Good Night, Animal World: A Kids Yoga Story

A lot of movement-themed picture books are not the best bedtime picks because they can rile up little ones and make it hard for them to fall asleep. But Good Night, Animal World -- a new children's book by yoga teacher and independent author Giselle Shardlow -- was written to be read specifically at bedtime.

The yoga-inspired text and the illustrations by Emily Gedzyk are all meant to help wind children down at night so they can relax and sleep well. What a great premise -- and one that definitely got me excited (especially as a mother) to look inside this book!

Inside, six characters take readers to six parts of the world -- Australia, England, Guatamala, India, Tanzania, and the United States -- to say goodnight to animals from those specific regions. Each page shows an illustration of an animal, accompanied by some simple text (some imagery about the animal and a goodnight message) and a yoga pose. The 13 poses in the book, chosen for their calming potential, include forward bends, restorative poses, gentle twists, and some inversions.

Below is the "turtle" page from the book, followed by a book trailer that includes other images from the book plus some book reviews -- all set to relaxing music, of course!

It's actually hard to see how children wouldn't be calm after finishing this book. "Embrace their creativity and let them experiment with the poses. Whatever helps them release extra energy before bedtime is the perfect pose," says Giselle. The poses are even laid out in a sequence that facilitates flow from one pose to the next. And my favorite part of the book? The resting pose at the end! Just thinking about it is making me super sleepy… I think I need to take a rest!

This post is part of a blog tour hosted by Mother Daughter Book Reviews, where you can also see the full schedule for the tour. To learn more about author Giselle Shardlow and her series of Yoga Kid Stories, go to her website at www.kidsyogastories.com.

Are You Ready to Hibernate?

Read It. Move It. Share It. 
I'm so happy that dance educator Maria Hanley from Maria's Movers and I are renewing our collaboration in 2014. I'm not yet sure how often we'll be posting together, but when we do, we'll be sharing our experiences with picture books I recommend for Maria to use in her creative movement classes in New York. Our January book is Hibernation Station by Michelle Meadows and Kurt Cyrus!

With so many parts of the country being pounded by snow and surrounded by cold this winter, hibernation is starting to sound like a really good idea! Hibernation Station, written by Michelle Meadows with illustrations by Kurt Cyrus, provides plenty of opportunities for little ones to explore the concept of hibernation and pretend to be animals gathering food and preparing for their own winter's naps.

I actually haven't read too many picture books about hibernation, but this one has a twist that I can't imagine has been done before. Instead of searching for places to hibernate outside, the animals in this book -- already dressed in their finest cold-weather pajamas -- all board a special "hibernation" train that will carry them through the forest during the winter months…

Fuzzy slippers, warm pajamas.

Forest babies and their mamas…

show up early to the station!

Time for winter hibernation.

According to the illustrations, but not mentioned in the text, each car of the train is made out of a log that is full of compartments for different types of animals -- squirrels, frogs, raccoons, skunks, and more. But before the animals get comfortable in their new winter homes, there are a few problems they must overcome...

"I cannot sleep!" a black bear roars.

"My roommate rolls around and snores!"

A groundhog cries, "This hole's too tight."

"It's dark in here. I need more light."

As the train rolls through the forest, the illustrations show the season changing from fall to winter. By the end of the book, the snow is really coming down! And, as you might have guessed, the animals do solve their problems and finally get some shut-eye.

In a nutshell, if you make a book full of perfect rhymes, cute furry animals in pajamas, and a train -- like this one -- then it's bound to put smiles on the faces of little ones. Let's see what Maria came up with in the dance studio to make those smiles even bigger! You can read her ideas here.

Playground Day!

Read It. Move It. Share It. 
Each month I recommend a picture book for dance educator Maria Hanley to use in her creative movement classes in New York, and then we share our experiences with the book. Our May book was Playground Day! by Jennifer Merz. When you're done reading about it here, stop by Maria's Movers to read what she has to say!

Stretching, swaying, 

jungle playing, 

I climb like a...

MONKEY!

For my latest collaboration with Maria, I've once again chosen a picture book that I enjoyed reading to my two girls when they were toddlers and early preschoolers. Playground Day! by Jennifer Merz weaves two child-friendly themes -- the playground and animals -- together with movement for a fun read-aloud for young children. 

In the book, a little girl carts a red wagon full of stuffed animals all the way to the playground, where she plays on different playground equipment in ways that her animals would if they were real. For instance, when she plays on the monkey bars, she moves like a monkey. And when she swings on the swing, she feels like a bird flying high in the sky. 

The book is also a bit of a guessing game, sort of along the lines of the picture book Dancing Feet by Lindsey Craig and Marc Brown. Like that book, Playground Day! is full of great page turns where the kids have to guess which animal is being featured. If you look closely, you'll notice that a different stuffed animal is actually near the girls on each page -- the perfect clue for little readers who are paying attention!

