Celebrated from December 26 to January 1 each year, Kwanzaa is a Pan-African and African-American cultural holiday that was established in 1966. The seven-day holiday was created as a celebration of the African-American family and community by Dr. Maulana Karenga.
Kevin’s Kwanzaa
By: Lisa Bullard
Illustrated by: Constanza Basaluzzo
Kevin is excited for his turn to light the candles on the last night of Kwanzaa, and as he narrates through the week of Kwanzaa, readers learn about the origins, purpose, and rituals of this holiday.
Imani learns about Kwanzaa, the African American harvest festival, from her grandmother and makes friends with Enna, a girl who has never been to a Kwanzaa celebration before.
L’il Rabbit searches for a gift for his grandmother when she is sick during Kwanzaa and surprises her with the best gift of all. Includes “The Nguzo Saba – The Seven Principles of Kwanzaa.”
When they are given the seemingly impossible task of turning thread into gold, the seven Ashanti brothers put aside their differences, learn to get along and embody Kwanzaa’s principles. Includes information on Kwanzaa, West African cloth weaving, and instructions for making a belt.
Hear the words, sing the songs, dance to the beat, and shout “Harambee!” as you jump into this joyful celebration of the sounds of Kwanzaa! Lively verse and colorful illustrations guide you through the seven principles of this festive holiday.
Whether it’s unexpected snow, an urgent call, burnt turkey, or you find out you are the main course for dinner (YIKES!), sometimes Thanksgiving isn’t what you expected it to be. In moments like these, books can provide a way for us to realize there is no such thing as a perfect Thanksgiving, and regular Thanksgiving traditions can change when life necessitates it. Whatever your Thanksgiving holds for you this year, remember, it could be worse. You could be the turkey, thinking you are the guest of honor and not understand the impact of that role. Happy Thanksgiving!
Kitty does not like Thanksgiving. Kitty LOVES Thanksgiving. Specifically, Kitty loves turkey and will do anything to get her paws on it. SO, Kitty comes up with a plan but in perfect cantankerous cat fashion, can’t quite pull it off and ends up with the turkey (and all the fixins’) on her head.
When Lance, a very pretentious turkey, arrives on the farm and boasts that he is the only bird invited to a special feast, no hen is impressed, but when Beauty learns that Lance is the main course, she convinces the others to save him.
A classic Thanksgiving tale. Chester Chipmunk can’t seem to find anybody to share his Thanksgiving dinner. After five friends refuse his invitation to share a pecan pie on Thanksgiving, Chester Chipmunk discovers Oswald Opossum, literally hanging out in the cold.
It’s another Thanksgiving at Grandma’s. Gavin expects a long day of boredom and being pestered by distantly related toddlers, but his cousin Rhonda has a different idea: make a break for it – out of the kids’ room to the swing set in the backyard! Gavin isn’t so sure, especially when they encounter vicious guard dogs (in homemade sweaters), a hallway full of overly affectionate aunts, and worse yet, the great wall of butts! Will they manage to avoid the obstacles and find some fun before turkey time? Or will they be captured before they’ve had a taste of freedom?
Cassie, Wing, and Ollie all want to be the Thanksgiving Turkey! They decide to have a contest to see which of them Farmer Joe should pick. Will it be a happy Thanksgiving for all?
In her fourth hilarious adventure, good-hearted Lola can’t help getting into trouble. Her friends are all traveling for the Thanksgiving holidays, so she offers to dog-sit–but fails to mention this to Mom, who is desperately trying to finish a batch of Lola dresses for a new client. Now Lola is juggling her dog-sitting responsibilities with her worries. Will her parents discover the growing knot in her hair and cause her excruciating pain brushing it out? Will her grandmothers discover that she’s lied to them every year about who makes the best pumpkin pie? Will Jack get so involved in his new babysitting and yard-work jobs that, like Mom and Dad, he won’t have time for her anymore? Lola’s worries, like the knot in her hair, grow greater until she finally has to stop hiding them and start untangling them.
The townspeople of Squawk Valley try to trick a turkey into being their Thanksgiving dinner but are frustrated in their efforts when the turkey tricks them instead.
With Thanksgiving Day approaching and no other turkeys left on the farm, Thelonius Turkey worries that he will become the centerpiece for the family’s dinner celebration.
