I like how some authors can weave a pet into their biography and turn out an entertaining story! This book portrays how a child with talent evolved into the great American painter through hard work, respect for his parents, and patience. As a Quaker boy, convincing the community that art was beautiful not shameful required both perseverance and understanding. And Grimalkin? His loyal pet provided fur for his brushes.
Benjamin West is sometimes called "The Father of American Painting". You can find his pictures at the website of the National Gallery of Art.
Here is a link to his picture entitled "Penn's Treaty with the Indians."
http://explorepahistory.com/displayimage.php?imgId=1-2-1E6
Marguerite Henry is the author of many beloved horse books such as the Newbery winner Misty of Chincoteage.
Wednesday, November 14, 2012
Sunday, October 28, 2012
The Ugly Duckling
Oh dear, it looks like I took the entire summer off and then some! Literature for building character has been a career-long goal and a life-long experience (begun at birth), so this blog is destined to continue on for the rest of my life - despite any lapses.
I am picking it up on the occasion of my youngest daughter's 30th birthday with the fairy tale about the ugly duckling. In this tale by Hans Christian Anderson, the big egg in mother duck's nest produces a large gray baby duck that does not look like the others. As a result this "duckling" spends the first part of life suffering from taunts and isolation. However, there comes the day when the true swan nature becomes manifest, first to the swan and then to everyone else.
When she was a little girl, my daughter thought of herself in this way. She would notice things about herself such as that she learned to tell time a little later than others (so what! but to her it was a difference...), she loved to write late at night rather than to read like her older sister, and she had the usual ups and downs with friends that all children pass through. While we understood and recognized the beauty of her unique virtues, she had to grow into this realization herself. One evening at the dinner table we were talking about how each child had a metaphor to symbolize their unique process of growth. Beginning with the oldest we settled upon a pearl, an oak, and a lion cub. When we came to the youngest she herself blurted out: "and I am the swan!" We were amazed at the self-awareness. We had known about her struggles to accept herself and we could not believe the wisdom that came flowing forth in her exclamation. She was not even totally aware of how insightful she was being. But it was true - in other areas of her life we could see that she was becoming happy in her own skin. Self worth came not from comparisons but by contentment.
And herein is the lesson from The Ugly Duckling: with patience, ones true nature WILL come out. Like the swan, each child can eventually spread their wings and join their majestic kin who float along the waters, serving as a source of delight for others. Versions of this story abound in anthologies, picture books, and - in those treasures of treasures - classic fairy tale collections. To illustrate the beauty of well-written fairy tales, here are some translated excerpts from Andersen's Danish version in his story published in 1844.
"...The duckling had never seen such beautiful birds, dazzlingly white with long, graceful necks...As the ugly little duckling watched them mount higher and higher up in the air, he felt a strange sensation...When they were out of sight, he dived down to the bottom of the waters, and when he surfaced, he was almost beside himself with excitement. He had no idea who these birds were, nor did he know anything about their destination. Yet they were more precious to him than any birds he had ever known...
...One day, the sun began to shine again, and the larks began to sing. Spring had arrived in all its beauty...Then all at once he decided to try his wings. They whirred much louder then before, and they carried him away swiftly. Almost before he knew it, he found himself in a large garden. The apple trees were in full blossom, and the fragrant lilacs bent their long green branches down on a stream that wound its way across a smooth lawn. It was so lovely here in all the freshness of early spring! From a nearby thicket, three beautiful white swans emerged, ruffling their feathers and floating lightly over the still waters. The duckling recognized the splendid creatures...
...What did he discover in the clear surface beneath him? He saw his own image, and he was no longer a clumsy, gray bird, ugly and unpleasant to look at - no, he was himself a swan!...
...He now felt positively glad to have endured so much hardship and adversity. It helped him appreciate all the happiness and beauty surrounding him...The three great swans swam around the newcomer and stroked his neck with their beaks...
...He felt quite humbled, and he tucked his head under his wing - he himself hardly knew why. He was so very happy, but not a bit proud, for a good heart is never proud."
From the book The Annotated Classic Fairy Tales. Edited by Maria Tatar.
Happy 30th Birthday to my youngest daughter - a beautiful swan!
