Meet My New Book ~ First Steps in Missions!

First Steps in Missions, Ideas and Activities for Preschoolers and Teachers

 by Angie Quantrell @AngieQuantrell

I'm honored to announce the release of First Steps in Missions, Ideas and Activities for Preschoolers and Teachers, Volume 22.

What? You already have a copy?

True. It was available in late summer. I was barely available. Thank you for going on without me and getting your copy!

My honey and I were eyebrow deep in cleaning, packing, sorting, storing, and donating our belongings. Why? We sold our home. I should say, God sold our home. In 3 days.

That was a quick sale and left us with no free time to do anything. Except move.

Never fear, we are not homeless. Many of you have already seen the pictures. We are full-time RV'ers living in a solid (though you can feel it move when walking inside), warm (we hope), and quite spacious RV with our 2 crazy kitties. The excitement and adventure is fantastic! Let's just not mention the period of adjustment, shall we?

In the midst of this transition, First Steps in Missions was released. I'm very excited to see this work in print.

In honor of this project, I am going to take a monthly walk through each chapter and area of the world, choose my favorite activity, and flesh out additional ways to use the activity with preschoolers. So much fun!

Coming soon: September fun in the Philippines.

If you would like your own copy, I'm thrilled to direct you on the right paths. First Steps in Missions, Volume 22

Thanks for stopping by!

I Want a Monster! ~ Picture Book & KID KANDY

by Angie Quantrell @AngieQuantrell

I Want a Monster!
By Elise Gravel
(Katherine Tegen Books, 2016)

Baby monsters are cute, right? Just like puppies, kittens, and human babies.

But just like all babies, baby monsters can be counted on to make messes, grow, and engage in all sorts of disastrous activies.

A young girl wants a pet monster. ALL of her friends have one! But where will it stay? What will it eat? Who will take care of it?

Papa finally relents and together they visit the Monsterium. Gus, an adorable baby oogly-wump, goes home to live with the family. And that's when the fun really begins.

Because baby monsters are just like baby-babies. They don't know anything. They do silly things. They don't sleep!

I Want a Monster! is a hilarious picture book. All sorts of mayhem and excitement invade the house when Gus comes home.

Your monsters will love reading I Want a Monster! Just don't be surprised if they want to adopt their own baby monsters. If only you could find a monsterium...

KID KANDY:

Create Your Own Monster

Materials: paper, pencil, markers, art supplies

1. Draw your monster - any shape or size.

2. Color in your monster. Add facial details (eyes, teeth, mouth, ears, horns). Remember, you can make it anyway you want. Maybe your monster has only 1 eye! Or 5 ears!

3. What is your monster's name?

4. What does your monster eat? Where does it sleep? What does it like to do?

5. Label your monster with its name. Go tell someone about your new pet!

Thanks for adopting a monster!

Stars ~ Picture Book & KID KANDY

Stars

By Angie Quantrell @AngieQuantrell

Stars
By Mary Lyn Ray
Illustrated by Marla Frazee
(Beach Lane Books, 2011)

I love shapes! Stars are one of the first shapes that children learn to identify. Stars and hearts.

This beautiful picture book is about stars.

Stars tells about stars - the shape, the stars in the sky, the stars in your hand, and the way stars can be used to have fun. A star can make you a sheriff, a princess, or a magical fairy with a wand.

But what about other stars? Flower stars that become favorite fruits, frozen stars that give us snow, and paper stars that mark special days are all different kinds of stars that mean something wonderful is going to happen!

Readers will love the creative imagination and ideas about stars they find in Stars.

KID KANDY:

Make Stars

Stars are sort of difficult to make, but once you learn how, they are fun and easy.

Materials: paper, scissors, markers, glitter glue, scrap paper, sticks, tape, ribbon

Here is how you draw a star.

How to draw a 5-pointed star

Or you can cut out 2 triangles, put one upside down on the other, and make a different star!

How to make a 6-pointed star with 2 triangles

Cut out and decorate your star. I always love to add glitter glue to make things sparkle and shine!

What can you do with a star?

