How to teach your child about the importance of water.

Water is life.

As a city dweller I am sure you take water for granted. We barely need to think when we turn the taps on as water always flows out, fresh and clean.

The people who have the best access are the people who need to take better care of it. We need to educate our children so they are aware of where water comes from, where it goes after we have used it and who needs it apart from us!

Water wise activities:

Look at some different ocean and river animals. How do they live in and around the water?
Get outside and see where the pipes go after the water goes down the drain.
Look at the different products that you use to wash your hands, wash the clothes, wash your hair. Read the ingredients and see how these might negatively effect the waterways.
Find out where your water comes from – where is the local water tower, dam or river?
It is a human right to have access to water. Where in the world do people not have access to water?
Read some books that have water as a focal point such as:

A river,

The river and the book,

Down the Drain,

Aquatica,

All I want for Christmas is rain

Two summers

Spark your child’s natural wonder and help them to become globally conscious and people who want to look after the world they live in.

How to raise a globally conscious child

There is so much temptation in the world and it is so easy just to sit back and not think outside our own little bubble.

There is life beyond our bubble and the things we do effect those both in and out of our bubble.

So how do you raise your children to think outside of their little bubble?

Read to your child. Reading the books that I have suggested throughout this blog allow your child to see how others live and how they can live a better life for the sake of the world they live in.
Promote empathy. Ask them to consider how others might feel. Empathy is a skill that many people in the world lack so building this up in your child is important if you are to raise a globally conscious child.
Get outside – Create new experiences – play.
Stand up for what you believe in and involve your children – send money to a cause, write a letter to a politician or sign a petition. Encourage your child’s passion.

Join me on Facebook, instagram and follow my blog for tips and conversations on how we can all become more globally conscious citizens.

There is hope

The news of bombings fills me with dread of what those people must have felt, what those families who have lost must be feeling and even what the parents and friends of the bomber must be going through.

It fills me with fear about the world that my children are growing up in and concern about how they might feel if they one day hear about or experience these things.

There is hope.

As parents and teachers we can prepare our children for the world by displaying how to be more empathetic towards others through our actions. Think about how you talk about other people, news events and the world.

As parents and teachers we can allow our children to experience what life might be like for other people so that they can be more empathetic. We can do this through conversations and picture books.

If we help our children to understand how the world is different then perhaps we have a brighter future where everyone gets along as best as they can, treats everyone with respect and helps anyone in need.

Try these books that link to refugees.

Whatcha Building? by Andrew Daddo and Stephen Michael King

It’s exactly what this town needs.

I adore this book, Whatcha Building? by Andrew Daddo and Stephen Michael King is a story about endings and new beginnings, imagination and determination and a sense of community.

The old milk bar around the corner from young Davey’s house in being pulled down and a new building is replacing it. Davey observes the daily deconstruction of the milk bar and each day takes a piece of timber home. The builder and the reader’s imagination run wild with all the possibilities of what young Davey might be building.

It’s only until right at the end the masterpiece is unveiled with a timely message for us all.

I love the illustrations in this story as they not only accompany the text but they add more depth to each page. Stephen Michael King has used recycled garbage, cardboard, pen and ink to create the illustrations and this combination brings life to the story. Throughout the images we can get a real sense of the community at work and the role we all play in our environment.

So what else can you do with this book?

Sustainability

We all throw out too much and many of this can be reused or recycled. Investigate what you can do with things that are no use to you anymore. Rather than just throwing them out can you create something new? Give it to someone else? Or recycle it in the best possible way.
Create your own doll sized house purely from recycled and reused materials.
What sort of materials are best for the environment? Compare and contrast different types of floorboards available to the community – work out which ones are best using categories such as value for money, ecological impact and community impact.

Global values

Watch building really makes us think about how important people and space is to each of us. Many of us get caught up in consumption and needing the best of everything. Is there a place in your community where people can come together?
Design a space where people of all ages and backgrounds can come to share the love of where they live – without having to buy things.

Literacy

Look at the slang used throughout the story – what do each of these slang words mean? How does this portray Dave the builder?
What is the significance of Davey not saying many things throughout the story?

Some great thinking questions:

Do endings always have new beginnings?

If all the buildings in your town were replaced how would that effect your community both negatively and positively?

Select one architect who has changed the way we build sustainably. Find out how they approach design and how they want to improve life for all.

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Let me know how you go! It’s a beautiful book – I hope you can enjoy it too.

Wolfie: An unlikely Hero by Deborah Abela and Connah Brecon

Those Poor wolves.

Have you ever read a story where the wolf is a hero? The wolf is the good character? Or the wolf is someone that we should all look up to?

I haven’t but perhaps there is hope that not every story with a wolf in it has terror within!