Ethan looks forward to the Thanksgiving Day when he and his friends are finally old enough to play in the annual family football game, but that day arrives full of snow and icy roads.
When her perfectionist classmate and neighbor plans an elaborate Thanksgiving dinner, Katie begins to wonder if the relaxed day she, her father, and her messy little brother usually enjoy means they are not a “real” family.
As Thanksgiving Day approaches, Turkey nervously makes a series of costumes, disguising himself as other farm animals in hopes that he can avoid being served as Thanksgiving dinner.
Leaves are falling, and the days are getting shorter and colder—Halloween is coming soon! The Dino friends are very excited for the Halloween season. They go together to select the perfect pumpkins from the pumpkin patch; some find their pumpkins right away, while others agonize over the myriad options. Then, the dinosaurs brave the haunted house, with its spooky inhabitants and hair-raising scares. As Halloween gets closer, the dinosaurs work together to assemble their perfect costumes in time for the big Halloween bash. Finally, it is the time everyone has been waiting for: trick-or-treating! Striking out together, the Dino friends traverse the neighborhood, collecting treats of all kinds throughout the evening. Emptying their bags of candy into their bellies, they somehow find themselves thinking about the next delicious holiday – Thanksgiving! Fans of the Dino holiday books will enjoy this Halloween addition. Like the others, this book is written in rhyming couplets interspersed with truncated names of the featured dinosaurs. These dinosaur names are typed in differing colors and bold text to help readers distinguish them from the other words. Preschool and young elementary school-aged readers will appreciate the sing-song rhythm of the story, despite the occasional hiccup in pacing. Richly-colored, digitally-created illustrations form the backdrop of each page, mirroring the illustrative style of the other books in this series. Viewing beloved dinosaurs in familiar human experiences makes the story accessible to young readers, especially those who love dinosaurs already. Children will want to read this book frequently, and it will no doubt inspire ideas for Halloween-themed activities as the holiday approaches. This is a fun and friendly addition to Halloween read-aloud collections for young children.
Get the kids ready for Halloween with these fun read-alouds. Perfect for classrooms, libraries, and homes. Contributed by: Shelley Oakley
Halloween Hustle
By: Charlotte Gunnufson
Illustrated by: Kevan Atteberry
Skeleton is dancing his way to a Halloween party, but as he grooves across town, he keeps stumbling, tumbling, and falling apart.
One cool day in late October, when Georgia notices odd things happening around the house, like things disappearing and objects being moved, she is sure the explanation is not ghosts. Now, some people may have wondered (especially at this time of year) if this was the work of something spooky? But not clever Georgia here! She has all the explanations and not a single fear!
When skeletons take over a small town, the grown-ups call off trick-or-treating, but the kids in town vow to save the day. What ensues is a fun, spirited fight to the finish, as naturally the children outwit and out-frighten the old SKUL-A-MUG-MUGS so the trick-or-treating can commence once again!
Known across the land for his infamous appetite, Finnigin is never seen without his eating stool, his eating spoon, and his gigantic eating mouth. When Finnigin finds himself in a new town on Halloween, he hopes to join a great feast with the creatures who live there. But not a body or soul will share any of their food with the ever-famished Finnigin. So, what’s a hungry skeleton to do? Armed only with his wits and a special ingredient, will Finnigin be able to stir up a cauldron’s worth of Halloween magic?
A quirky safety guide combines practical tips with step-by-step instructions featuring an anxious Scaredy Squirrel, who prepares himself for the worst during the spookiest night of the year.
Easy to read, rhyming text about Halloween night incorporates Spanish words, from las brujas riding their broomsticks to los monstruos whose monstrous ball is interrupted by a true horror.
It’s finally Halloween, and Baby Bear is trick-or-treating with Mama and Papa Bear. The door is open at the very scary house. Maybe they should go inside. But is that a TEE-Hee-Hee coming from being a bush? Could it be that the three bears are in for a Halloween trick? Is it a witch or a blonde little girl hiding in the bushes of the spooky house?
We’re Going on a Spooky Ghost Hunt
By: Ken Geist
Illustrated by: Guy Francis
Text bubbles and activities invite readers to make connections and draw conclusions from the story about a group of children who set out to find a ghost.
Halloween Night
By: Marjorie Dennis Murray
Illustrated by: Brandon Dorman
Loosely based on “The Night Before Christmas,” this rhyming story tells of a group of animals, monsters, and witches who prepare such a frightening Halloween party that their expected trick-or-treaters all run away.