- Tape your star to a stick for a wand or decoration.
- Display your star on the fridge.
- Give your star to a friend.
- Make a hat or crown with your star.
- Put your star on the calendar to mark a special day (your birthday?).
- Hang several stars on ribbon to make a wall decoration.

Have a starry day!

Little Red Gliding Hood ~ Picture Book & KID KANDY

Doesn't that title sound vaguely familiar?

Little Red Gliding Hood
Story by Tara Lazar
Pictures by Troy Cummings
(Random House, 2015)

Little Red's skates are worn out and ready to fall apart. Without her trusty skates, she won't be able to visit Grandma every Sunday. But the upcoming skating competition first prize is a pair of brand new gold skates!

Little Red is a great skater, but she doesn't have a partner. Everyone else is matched up, but who will Little Red find to join her for the competition?

Fairy tale characters and stories abound in this fractured tale. Readers will laugh and enjoy the antics of Little Red and her friends as she finds an unexpected partner. Dare we say the bad guy turns good?

Delightful text and imaginative illustrations come together to make one great picture book. Both adults and children will love Little Red Gliding Hood.

KID KANDY:

Make Up Your Own Silly Fairy Tale

1. Choose a favorite fairy tale. Think of the characters and the problems they encounter in the story.

2. Now, choose one thing to change. You can:

- change a name
- change the problem
- change the setting (where the story takes place)
- add new characters
- mix two fairy tales together

3. Make up your own fairy tale.

4. Tell your new silly fairy tale to a friend or a sibling. Did they laugh?

Storytelling is fun, isn't it?

Woodpecker Wham! ~ Picture Book & KID KANDY

Nonfiction picture book that delights and informs!

By Angie Quantrell @AngieQuantrell

Woodpecker Wham!
By April Pulley Sayre
Illustrated by Steve Jenkins
(Henry Holt and Company, 2015)

Woodpecker Wham! is a delightful book told in rhyme. Readers will enjoy wonderful, bright illustrations about the life cycle and habits of woodpeckers that fill the pages of this picture book. Text written with descriptive words and words of sounds made by woodpeckers imparts information in a simple and clean way.

I loved reading the end notes that gave interesting facts and explanations about woodpecker habits. Why do woodpeckers 'ant'? Where do woodpeckers nest? How do they secure their homes? Fascinating.

Learning about birds? Woodpecker Wham! is the perfect book to read with children.

KID KANDY:

Bird Hunt

1. Look at the illustrations of Woodpecker Wham! Remember the colors, shapes, and habits so you can use them to help you locate woodpeckers.

2. Find a pair of binoculars and put on sturdy shoes.

3. Ask a parent or older sibling to go with you.

4. Walk around your yard, neighborhood, or in a wooded area and scout for woodpeckers. You may need to listen for their calls or 'pecking,' check tree trunks for nesting cavities, or watch for their particular flight patterns. Once you see them, you will figure out how to easily spot them in the future.

5. Take photos with your mind! When you get home, check out the book again and see if you saw one of the featured woodpeckers. Or look in a bird identification book to find the bird you saw.

6. Draw a picture of the bird you saw and where you spotted it. If you didn't find any, don't give up. Draw a picture of the birds you want to find.

7. Keep looking.

Birds are amazing! I can always tell when woodpeckers (we have flickers in our neighborhood) are racing around. Both woodpeckers and jays are loud! 

Happy bird hunting.

Water Is Water ~ Picture Book & KID KANDY

Water Is Water

By Angie Quantrell @AngieQuantrell

Water Is Water, A Book About the Water Cycle
By Miranda Paul
Illustrations by Jason Chin
(Roaring Book Press, 2015)

Water Is Water, A Book About the Water Cycle, is a beautifully illustrated picture book featuring poetic text that invites readers to live the life of water.

I discovered this book during March Madness for picture books, ReFoReMo (Read For Research Month) and fell in love. Water is the main topic, but the storyline is about children playing throughout the seasons in the different forms water takes.

Fog, rain, snow, hail, water, steam, clouds, puddles, ice. Don't fear, this book does not read as educational but is engaging and full of rich language. Fun water facts and more about water features at the end of the book add drops of trivia about water for interested readers.

