30th October World Teachers Day and Halloween

Yesterday it was World Teachers Day in Australia and tomorrow it will be Halloween, two things that involve children, one because there would be far fewer teachers in the world if there weren't children who need teaching and the other because it is something that really revs up the children I teach. They have been full of tales about how they have decorated their homes, what they are wearing and who they are celebrating it with. My children used to love it too, because we had a Canadian neighbour who used to organise the fun for the neighbourhood children in the way she experienced Halloween as a child. Now all of those children are adults, some with children of their own who no doubt will become keen about Halloween in the years to come.

Last night I went to Book Club, which is made up of teacher friends that I have taught with in the past and one of them told us about a young girl in her class who'd given her a card and coffee voucher for WTD and how touched she was because it was from a family who could least afford it. Isn't that always the way? My school shouted us pastries at morning tea which was a first! Given all the remote learning of the last few months they were appreciated. I haven't had lots of time to reflect upon remote learning now that the mayhem of school is on again, but one thing I do know after this week, is that I spent a lot more time planning lessons for remote learning than I have this week for face-to-face. Nevertheless it is great to see the students, interact with them and have them share their thinking with you.

A book I added to the library this week was Ten Delicious Teachers just perfect for WTD and Halloween!

Other great teacher picture books depending upon the age of the children you want to share them with:

                        

The list of Halloween titles is far too great to list here, but I always enjoy reading Miss Smith's wonderful storybooks, by Michael Garland.

11th October Freedom Day

Freedom Day is what everyone in Sydney is calling the 11th October because it means strict lockdown is over and you can now do more. For many people this seems to mean 'shop' with queues outside shops such as Kmart. Shopping is not something I'll be rushing off to do. It does mean most of my students will be back at school from the start of next week so my life will change. 

When I think of 'freedom', I am much more likely to think of walls, barriers and metaphorical means of corralment. That got me thinking about how many picture books feature 'walls' and how I hadn't done a post or a book display at school about walls, and there are certainly many books without even collecting the ones about the Berlin Wall or the Great Wall of China. 

I do not have this one, but would really like to see it based on its blurb

Walls  by Brad Holdgrafer

Walls of all sorts: social walls, border walls, political walls, emotional walls, big walls, old walls, and small walls. Speaking to today's critical political issues, this playful and encouraging story about breaking down barriers helps children learn about inclusivity, equality, openness, and kindness while also reminding grown-ups of the same values. Walls is a timely and timeless story, told with bold and colourful illustrations. 

I like to read Sheep, Goat and the Creaking Gate by Claire Saxby to my preschool classes because it allows for great discussion about the gate and the grass being greener on the other side of the fence and what can be done about it.

Some that I like and that are in the library are:

A great place to start is the timeless fable about unity and breaking down barriers,

• Tillie and the Wall by Leo Lionni and 

• Little Mouse and the Red Wall  by Britta Teckentrup

about facing fears, discovering hope and coping with change.  

Then

• Suri's Wall by Lucy Estela and Matt Ottley

• The Wall in the Middle of the Book by Jon Agee

• Sometimes a Wall by Dianne White and Barroux

• The Chickens Build a Wall by Jean- Francois Dumont  

• What is a Wall After All? by Judy Allen and Alan Baron

• The Wall: A Timeless Tale by Giancarlo Macri

• Through the Wall by Jonathan Standing (graphic novel)

• Beyond the Fence by Maria Gulemetova  

• Go Away War! by Elzbieta 

Next specific walls

• The Soccer Fence by Phil Bildner (what apartheid meant for children in South Africa)

• Hey, Wall by Susan verde and John Parra ( the wall being a place for a community art project)

• Banksy Graffited Walls and Wasn't Sorry  by Fausto Gilberti (an artist who spray paints on walls while noone is watching)

Two books about the Vietnamese Veteran's Wall

• The Wall  by Eve Bunting and Ronald Himler; and 

• Maya Lin: Artist- Architect of Light and Lines  by Jeanne Walker Harvey and Dow Phumiruk

The Great Wall of China

• The Seven Chinese Brothers by Margaret Mary and Jean Tseng

• Ming's Adventure on the Great Wall of China by Li Jian and Yijin Wert

• The Emperor Who Built the Great Wall by Jillian Lin and Shi Meng

The Berlin Wall

• The Wall;Growing Up Behind the Iron Curtain by Peter Sis

4th October International Zookeeper Day

It is Zookeeper Day. They ask us to please take the opportunity on October 4th to stop and reflect on the huge contribution zookeepers make to the care and conservation of all species great and small. So what more of an excuse do I need than to put together a display of all the books in the library that celebrate zookeepers and what they do.

Let's start with the humorous ones that dwell on too much poo, escaped animals and absent zookeepers.

• Poo in the Zoo by Steve Smallman & Ada Grey, and its sequel

• Poo in the Zoo; the Great Poo Mystery

Here Zookeeper Bob has to deal with just  too much poo!

• What Do They Do With All that Poo from all the Animals at the Zoo by Ann Do & Laura Wood

• Poo at the Zoo by Sarah Eason & Kirsten Collier

• Hungry Roscoe by David J. Plant

Roscoe is a hungry raccoon fed up with eating rotten junk out of the bins. What he wouldn't give for a lovely bit of fish or some fresh, juicy fruit -and where better to find food than at the zoo! An excellent idea, except for the grumpy zookeeper who's intent on keeping Roscoe OUT.

• Something's Amiss at the Zoo  by Jen Breach & Douglas Holgate

Two zookeepers just can't figure out what's wrong at the zoo. The spider monkey won't spin a web, and he seems scared of the other spiders. The tiger shark doesn't seem comfortable in the jungle enclosure, and the elephant beetle is in danger of being crushed by the other elephants. Only one person can help: the kid! He soon sets the zookeepers straight, but one mystery remains: how did these two ever manage to pass zookeeper school?

• A Sick Day for Amos McGee  by Philip Stead & Erin Stead

Every day zookeeper, Amos McGee  spends a little bit of time with each of his friends at the zoo, running races with the tortoise, keeping the shy penguin company, and even reading bedtime stories to the owl. But when Amos is too sick to make it to the zoo, his animal friends decide it's time they returned the favor. 

• Good Night, Gorilla  by Peggy Rathmann

Good night, Gorilla, says the zookeeper. But mischievous Gorilla isn't quite ready to go to sleep. He'd rather follow the zookeeper on his rounds and let all of the other animals out of their cages.

• What's That Noise?  by Mary Roennfeldt and Robert Roennfeldt

A zookeeper hears strange noises at night and searches in vain for the source.

Then there's some more serious reads:

• Juliet Nearly a Vet : Zookeeper for the Day! by Rebecca Johnson

• Yasmin the Zookeeper by Saadia Faruqi         

• Zookeeper by Heather Miller

• I Want to Be a Zookeeper by Dan Liebman

• Zookeeper  by Marne Ventura

I'm sure there's more!