Farmer Brown does not like Halloween or the spooky sounds of a Halloween night, so he draws the shades, locks the door, and goes to bed, but when the animals hold a Halloween party in his barn, Farmer Brown is in for a big surprise.
Thanksgiving picture book lists typically include a mixture of books about the first Thanksgiving, turkeys trying to escape becoming dinner, and dinner mishaps. For this year’s Thanksgiving list, we focus on the dynamic of the family get-together. Enjoy these 10 picture book recommendations about the most stressful dinner of the year.
In this simple rhyming story, a child says thank you for the gifts nature provides, from hazelnuts in the hedge to apples from the tree, eggs from the hens to milk from the cow. Eventually, the family has enough ingredients to make something special… a delicious apple cake! Since this book involves the autumn tradition of apple picking and gathering with family and friends, it is an excellent addition to Thanksgiving reads.
Grandmother almost loses her secret recipe for cranberry bread to one of the guests she and Maggie invite for Thanksgiving dinner. Includes the secret recipe.
When Tuyet finds out that her Vietnamese family is having duck rather than turkey for Thanksgiving dinner, she is upset until she finds out that other children in her class did not eat turkey either.
Trouble ensues when Papa gets Miguel a turkey to fatten up for Thanksgiving, and Miguel develops an attachment to it.
The Great Thanksgiving Escape
By: Mark Fearing It’s another Thanksgiving at Grandma’s. Gavin expects a long day of boredom and being pestered by distantly related toddlers, but his cousin Rhonda has a different idea: make a break for it – out of the kids’ room to the swing set in the backyard! Gavin isn’t so sure, especially when they encounter vicious guard dogs (in homemade sweaters), a hallway full of overly affectionate aunts, and worse yet, the great wall of butts! Will they manage to avoid the obstacles and find some fun before turkey time? Or will they be captured before they’ve had a taste of freedom?
When calamity stalks every step of the preparations for the Tappletons’ Thanksgiving dinner, they realize that there is more to Thanksgiving than turkey and trimmings.
After burning their Thanksgiving dinner, Ann and Ed head for the local cafe, where they are welcomed by an immigrant family into an unusual celebration that gives everyone cause to be thankful.
While on a Thanksgiving Day errand for her mother, a girl says thank you to all the things around her.
What goes well with Hanukkah gifts? Hanukkah stories! We are sharing 16 Hanukkah stories, 2 for each night. A perfect pairing for gift time or bedtime.
The Borrowed Hanukkah Latkes
By: Linda Glaser
Illustrated by: Nancy Cote A young girl finds a way to include her elderly neighbor in her family’s Hanukkah celebration.
Chanukah Lights Everywhere
By: Michael J. Rosen
Illustrated by: Melissa Iwai
A young boy counts the candles on the family menorah and the lights he sees in the world around him on each night of Hanukkah, in a story which includes information on the history and significance of the celebration.
Daddy Christmas and Hanukkah Mama
By: Selina Alko
A child relates how the family celebrates both Christmas and Hanukkah, enjoying the rich traditions of both religions.
The Eight Nights of Chanukah
By: Leslea Newman
Illustrated by: Elivia Savadier
The wondrous days of Chanukah come to life through the eyes of a young child, whose family gathering grows bigger and bigger as the holiday progresses.
Hanukkah Around the World
By: Tami Lehman-Wilzig
Illustrated by: Vicki Wehrman
Celebrate Hanukkah with an Australian blizzard drink, Polish latkes, Tunisian debla cookies, and explore how Hanukkah is celebrated around the world. Includes brightly colored maps and boxed information on the presence of Jews in each spotlighted country.
The Hanukkah Mice
By: Steven Kroll
Illustrated by: Michelle Shapiro
A family of mice enjoys the doll house and furnishings that Rachel receives as gifts on the eight nights of Hanukkah.
Is it Hanukkah Yet?
By: Chris Barash
Illustrated by: Alessandra Psacharopulo
From snow on the ground to making applesauce and latkes to lighting the menorah, this story shows the seasonal and traditional ways we know Hanukkah is on its way.
It’s a Miracle: a Hanukkah storybook
By: Stephanie Spinner
Illustrated by: Jill McElmurry
Every night of Hanukkah Grandma tells a story at bedtime, in a book that includes the Hanukkah legend.