Wolfie: An unlikely Hero by Deborah Abela and Connah Brecon is a humorous tale where a wolf tries to take on the storytelling skills of the narrator…and gets more than he bargained for!

Wolfie wants to be known for his running skills, his gleaming teeth, his loyalty and his bravery and the narrator takes note….but not in the way Wolfie was hoping for.

Wolf: an unlikely hero made us laugh and it also made us feel sorry for poor Wolfie – but it also made us think that perhaps we shouldn’t trust wolves…or should we?

Wolfie: an unlikely hero allows the reader to see how stories, when changed in the slightest way, can make huge differences. This story shows the reader how wonderful storytelling is and that we can all play a big role in telling different stories.

Fairytales are great places to help children become interested in reading and Wolfie plays on all of those wolf containing stories!

How can you add more to this story?

LITERACY

Predict: What do you think will happen to this wolf? Why is he an unlikely hero? How do the other characters on the front and back cover feel about this wolf?

Visualise: Think about how the wolf wants to be seen and how the narrator sees him by using the same words.

Storytelling: How can you create a story with many different endings? What events need to happen so a story can be changed so easily?

Reflect: Think about all of the different stories with wolves in them. Group these according to the different types of personalities, things they get up to and how the story finishes for the wolf.

Stereotyping:

How are wolves portrayed in different stories? How are princesses portrayed? Pigs? Dragons?

What is stereotyping and how do we stereotype in society?

Fairytales:

Can you create a fairytale with a different ending?
Continue reading “Wolfie: An unlikely Hero by Deborah Abela and Connah Brecon”

Storytelling and learning how to read.

“The planet does not need more successful people. The planet desperately needs more peacemakers, healers, restorers, storytellers and lovers of all kinds.” – Dalai Lama

What is storytelling?

Storytelling is the act of telling a story – any story. It can be through spoken word, through written word, through art and through acting.

How does storytelling help us and your child with reading?

It expands our vocabulary

By telling stories your child listens to new words being pronounced. Your child hears words in new and known contexts.

When your child tells a story they are practising using new vocabulary.

Instead of asking them to write another boring sentence using a spelling word or sight word – ask them to tell a story instead! These words will come into the story very easily

It is interactive

When we tell stories we are engaging in eye contact with the storyteller and the listeners. We are using body language and facial expressions to engage others or show our interest. We can see how others feel about the story and change where the story is heading if we see our original ending not working for the current audience.

Storytelling promotes visualisation, inferencing and problem solving. It helps us to think on our feet and engage each audience we tell the story to in a different way.

It tells us a story

We all love stories and storytelling through close friends and family can tell tales of the past – rather than just relying on photos and videos. Most cultures passed on advice through storytelling and many still do – telling stories make those rules much easier to follow!

It uses our imagination – both the storyteller and the listener.

Children love being told stories. Some evenings make up a story together before going to bed rather than always only reading books. Borrow ideas from books you have read and make up your own! Your imagination can go wild being the listener or the storyteller and you can have so much fun doing both!

“The power of storytelling is exactly this: to bridge the gaps where everything else has crumbled.” – Paulo Coelho

LOTS. The diversity of life on Earth by Nicola Davies.

LOTS. The diversity of life on Earth by Nicola Davies and illustrated by Emily Sutton is a creative, eye catching non -fiction picture book that conveys the message of the amazing diversity of life we have on our planet Earth.

Nicola Davies invites us to look everywhere and when we do we will find so many different types of life. Through magical storytelling the reader finds out small facts about different creatures, how they live, how many species there are and where they hide. Emily Sutton illustrates with care, bringing the natural world into focus and helping us to se the intricate details of each animal, plant and insect.

LOTS is a great book to ignite your child’s interest in animals and perhaps a future in animal and habitat conservation.

LOTS is a gentle way to teach children about the importance of all life forms and how we all play a role in caring for them.

An informative and entertaining book, LOTS is one for the science lesson, literacy lesson and just the quiet book before bed.

So what can you do with this book?

Before you read – write down three things you know about life on earth.

After you read – write down two facts you learnt. Write down two things you would like to know more about. Write down two ways you are going to help make sure no more animals become extinct.

Animal conservation

read about an animal in this book who has become extinct. Work out why they became extinct and actions that may have saved them.
List and group all of the different animals in this story. How many groups of animals are there?
Look at the page on food/life cycles – can you investigate other animals and how they link in with each other for food and life?
Donate money to an organisation or do some volunteer work that would help restore habitats for animals.

Use this book as a springboard to help your child to be aware that everything they do makes an impact. Every piece of rubbish, every flick of a light switch and every trip in the car impacts another.

Educate.Empower.