quote says 'where words fail, music speaks'. This widely cited phrase reflects the power of music to express deep emotions that language cannot.

As my young students may not know what a symphony is, I am looking at simple definitions to help me explain the important features.

A symphony is an extended musical composition to be played by an orchestra.

Symphonies are almost always scored for an orchestra consisting of a  string section, brass, woodwind and percussion instruments which altogether number about 30 to 100 musicians.

The word symphony is derived from the Greek word  symphōnía, meaning 'agreement or concord of sound'.

So my display needs to include not only books about symphonies and music, but I can include books about orchestras and composers.

That looks like at least four blog entries; 

Symphony

Orchestra

Musical Instruments

Composers

Picture books which explain  'symphony' and how the music has to have lots of 'instruments' working together. Look for these:

• Symphony City  by Amy Martin

A young girl, lost in a big city, makes her way home by following the rich and vibrant music of the streets. Bursting with bright colours and narrated in lively, staccato phrases, Symphony City is an exciting adventure story for children and parents who love music, art, and big imagination.

•  Wild Symphony  by Dan Brown

Travel through the trees and across the seas with Maestro Mouse and his musical friends! You’ll meet a big blue whale and speedy cheetahs, tiny beetles and graceful swans. Each animal offers a special secret: about emotion regulation, social awareness, mindfulness, and many more important life skills.

• Welcome to the Symphony  by Carolyn Sloan

Discover what a symphony is. Who Beethoven was. What happens when a conductor takes the podium and faces off the orchestra. And when you should and shouldn't clap. An illustrated introduction to the world of the orchestra through Beethoven's Symphony No. 5-with nineteen sound buttons that allow children to hear how the different instruments sound.

• The Enchanted Symphony by Julie Andrews and Elly MacKay

When a lively village is beset by a mysterious fog, the town turns dull and silent; melancholy neighbors stop visiting each other and even going outside. Until one day, when a boy's simple melody strikes a chord, reminding everyone of what matters most--even in the darkest of times. A powerful, hopeful fairy tale celebrating life's simple pleasures that bring us together.

• A Symphony of Stories  by James Mayhew

Six world famous orchestral pieces from six renowned composers feature in this beautiful gift book, introducing children to the world of classical music through story and illustration. James Mayhew tells the stories of six much loved pieces of music, accompanied by breath-taking illustrations.

• Once Upon a Tune by James Mathew

This book also tells the stories of some amazing pieces of music, including Saint-Saens' The Carnival of Animals, Holst's The Planets  and Stravinsky's The Firebird.

• Come With Me to the Symphony by Melanie Hackett

This beautifully illustrated book takes young readers on a journey through a grand concert hall, where the magic of music comes to life.
Discover the elegance of the concert hall, complete with plush red velvet seats and luxurious curtains. meet the instruments, each introduced with engaging verses.

• Because  by Mo Willems  and Amber Ren

Willems composes a powerful symphony of chance, discovery, persistence, and magic in this moving tale of a young girl's journey to centre stage.

• Symphony for a Broken Orchestra  by Amy Ignatow & Gwen Millward Inspired by an astonishing true story, this chronicles a citywide project in Philadelphia to raise funds to repair more than 1,000 broken musical instruments owned by the School District of Philadelphia. Composer David Lang composed a musical work for an orchestra of the broken instruments, sculpting his score to display unique soundscapes made by the instruments in their states of disrepair.

13th May Apple Pie Day

It is Apple Pie Day, a cooking classic. The first recipe for apple pie ever printed appeared in England as early as 1381.  You can even buy a recipe book with 100 recipes for apple pie or get a recipe for apple pie from the Guardian!

If you don't want to cook or buy a pie , read a book about one.

Looking for more picture books about apples?

12th May International Women in Mathematics Day

International Women in Mathematics Day is a joyful event celebrated every year on 12th May. Statistically fewer women have a Bachelor’s, Master’s or Doctoral degree in mathematics. This  day promotes women in mathematics all around the world, inspiring them to celebrate their achievements and encourage an inclusive work environment for all.

Last year I wrote about women mathematicians for Women's Day, so I have added the link here if you would like to source some books for a display.

Women have been involved in STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Maths) for thousands of years. While many have faced obstacles because of their gender, things are changing for the better, and today there are more women than ever working in these disciplines.

11th May Salvador Dali Day

Salvador Dali (11th May 1904 - January 1989), the Spanish artist  made his mark on the world with his wild Surrealist paintings. He sought to take great risks and proved how rich the world can be when you dare to embrace pure, boundless creativity. 

Dali described his art as “hand-painted dream photographs.” He is among the most instantly recognisable artists of the twentieth century, notorious not just for his work, but for his a one-of-a-kind persona and impeccably styled moustache.

