Mussar: Spiritual Practice of Good Actions If we all had what it takes to be a Mensch, a person of extraordinary character, wouldn’t we all be one? In fact we do have what it takes, we just haven’t been trained to take the steps to make it happen. The Spiritual Practice of Good Actions, Finding Balance Through the Soul Traits of Mussar is that training manual. Imagine what your life would be like if you felt empowered to overcome those things inside that lead you to get stuck in the same situation again and again. What if you could slow things down and redirect yourself before you started to raise your voice? Mussar is a 1000-year-old Jewish spiritual practice of mindful living that was almost lost forever in the devastation of the Holocaust. Mussar is the path to becoming the best self we can be. Spiritual Practice of Good Actions is written for “Just Jews” Accessible to people of all spiritual beliefs Sign Up Now Launch Bonus The Spiritual Practice of Good Actions will be published by Llewellyn in early September 2016.
Coretta Scott King Book Award Recipients Author Award Winner Kadir Nelson, author and illustrator of “Heart and Soul: The Story of America and African Americans” (Balzer + Bray, an imprint of HarperCollins Publishers). “Heart and Soul: The Story of America and African Americans” is an extensive volume focusing on American history as it intertwines with the lives of African Americans. The story is told from the viewpoint of an elderly woman who shares her life story while highlighting pivotal historical events including abolition, the Great Migration, World War II, and the Civil Rights movement. Illustrator Award Winner Shane W. Author Honor Eloise Greenfield, “The Great Migration: Journey to the North,” illustrated by Jan Spivey Gilchrist and published by Amistad, an imprint of HarperCollins Publishers. Patricia C. Illustrator Honor Kadir Nelson, author and illustrator of “Heart and Soul: The Story of America and African Americans,” published by Balzer + Bray, an imprint of HarperCollins Publishers. G. Victoria Bond and T. Dr. E.B.
5 Read Aloud Books All Teachers Should Read « The Teaching Excellence Program Written by Daya Cozzolino, TE Instructional Coach In my first year as an elementary school teacher, I learned the beauty of the read aloud. Sure, I had heard about the importance of reading aloud to students from my professors in college, and I was even an avid follower of Jim Trelease. However, it wasn’t until I had my own classroom that I learned the true value of read aloud books. In just my first month of teaching, I realized that a good book could calm my students down, engage them, inspire them and instruct them in a way that connected to their lives. 1. This book drives home the point of setting high expectations for your students, having a strong voice AND balancing it with warmth. 2. Let’s face it – all teachers have a rough day here and there and, as we learn in this book, so do our kids. source 3. I remember reading this book as a child with my own mom and couldn’t wait to share it with my students. 4. I read this book to my very first class on the first day of school. 5.
Character Strengths and Virtues: A Handbook and Classification Newbery Medal 2020s | 2010s | 2000s | 1990s | 1980s | 1970s | 1960s | 1950s | 1940s | 1930s | 1920s Click here for Newbery Medal and Honor Books 1922-Present (PDF 200kb) List with downloads of Newbery, Caldecott and Legacy Award Winning Speeches 2020 Medal Winner: New Kid, written and illustrated by Jerry Craft (HarperCollins) Honor Books: The Undefeated, written by Kwame Alexander, illustrated by Kadir Nelson (Versify/Houghton Mifflin Harcourt) Scary Stories for Young Foxes, written by Christian McKay Heidicker, illustrated by Junyi Wu (Holt/Macmillan) Other Words for Home, written by Jasmine Warga (Balzer + Bray/HarperCollins) Genesis Begins Again, written by Alicia D. Members of the 2020 Newbery Medal Selection Committee are: Chair Krishna Grady, Darien Library, Darien, Conn; K.C. 2019 Medal Winner: Merci Suárez Changes Gears by Meg Medina (Candlewick) Members of the 2019 Newbery Medal Selection Committee are: Chair Ellen M. Honor Books: Doll Bones by Holly Black (Margaret K. Honor Books: Honor Book:
40 Read Aloud Chapter Books for Young Children One of my New Year’s resolutions was to start reading chapter books at bedtime to our sensitive 4 year old son and spunky 2 year old daughter. Okay, the 2 year old might have been a stretch, but we’ll try anyway. Yes, chances are that your preschoolers, too, can sit still enough to listen to a long book while having breakfast (rather than watching TV) or at bedtime, when they’ve likely wound-down and welcome your prolonged presence before the lights are turned off for the night. Even if some of the language or concepts are slightly beyond your children’s understanding and maturity level in some of these books, you’ll be amazed at how much they will enjoy and even start to grasp “big” words and ideas after reading chapter books. (Hopefully, my own kids will learn to become overall better listeners as well!) You certainly don’t have to read all of them.