I am picking it up on the occasion of my youngest daughter's 30th birthday with the fairy tale about the ugly duckling. In this tale by Hans Christian Anderson, the big egg in mother duck's nest produces a large gray baby duck that does not look like the others. As a result this "duckling" spends the first part of life suffering from taunts and isolation. However, there comes the day when the true swan nature becomes manifest, first to the swan and then to everyone else.
When she was a little girl, my daughter thought of herself in this way. She would notice things about herself such as that she learned to tell time a little later than others (so what! but to her it was a difference...), she loved to write late at night rather than to read like her older sister, and she had the usual ups and downs with friends that all children pass through. While we understood and recognized the beauty of her unique virtues, she had to grow into this realization herself. One evening at the dinner table we were talking about how each child had a metaphor to symbolize their unique process of growth. Beginning with the oldest we settled upon a pearl, an oak, and a lion cub. When we came to the youngest she herself blurted out: "and I am the swan!" We were amazed at the self-awareness. We had known about her struggles to accept herself and we could not believe the wisdom that came flowing forth in her exclamation. She was not even totally aware of how insightful she was being. But it was true - in other areas of her life we could see that she was becoming happy in her own skin. Self worth came not from comparisons but by contentment.
And herein is the lesson from The Ugly Duckling: with patience, ones true nature WILL come out. Like the swan, each child can eventually spread their wings and join their majestic kin who float along the waters, serving as a source of delight for others. Versions of this story abound in anthologies, picture books, and - in those treasures of treasures - classic fairy tale collections. To illustrate the beauty of well-written fairy tales, here are some translated excerpts from Andersen's Danish version in his story published in 1844.
"...The duckling had never seen such beautiful birds, dazzlingly white with long, graceful necks...As the ugly little duckling watched them mount higher and higher up in the air, he felt a strange sensation...When they were out of sight, he dived down to the bottom of the waters, and when he surfaced, he was almost beside himself with excitement. He had no idea who these birds were, nor did he know anything about their destination. Yet they were more precious to him than any birds he had ever known...
...One day, the sun began to shine again, and the larks began to sing. Spring had arrived in all its beauty...Then all at once he decided to try his wings. They whirred much louder then before, and they carried him away swiftly. Almost before he knew it, he found himself in a large garden. The apple trees were in full blossom, and the fragrant lilacs bent their long green branches down on a stream that wound its way across a smooth lawn. It was so lovely here in all the freshness of early spring! From a nearby thicket, three beautiful white swans emerged, ruffling their feathers and floating lightly over the still waters. The duckling recognized the splendid creatures...
...What did he discover in the clear surface beneath him? He saw his own image, and he was no longer a clumsy, gray bird, ugly and unpleasant to look at - no, he was himself a swan!...
...He now felt positively glad to have endured so much hardship and adversity. It helped him appreciate all the happiness and beauty surrounding him...The three great swans swam around the newcomer and stroked his neck with their beaks...
...He felt quite humbled, and he tucked his head under his wing - he himself hardly knew why. He was so very happy, but not a bit proud, for a good heart is never proud."
From the book The Annotated Classic Fairy Tales. Edited by Maria Tatar.
Happy 30th Birthday to my youngest daughter - a beautiful swan!
Friday, June 1, 2012
Abraham Lincoln - 1
Abe Lincoln Gets His Chance
Frances Cavanah
It is difficult to decide which of the wonderful books about Lincoln I should write about first. I decided it would be the one that I first read. My mother joined a book club on my behalf when I was in elementary school by which I received a book in the mail once a month. Back in the late '50's and early 60's that was a rather unique and spectacular decision on the part of my mother. But she knew a reader when she saw one. (Or was it that this reader became one because of a mother like this? Take heart parents!)
This particular biography of Lincoln was a terrific introduction to the human story and virtue of Abraham Lincoln. Impressions were etched into my mind that have stayed there forever because I was totally engaged with the text: his poor beginnings, the log cabins nestled in woods - first in Kentucky and then in Illinois, the sadness when his mother died, the warm relationship he had with his new mom, his naughty escapades in the cabin with his sister and cousin (he was so tall that he could lift his cousin and turn him upside down so this his cousin could put footprints across the ceiling), his reading by candlelight in the attic, his ability to stand up to bullies, the tale about walking far to return a book - driven by his honesty and conscience. As I ponder this I realize afresh how one good book at the right time in a child's life can have a life-long effect. I have returned to these anecdotes countless times. The value of books, the virtues of honesty and compassion, and a picture of perseverance are forever connected in my mind with Abraham Lincoln.