Water Is Water is the perfect book for easy reading and fun learning at home or in a classroom.

KID KANDY:

Take a Bath

Really. Take a bubble bath. Play for a bit with plastic scoops, cups, and funnels.

~ Observe the water. How does it move? What does it smell like? How does it feel? Taste a little bit from the faucet.

~ Look for different forms of water. Do you have drips falling from your hair (like rain), fog on your mirrors (steam), and puddles on the floor? You probably won't find ice or snow, but that's ok.

~ Hang your towel after you dry off. How does it feel? Come back the next day. How does it feel now? Where did the water go?

~ List the different forms of water you see around your house.

Water is pretty amazing, isn't it?

What is your favorite form of water? Why?
I'd love to hear your answers.

Sunflower House ~ Picture Book & KID KANDY

Sunflower House
By Eve Bunting
Illustrated by Kathryn Hewitt
(Voyager Books, 1996)

I have been reading tons of picture books lately. At least my back considers the weight of them to be tons as I haul them back and forth to the library.

Sunflower House is a colorful story about a child who plants a sunflower house with his parents. I suppose that is where the name for the book comes from, right?

Father and child first removed grass to make a large circle, leaving the middle of the circle grassy. Seeds were then planted in the soil and the waiting began.

Once the sunflowers began to grow tall, the child invited friends to play in the sunflower house. Eventually, the sunflowers grew so large and wide that the parents no longer fit inside and the flower house became a kids-only place to enjoy nature.

I love the idea of creating a fun space for children by planting sunflowers. I am considering it for this summer...if I can find a place that my husband won't mind too much if the grass is removed and seeds upon seeds will eventually fall and resprout next spring!

KID KANDY:

Plant a Sunflower House

Materials: sunflower seeds, large area to plant, yard tools

1. Read Sunflower House. Once you see the pictures you will know how to plant one.

2. Choose a sunny location for your sunflower house. They love the sun. Remove grass to form a ring of dirt around a circle of grass. Make your ring at least 4 feet in diameter. Sunflowers get HUGE!

3. Plant seeds in the dirt. Water them and wait.

4. Once the seeds have sprouted, watch them grow. You can pull weeds but only after you make sure you are not pulling up sunflowers.

5. After the sunflowers are as tall as you, the house is ready for play. Of course, it will keep growing, especially if you have planted JUMBO sunflowers.

6. What to do inside a sunflower house?

- rest on your back and look at the sky
- watch birds that flock to eat the seeds
- listen to the bees buzzing as they pollinate the flowers
- have a picnic in the sunflower house
- invite friends over to play
- campout overnight in the sunflower house
- look for insects that live in and around the flowers
- draw your sunflowers or the sunflower house
- use a magnifying glass to look really close at the plants and animals
- take photos of your house

Isn't that a fun project? What will you grow next summer?

Thanks for reading!

Meet My Baby - The Stack (of Paper)

The completed manuscript with sources, sketches, and documents

This is what I've been up to. Instead of blogging.

There is not much time left in my days (weeks, months) after planning, writing, editing, printing, sourcing, compiling, emailing, packaging, and mailing this baby.

Oh, yes. This is my baby. The first half of a 12-month activity book for preschoolers and missions has been delivered (emailed and mailed) to my faithful preschool resource team at Woman's Missionary Union.

The completed manuscript package and its twin - the emergency copy that can be mailed if the PO loses the original

Now they get to do their huge part.

And I will continue on with the above steps for the second half of the book.

The writing life is grand.   

A glimpse of the chaos that is my office, including desk, side table, and floor

KID KANDY = Book + Fun Activity

Dinner and dessert. Book (dinner) + dessert (fun activity). Well-balanced literary diet.

Welcome to a new feature that will be found on Book Blab - Blithering By a Book Lover. KID KANDY.

Due to my love of children's books, children, and their families, I often blog about great picture and chapter books. But recently, I grew interested in adding extra ideas for fun with kids that tie in to the theme of the book that is being featured. Over time, I realized that I need to make it a part of every blog about kids books. Read a book. Have some fun.

