Japanese Cultures Shared in 1000-Piece Puzzles

 

Disclosure: I was sent these puzzles in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own. 

On Monday I shared two new picture books that share Japanese grandparents sharing their culture and traditions with their Japanese American grandchildren. Today I am sharing two 1000-piece jigsaw puzzles that share a bit of Japanese culture and tradition as well. The first is Japan's Most Famous Shinto Shrine 1000 Pieces Jigsaw Puzzle from Tuttle Publishing. 

Home Is Calling: The Journey of the Monarch Butterfly -- Book Review with Craft Round-Up

 

Disclosure: I was sent a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

Over the years we have loved learning about butterflies and especially monarchs. We grow milkweed to help keep monarchs around. Today I get to share with you a wonderful new picture book about the long journey they take every autumn. The book is Home Is Calling: The Journey of the Monarch Butterfly by Katherine Pryor and illustrated by Ellie Peterson. It is recommended for ages 4 to 7. At the end of my post is a round-up of butterfly crafts and activities including a section on monarchs! It shares more than 50 ideas!

Dinosaur Atlas -- Review and Craft & Activity Round-Up

 

Disclosure: I was sent a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

This past week National Geographic Kids released a new all-encompassing book about dinosaurs. It is the final book in our Back to School with National Geographic Kids series. I am guessing that for the final week of September schools across America have opened now. The book is National Geographic Kids Dinosaur Atlas. It is recommended for kids ages 7 to 10. 

Can't Get Enough Space Stuff Review with Craft & Activity Round-Up

 

Disclosure: I was sent a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

This week for our Back to School with National Geographic Kids we are sharing a fun new book about space. To go with our book review, we are sharing a round-up of crafts, activities, lessons and more all about space for different ages. Our book is Can't Get Enough Space Stuff by Stephanie Drimmer and Julie Beer. It is recommended for ages 7 to 10.

Ultimate Food Atlas -- Explore the World through Food with This Book

 

Disclosure: I was sent a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

When Hazel was younger, we loved exploring the world and participated in a blog group celebrating food from around the world. We did the series Around the World in 12 Dishes. I miss it sometimes because it got us exploring different dishes. Some we loved and others not so much. Today I get to share a book that lets you explore the world through food so basically our series in one book sort of. The book is Ultimate Food Atlas: Maps, Games, and Recipes for Hours of Delicious Fun by Nancy Castaldo and Christy Mihaly. It is from National Geographic Kids and is recommended for ages 8 to 12 but could work with younger kids with adult help.

The Atlas of Migrating Plants and Animals --#STEM Review

 

Disclosure: I was sent a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

Do you know an animal and/or plant lover? Are you a teacher? Today I get to share with you a new book that is absolutely beautiful!! This is a must have when teaching about animals and plants and especially ones that migrate or perhaps just teaching about migrating. It is The Atlas of Migrating Plants and Animals by Megan Lee and illustrated by Matt Sewell. It is recommended for ages 5 to 10. 

Ways to Use a World Atlas in Different Lessons

Disclosure: I was sent a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

How do you use a world atlas? Do you use it when you are teaching/learning geography? Are there other ways to use it? Today I am sharing with you the 6th Edition of National Geographic Kids World Atlas. And I am going to share ideas of different ways to use it in different types of lessons. They are not all social studies either! The World Atlas is recommended for ages 10 and older. 

Learning about the United States with the New National Geographic Kids United States Atlases

 

Disclosure: I was sent copies of these books in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

Schools are starting back up and so are homeschools. This has been a crazy year for schools. Most of my friends' children are still doing remote learning. Hazel is back in the physical school and the school is doing a great job keeping them social distant as much as possible. Hazel has told me she sometimes forgets she is even wearing her mask. I have not gotten to that point but I don't wear one for the entire day. Today I thought I would look at some educational books and lessons. I have the latest editions of the National Geographic Kids United States Atlases and I want to share them with you, give you some ways of using them and also have a round-up of map activities and lessons. Are you ready? First we will look at the Beginner's United States Atlas. 

The Moon and the Sun -- Fun Facts, Books and Craft & Activity Round-Up

 

Disclosure: I was sent copies of these books in exchange for honest reviews. All opinions are my own.

