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Exploring Ramadan


We are participating in the Multicultural Kid Blogs Ramadan for Kids Series. This is our post for the series. As a Christian family, we do not know much about Ramadan except that it lasts a month and includes fasting. So our first step was to find out more about the holiday. We started with a DVD from the Holidays for Children series called Ramadan.

It is an older video we found at our library. It explains the holiday and some of the why for the holiday. It also shared a craft that was similar to the craft on In the Playroom: Watercoulour Mosque Silohouette Pictures. So we did not do this one. Next we read some books from the library.

Sharing Saturday 15-24



Thank you to everyone who shared last week!!As summer approaches and schools end, the posts seem to dwindle in number, but we had some great posts shared last week. Our features include educational features, art and more features and a couple of various ones. Remember this is just a sampling of what was shared last week, so go back and check out the other great ones!!

All the Little Fathers -- Book Review

Disclosure: Parragon Books sent me a copy of this book free of charge. All opinions in my review are my own and I did not receive any other compensation. As always I am providing links to the book for your convenience.

This was Hazel's last week of kindergarten so I have been busy with school events, but her summer vacation has started! To start the vacation we read All the Little Fathers by Margaret Wise Brown and illustrated by Marilyn Faucher, this month's Book Buddies Picture Book from Parragon Books
http://www.amazon.com/Little-Fathers-Meadowside-Picture-Book/dp/1472378172/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1434116131&sr=8-1&keywords=all+the+little+fathers

All the Little Fathers is a wonderful book about father animals taking care of and playing with their children. It is the perfect book for young children and especially the month of June in the United States since Father's Day is the third Sunday in June every year. Like many of Margaret Wise Brown's books, the text is relatively simple. The various animals do things like bears catch fish for their children, grasshoppers jump over their children, and they all put them to bed. 

The pictures in the book are colorful and fun. It is a beautiful book. Hazel really enjoyed it when we read it and to be honest she can probably read it now, but has not tried yet. My only comment is that it is not necessarily accurate with the animals as to what the fathers do. For example it is the mother bear who raises the cubs and not the fathers. The fathers have nothing to do with it. However I know this more because of Hazel's love of learning about animals, so I am probably just more in tune to that kind of thing. She did not comment on those things at all. 

It is a lovely new book by Margaret Wise Brown, author of Good Night, Moon and The Runaway Bunny. It is a fun book for children to read and hear and imagine what the animals life is really like. After all I can see the lions roaring with their children and the rabbits all hopping about together. It definitely can stir some fun images as well as be a good conversation starter on what really does happen. 

To see our first Book Buddies Review, check out Spot a Lot Vehicle Adventure Book Review.

Math of India -- Global Learning for Kids


Disclosure: Tuttle Publishing gave me a copy of Indian Children's Favorite Stories free of charge. All opinions in my review are my own and I did not receive any other compensation. They also sent me a copy to giveaway! As in all my reviews I am providing links for your ease, but receive no compensation.

This month we are exploring India as part of the Global Learning for Kids series. Today I thought I would focus on some Indian mathematicians and an Indian mathematical folk tale. Last month I shared the history of zero and the role the Indians played in it. First we will explore a few of the same mathematicians, Aryabhata and Brahmagupta, and introduce another Indian mathematician, Srinivasa Ramanujan. The Indians had a huge influence on our current number system and mathematics. Although it was the Arabs who took their number system and made it famous.

Sharing Saturday 15-23



Thank you to everyone who shared last week!! This week there were less posts shared, but the ones that were are amazing!! For features we have some help with picking Summer Reading, June Holidays, and what I am calling Create and Play.