This book encourages children to be positive and enthusiastic about life and their role in it.
Hawkes uses a little acorn as a metaphor for human growth and potential. The young reader watches a little root pop out of an acorn shell and then traces its path of growth from the earth into a sapling and finally an acorn tree.
I like the use of alliteration and body movements to encourage the reader to participate in the little acorn’s growth cycle. Children are encouraged too find Snippy Snail hidden in each picture. Hawkes includes interactive activities that readers may use to relax and stay calm.
This book may be particularly useful during the pandemic when children are feeling unsettled. Recommended for elementary school readers.
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A leader in the workplace means setting a good example for others and/or heading up office programs and projects. It does not necessarily mean being a boss, manager, supervisor, or other “official” position, although it can mean that.
Here are some tips and ideas on how to be a leader in the workplace.
Be Confident
“Never let them see you sweat.” No one is perfect; but appearing confident inspires others to trust you and take your advice. Appear self-assured by not talking too much about your fears and concerns. Instead, talk to friends outside of the workplace about your uncertainties.
See the Good in Others
Always observe the good traits of other employees in the workplace. If you need to put certain people in charge of certain tasks, it pays to know who will do well with what task. You also may see potential in a co-worker and challenge him or her by requesting a task that might be a bit outside the scope of his or her current responsibilities. This improves the overall skill set of the workforce, and helps build self-esteem in your co-workers.
Don’t Be Afraid to Delegate
There’s a difference between being a people person and being a people pleaser. Being a people person means you have a genuine love for people, but you’re not afraid to ask people to do things. Being a leader doesn’t mean doing everything yourself; it means you are comfortable giving up some control and delegating tasks to others.
Appreciate Co-Workers
No one wants to work for or with someone who doesn’t appreciate them. If you let everyone know you appreciate what they’ve done and how they’ve given their time and talents, it can go a long way. Remember that there would be no leaders if there weren’t any followers. People who are appreciated may be more likely to follow your lead next time.
Problem Solving
If you step up with ideas on how to solve dilemmas or problems, and have resourceful ideas about how to accomplish something, then speak up. Employers value the ability to think through a problem and find a creative solution. This is a valuable leadership quality that demonstrates you have what it takes to be an effective leader in the workplace.
The Night the Monsters Came: A Fun Way to Teach Kids Healthy Habits as Part of Their Bedtime Routine
Written by Junia Wonders
Illustrated by Lisa Ciccone
Siblings Jack and Joy are getting ready for bed when Jack warns his sister, the monsters are outside and hungry. He dresses as a wizard and Joy puts on her fairy dress and crown.
As the monsters barge through the door, the children are steadfast. They warn the monsters they are not appealing targets because they follow good hygiene. Why does that turn the monsters off? Read the book to find out.
The rhymes are clever with extensive use of onomatopoeia and bright colors outlining new vocabulary. Illustrations are appropriate and colorful. I highly recommend the book for toddlers and primary grade children.
Publisher’s Synopsis: In the stand-alone companion to the New York Times–bestselling A Wolf Called Wander, a young orca whale must lead her brother on a tumultuous journey to be reunited with their pod. This gorgeously illustrated animal adventure novel explores family bonds, survival, global warming, and a changing seascape. Includes information about orcas and their habitats.
For Vega and her family, salmon is life. And Vega is learning to be a salmon finder, preparing for the day when she will be her family’s matriarch. But then she and her brother Deneb are separated from their pod when a devastating earthquake and tsunami render the seascape unrecognizable. Vega must use every skill she has to lead her brother back to their family. The young orcas face a shark attack, hunger, the deep ocean, and polluted waters on their journey. Will Vega become the leader she’s destined to be?
A Whale of the Wild weaves a heart-stopping tale of survival with impeccable research on a delicate ecosystem and threats to marine life. New York Times-bestselling author Rosanne Parry’s fluid writing and Lindsay Moore’s stunning artwork bring the Salish Sea and its inhabitants to vivid life. An excellent read-aloud and read-alone, this companion to A Wolf Called Wander will captivate fans of The One and Only Ivan and Pax.
Includes black-and-white illustrations throughout, a map, and extensive backmatter about orcas and their habitats.
This book drew me in from the opening chapter. The personified characters make you feel you a member of the whale pod. A compelling adventure that also provides readers with a wealth of knowledge about the dangers of life in the ocean. I highly recommend this beautiful book for elementary and middle-grade audiences. That doesn’t mean adults won’t enjoy it just as much!