I have some fun books sitting on my review shelf. One is about the Mid-Autumn Festival. This year (2020) Mid-Autumn Festival is October 1st. Then I received a cute book about the sun and moon for younger kids. And finally I am sharing the new National Geographic Kids Almanac 2021 because of course it has something about the sun and moon. It has something about everything! As I was thinking about these books I thought it would be fun to share a bit about the moon and sun as well as some crafts and activities to go with them. 

Fun Edcuational Books for Back to School

Disclosure: I was sent these books in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

I have been gathering all summer some amazing educational books. And now that school has started again, I think it is beyond time for me to share them with you!! These books are for various ages and are for various subjects. There is English, history, geography, science and more!! Talk about a fun mix. I even have some educational game books!! Hazel has been loving these. Let's start with Shakespeare!!

Products to Discover the World

Disclosure: I was sent copies of these products in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

How do you discover the world? How do you teach your children about the world and its places without leaving home? Today I am going to share some great resources to do just that. These books and kits help learn about the globe, countries, cities as well as discover parts of the world like the ocean and more. They are for mixed levels of kids and will add some fun to your home or class. The first is Discovery Globe: Build Your Own Globe Kit by Leon Gray and illustrated by Sarah Edmunds. 

Picture Books Review

Disclosure: I was sent these books in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

Do you have a child who loves picture books? Or maybe you are looking for something to spark his or her imagination this summer. I have a picture book for every child and they are full of creativity and imagination as well as other fun ideas. Our first book is An Atlas of Imaginary Places by Mia Cassany and illustrated by Ana de Lima. 

Hidden Women -- a Multicultural Children's Book Day Review

Disclosure: Capstone Publishing sent me this book in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

Have you seen Hidden Figures? It is in Hazel's top three favorite movies of all times. Our family went to see it on Martin Luther King Day last year. Last year I wrote about the real women in the story for Black History Month. And before the movie I had done a post about Katherine Johnson for a previous Black History Month. Needless to say this is a topic near and dear to us. I jumped at the chance to review a new book called Hidden Women: The African-American Mathematicians of NASA Who Helped Win the Space Race by Rebecca Rissman. 

Mega Science Book Review #STEM Part 1

Disclosure: I was sent these books in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

This Saturday we are going to STEM Saturday at Hazel's school. In honor of STEM Saturday I am sharing several science books with you. We will cover animals, plants, space and more!! Are you ready? We will start with some general science and information books. Our first book is What Would Happen? by Crispin Boyer. 

Resources for US Social Studies as well as Back to School

Disclosure: I was sent these books in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

Are your kids getting ready for back to school? Or perhaps you are looking for some resources for your homeschool? Today's products are just for you. Hazel loves National Geographic Kids and is so excited whenever one of their books arrives, so I always jump at the chance to review them. Today I get to share four amazing books with you. Three are about United States history and geography and the fourth is a planner for kids!! I have to say Hazel LOVES these books. She is constantly reading them. The first book is National Geographic Kids Weird But True Daily Planner. 

Maps, Culture, Cities & Towns -- Children's Book Reviews & Giveaway!!

Disclosure: I was sent these books to review free of charge in exchange for an honest review. All opinions in this post are my own. I did not receive any other compensation for this review.

 Today I am sharing some books that have various lessons around the theme of maps, culture, cities and towns. These books range for which ages they are good. We will start with Mapping My Day by Julie Dillemuth and illustrated by Laura Wood. This book is being released next week and I have an opportunity for one of you to win a copy of it!! See below.

A Look At Mexican Art -- Hispanic Heritage Month

This year for our Hispanic Heritage Month post I thought we would share a bit about artwork from Mexico. Mexico is the country of the month for Global Learning for Kids, so we have been looking at it quite a bit this month. More posts to follow on it. In previous years we have looked at Frida Kahlo, papel picado,  Jose Guadalupe Posada and Juan Quezada. We found even more books at the library about Frida Kahlo.

Back To School DVD Pack Review and Giveaway

Disclosure: NCircle Entertainment gave me a copy of the DVDs free of charge and is supplying the ones for the giveaway free of charge. All opinions in my review are my own and I did not receive any other compensation. As always I am providing links to the DVD on NCircle Entertainment's site for your convenience. You can also find their DVDs at local retailers!