In recent years, I read this book aloud to a class of fifth graders. So I know it is still being published and I know children still respond to this biography. If you cannot find this title, the following titles are also excellent Lincoln stories for younger children.
Lincoln's Birthday by Clyde Robert Bulla
Bulla's biographies are not stiff or uninteresting in style. This one can be read aloud or read independently by young readers.
Just a Few Words Mr. Lincoln by Jean Fritz.
This tender biography also can be enjoyed by older children. Fritz's work has a wide appeal and acclaim.
Meet Abraham Lincoln by Barbara Cary.
A Step-Up biography, this book is part of Random House publisher's excellent Landmark Biography series. See also Meet...Franklin, Washington, Columbus, King Jr., Jefferson.
Abraham Lincoln. Ingri and Edgar Parin d'Aulaire.
An enduring well-written biography of Lincoln by authors who wrote other quality biographies. This one won the Caldecott Medal in 1940 for its illustrations. The oversized book is worth getting just to see the cover of Lincoln sitting on a split rail fence. Worth owning.
I better stop the list here and continue with another group of books in a Lincoln -2 blog. The second list will pick up where this one left off in level of difficulty and provide samples for those in the middle elementary years.
Frances Cavanah
It is difficult to decide which of the wonderful books about Lincoln I should write about first. I decided it would be the one that I first read. My mother joined a book club on my behalf when I was in elementary school by which I received a book in the mail once a month. Back in the late '50's and early 60's that was a rather unique and spectacular decision on the part of my mother. But she knew a reader when she saw one. (Or was it that this reader became one because of a mother like this? Take heart parents!)
This particular biography of Lincoln was a terrific introduction to the human story and virtue of Abraham Lincoln. Impressions were etched into my mind that have stayed there forever because I was totally engaged with the text: his poor beginnings, the log cabins nestled in woods - first in Kentucky and then in Illinois, the sadness when his mother died, the warm relationship he had with his new mom, his naughty escapades in the cabin with his sister and cousin (he was so tall that he could lift his cousin and turn him upside down so this his cousin could put footprints across the ceiling), his reading by candlelight in the attic, his ability to stand up to bullies, the tale about walking far to return a book - driven by his honesty and conscience. As I ponder this I realize afresh how one good book at the right time in a child's life can have a life-long effect. I have returned to these anecdotes countless times. The value of books, the virtues of honesty and compassion, and a picture of perseverance are forever connected in my mind with Abraham Lincoln.
In recent years, I read this book aloud to a class of fifth graders. So I know it is still being published and I know children still respond to this biography. If you cannot find this title, the following titles are also excellent Lincoln stories for younger children.
Lincoln's Birthday by Clyde Robert Bulla
Bulla's biographies are not stiff or uninteresting in style. This one can be read aloud or read independently by young readers.
Just a Few Words Mr. Lincoln by Jean Fritz.
This tender biography also can be enjoyed by older children. Fritz's work has a wide appeal and acclaim.
Meet Abraham Lincoln by Barbara Cary.
A Step-Up biography, this book is part of Random House publisher's excellent Landmark Biography series. See also Meet...Franklin, Washington, Columbus, King Jr., Jefferson.
Abraham Lincoln. Ingri and Edgar Parin d'Aulaire.
An enduring well-written biography of Lincoln by authors who wrote other quality biographies. This one won the Caldecott Medal in 1940 for its illustrations. The oversized book is worth getting just to see the cover of Lincoln sitting on a split rail fence. Worth owning.
I better stop the list here and continue with another group of books in a Lincoln -2 blog. The second list will pick up where this one left off in level of difficulty and provide samples for those in the middle elementary years.