A Whale of the Wild is at the top of my book list on the subject of whales. You will find other suggestions as you read on in the blog post.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Rosanne Parry is the author of the novels Heart of a Shepherd and Last of the Name, among other acclaimed titles. She lives with her family in an old farmhouse in Portland, Oregon, and writes in a treehouse in her backyard. www.rosanneparry.com
ABOUT THE ILLUSTRATOR
Lindsay Moore is an artist and writer with roots in Northern Michigan. She studied marine biology and fine art at Southampton College on Long Island and figure drawing at the Art Students League of New York, and earned her master of science in medical and scientific illustration from Medical College of Georgia, now Augusta University. Lindsay Moore lives with her family in Bowling Green, Ohio.
GIVEAWAY
Enter for a chance to win a copy of Rosanne Parry’s A Whale of the Wild!
Five (5) winners receive:
A copy of A Whale of the Wild, by Rosanne Parry
Giveaway begins September 1, 2020, at 12:01 A.M. MT and ends September 15, 2020, at 11:59 P.M. MT.
Interested in finding additional great books about whales?
Here are a few suggestions:
Song for a Whale
Lynne Kelly
Ages 8-12
In the spirit of modern-day classics like Fish in a Tree and Counting by 7s comes the Schneider Family Book Award-winning story of a deaf girl’s connection to a whale whose song can’t be heard by his species, and the journey she takes to help him.
National Geographic Readers: Great Migrations Whales
Lynn Marsh
Grade Level : 2 – 4
Over the course of their 70-year lifespan, sperm whales will easily travel the circumference of the Earth in search of food and the need to breed and find a mate. Males will travel as far north as the Bering Sea and as far south as Antarctica in order to find enough food to sustain their ways of live—up to 700 squid a day! Along the way, these massive beasts battle 30-feet-long giant squids, and each other, to sustain their ways of life.
Whales, Dolphins and Porpoises
Mark Carwindine
Illustrated Martin Camm
Reference book for all ages
Authoritative text, detailed illustrations, and a systematic approach make DK’s Smithsonian Handbook of Whales, Dolphins, and Porpoises the most comprehensive and concise pocket guide to cetaceans. With more than 900 illustrations, this visual recognition guide is designed to make identification as simple and accurate as possible.
This book is one of a series covering plants, animals, and other natural phenomena from around the world and is published in association with the Smithsonian Institution.
Baby Belluga (Raffi Songs to Read) Board Book
Written by Raffi
Illustrated by Ashley Wolff
Age one through preschool
Raffi’s most popular and beloved song about the “little white whale on the go” is available in a sturdy board book edition–just the right size for babies and toddlers!
Singing supports and encourages even the youngest child’s speech and listening skills, which makes Baby Beluga perfect for early learning. Join this adorable baby whale in a busy day at sea, culminating in a warm mother-child bedtime ending. With its delightful illustrations, this is the ideal sing-along for a whole new generation of readers.
Wally Whale’s Mighty Tail: A Book about Happiness
Written by Kim Linette
Illustrated by James Loram
A Multicultural Book for Elementary Readers
At least that’s what Koa hears, and so he sets out in search of Wally Whale and the valuable knowledge that he hopes Wally will share.
Determined to discover Wally’s secret to being mighty, Koa follows the whale through waves and reefs, never knowing the truth was inside him all along!
Wally the Whale helps Koa – the little island warrior – learn the real secret to being mighty! And you already have it inside!
It’s a lesson of emotional intelligence that is essential for any child—including Koa, who learns as he journeys through the Pacific with Wally Whale.
Get to know the entire EQ Explorer’s Series—including how we donate 100% of profits to help underserved kids around the world.
Sam is an unusual sloth. Unlike the rest of his species, Sam does not enjoy sleeping or staying inactive. One day he searches the rainforest for a playmate.
He meets Tammy the Toucan, Amy the Armadillo, and Oscar the Otto. Each has a favorite game, but they do not share the same set of skills. Will they be able to find a game in which each can use their unique talent to excel?
This charmingly illustrated picture book teaches children about animals of the South American jungle. They also learn that individual differences are not a roadblock to friendship and shared activities.
This book is a good choice for preschoolers as well as primary grade readers. In addition to the tale, readers are challenged by interactive activities like finding the hidden fruits, spotting the differences in pictures, word scrambles, and a fun fact pages on each of the animals featured in the book.
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Publisher’s Synopsis: When the survival of their hometown is threatened, two unlikely comrades join forces on a quest to defeat a dangerous enemy and bring back the only one who can save them all.
Beyond the frozen mountains there lies an oasis from the frigid cold and the howling winds. A place the animals call Lake Zuron. What a wonderful place, happy creatures of all kinds, living in harmony and warmth thanks to their very own fire-breathing dragon named Daniel.
But one day everything changed when the unthinkable happened. The Dragon fire goes out and immediately the air begins to chill. Things were not looking good but just when all hope was lost, an unlikely hero steps up. Join Spark the mouse on an adventure of a lifetime as he and his friends do their part to save their town from an icy demise.