KID KANDY is a book extension feature for kids and their families. If a child has a fun activity to do after reading a book (or before reading a book), the ideas and information in the book are more likely to stick. We know that the more kids love books, the more they read. And the more they read, the more they internalize things like story structure, character development, language, conflict, and creativity. And the love of both reading and exploring is encouraged to grow deep and rich in the life of kids.

Some things that will help you use KID KANDY:

~ Not every idea will appeal to you or your child. Make up something else fun!

~ Let your child be the leader in making the KID KANDY activities work or evolve. They love being in charge.

~ Adjust the suggestions to fit your circumstances. We don't all have the same resources, experience, or chunks of time.

~ Be flexible. Some things might not work out. Laugh and go on. I bet kids will remember the mistakes and flops more than the perfect endings.

~ Above all, read books together. Shared love will run all over those dog-eared, food-smeared, mangled and torn pages. Books are like the Velveteen Rabbit. The books that show the most signs of wear and tear are the ones that are most loved. They are the ones that become real in your child's heart.

Enjoy KID KANDY.

Feel free to share the ideas found in this blog. I would love to hear how your KID KANDY escapades work out.

KID KANDY UPDATE: KID KANDY has been a regular feature on my blog for close to three months, though the name did not come about until January. I hope you and your children are enjoying the fun books and activities. Thanks for reading!

Angie Quantrell writes picture books, blogs, takes photos, and chases her naughty kitties off of the counters. Books come to life in her imagination and litter all spaces in her home. If it weren't for all of her books, Angie could live in a one room house.

Introducing KID KANDY

Welcome to a new feature that will be found on Book Blab - Blithering By a Book Lover. KID KANDY.

Due to my love of children's books, children, and their families, I often blog about great picture and chapter books. But recently, I grew interested in adding extra ideas for fun with kids that tie in to the theme of the book that is being featured. Over time, I realized that I need to make it a part of every blog about kids books. Read a book. Have some fun.

KID KANDY is a book extension feature for kids and their families. If a child has a fun activity to do after reading a book (or before reading a book), the ideas and information in the book are more likely to stick. We know that the more kids love books, the more they read. And the more they read, the more they internalize things like story structure, character development, language, conflict, and creativity. And the love of both reading and exploring is encouraged to grow deep and rich in the life of kids.

Some things that will help you use KID KANDY:

~ Not every idea will appeal to you or your child. Make up something else fun!

~ Let your child be the leader in making the KID KANDY activities work or evolve. They love being in charge.

~ Adjust the suggestions to fit your circumstances. We don't all have the same resources, experience, or chunks of time.

~ Be flexible. Some things might not work out. Laugh and go on. I bet kids will remember the mistakes and flops more than the perfect endings.

~ Above all, read books together. Shared love will run all over those dog-eared, food-smeared, mangled and torn pages. Books are like the Velveteen Rabbit. The books that show the most signs of wear and tear are the ones that are most loved. They are the ones that become real in your child's heart.

Enjoy KID KANDY.

Feel free to share the ideas found in this blog. I would love to hear how your KID KANDY escapades work out.

Angie Quantrell writes picture books, blogs, takes photos, and chases her naughty kitties off of the counters. Books come to life in her imagination and litter all spaces in her home. If it weren't for all of her books, Angie could live in a one room house.

Thanksgiving is For Giving Thanks

Thanksgiving is For Giving Thanks by Margaret Sutherland
(Scholastic Inc., 2000)

Thanksgiving is for giving thanks! This book perfectly gives examples that young children can identify with and understand. I am all for books that help preschoolers and young readers learn about some of the things we do as adults and families.

Like Thanksgiving. Why do we have Thanksgiving? Why should we be thankful? What is thankful?

I totally agree with the need for preschoolers to begin on that lifelong journey of getting outside of themselves and thinking about other people. The idea of saying Thank you! is an excellent skill and I believe, a necessary component of good manners.

We enjoy reading Thanksgiving is For Giving Thanks and talking about things for which we are thankful. It's the right time of the year for giving thanks.