Wednesday, May 30, 2012
Wilbur and Orville Wright
Wilbur and Orville Wright: the Flight to Adventure
Louis Sabin
Published by Troll Associates
What I want to highlight in this blog post is the publisher. About 20 years ago, my husband and I brought home stack after stack of children's biographies from the library on a very specific quest. We were looking for books about famous people that were told with an engaging narrative style. We found many biographies that were packed with wonderful information and would serve a child well who had to do some research or who enjoyed information books. It was more difficult to find a biography that had both information and an enjoyable narrative. We discovered that the Troll Books had this very aim. We found that book after book in this series recounted the lives of famous people from the standpoint of how they overcame obstacles from the time they were young in order to accomplish something. In the case of the the Wright Brothers, their pursuits reveal the virtues of hard work and of close family relationships. The author, Louis Sabin, wrote several biographies for Troll in the style they were looking for. Some of them are:
Andrew Jackson: Frontier Patriot
Jim Beckwourth: Adventures of a Mountain Man
Roberto Clemente: Young Baseball Hero
Young Mark Twain
The Great Houdini: Daring Escape Artist
Sabin also wrote many informational books for children. The range of topics is impressive: weather, grasslands, reptiles, radio, space exploration, plants and seeds... Here is a link from a website about authors that provides a list of books by Sabin.
http://www.jacketflap.com/louis-sabin/97476
And I cannot end this post without telling you about one more great book about the Wright brothers. (There are so many great books about them!)
The Wright Brothers: How They Invented the Airplane by Russell Freedman.
First, any book by Russell Freedman is awesome - and I mean it! He is the gold standard in nonfiction books for children. This book is full of rare photos taken by the Wright Brothers and it describes in good historical detail how they went about accomplishing their big dream. On top of all the good facts, this book won the Newbery Honor - the yearly award for the best book written for children. I rest my case.
Louis Sabin
Published by Troll Associates
What I want to highlight in this blog post is the publisher. About 20 years ago, my husband and I brought home stack after stack of children's biographies from the library on a very specific quest. We were looking for books about famous people that were told with an engaging narrative style. We found many biographies that were packed with wonderful information and would serve a child well who had to do some research or who enjoyed information books. It was more difficult to find a biography that had both information and an enjoyable narrative. We discovered that the Troll Books had this very aim. We found that book after book in this series recounted the lives of famous people from the standpoint of how they overcame obstacles from the time they were young in order to accomplish something. In the case of the the Wright Brothers, their pursuits reveal the virtues of hard work and of close family relationships. The author, Louis Sabin, wrote several biographies for Troll in the style they were looking for. Some of them are:
Andrew Jackson: Frontier Patriot
Jim Beckwourth: Adventures of a Mountain Man
Roberto Clemente: Young Baseball Hero
Young Mark Twain
The Great Houdini: Daring Escape Artist
Sabin also wrote many informational books for children. The range of topics is impressive: weather, grasslands, reptiles, radio, space exploration, plants and seeds... Here is a link from a website about authors that provides a list of books by Sabin.
http://www.jacketflap.com/louis-sabin/97476
And I cannot end this post without telling you about one more great book about the Wright brothers. (There are so many great books about them!)
The Wright Brothers: How They Invented the Airplane by Russell Freedman.
First, any book by Russell Freedman is awesome - and I mean it! He is the gold standard in nonfiction books for children. This book is full of rare photos taken by the Wright Brothers and it describes in good historical detail how they went about accomplishing their big dream. On top of all the good facts, this book won the Newbery Honor - the yearly award for the best book written for children. I rest my case.
Friday, May 4, 2012
Sybil Rides for Independence
Sybil Rides for Independence
Drollene Brown
The story of Paul Revere's famous daring ride has been immortalized in the poem by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow. Listen my children and you shall hear...of the midnight ride of Paul Revere... Who can blame us all if we are captivated by the poetic retelling of that historical night in America's history? Though not etched in our historical memory by means of a famous poem, there were other riders that night who also bravely rode through the countryside to warn the colonists of the coming of the British army: one was William Dawes and the other was a 16 -year old girl named Sybil Ludington. Readers of this story catch the spirit of Sybil and how she pushed through fear to rise up to meet the moment and make a difference. The end of the book provides the historical fact upon which this biography is based.
Several other authors have written biographies for children about Sybil Luddington. I recommend that you go to the library and do a computer subject search. You may get lucky and be able to bring home several versions of this exciting true story. Each one will illustrate the time, place, and action in a unique way. And, while you are there, by all means check out a picture book version of the Longfellow poem on Paul Revere.