The art in this book is really fun, too. Lots of bright paper and fabric has been cut and torn in different ways to create the images on the pages. It kind of gives the book an "imperfect" quality, but in a good way. Seems just right for a trip to the playground with young children, where inevitably there will be a little dirt and chaos. My two girls finally went to our neighborhood pool yesterday for the first time this summer. Next stop -- the playground! 

Don't forget to stop by Maria's Movers to see how Maria used this book in her creative movement classes. I hope it worked well!

Board Books Use Animals to Inspire Movement

Read It. Move It. Share It. 

This month I mixed it up a little. I recommended not one but TWO books for independent dance educator Maria Hanley to incorporate into her creative movement classes in New York City. After reading this post to learn more about the books, head over to Maria's blog to see how she used them in her classes. And thanks to publisher Blue Apple Books for supplying review copies of both books!

When I saw the new board books SWING! Like a Monkey and WIGGLE! Like an Octopus, I knew right away that I wanted to highlight them on my blog. Because many dance educators use animals to inspire movement in their classes, I thought the books would be perfect tools to assist them.

SWING! focuses on zoo animals and WIGGLE! on ocean animals, and both are filled with movement words that even the youngest dancers will probably know. Prance like a lion, anyone? Gallop like a zebra? Or, since it's still summer here in the states and some other parts of the world, maybe you would prefer to swim like a dolphin? Or waddle like a penguin? Author Harriet Ziefert includes lots of phrases like these throughout the 12 pages and about 100 words of text in each of the two books.

I have to admit I was a little disappointed that the meter of the rhyme is not always as smooth as I would have liked, and some of the couplets don't rhyme perfectly. But, nonetheless, I think the books would be great to use in a class of young dancers...probably best for two-year-olds and three-year-olds I would say.

The illustrations by Simms Taback (who by the way has won a Caldecott Medal and a Caldecott Honor for previous works) are simple and youthful as well. All of the animals are drawn with thick black lines filled in with solid colors. The backgrounds of the book, too, are incredibly simple. In some ways, the illustrations remind me of the pages of a coloring book. Even the colors that Taback uses are typical colors you would find in a big box of crayons.

And finally, I love that the covers of the books actually "move" when you tilt them. You can probably tell from the cover images in this post that the monkey really swings and the octopus really wiggles its arms. What toddler or preschooler wouldn't want to explore a book like that, especially in a dance class! Let's see how Maria and her students explored the book here.

Delightful Rhythm and Art in 'Dancing Feet!'

Read It. Move It. Share It. 

This is the second post in my collaboration with independent dance educator Maria Hanley from Maria's Movers. Each month I recommend a picture book for Maria to incorporate into her creative movement classes, and then we both share our experiences with the book. Read Maria's February post here.

Tippity tippity! Stompity stompity! Slappity slappity! Can you guess which animals might use their feet to make these sounds when they dance? Toddlers and preschoolers will have a blast as they find out in Dancing Feet! by Lindsey Craig (author) and Marc Brown (illustrator). The simple, rhythmic text and colorful collage art in this book are such a treat!

Creepity! Creepity! Lots of purple feet!

Who is dancing that creepity beat?

Caterpillar's dancing on creepity feet. 

Creepity! Creepity! Happy feet!

This simple pattern repeats itself six times in the book, as we meet six different child-friendly animals, including a furry brown bear and a lizard with long green feet. Each time, the first part of the rhyme is accompanied by a full-page spread of art that hints (through footprints and isolated body parts) at which animal might be making the sounds. But young readers have to turn the page to find out for sure which animal is doing the dancing.

In her bio at the back of the book, author Lindsey Craig says she "grew up in a dancing and singing family." Dancing Feet! is her first picture book, but she has also written a musical and a popular children's play called Cinderella's Shakespeare. I've heard so many successful authors encourage other writers to "write what you know." Lindsey Craig appears to be following that advice, and doing a fabulous job.

The art in the book is equally phenomenal. Illustrator Marc Brown is best known for writing and illustrating the Arthur series of children's books, and I think the collage art in Dancing Feet! is a departure from what he usually creates. The art is amazing, though, and truly adds to the enthusiasm and overall charm of Dancing Feet! 

I noticed that Marc Brown's dedication in the front of the book says "For Leo Lionni, with considerable admiration." Leo Lionni was a master of collage art, and his work has inspired not only Marc Brown but also Ezra Jack Keats and Eric Carle...all three of them amazing talents.

Lindsey Craig and Marc Brown have been collaborating on their next picture book together, and I just found out it has a dance theme as well. It's called Farmyard Beat and is scheduled for publication in June 2011. I can't wait. I'm definitely a fan of this new dynamic duo!  

Don't forget to see how Maria from Maria's Movers used Dancing Feet! in her creative movement classes this month. You can read about it here.

January Celebration of 'How to Be'

Read It. Move It. Share It. 

This is the first post in my collaboration with independent dance educator Maria Hanley from Maria's Movers. Each month I'll recommend a picture book for Maria to use in her creative movement classes. I'll read the book, Maria will "move" it with her students, and we'll both share our experiences. 