(Though, like Christmas, we should act like it is Thanksgiving all the year round.)

Thanks, Margaret Sutherland, for this simple, delightful book.

Being Thankful Thanksgiving Activity

How about a countdown to Thanksgiving activity? Let's stretch out the thinking-about-being-thankful fun.

1. Check the calendar to see how many days there are in November until Thanksgiving Day. Or you could just use the total number of days in November - 30.

2. Make a construction or scrapping paper chain with your chosen number of links, one per day.

3. Attach the chain to a turkey picture or family photo or something that is important to your family. Set an empty glass jar beside the chain and picture.

4. Each day, tear off one chain link. Ask your child to share one thing for which he or she is thankful. Print what is said on the link. You can let each child list something and add them all to the same link. Put the link in the glass jar.

5. Continue through your number of chain links, taking time to be thankful each day. At the end of the days, look at the filled jar. Discuss all of the things for which you and your family are thankful.

6. Pray and give thanks for all good things.

It is good to give thanks to the LORD,
And to sing praises to Your name, O Most High.
~ Psalm 92:1

Happy Thanksgiving!

Red Leaf, Yellow Leaf

Red Leaf, Yellow Leaf
by Lois Ehlert (Scholastic Inc., 1991)

Red Leaf, Yellow Leaf is one of my all-time favorite seasonal books to read to and with children.

Why? The number one reason is the totally engaging illustrations. A combination of photography, still life, paper cut-outs, painting, and I don't know what else creates a captivating collage that tells the story.

What story? Ehlert masterfully tells the story of a sugar maple tree (hence the maple leaves on the front cover). This maple tree comes from a seed tossed by the winds in the woods.

Who tells the story? The narrator, a young child, loves her tree. (Or his tree - gender neutral.) She wants to tell the reader all about her tree.

What about science? The sugar maple life cycle is a part of the story. The other part of the story is how the tree arrives in the yard of the little girl. Helpful hints on planting live trees and ideas for documenting facts about live trees are included as a part of the story.

What else? Not only is the life cycle of a tree covered, but Ehlert shares the story of how a tree in the woods is processed, purchased, and transplanted to a yard.

Every time I read this book, I want a sugar maple tree. Each fall, I walk my neighborhood, enjoying the colorful leaves and helicopter seeds. Every spring I wonder how I can make a soon-to-be-giant sugar maple tree fit into my tiny yard.

I make due with reading Red Leaf, Yellow Leaf. And I walk the neighborhood.


Three favorite leaf activities (For the kids. Of course.):

1. Sugar maple leaf art. Cut large maple leaves from white construction paper. Working on a washable surface, pour small amounts of light corn syrup on a leaf shape. Help drop a few drops of red and yellow food coloring on the syrup. Using fingers, spread and mix the syrup and food coloring until the leaf is covered. Let dry. You will have shiny colorful fall leaves.
P.S. Aprons and wet washcloths are helpful for this tasty activity.

2. Real leaf decorations. Go on a leaf walk. Gather beautiful specimens of brightly colored leaves. Take home. Layer between newspaper. Stack heavy books on top. Let dry until completely dry. Check every few days or so. Pull out the leaves. Decorate the house, table tops, windows, and everywhere else you want to display fall beauty.

3. Make a leaf mountain. Rake your own or the neighbor's leaves. Make a leaf mountain. Jump into it. Have a leaf battle. Hide each other. Burrow beneath the leaves. Rake into a pile and repeat.
Tip: I have been known to approach neighbors who have plenty of leaves and ask if I can take some of their leaves. They are delighted to share.

Apples ~ 10 Fun Activities to Do in the Fall

Apples Grow on Trees, Discovering My World Series by Melvin and Gilda Berger (Scholastic Inc., 2009)
Apples, Welcome Fall Series by Marilyn Easton (Scholastic Inc., 2011)
apples by Samantha Berger and Betsey Chessen (Scholastic Inc., 1998)

Apples, apples, apples. Fall and apples go together. Apple season is one of my favorite times of the year.

