In this Caledecott Honor book, author Robert McCloskey tells the story of a mom and her little girl named Sal who have an unexpected adventure with a Mama Bear and her cub. Both pairs are on a mountain searching for blueberries. Sal’s mom wants to pick a big tin pail full of juicy berries to can for the winter. Sal can only think about filling her tummy with the berries right now. Mama Bear and baby also want to fill up their tummies – also to prepare for the winter ahead. In this tale, with a whole section that is reminiscent of P.D. Eastman’s “Are You My Mother?,” Sal and her Mom get … [Read more...]
Miss Rumphius - #JewishBookFun4Kids #1
Miss Rumphius by Barbara Cooney has a magical cadence that, just maybe, inspired our daughter to travel widely and to plant flowers – including lupines. The story begins, “The Lupine Lady lives in a small house overlooking the sea. In between the rocks around her house grow blue and purple and rose-colored flowers.” As a little girl, Alice lived by the sea, where she watched sailing ships. In fact, her grandfather had come to America on one of these ships. He was an artist, making figureheads for the prows of ships and painting pictures. Sometimes, Alice helped him paint in the … [Read more...]
6 Summer Kid Reads Plus Activities
We’re re-running some of our favorite summertime posts. Enjoy! Ahh. Summer time and reading. The perfect combo. Here are six summer kid reads with activities. Enjoy! Reading is one of the great pleasures of summer. When I was 10, I was allowed to walk the eight blocks to our neighborhood library. I’d climb the marble stairs to the children’s section, select some titles that called to me, and settle into a comfy chair in the corner as the large fans wafted cool air around the room. On the walk home, I’d sometimes stop at the High’s Dairy for an ice cream cone. I can't provide the … [Read more...]
5 Fun Kitchen Activities for a Summer Shabbat
About this time of the summer, you start seeing articles about how to help your child hang onto math and reading skills over the hot, lazy months. Spending time in the kitchen is the perfect solution. Here are five fun kitchen activiites, perfect for a summer Shabbat. I’m with Grandma’s Briefs blogger Lisa about all the wonderful reasons to bake with your children or grandkids -- from reading recipes to measuring to learning fractions to sequencing. Of her eight top reasons to encourage kitchen time together, my three favorites are: Encourages creativity Fun for different ages to … [Read more...]
Jewish Holidays in a Box is Going Digital!
I have big news for 2019! Instead of closing the business, we’re going all digital. In a few months, all of our games and educational materials will be available as easy downloads. And we’ll be adding new products, too. (The one exception: we will be selling our Passover Seder Steps game – in hard copy format – for one more year, through Amazon. I will let you know when it’s back on their site ready for sale.) Thank you to everyone who shared that you wished I could find a way to continue to offer my products. You are the inspiration behind the decision to choose digital as the perfect … [Read more...]