 With all my giveaways ending tomorrow, it is time to kick off another one! This month NCircle Entertainment has changed the monthly review and giveaway of one DVD to a prize pack of five DVDs which will not be monthly. Since we have recently started school in the United States, they put together a Back-to-School Package. It includes the newest Octonauts: Deep Sea Mission, and The Wiggles: Apples & Bananas as well as The Cat in the Hat: Show & Tell Sure Is Swell!, Sid the Science Kid: The Ruler of Thumb and Animals Atlas: Animals ABC. So today I will review these five DVDs and then at the end you can enter to win all five of them!!

Asian-Pacific American Heritage Month -- Book Round-Up

May is Asian-Pacific American Heritage Month. I always feel bad about this month. It happens at such a busy time of the year and is often overlooked. May was chosen to mark the anniversary of the first Japanese immigration and the completion of the transcontinental railroad. (The majority of the workers on the railroad were Chinese immigrants.) It also represents such a large area. Asian-Pacific Island includes all of Asia and the islands in the Pacific including New Zealand and the Polynesian Islands. It covers a huge area. (Source)

Source: World Atlas

Although we have no Asian or Pacific Island heritage that I know of, I like to teach Hazel about all the various cultures. I always describe myself as an American mutt since I have quite a mixture of European ancestors and even have some that can be traced to the Mayflower. There is a story in our family history of someone marrying a Native American as well, but I do not know the details. As such I do not identify with any ethnicity besides American and I find it interesting to look at the different ones around. To begin looking into Asian and Pacific Island Heritage we went to the library for books.

General Asian Stories and Picture Books

• A is for Asia by Cynthia Chin-Lee
• Asian Children's Favorite Stories by David Conger, Marian Davies Toth & Kay Lyons
• Asian Holidays by Faith Winchester
• Come Look With Me: Asian Art by Kimberly Lane
• I Dreamed I was a Panda by Debra A. Johnson
• Floating Clouds, Floating Dreams Favorite Asian Folk Tales edited by I. K. Junne
• Moon Magic: Stories from Asia by Katherine Davison
• The Tiger's Whisker and Other Tales from Asia and the Pacific by Harold Courlander
• Folk Tales from Asia by  Asian Cultural Centre for Unesco
• Tikki Tikki Tembo and More Stories to Celebrate Asian Heritage DVD produced by Weston Wood Studios, Inc.

Asian Crafts and Animals

• Asian Kites by Wayne Hosking
• Haiku: Asian Arts and Crafts for Creative Kids by Patricia Donegan
• Asian-American Crafts Kids Can Do! by Sarah Hartman
• A Kid's Guide to Asian American History by Valerie Petrillo
• Asian Crafts by Judith Hoffman Corwin
• Monkeys of Asia and Africa by Patricia A. Fink Martin
• Really Wild Animals: Adventures in Asia DVD produced by National Geographic Society

Next I took some of the many countries in the area and found some picture books to read with Hazel. I am sure there are more and of course there are more countries, but at least this is a start. I am going to add a link party to the end so people can add their own favorite Asian and/or Pacific Island themed books to help learn about the cultures and celebrate the month. Many of these books are about immigrants' experiences in coming to America or leaving their country. Since there are so many, I am not going to list each one. I will however list the ones I have posted about previously with links in case you want to learn more.

Cambodia

China

The Year of the Horse is part of a series of books about the Chinese Zodiac

Julie Black Belt and Julie Black Belt: The Belt of Fire

The Phillipines

Cora Cooks Pancit

The Bamboo Dance

India

Japan

Sora and the Cloud Review

Butterflies for Kiri

Korea

Around the World in 12 Dishes visits Korea

Thailand

Book Reviews at my Around the World in 12 Dishes visits Thailand

Vietnam

Asian-Pacific Cinderella Tales

The Golden Slipper

Kao and the Golden Fish

 

Anklet for a Princess

Kongi and Potgi

The Korean Cinderella

The Gift of the Crocodile

The Golden Sandal

Wishbones and Yeh-Shen

If you know a good book to learn about an Asian or Pacific Island culture or to help celebrate this month, please list its title and author in this link party and share with us all!! You do not need to link a review or post about the book!!