Scholastic Inc. has published several user friendly apple books. I love reading them with my grands and my students. The illustrations are mostly photos and works of art and truly add to the beauty and readability of the books.

Apples Grow on Trees is a photo journey through an apple orchard. From the tree to the store to the kitchen to the tummy is the path the apples take. Simple sentences in text boxes help beginning readers as they locate the words and text features.

Apples (Welcome to Fall Series) shows wonderful photographs of the life cycle of an apple. Bold vocabulary words and photo captions are perfect for readers wanting to learn more about apples. This book fits both in the literacy and science category.

apples takes a different approach. Photographs of apple art (by real artists) are used as illustrations. This book is an apple counting book. The reader admires the artwork of artists and then counts how many apples can be found on each page. Simple numbers are included. Information about each work of art, the artist, and questions for discussion are included at the end of the book.

Apples are a great theme for literacy, math, science, and even social studies.

A few fun activities to do with apples:

1. Who's got the apple?
Play this game (similar to Duck, Duck, Goose). Sit in a circle. Have IT walk around with an apple. As IT walks, she says, "Tree, tree, tree, apple!"
When IT says "apple," she puts the apple behind the chosen child and runs around the circle. The child with the apple grabs the apple and chases IT. Of course, the first child sits in the empty spot.

2. Bob for apples. Use small apples for this activity. If you are worried about germs, hang individual apples from a tree branch with string. Let each child try to eat an apple without using his or her hands.

3. Make caramel apples.

4. Apple slingshot. Visit an apple orchard and gather the thinned apples that have fallen to the orchard floor. (Ask permission first!) Make a slingshot by attaching stretchy rubber tubing to two solid fence posts. Add a piece of old sock for the apple holder in the center of the tubing.
To slingshot an apple, hold it in the sock, walk backwards to stretch out the tubing, and release! You may need to adjust the tubing or sling.
Set up targets or boxes and aim for them.
Be a good steward. Collect used apples (or their pieces). Feed to cows, horses, or chickens.

5. Make apple cider or juice. Many family farms, pumpkin patches, and corn mazes have areas where families can make juice. It's messy, fun, and tasty.

6. Tour an apple orchard. Again, this time of year has ample opportunities to discover a farm center that gives hayrides or walking tours through fruit orchards. If you live south of apple country, search for online videos about apple orchards.

7. Decorate with apples. Wash, polish, and display apples in your home (after you have visited a farmer's market or store to select some delectable apples). Use fun fabric, bowls, candles, and so on. The best part? You can eat your decorations.

8. Make an apple pinata. Inflate a big balloon. Cut strips of newspaper. Drag the strips through runny glue made with water and flour. This is a messy job! Cover the balloon (several layers) and let it dry. Cut a small hole in the top. Pop and remove the balloon. Cover the apple with your color choice of tissue paper squares (yellow, red, green). Add a construction paper stem and leaf. Fill with candy or treats. Hang with thin rope.
Use the pinata at a fall party or celebration.

9. Paint some apples. Dig out the watercolor paints. Use a pencil to draw some apples, trees, pumpkins, and whatever else you want. Explore color mixing as you use watercolors to paint the picture. Search online for apple images for ideas on how artists use watercolor paints. Dry and display.
It's lots of fun to use real watercolor paints. Add several dabs of tubed paints to a palette. Mix, swirl, and add to wet or dry watercolor paper drawings of apples. Kids love to explore the differences between wet painting (on wet paper) and dry painting (on dry paper).

10. Make apple tarts. Use refrigerated biscuit dough for the base. After washing hands, let children flatten biscuits on pieces of parchment paper. Peel, core, and slice some apples. Give kiddos a butter knife and let them chop the slices. Put the pieces on top of the biscuits. Add a dab of butter and cinnamon to the top of each. Bake as directed on biscuit container.
Cool slightly and enjoy! This is one of my favorite fall treats to make with children. It smells and tastes so good.


I hope you enjoy fall and apples as much as I do. Here's to apple fun.

An apple a day keeps the doctor away!

