Take a walk on a windy day, or just stand outside for a few minutes. Talk about the wind with your children and explore what it does……………. Can you see the wind? How do you know it’s blowing? What does it do to objects and the people around you? What does it do to the trees?… Read More
How many times have you heard children squeal in joy at the sight of a dog or cat, spurring them to run at animals who may or may not be comfortable with strangers? It’s never too early to teach our children that every living creature deserves kindness, and it’s important they also know the safe way… Read More
“My advice to the person suffering from lack of time and from apathy is this: Seek out each day as many as possible of the small joys.” Hermann Hesse The little joys … they are so inconspicuous and scattered so liberally throughout our daily lives that many times, we hardly notice… Read More
They’re slithery and scaly, and they have icky, flicking tongues and creepy, unblinking eyes. What’s to like about a snake? You’d be surprised! ********************** Author – Nicola Davies Illustrator – Luciano Lozano This little girl has a problem. Her family doesn’t have dogs, or cats, or birds—they have snakes! And she really, really, really really doesn’t… Read More
Pete the Cat teaches us that sometimes we can make the situation better through our attitude, and sometimes by the way in which we solve the problem. Being content with what you have is an enduring lesson in this story. Pete the Cat’s contentment is clearly not only with his shoes but also with his life. … Read More
Differences and Friendship Many ancient philosophers saw the differences between two friends to be essential for their friendship. Aristotle saw the value of differences between a pair of friends to be based on their mirroring effect. You can analyze yourself by comparing yourself to your friends. You might ask yourself what you admire in your friends,… Read More
Fairy tales have always had a life of their own. I love that they have grown and evolved around the world. It is because of this growth and adaptability, that the fairy tale has become one of the world’s most important literary traditions. More recently, we have seen many humorous adaptations of well known fairy tales. … Read More
SUZANNE SIEGEL and THE ART OF COLLAGE I am very pleased to introduce you to Suzanne Siegel. I love Suzanne’s work, and when I saw her “Nest in Place IV”, I wanted to get to know her better. So, I wrote to her, and she graciously agreed to both share her work with us and the… Read More
One of the valuable ways to support your children’s healthy development is as easy as opening the door and going outside. There is no question that regular, frequent opportunities to play outdoors help support the development of our children’s cognitive, social and physical development. Going outdoors, in the fresh air—whether on a windy, cold winter day or… Read More
“Forest Has a Song” offers an opportunity to combine our love of natural places with poetry. Consider using this dear book as a springboard for writing a Mask Poem with your children. A mask poem is one that is written from the point of view of an animal, an object or even a person. Honor a… Read More