At its core, Lisa Brown's debut picture book How to Be is a book about being yourself. Maybe you act like a dog, or a snake, or a monkey sometimes (not unlike the characters in this book). But as long as you are still being true to yourself, the world will be full of color and creativity...at least that's the way I like to interpret this charming book. 

How to Be is broken down into four-page sections, each devoted to a specific animal. Short descriptive sentences and simple illustrations depict "how to be" each of the various creatures. Here, for instance, is an excerpt about being a snake:

Shed your skin. 

Slither. 

Dance in a basket.

Be charming. 

I'm about to contradict myself, because I know I just told you that this book is about being yourself. But, through the illustrations, How to Be is also about being with others. The main characters are a young brother and sister who, for the most part, get along splendidly. Yes, there is the moment when the brother is acting like a dog, and he "licks someone." (His sister looks a little annoyed.) And there's the time when the sister "builds a web" like a spider, but actually ties her brother up in it. But this kind of behavior is to be expected between siblings, right? 

Another fun aspect of this book, especially in the context of creative movement, is that each four-page section has an opening page that introduces the animal, along with a featured color and featured item (or "prop") that both appear multiple times in the section:

Bear--a blue swimming toy

Monkey--a green book

Turtle--a pink and yellow pail

Snake--an orange basket

Spider--purple paint on a sketch pad

Dog--a brown pull toy

And, finally, the book ends with "how to be" a person, incorporating many of the best attributes of the other animals. The illustrations in this last section also incorporate all the colors in the book, emphasizing that people are diverse, interesting, and unique. 

I hope this book inspired Maria as much as it inspired me. Let's see how she incorporated it in her creative movement classes here!                                          

Laura Numeroff's Dancing Jellybeans

Some of Laura Numeroff's most popular books are from the If You Give a Mouse a Cookie series. We actually own three of them and have even seen a theatre production of If You Give a Pig a Pancake. But did you know that Laura Numeroff has also co-written a book about dance?

The Jellybeans and the Big Dance is the first in a newish series by Laura Numeroff (author), Nate Evans (author), and Lynn Munsinger (illustrator). Here's what publisher Abrams Books for Young Readers has to say about the book:

Emily loves to dance and can't wait to meet the other girls in her class, who are sure to be just like her. But instead she meets Nicole, a tomboy who would rather be playing soccer; Bitsy, who loves arts and crafts; and Anna, a shy bookworm who has no interest at all in dancing. Realizing they have to work together to make their dance recital a success, the girls learn to love each other's differences and strengths as they band together and name their group the Jellybeans!

I would describe this book as sweet (not unlike jellybeans) in all respects. I love how the four characters learn to get along so well by the end of the book, despite the major differences in their personalities. On a related note, it's really cute how they come up with the name for their group:

"Jellybeans are all different flavors, but they still go well together," said Emily. "Maybe we could, too. We can be the dancing Jellybeans!"

The illustrations, too, are very sweet. Their colors blend together so nicely, and there are lots of them...at least two or three scenes on each spread. (As a writer, I have to admit that I often focus way too much on the words in picture books, even though the pictures are just as important. Having this blog is really teaching me to slow down and look closely at all the different components of a book.)

I also love the sparkly title and costumes on the cover. They add a nice touch that certainly makes me want to pick up the book. I'm sure little girls and boys won't be able to resist either. And if they like this book, they might also like the sequel, which was published in March of this year. It's called The Jellybeans and the Big Book Bonanza and looks very entertaining. It takes place in a library instead of a dance studio, but Emily's love for ballet is still apparent.

In the bios at the back of The Jellybeans and the Big Dance, the authors and illustrator each mention their favorite flavor of jellybean. I have to admit that I'm a little more into dark chocolate than jellybeans these days, but if I had to choose a jellybean flavor, I'd choose black licorice. How about you?

Have You Met Katy Duck?

  

Katy Duck is a Caterpillar, by Alyssa Satin Capucilli (author) and Henry Cole (illustrator), is a darling book about overcoming disappointment through improvisation and imagination. When Katy Duck is not assigned to be a beautiful flower or a graceful swan in her spring dance recital, she is extremely disheartened. However, by the end of the story, she figures out how to make her small part into something fabulous.

I picked this book as the "debut" book on my blog for several reasons:

1. This is a debut of sorts for Katy Duck, too. She is featured in a handful of board books, but this is the first time she has appeared in a picture book. You can read about all of Katy Duck's adventures here.

2. Alyssa Satin Capucilli has two new Katy Duck activities on her website. You can see them here. One is a connect-the-dots and the other a coloring page. In researching the book, I also discovered that Alyssa Satin Capucilli loves to dance!

3. I was lucky enough to meet Henry Cole at the recent ALA conference in Washington, DC. He seemed like such a fun guy...and a generous one, too. He actually drew a picture of Katy Duck in the notebook I was carrying around with me at the conference. I will keep it forever. Thank you, Henry Cole.

4. This book is terrific!