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Spider on the Floor - Books You Can Sing

Spider on the Floor by Raffi
Illustrated by True Kelley (Alfred A. Knopf, 2002, First Board Book)

What's that scribbling across your neck? Does it have eight legs? Little furry feet? Sticky webbing? Aaahhhhhhhhh . . .

Fall is soon to be upon us.

With that seasonal change, it seems that spiders are dashing to get inside before the first freeze. Baby spiders have grown up into big, hairy scurrying arachnids. Spider on the Floor is the perfect bridge between screaming in terror as a spider scuttles across your bare toes and mollifying your children so that they can accept the importance of spiders in the food chain systems of the Earth!

Children love Raffi and his Songs to Read. Or as I phrase it, Books You Can Sing.

Meet the spider. On the floor.

This voraciously web-spinning spider takes on bigger and bigger things - until he catches all of you. And he jumps off. To start all over again.

Fingers work great for the spider - which travels up one's body. Or, buy those plastic spider rings to use while singing and acting out the song. They work perfect.

Listen to "Spider on the Floor" on Youtube or purchase a CD that contains this delightful and fun children's song. Either way, it will be a definite hit!

And while you're at it, here are some fun activities to do about spiders.

1. Get or make a bug catcher cage. Go on a spider hunt to catch one. As per lesson learned at personal experience, release one spider before adding another spider, or they may fight and eat each other! You can try to catch prey for them and watch them suck out the juices.

2. As soon as the dew starts collecting in the cool mornings, go on a web walk. Take a camera. Watch for beautiful droplet-decorated webs. Shoot away.

3. Read some books. The libraries are full of great spider books. Check out an identification book so that you can name that beautiful guy hanging out in the garden.

4. Make a spider. Use a Styrofoam ball for the body (you can paint it whatever color you want). Add chenille stems for legs (8, remember?). Glue on googly eyes (again, 8 is the perfect number) and short pieces of chenille stems for the pedipalps (those little finger things by the spider's mouth that help hold the prey) and chelicerae (sharp beak looking parts near the mouth) . Hang from the ceiling with string or hide in a spot to scare someone!

5. Start a nature journal. Sketch your live spider on the first page. Add details like where you found it, how large it is, and so on. Color it with colored pencils. Add to your journal each time you find an interesting specimen.

6. Need I say web? Make your own spider web (get permission first) by stringing masking tape back and forth on the walls down a hallway. Try and navigate the web crossing without getting stuck!


Have fun with those eight-legged arachnids of the scary category. "There's a spider on the floor, on the floor. . .

Thanks, Raffi.

Mouse Count

Mouse Count by Ellen Stoll Walsh (Scholastic Inc., 1991)

I was recently talked into repeatedly reading this book.

While attempting to sort through boxes of books, with the help of two preschool-aged grands, I found this favorite.

So I read it.

They were glued to the illustrations and story line. Both grands were rapt with attention. Upon completion of reading Mouse Count, I was given my favorite response to a great book.

"Read it again, Nana!"

So we did. Again. And again.

You can't beat a good book. You just have to enjoy it.

Try one of these activities to add additional enjoyment to reading Mouse Count:

1. Wash out that empty peanut butter plastic jar and lid. Collect 10 small mice, 1 plastic snake, and 1 big rock. TOY mice, I might add. Act out the story! Count forwards and backwards.
~ I just realized, after watching my kittens, that cat toy mice would be the perfect size for this activity.

2. Use neutral colors (tan, brown, black, gray) and let your child sponge paint large sheets of thick paper. Dry. Trace ovals on the back and help cut out mouse shapes. Chop paper scraps for tails and feet and glue them on. Use a permanent marker for eyes, mouth, and whiskers. Tape together painted paper scraps to make a snake.
~ Retell the story.
~ Add magnets to the back and tell the story on a magnetic surface. (SUPERVISE magnets. Choking hazard for younger children).

3. Have fun acting this out on a large scale. Use a huge box as the jar. Add a big stuffed snake. Draw whiskers and nose on your child's face with an eyeliner pencil. Tie a piece of rope to a belt loop on the back of her pants for a tail. Take turns being the mouse and the snake.