Look for these picture books to enjoy Salvador Dali as a person and his art.

In Dali and the Path of Dreams author Anna Obiols and illustrator Joan Subirana tell the story of little Salvi who finds a key and goes on a wild adventure encountering long legged elephants, flying bananas, fried egg penguins and a snail tamer along the way. 

In  Just Being Dali  by Amy Guglielmo and Brett Helquist  we see that Salvador Dalí just couldn't help being himself. When he was little, he wasn't like the other children; he was a daydreamer who liked to play pretend. When he grew up, he became an artist, but he didn't want to make art that looked like everyone else's. He became the most famous painter of his time after he made a picture of melting clocks.

Salvador Dali  by Maria Isabel Sanchez Vegara and Mariona Tolosa Sistere tells how In his teenage years, Dali was introduced to Cubism and Surrealism, which had a profound effect on his life.

Then for fun read  Crocodali by Lucy Volpin for fun. Not really about Dali, but

Crocodali is the greatest artiste in the whole world, and you've just walked into his studio. He's too busy for signings today, but as you're here you might as well lend a hand. In this hilarious picture book, readers can get involved by tilting, shaking and blowing on the book. There's a laugh a minute as our protagonist loses control of the situation and watches his studio descend into chaos. This laugh-out-loud read is packed with painterly puns to entertain young and old - it's sure to make an impression...

8th May Working Mothers Day

Someday by Alison McGhee and Peter H. Reynolds
A deceptively simple, powerful ode to the potential of love and the potential in life, Someday is the story of what every mother wishes for her child: a chance to live life at its fullest—to experience great joys, to stretch, to grow, to understand sorrow, to have a future…to have a someday. 

May 8th is Working Mothers Day, which occurs the Friday before Mothers' Day each year. 70% of mums with kids younger than 18 are working moms, and 75% of them are working full-time. It goes without saying that working mums carry a lot of responsibilities, and they often feel guilty about not spending enough time with their kids. Yet, many studies have proved that working mothers influence as much their children's development as mothers who work at home!

While I agree with this, it is interesting to listen to children of working mothers complain. Interestingly mine used to complain too, but now they are adults and working themselves they can see why I worked and they are quite complimentary when I talk about my working life. I always take 'mum's' side when the students at school blame their mothers for something. I couch it in terms of how important it is to be responsible for themselves and independent.

As we put together a display of books in the library for mothers day and set up an activity and reading nook for the mothers day breakfast next week, I made sure we included books about mums who work. Some are obvious just from the title, but there are others where it just is or you discover it as you read.

 

6th May Bruce Appreciation Day

I was reading through a lighthearted calendar pertaining to the Pastafarians and they said today was Bruce Appreciation Day, but looking further I found a website saying it is National Bruce Day on 14th May. It doesn't really matter when it is I'm celebrating today. 

Bruce is my mother's maiden name and we were lead to believe that it is a Scottish name, but Bruce, or Brus, was a name introduced to England in the massive migration wave from Normandy during the Norman Conquest of 1066. Therefore, contrary to popular belief, its roots are outside the British Isles.

Here's two ways to celebrate:

1. Do a Bruce  display. Start with Mother Bruce who is a character created by Ryan T. Higgins.

This is the first book in a series about Bruce.
Bruce is a bear who likes living alone and making fancy gourmet recipes he finds on the internet. But when the goose eggs he's cooking for breakfast hatch, Bruce becomes something new- a mother.

Look at Ryan Higgins website and see just how many books there are about Bruce. Our library has nine  of the 11 titles.

2. Display books by Australian author illustrator Bruce Whatley. He has so many wonderful books to explore, more than 70.  You will know his series about Mothball, a wombat that he has illustrated for Jackie French. He has another series where he has collaborated with Jackie French. Each of these books features an extreme weather event eg. Cyclone; Flood; Plague; Fire.  There is the series about Billy, a bilby that he has done with Nette Hilton and Danny daVinci  which he did with his wife, Rosie Smith.

If you don't like these ideas, or if your students are older, you could also celebrate author Bruce Pascoe.

Annette Macarthur-Onslow (1933 -2026)

Yesterday while reading the Sydney Morning Herald I noticed that Annette Macarthur-Onslow had died. She was the author illustrator of a book I loved during my childhood.  It is called Uhu and tells the story of a small tawny owl rescued by the author in the Cotswolds who then goes on to cause havoc for its carers. It was originally published in 1969 and won the Children's Book Council award for Book of the Year in 1970.

Amazon are selling a copy for $159, so I was pleased I hadn't discarded the library's copy. Abe Books has a new copy for for well over $200.

The art in this book is extraordinary and because of the length of the text it is not a picture book for very young children. The language is descriptive and  the vocabulary quite challenging, but it is 'just right' for upper primary students and owl lovers.