With the magical power of Daniel, the Dragon there could be hope. But first, they must face and defeat a dangerous enemy, the vile beasts who own these mountains where nobody passes through.
Along this journey maybe you will discover that it’s that little Spark in each of us that really matters, and that a little Spark could save them from the coming cold. The story reminds us that we all need something in life every day to ignite our passion and spirit – to help the world be a “warmer” place and to look for ways to “Be That Spark.”
Ages 7+ | Publisher: Zuroam Media | October 1, 2020 | ISBN-13: 978-1735145501
About the Author
Chris Parsons grew up in the small fishing village of Flatrock, Newfoundland where he was surrounded by storytellers. When he became a father, he began creating his own children’s stories, and soon he was sharing them with a wider audience.
Over time, his audience grew up, but he continued to create his stories and colorful characters mostly for his own enjoyment. One day he had a flash of inspiration about a little mouse named Spark and began to create the world of A Little Spark.
Today, Chris lives in Dallas. He has left the high-tech world of innovation and business development behind and is focused on his real passion – to create new meaningful experiences for children centered around powerful and engaging stories like ” A little Spark.”
Together with his wife, Kathleen, daughter, Maggie, and son, Kealan, they share a love for all God’s creatures.
Mike Motz is a children’s book illustrator and publishing professional based out of Toronto, Canada. Motz has helped writers around the world fulfill their dreams of publishing their works. To date, Motz has been responsible for the creation of the artwork for over 300 self-published children’s books.
About the Narrator
Brandon McInnis is a voice actor and singer known primarily for his work on animation and video games. He voices Sir Nighteye in My Hero Academia, Ganos in Dragon Ball Super, Finral Roulacase in Black Clover, Asagiri Gen in Dr. Stone, Yuna D. Kaito in Cardcaptor Sakura: Clear Card, Frodo Baggins in Lord of the Rings Online, Patrick Phelps in Black Butler, Sonosuke Izayoi in Danganronpa 3, Erlang Shen in SMITE, and many more.
With a deep love for music production and originally trained as an opera singer, Brandon also produces music for release on YouTube and Spotify. He can be followed on Twitter, TikTok, and Instagram: @BranMci.
About the Music Producer
Bruce Faulconer is a musician, composer, and record producer based in Dallas, Texas. He is the owner and founder of Faulconer Productions Music, and CakeMix Recording Studio. Faulconer writes music for orchestra, various instrumental and choral groups, along with the music for feature films, and TV series, including the anime Dragon Ball Z. He recently completed twelve songs for A Little Spark, included in a new audiobook, an interactive children’s book, and an animated feature film in development. He resides in Dallas with his wife Lisa and is the father of two sons.
My Review of A LITTLE SPARK
SMALL BUT MIGHTY
A Little Spark
Written by Chris Parsons
Illustrated by Mike Motz
This interactive book is a valuable resource for young children’s minds on so many levels. It is innovative, inspiring, and entertaining.
The target audience range is a wide one. This book contains rich illustrations that could place it in the picture book category. But with a length of more than one hundred fifty pages, it also might be considered a chapter book or a middle-grade reader. What it delivers is a range of fascinating animal characters which are personified with a range of human emotions and aspirations. There are fire-breathing dragons, bears, mice, weasels, goats, cats, and raccoons. They live in Lake Zuron, an oasis on the edge of a frozen world. Their world survives only because of the warmth provided by Daniel, a fire-breathing dragon. Lake Zuron is not an ideal society. The “Supervisors” contain the stronger animals, a ruling class. Far below them, “The Streeters,” perform all the work.
One day, Daniel loses his ability to produce fire. Lake Zuron faces extinction. But Sparky, a tiny mouse, finds within himself the courage to make the perilous journey over the frozen wasteland of their enemies, the Scabes, to follow a rumor that another land survives on the other side of the mountain. He and Veen venture to the other side. Will they discover salvation or face extinction?
Young readers learn many lessons from the colorful cast of characters as the adventure unfolds. Hope, courage, friendship, equality, fairness, and responsibility are exemplified in the faces and actions of the characters, both large and small. But Parsons provides much more than an excellent book. Embedded within its pages are a collection of twelve songs, private video messages from the characters, the ability to take a photo with your favorite character, or an opportunity for readers to share their personal opinions on the interactive lesson pages at the end of the book.
I highly recommend this unique educational resource for readers age eight through eighty-eight.
PURCHASE LINK
Before October 1st, pre-order your copy, email the team at Zuroam Media, and they’ll give you the audiobook free so you can enjoy it while you wait for the book to arrive. You can find all the email address and links to your favorite bookstore here:https://bethatspark.com/shop/.