4. Mouse snack: Place half of a pear cut side down on a plate. Add raisin eyes, mouth, and ears to the small end. Cut a strip of cheese for a tail and place on the big end. Cut a snake from a piece of bread. Glue on raisin eyes with a dab of peanut butter. Eat the story!

5. Rubber stamp-a-holic? Get out a mouse, snake, jar, and rock stamp. Show your child how to stamp on paper. Let him recreate the story with stamps. Add markers or crayons and help color the picture.

6. Play dough and plastic play dough tools make Mouse Count play time fun. Show how to roll a ball with the dough. Shape into an oval. Roll tiny balls for eyes and a long rope for a tail. Use a plastic knife to add whiskers and mouth. Roll a larger rope for the snake. Add a plastic jar for the story retell.

Count, count, count all the ways you have fun!

The Three Billy-Goats Gruff

The Three Billy-Goats Gruff
A Norwegian Folktale with Woodcuts by Susan Blair (Scholastic Book Services, 1963)

"Read it again, Nana, again," exclaimed 2.75 year-old Khloe.

Classics will always bring that response from children. Especially if readers adhere to the strict requirement of utilizing different voices, sound effects, and actions. Guaranteed.

Some fun activities to do after reading (and rereading) The Three Billy-Goats Gruff:

~ Use blocks to build a bridge. Build on pieces of green, brown, and blue felt for setting the scene. Dig out the plastic farm goats and some ugly alien toy for re-enacting the story.

~ Use paper plates to make goat and troll masks. Cut out eye and mouth holes. Glue (and staple) on ears, horns, whiskers, beards, and so on. Use elastic or ribbons to tie in place. Add pieces of rope or leather to back of pants for tails. The bridge? A table for the troll to hide under.

~ Make play dough. Add sticks, rocks, plastic farm goats, and a troll figure. Build the set and act out the story.

~ Check out and watch a video version of The Three Billy-Goats Gruff from the library. While you are there, check out different versions of the same story. Read and compare them all. Vote for the favorite. Talk about illustrations and differences in books with the same story.

~ Fold a large sheet of construction paper (or take apart a brown paper grocery sack) into six sections. Let children draw each part of the story with markers.

*The troll hiding under the bridge.
*Little Billy-Goat Gruff tripping over the bridge.
*Middle Billy-Goat Gruff tripping over the bridge.
*Big Billy-Goat Gruff tripping over the bridge.
*Big Billy-Goat Gruff butting the troll off the bridge into the river.
*Three Billy-Goats getting fat on the hillside.

Really, kids love to act out this story! Beware, as you may soon be drafted to become any one of the characters.

Families on Mission, Ideas for Teaching Your Preschooler to Love, Share, and Care

Families on Mission, Ideas for Teaching Your Preschooler to Love, Share, and Care by Angie Quantrell (Woman's Missionary Union, New Hope Publishing, 2005)

Families on Mission, Ideas for Teaching Your Preschooler to Love, Share, and Care was written when I was deep in the midst of preschool and early childhood education. After teaching four and five-year-olds for several years, I was full of ideas of ways to involve preschoolers in missions. This book is a catalog of simple activities for families to do along with their young children.

For preschoolers, missions is loving, caring, and sharing. Learning to reach out to other people in loving ways, helping them, praying for them, and caring for them, are important concepts that families need to teach and live out as they raise children that grow up to continue doing the same thing. The world is really a small place. Becoming a caring member of any community is important in our world.

Loving, caring, sharing, praying, giving, doing, helping, my friends, my church, my neighborhood, and my world are the themes for the eleven chapters in this book. Each topic has multiple activities, ideas, and suggestions for parents. This book is also appropriate for teachers, grandparents, families, daycare workers, and anyone else who works with young children and wants to model a lifestyle of reaching out and loving others. The ideas are geared for young children. Some activities revolve around the nuclear family. Other ideas involve extended family, church members, or community members.

Make a difference in the life of your preschooler. Choose and adapt the ideas for your situation. Have fun!

Enjoy missions - loving, caring, sharing, praying - with your preschooler.