Fairy Tales in a Different Culture: The Turkey Girl

For our final Native American Cinderella tale, I am sharing a Zuni version called The Turkey Girl retold by Penny Pollock. Now this story is a bit of a stretch to be a Cinderella tale, but I have seen it on various lists of types of Cinderella tales, so I am sharing it. First a bit about the Zuni people.

The Zuni live in New Mexico and have been there for 3,000 to 4,000 years (according to archeologists' estimations). Their reservation is about 450,000 acres. They are farmers of maize (corn) and wheat. They also now engage in jewelry making as an important income to the Zuni people. The traditional Zuni life is a matrilineal line. They have very specific groups and order for religion and life. Zunis still practice their own religion and beliefs. They are very artistic and express their beliefs in their art. The Zuni language is believed to be more than 7,000 years old.

Source: By Kmusser (Self-made using the National Atlas.)
 [CC-BY-SA-3.0], via Wikimedia Commons

The Zuni live in pueblo style of houses. Pueblos are built of clay and often are built into the ground or on top of one another. Here is a picture I found of a Zuni Pueblo. (Sources: The Pueblo of Zuni, Zuni Indians, Wikipedia)

Source: Timothy H. O'Sullivan [Public domain], via Wikimedia Commons

Now onto our story. In the author's note it is mentioned that Frank Hamilton Cushing included this tale in his collection of Zuni folktales. Cushing traveled to New Mexico in 1879 to study the Zuni. He admired them so much that he became a member of the tribe and lived with them.

A young orphan girl lived  in the shadow of Thunder Mountain and nestled against the edge of the pueblo village, Matsaki. She was very poor and herded turkeys for a living. The wealthy families of Matsaki valued the turkey tail feathers for decorating prayer sticks and ceremonial masks. They paid the young girl with corn and cast-off clothes and called her the Turkey Girl.

Source: Wikimedia Commons

Her days started at dawn when she led the villagers' turkeys to the flat-topped mesa of Thunder Mountain to graze. Then at sunset she led the turkeys back to their stockade of cedar sticks. The turkeys were her only friends. The humans did not talk to her even when she went to the spring to get water and saw others there.   

One night while at the spring, a herald-priest announced from one of the flat housetops that a Dance of the Sacred Bird would be held in Hawikuh in four days time. The Turkey Girl caught the excitement and imagined herself dancing with others. She could not stop dreaming of the dance and told the turkeys all about her dreams. On the day of the dance, the villagers left at dawn for Hawikuh. The Turkey Girl was left with the turkeys and her normal day, however she had tears running down her cheeks. While walking along the birds cause a commotion and get her attention. Then a huge turkey stepped forward and begins to talk to her and tells her she shall go to the dance. Then he tells her the turkeys will take care of her tattered clothes if she goes into the pen with them.

In their pen the turkeys break into song and dance and clean the girl. Then they have her undress. Swaying up and down the turkeys tread and tap new life into her clothes. They sing while they work.  Soon she is dressed in a white doeskin dress belted with red and yellow cloth. They give her rare shells and beautiful moccasins. Next the turkeys cough up jewels that the people have dropped on the ground over the years.  Then the turkeys give her one condition--she must not forget them and will show this by returning to them before Sun-Father returns to his sacred place and while she is gone to leave their pen unlocked so if she does not return before night they will be free.

She rushes off to the dance feeling beautiful and special. When she arrives the dancing has already started. She hears music from drums, flutes, turtle rattles and notched sticks. The musicians miss a beat when they see the beautiful stranger.  She joins the dance and has a wonderful time. The braves want to dance near her. As the sun's rays began to go down, she thinks when the music dies I will leave, but with each break the music started right back up and she continued to dance. As darkness approaches she thinks of leaving, but a brave brushes against her and she wonders why she will leave for turkeys. Then as night sets in she remembers the kindness of the turkeys and she runs home to their pen. She however is too late. The turkeys had waited for the sun to set but  left Matsaki forever. She is full of sorrow and even more so when she sees her dress was back to rags. She understands she has lost her turkey friends forever.

From this day on the turkeys have lived apart from their tall brothers for the Turkey Girl had not kept her word.

Join us later this week for more on Native Americans!! Also visit last week's fairy tales for other Native American versions of Cinderella.