Latke, the Lucky Dog
By: Ellen Fischer
Illustrated by: Tiphanie Beeke
A family rescues a dog from a shelter during Hanukkah, and the pup proceeds to create holiday hijinks as he gets used to his new home.
Latkes and Applesauce
By: Fran Manushkin
Illustrated by: Robin Spowart
When a blizzard leaves a family housebound one Hanukkah, they share what little food they have with some starving animals who later return the favor.
Nonna’s Hanukkah Surprise
By: Karen Fishman
Illustrated by: Martha Aviles
Rachel is excited to go spend the holidays with her Italian cousins and beloved Nonna, but is also upset about missing Hanukkah. Her parents assure her that they can still celebrate the holiday and pack up dreidels, chocolate gelt, and candles. They even surprise Rachel with a cool new menorah featuring girl Maccabee warriors.
Potatoes at Turtle Rock
By: Susan Schnur and Anna Schnur-Fishman
Illustrated by: Alex Steele-Morgan
Annie leads her family on a nighttime journey around their farm to celebrate the first night of Hanukkah. At each stop along the way Annie uses riddles (and potatoes) to mark old traditions and start new ones.
Runaway Dreidel!
By: Leslea Newman
Illustrated by: Kyrsten Brooker
In this rhyming tale in the style of “The Night before Christmas,” a family’s preparations for Chanukah are disrupted by a wildly spinning dreidel.
Sadie’s Almost Marvelous Menorah
By: Jamie Korngold
Illustrated by: Julie Fortenberry
A little girl breaks her handmade Hanukkah menorah but learns that, even broken, it can still have a role to play in the holiday celebration.
The Story of Chanukah
By: Francis Barry Silberg
Illustrated by: Pamela R. Levy
A simple history of the celebration of Chanukah, including the corruption of the Temple, the bravery of Judah the Maccabee, and the miraculous eight-day flame that reminded the Jews of God’s light and their freedom to worship.
ZigaZak! A Magical Hanukkah Night
By: Eric A. Kimmel
Illustrated by: Jon Goodell
Two evil spirits wreak havoc on the town of Brisk’s Hanukkah celebration, until the town’s wise rabbi puts a stop to their mischief.
A look at books to help your students and children understand Memorial Day and the military.
Told in rhyming text, a boy accompanies his grandfather on the Rolling Thunder Ride for Freedom, a demonstration in Washington, DC, on Memorial Day that pays tribute to American veterans.
Using the alphabet format, this picture book describes the many situations and experiences that military families, especially their children encounter. For example, history, rank, and quarters are explained.
Discusses the U.S. military- Army, Marine Corps, Navy, Air Force, and Coast Guard. Includes information on military uniforms and why American citizens choose to serve.
Nine-year-old Lizzie writes to her mother, who is deployed overseas during wartime, and includes maps that show her mother what Lizzie has been thinking and doing. Includes nonfiction tips for helping children of military families.
The never-before-told story of the U.S. women’s military corps: the women who fought for the right to defend their country by serving in our armed forces with full military rank and benefits. Using interviews, correspondence, and diaries, as well as archival material, the authors tell the remarkable story of America’s ‘few good women’ who today make up more than 15 percent of the U.S. armed forces and who serve alongside men in almost every capacity.
Follows the emotions of a young boy as he waits at an airport for a family member to return home from serving in the military.
Growing up, my family only recycled when they saw the payoff in cash. Back in the 1970s we would take our bottled soda glasses back to the store for a few cents each. In the 1980s, still soda drinkers, we recycled our soda cans by taking them to the aluminum recycling center. We were helping our planet, right? Well, maybe. Yes, we were recycling, but the main goal was to get the cash. We weren’t exposed to the best reason to recycle. If so, then we would have noticed other ways we could have recycled, such as cardboard boxes and plastics. In a family of five we could have reduced our trash by half had we recycled everything we could. But back in the 1970s and 1980s I don’t remember the green recycling boxes in our town promoting recycling. Even though Earth Day had already been created, my small town wasn’t creating easy ways for its citizens to recycle nor take up the cause. I don’t even remember the Adopt-A-Highway litter pickup program until my late teen years.
