Tis the Season
By Patricia Broderick and Allen Raymond

There are so many items we fall in love with and wouldn't teach without. Now's the time to share the largesse: What teachers on your gift list would delight in a professional gift, selected with care, by you – the teacher they want to become.

A Special Book
Eve Bunting always has perfect pitch when it comes to topics for today's children. Her newest title is My Mom's Wedding, a situation that's common in twenty-first century kids' lives.

Not only does seven-year-old Pinky love her dad, but she also loves the man her mom is going to marry, and so is feeling a bit disloyal at this special wedding time. Her "real" dad helps her solve the problem of her feelings and everyone lives happily ever after. Thank goodness, because the reader likes every one of the characters!

Eve's words are crafted with such care that this ordinary situation is elevated to a whole different level. The artwork by Lisa Papp is a perfect match for Eve's prose and the combination is a book that will comfort many a child, and please all readers. $16.95 at your local bookstore.
Sleeping Bear Press
www.sleepingbearpress.com

Prairie Christmas
This is a lovely tale of Christmas in Nebraska in the 1800s when neighbors had only each other on whom to rely.

As befits any Christmas tale, a new baby is born on Christmas Day. However, the real story is the character-building aspects of caring for one's neighbors and sharing. This Classroom Library must-have book is a wonderful read-aloud and a terrific discussion starter. $17.00 at your bookstore.
Eerdman's Books for Young Readers
www.eerdmans.com/youngreaders

Twice Upon a Time Series
From Scholastic comes this paperback series of fairy tales retold from the point of view of each of the main characters. For instance, Sleeping Beauty – The One Who Took the Really Long Nap is told by Princess Rose and The Prince (he has no other name).

Although the bones of the story are somewhat intact, the dialogue and attitudes are much more twenty-first century. We also read Rapunzel – The One with All the Hair.
These books are for ages nine to 12. They're very clever and are $5.99 each.
Scholastic
www.scholastic.com

Well Worth Your Time
We received this item a bit ago, but didn't have the space to tell you about it, so we hung onto it because it's so neat.

This is SmartLab®. The item we saw was "Build your own Remote Control." The kit contains a circuit board, transistor, capacitor, keypad and two LED's. There are no tools required for the assembly, Naturally, as in every good kit, there is a book included. Zap It! not only tells us how a TV remote really works but goes into the details of light and energy, infrared light, light and heat and more.

There's a lot of information here to hook a kid on reading. You might want to check the website for other kits. This one is $18.99.
Becker & Mayer
www.smartlabtoys.com

Super Information Books
From Mikaya Press comes the paperbound version of three spectacular hardcover books. These award winners are The Brooklyn Bridge, Hoover Dam and The Roman Colosseum.

The books each tell the story behind the building of these well-known constructions. In addition to fact-filled narrative, there is also additional material in "asides." Each book handles this additional material differently. The book on the Colosseum has lengthy captions. The Brooklyn Bridge has fold-out pages, provided for large illustrations. The book on Hoover Dam has quotes from people who journeyed to Nevada to be part of the construction crew working on the dam.

These books are great additions to any classroom library and they're wonderful jumping-off spots for research on the era in which the structures were erected.

More good news: There are other titles in this series like The Great Wall, Machu Picchu, The Panama Canal, etc. Visit the website for more information on these super teaching aids. The books are distributed by Firefly Books Ltd. and are $9.95 each at your local bookstore.
Mikaya Press
www.mikaya.com

Wrist Reminder
MeadWestvaco has created a very clever system so kids won't forget to bring notes home or forget what they're supposed to bring to school tomorrow. They're called Wrist Reminders. They come in a tidy package of 30, three to a page and in three bright colors.

You, or the child, write whatever is to be noted, the backing is peeled off, the note is applied like a bracelet around the child's wrist and Voila! an instant wrist reminder. This is very clever and can save a lot of tears and frustration.
At your local stationery store.
MeadWestvaco
www.mead.com

November/December, 2006, Vol.37, No.3