Leadership skills are crucial for success in life, from employment to relationships. The general consensus is that many of these skills are lacking among adults and young people. Whether you have youth and young adults living in your home or placed under your supervision, you can invest in their futures by teaching them how to be leaders.
Qualities necessary for teaching youth and young adults to be leaders.
Give Them Responsibility
As a youth group leader, parent, teacher, or other authority figure, this can seem like a scary prospect. Are they ready for responsibility? Can they handle it? Give them something to be responsible for that will build their self-confidence, but don’t make it something that’s life-and-death. Take your teens’ personal skills, strengths, and weaknesses into consideration, too.
Here are some examples of responsibilities for teens.
Running an errand for you, such as picking up something from the store. If they can’t drive, you can drop them off to run the errand.
Opening up a bank account.
Let them lead a class or group.
Household chores like laundry could be delegated to the young adults and teens in your home.
Have them organize the set-up and clean-up of an event.
Jobs
One of those ironies of good leadership is that being under leadership is often a great way to learn it. Youth and young adults would do well to work at least part time, This fosters learning responsibility and also learning what is involved in good leadership. Having a job is an important responsibility that can prepare young people to lead.
Consider jobs like camp counselor or babysitter, too. Those are both jobs that put young people in charge of others.
Workshops
Are there leadership workshops available in your area? If not, see if you can hire a leadership consultant to come in and speak to your group. Maybe you can find someone to speak to your teen’s class, or hold a seminar on your young adult’s college campus. If there is a workshop available, take your youth group to the workshop, or sign your kids up.
Groups and Organizations
Organizations like Boy and Girl Scouts are also good ways for young adults and youth to learn leadership skills. Don’t let the names “boy” and “girl” deter you – there are all kinds of opportunities in these organizations for youth and young adults. Other clubs and groups encourage leadership among members, too. Find out about what is offered in your community – even your local YMCA/YWCA might have some ideas or programs.
Take stock of the opportunities available that are tailored to the career opportunities that are unique to the community in which you live and the curriculum available in schools and colleges in your area. Discuss the hopes and dreams held by your youth and teens and encourage them to share them with you and their peers. Innovation and success spring from the seeds of ideas.
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Amy, Sarah, and Joe, along with their friend Joe are with their guide Uti. Because their parents suddenly had to cancel, Uti is taking them to Oxley, a remote island on the outskirts of the Bermuda Triangle to see the exotic native animals.
Shortly, after their arrival, a sudden storm sweeps them out to sea before Uti can return to the wheelhouse. Alone and scared, the children are terrified when a ship crashes right into them. To their dismay, Captain Red, a pirate, is in command. Will the children survive the storm and escape from the pirates?
That is just the beginning of their adventures. A white gorilla, slithering reptiles, scary Natives, Will’s disappearance, aircraft, tunnels, and vampire bats are among the things the intrepid children will need to face.
The characters are nicely developed, the settings intriguing, and the action is nonstop, providing the perfect backdrop for a middle-grade or young adult thriller adventure.
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YouTube Video Marketing: Video Marketing Tips, Tricks And Strategies EXPOSED
Written by Lavorite Martin
This book is written in an easy, non-technical style. While certainly not intended for an expert in videography, this book is a good choice for beginners. Authors who want to explore using video clips in their marketing campaigns will find it a good introduction.
Martin begins with explaining the importance and techniques for identifying and zooming in on your ideal customer and target audience. This is crucial for success. The author also stresses the need to tie video marketing in with the rest of your social media platform. The section on the many types of videos will help the reader decide which is the right kind of approach to video marketing.
Success will rise or fall if you don’t have the right equipment. Martin gives suggestions. I learned a lot about which formatting is most effective and how to choose the right one in each situation. Finally, Martin explains how to optimize videos with calls to action, keywords, and tags. He tells the reader how to embed a video on various social media platforms.
I recommend this book as a handy reference tool and quick reminder for a marketer’s video needs.
Anya is only thirteen. She lives in Cardiff, and her life has been difficult. Tad, her alcoholic father, has spiraled into alcoholism and depression. Unable to support himself and his daughter, he secures a position as a scullery maid in London for her.
Anya’s adventure begins with a train ride on a contraption she has never laid eyes on. When she disembarks at Paddington Station, the sights and smells of Victorian England surround her. She has no idea of what to expect. When she meets her boss, Mrs. Axton, her fears escalate.
But as Anya settles into a life of drudgery, more trouble looms before her. Anya has secured a few friendships, but she has also made many enemies. The novel traces her struggle to clear her name. This young Victorian girl is determined to obtain a measure of happiness and find a family to accept and love her.
The book is a fast-moving historical fiction adventure that is perfect for middle-grade readers.
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September 30, 2020
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