Thankfully our country, even our small towns, have become conscious of how important it is to not only recycle, but to conserve water, and find additional ways to protect our planet. We can thank Senator Gaylord Nelson for getting citizens and communities thinking.
According to http://nelsonearthday.net/earth-day/, Gaylord wanted to use the momentum from campus activism in the late 1960s to get students energized for a national day to promote saving our environment. While hoping to get national attention out to other politicians to increase awareness of environmental issues, Gaylord wanted the day to be filled with activities and opportunities for individuals and communities to take part in cleaning and protecting the environment. Even though Gaylord continued to pursue getting the government involved, it never materialized to the extent he had wished. But what Gaylord had accomplished was in some ways better- college students stood behind Gaylord and supported plans of community and individual acts of helping the environment. Their own movements led to other American citizens seeing the importance of protecting our planet for future generations. Individual events led to other events and soon people were consciously aware of the need to save our environment, whether it meant recycling, cleaner water, or limiting air emissions.
Gaylord’s grassroots idea is now part of an annual Earth Day that is not only celebrated in America, but internationally in over 180 countries. His idea proves several things. One, that if you believe in a cause, one person can make a difference. Two, most of the time you will find others who believe in your cause. And third, the health of our planet is important to everyone, for today and for the future.
In the 48 years that have passed since the first Earth Day, many individuals and communities have found ways to make Earth Day a success. Below are some examples of how groups, libraries, schools, and colleges are celebrating Earth Day this year:
Holidays provide extra fun for school classrooms and public libraries. Not only are they a great excuse for fun, out-of-the box activities, but they also provide a wealth of themes and opportunities for lesson plans. It seems that whenever there is a theme attached to learning, children become more involved. It was true in my role as school librarian and I found it true when planning activities for the public library. A St. Patrick’s Day thematic unit offers abundant opportunities for exploring books.
Irish authors such as Eoin Colfer, Marita Conlon-McKenna, Padraic Colum, and C.S. Lewis wrote books perfect for upper elementary readers and Eve Bunting has numerous books for all elementary readers. Younger readers enjoy the adventures of leprechauns. Irish folk tales offer a wonderful way for comparison study when read with folk tales from other countries. Wanting a reading or writing activity? Limericks about Ireland are sure to get children reading, writing, and of course laughing. Any of these are amusing activities for the classroom or the school library.
Public libraries also thrive when Storytime, family fun nights, and afterschool programs promote themed learning. March activities can include “Green” events such as how to grow indoor and outdoor plants, limerick readings, find the “gold” scattered within the stacks, and telling leprechaun stories and Irish folk tales.
As backyards become greener and covered with clover, think about how thematic units can create new sparks of learning for children.
As I undertook this week’s Read & Shine newsletter I was met with anxiety. You see, I love Christmas and love reading about Christmas customs all over the world. Many years ago, I found a small book at a discount store that had a page for each of the many types of Christmas celebrations around the world. I was so excited and couldn’t wait to share it with my elementary-aged daughter. Needless to say, she didn’t find it as fascinating as I did; she was more interested in if Santa would remember to bring her an American Girl doll. Santa did bring the doll, but I still hoped that I had left an impression of how important it is to learn about the many customs around the world.
I didn’t let my daughter’s disinterest stop me from sharing the Christmas customs with others. That same year, as a media specialist at an elementary school, my students would soon find a laminated bulletin board paper Christmas tree taped to the wall, with construction paper ball shaped ornaments, each displaying Merry Christmas in a different language. The children loved trying to guess what language each was. This activity was followed by what Santa’s name is in different countries. I was making progress.
As the years passed, I never gave up on trying to teach my daughter about the different December holidays and customs. A comment here, a trivia question there, always trying to spark an interest. The spark finally lit one year- the year I traced my heritage and came to a generation that I believed was of Jewish descent. This time my daughter was listening. Why the change? Chocolate gelt coins.
So back to all this anxiety. What’s all the anxiety about you ask? It’s how in the world can I share all the great holiday books with you all! All the December holidays celebrate either peace or unity and I’m not in any peaceful state trying to unite a thorough list of all the great holiday books available. But, alas, I will try. There are so many outstanding books that can introduce our children to the special celebrations that are held throughout the world this time of year. There aren’t enough days in December to thoroughly study each, but if we start introducing our children to the many customs and their significance, we will be showing our children that there is still peace and unity.