Flourish: A Visionary New Understanding of Happiness and Well-being Caldecott Medal Click here for Caldecott Medal Winners and Honor Books, 1938-Present The Caldecott Medal was named in honor of nineteenth-century English illustrator Randolph Caldecott. It is awarded annually by the Association for Library Service to Children, a division of the American Library Association, to the artist of the most distinguished American picture book for children. 2021 Medal Winner We Are Water Protectors, illustrated by Michaela Goade, written by Carole Lindstrom, and published by Roaring Brook Press, a division of Holtzbrinck Publishing Holdings. Michaela Goade’s vivid, swirling watercolors capture the sacredness of water and amplify Carole Lindstrom’s passionate call to action and celebration of Indigenous ancestry and community. 2021 Honor Books A Place Inside of Me: A Poem to Heal the Heart, illustrated by Noa Denmon, written by Zetta Elliott, and published by Farrar Straus Giroux Books for Young Readers, an imprint of Macmillan Publishing Group. Cozbi A.
Top 100 Children's Books of All-Time Developing a love of the written word can begin while your child is an infant. Babies who are read to are much more likely to read earlier, understand concepts better, and be faster learners than babies who do not have the chance to experience books. It is never too early or too late to begin reading to and with your children. Choosing a variety of well written, colorful, and entertaining stories from some of the best children’s books ever will help develop a love of reading and a love of learning in your child. Sharing that time together and cuddling up with a story to share will also help build a bond between you and your child like nothing else can. Looking for chapter books? 11 to 20 21 to 30 31 to 40 41 to 50 51 to 60 61 to 70 71 to 80 81 to 90 91 to 100 Famous Children’s Books That Almost Made the List *NEW* 30 Best Children’s Books of 2012
How Children Success: Grit, Curiosity, and the Hidden Power of Character Geisel (Dr. Seuss) Award The Geisel Award is given annually to the author(s) and illustrator(s) of the most distinguished American book for beginning readers published in English in the United States during the preceding year. 2021 Medal Winner See the Cat: Three Stories About a Dog, written by David LaRochelle, illustrated by Mike Wohnoutka, and published by Candlewick Press See the Cat: Three Stories About a Dog is a deceptively simple book that teaches readers the power of words. The simple text on the unadorned left page provides a stark contrast with the whimsical and expressive illustrations on the right. “Short and simple sentences pull children into Max’s interactions with the book’s narrator, and they will delight as Max eventually learns the power of words and takes agency over his own story,” said Geisel Award Committee Chair Lori Coffey Hancock. 2021 Honor Books There’s a loud, messy, and bossy member in the family. Ty’s Travels: Zip, Zoom! What About Worms!? Where’s Baby? Can you find baby fox?
Top 10s: My favourite coming-of-age novels - Reading Matters The Heart is a Lonely Hunter by Carson McCullers (1940) This isn't a typical coming-of-age novel, given that it's told from the perspective of four very divergent characters: a young girl, a drunken socialist, a black doctor and a sympathetic deaf mute. But in many ways each of the characters share similarities: they are yearning for something that will help them "grow" emotionally. But my favourite character from this book is the delightful Mick Kelly, who teeters between being a playful tomboy and a proper young lady. Her "journey" is a heartfelt one: a poor girl who has an amazing amount of creative energy but doesn't know how to channel it in a fulfilling way. Click here to read what Reading Matters' book group thought of this book. Atonement by Ian McEwan (2002) Shortlisted for the Booker Prize in 2002, the story opens on the hottest day of the summer of 1934. Click here to read my review of this book. The Secret Life of Bees by Sue Monk Kidd (2003) The Body by Stephen King (1982)
Work Hard. Be Nice: How Two Inspired Teachers Created the Most Promising Schools in America