Drollene Brown
The story of Paul Revere's famous daring ride has been immortalized in the poem by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow. Listen my children and you shall hear...of the midnight ride of Paul Revere... Who can blame us all if we are captivated by the poetic retelling of that historical night in America's history? Though not etched in our historical memory by means of a famous poem, there were other riders that night who also bravely rode through the countryside to warn the colonists of the coming of the British army: one was William Dawes and the other was a 16 -year old girl named Sybil Ludington. Readers of this story catch the spirit of Sybil and how she pushed through fear to rise up to meet the moment and make a difference. The end of the book provides the historical fact upon which this biography is based.
Several other authors have written biographies for children about Sybil Luddington. I recommend that you go to the library and do a computer subject search. You may get lucky and be able to bring home several versions of this exciting true story. Each one will illustrate the time, place, and action in a unique way. And, while you are there, by all means check out a picture book version of the Longfellow poem on Paul Revere.
Thursday, May 3, 2012
Louis Braille: The Boy Who Invented Books for the Blind
Louis Braille. The Boy Who Invented Books for the Blind
Margaret Davidson
In my experience children are always interested in the life of Louis Braille. As a little boy he was able to see, and then one day he plays with an awl and he hurts his eye. Next, the book describes how he loses his ability to see one object after another. The story goes on to portray how mentors help him go to school and teach him a way to read and write. Even more fascinating is how, as a young boy, he sets out to find a better system to enable the blind to read. Gaining acceptance for the idea took his entire life. By the end of the biography, children are affected on many levels and often feel very close to Louis Braille and to the book itself.
Of course, your reader will want to try reading Braille too. This Scholastic biography shows them the alphabet. Margaret Davidson was a prolific author of biographies for children. Here are some of her other titles:
The Story of Eleanor Roosevelt
Helen Keller
Helen Keller's Teacher
The Story of Jackie Robinson: Bravest Man in Baseball
Frederick Douglass Fights for Freedom
The Story of Golda Meir
Reading level is grades 3-6, but these can be read aloud to younger children and I recommend that you do!
Margaret Davidson
In my experience children are always interested in the life of Louis Braille. As a little boy he was able to see, and then one day he plays with an awl and he hurts his eye. Next, the book describes how he loses his ability to see one object after another. The story goes on to portray how mentors help him go to school and teach him a way to read and write. Even more fascinating is how, as a young boy, he sets out to find a better system to enable the blind to read. Gaining acceptance for the idea took his entire life. By the end of the biography, children are affected on many levels and often feel very close to Louis Braille and to the book itself.
Of course, your reader will want to try reading Braille too. This Scholastic biography shows them the alphabet. Margaret Davidson was a prolific author of biographies for children. Here are some of her other titles:
The Story of Eleanor Roosevelt
Helen Keller
Helen Keller's Teacher
The Story of Jackie Robinson: Bravest Man in Baseball
Frederick Douglass Fights for Freedom
The Story of Golda Meir
Reading level is grades 3-6, but these can be read aloud to younger children and I recommend that you do!
Wednesday, May 2, 2012
Elizabeth Blackwell: A Doctor's Triumph
Elizabeth Blackwell: A Doctor's Triumph
by Nancy Kline
Blackwell bravely struggled to become a doctor during a time when society shunned women in the medical field. Her persistence throughout the obstacles and ostracism she faced in medical school is truly inspiring. This was one of the first biographies I read almost 30 years ago when I began the search for readable inspiring stories to share with students. The impression has stayed with me until now.
If you can't find this particular story, there have been several others about her published over the years. If you read another good version, publish a comment and let us know!
I hesitate to assign grade or age levels. These levels are general suggestions due to the fact that younger children probably would not have the stamina to listen to the longer books. Also not all content is suitable for younger children. But all ages would enjoy hearing or reading the stories on the list marked for PreK-4.
by Nancy Kline
Blackwell bravely struggled to become a doctor during a time when society shunned women in the medical field. Her persistence throughout the obstacles and ostracism she faced in medical school is truly inspiring. This was one of the first biographies I read almost 30 years ago when I began the search for readable inspiring stories to share with students. The impression has stayed with me until now.
If you can't find this particular story, there have been several others about her published over the years. If you read another good version, publish a comment and let us know!
I hesitate to assign grade or age levels. These levels are general suggestions due to the fact that younger children probably would not have the stamina to listen to the longer books. Also not all content is suitable for younger children. But all ages would enjoy hearing or reading the stories on the list marked for PreK-4.
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