Patriotism

This week for Veteran's Day I shared America's White Table by Margot Theis Raven. As I read the story from a powerpoint, students created the image using a school desk as the table. After all, soldiers were once students and the time may come when children who are now in my classes will enlist in our Armed Services. During the presentation respect for our family members and friends in the military was palatable in the library.

The children are making postcards for me to send to an Army battalion in the state of Washington. One of our new teachers used to be with that battalion and knows how hard it is for young volunteers to be away from home during the holidays. We appreciate the opportunity we have to lift their spirits and share our gratitude for their service.

I grew up learning patriotic songs and was surprised when so few children recognized the words to "My Country 'Tis of Thee", even with our country's symbols and music being part of the school curriculum. My third graders were amazed to hear the song and the fourth graders tried to sing it with me.

The eagle painting at the top of the post is one I painted a few years ago for my husband.

King Bidgood

KING BIDGOOD’S IN THE BATHTUB by Audrey Wood is a great picture book to share with children. A knight, the queen, a duke, and the court try hard, but the king is having too much fun to get out of his bathtub and rule his kingdom.

Before reading the story you could talk about life in medieval times, especially about no running water except for maybe a page running up and down the castle steps. Encourage your child to listen for patterns in the story. What repeats? How is the story organized?

A question to ask your child is, did you notice a pattern that would help you retell the story? This story has three ways to remember the order:

Time of day: sun came up (morning), sun got hot (noon), sun sank low (evening), night got dark (night), moon shone bright (middle of night)

Character: Page, Knight, Queen, Duke, Court, Page

Activity: battle, lunch, fishing, Masquerade Ball, pull plug

One activity to do with a young child is have them show with their hands, the position of the sun in the sky as they read the story with you again. This is a good time to talk about the sun coming up in the east and setting in the west.

Mesmerized

“Shhhh! There’s a deer!” I whisper excitedly. My body grows taut as I stand still, not wanting to scare the creature. Rooted to the spot, my eyes sweep the vegetation searching for others. A blue spruce obscures my view of the lower half of her body. No fawn. Oh! There’s another deer!

What caught her attention? Perhaps she smelled a predator. My limited ability can only detect a slight waft of floral essence but wild roses are close by. Pine is more prevalent and the stickiness of the sap and the rough tree bark come to mind. Sniff. Sniff. Wait! There’s a whiff of onion too. Maybe she stepped on some wild onion.

The air seems dry even though it is early evening. Yesterday’s mosquito bite on my ankle starts to itch and I am reminded that the gnats that will soon start to hover. I continue to scan the area wondering if I could step closer. There are a couple of boulders I could hide behind but the tall grassy patch would give me away. My shoeless feet would need to be careful of the randomly fallen, prickly patches of pinecones.

Why is she still so vigilant? Maybe she heard something. It’s so quiet I can only hear the peaceful hush of my breathing in and out and the steady beat of my heart. It’s almost like I am in a bubble yet I feel the spaciousness and beauty of a cathedral as I enjoy this intimate moment. The innocent harmony of nature makes it seem like it was created just for my personal benefit.

“Mom?” a small voice quivers, intruding on my thoughts. “Mom?” I hear a little louder. Glancing up I see my daughter peering quizzically into my face. I look to my right. My one son is fiddling with a squishy toy. Scanning to the left my husband leans over our other son. He’s smiling yet his eyes ask, “What’s going on?” My gaze falls back down to the book lying open in my lap. It’s a nature hide and seek book and we’re gathered in the kitchen.