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Tuesday Tales – Good Question! Books

Posted on January 8, 2013 12:00 am by TheAngelForever

Kids love to ask questions about everything and anything. As a teacher, it was always interesting to listen to my students get information and ask questions about people, places, and events from history. Sometimes there were easy answers, other times it was a bit more complicated.

As my boys are growing up, we have been thinking about ways to introduce them to more of our history. TechyDad and the boys just went to an exhibit at the New York State museum where there are now questions about Abraham Lincoln and the Civil War floating around our house.

Sterling Children’s Books recently contacted me about a series of books called Good Question! The picture books for older children are about specific topics that answer questions everyone really wants to know.

What Was Your Dream, Dr. King?: And Other Questions About… Martin Luther King Jr. by Mary Kay Carson (Sterling Children’s Books, 9781402790454, January 2013) takes us into the life of Civil Rights leader Martin Luther King Jr. The book is filled with the answers to twenty thoughtful questions including:

What kind of doctor was Dr. King?
Who was Rosa Parks?
Why did 250,000 people march for freedom?
What happened to Dr. King?

The book tackles the questions with straight forward and honest answers that are appropriate for children in second grade and up. The photos, paintings, and timeline help to take the reader back in time to the days of Dr. King Jr. and his family. This book would be a great addition to a unit on Dr. King before MLK Day or for Black History Month in February.

Why Did the Whole World Go to War?: And Other Questions About… World War II by Martin W. Sandler (Sterling Children’s Books, 9781402790447, January 2013) helps to tackle the tough subject of war times. This book answers eighteen questions including:

What started World War II?
How did Hitler take over so many countries so quickly?
What happened at Pearl Harbor?
Who were the Tuskegee Airmen?
Why was Anne Frank hiding?

World War II is a tough subject to talk to children about, but a necessary one. I still remember reading Anne Frank’s diary in 5th grade and learning about my Papa being overseas in a tank. The facts of this time period fascinated me and thanks to books like this children can learn about it in a way that is perfect for them. If they want to know more about a certain area covered in the book, they can have a parent, teacher, librarian, or other adult help them to get this. I hope to share this book with my nine year old soon. I have to figure out just the right way to bring it up and may save it for Holocaust Remembrance Day.

I have always said that I adore picture books for older children. These books are a great example of that. They take some more difficult subject areas and present them in a developmentally appropriate way for children. There is just enough information provided to answer the questions and give kids the opportunity to seek more information after this introduction. Later in the year, two additional titles will join the Good Question! series with a book about the Titanic in April, and The American Revolution in August. I know I look forward to seeing these titles and more as they are published.

It's Me

Disclosure: My family received the books mentioned above from Sterling Children’s Books in order to facilitate this review. No other compensation was given. The opinions expressed are my own. Two Amazon Affiliate links are included in this post for the books mentioned. I will receive a percentage of money for the sale should you opt to buy the books through the links.

Categories:
books Educational Tuesday Tales

Gluten-Free Cooking for Dummies

Posted on December 30, 2012 12:00 am by TheAngelForever

Over the last few years, I have been trying to learn more about Gluten-Free Cooking. I know several people that have gluten allergies, some have medical conditions, and others are gluten-free to help themselves to feel better. After our son was diagnosed with high functioning autism, members of our autism community also noted that many families of children with autism and sensory processing concerns participate in gluten-free diets. While we are not there yet, I want to learn as much as possible so we can be sensitive to those who are gluten-free and in case we want to try in the near future.

Thanks to an opportunity with For Dummies, I was able to receive a copy of Gluten-Free Cooking For Dummies .

Thanks to the holidays, travels, and the kids being sick and home for break, I have not had nearly enough time to really explore this book. Author of Living Gluten-Free for Dummies Danna Korn has paired up with gluten-free cookbook author Connie Sarros to teach people some basics in a Dummies format. The book helps people to learn how to shop for gluten-free products and ingredients (score) and make meals that are gluten-free with 165 gluten-free dishes.

I must admit, part of the reason I have not tried to make the switch to gluten-free yet is because it seems intimidating. Change is hard, learning, changing, and conforming eating habits is not easy. This book and knowing so many friends who are doing it and the change in the grocery/cooking world may just change my view.

Gluten-Free Cooking for Dummies is broken down into four parts that go further into depth on specific areas. The sections are:

Part 1: Preparing for Your Gluten-Free Cooking Adventures – This section is what I really need to study more. Here Korn lets you know that this is not simply a diet, it really is a lifestyle change. There are reasons why to do it, break down of things that are and are not gluten-free, focusing on nutrition, getting your house ready for the switch, shopping strategies, and why you will not always need recipes. The Cheat Sheets on the Dummies website give you a taste of how everything is broken down into easy to follow steps.
Part 2: Mouthwatering Main Courses – Recipes from Sarros are included with focus on gluten-free flour education, dishes with fish/meat, and meatless items. With a kosher kitchen, we are mostly vegetarian at home. There are some tofu dishes, along with soups and more in the next part that are perfect for us.
Part 3: Dishes to Enjoy Before, After, or Any Time – Many more recipes including those for appetizers, salads, soups, snacks, and desserts. Cheesy Corn Chowder, Train Mix Bars, Whoopie Pies, and others are at the top of my list to try soon.
Part 4 – The Part of Tens – Lists of 10s include easy to prepare comfort foods like nachos, pudding, chili, and more. Also, ten ideas for cooking gluten-free with kids to help families.

Gluten-Free Cooking for Dummies

Have you already switched to a gluten-free diet or know someone that has? I would love to know your thoughts, tips, and any information you have to share. Please leave comments and links below.

Disclosure: I wrote this post as an Ambassador for Dummies books through a Global Influence campaign. I received a copy of this book for review purposes, but as a fan of Dummies books, the opinions expressed are 100% my own. Additional locations to purchase this book can be found on the following landing page. An Amazon Affiliate link is included in this post for the Dummies book mentioned. I will receive a percentage of money for the sale should you opt to purchase it through that link.

Categories:
books food glorious food

Hobbit Phobia

Posted on December 20, 2012 10:59 am by TheAngelForever

It all started in the fifth grade. That was the year my teacher broke away from the traditional basal readers for Language Arts instruction. There were two to four books that we would all be reading in different groups during the academic year. For some reason, I can only recall two of them. The first one that I read was The Diary of Anne Frank. It was the year after my Hebrew School teacher talked with us about the Holocaust. She and her husband were survivors and had the tattooed numbers on their arms. From that day on, I wanted to learn everything I could about the time period. I wanted to know so I could be sure it would never happen again.

On the flip side, there was another book that we read. It was by J.R.R. Tolkien. This was the first time I was forced, yes I am using that word, to read something I did not like. The small writing on the page, the long chapters, the descriptive nature by the author all turned me off of reading. What was the book? It is quite popular these days and you probably know just from the title. He’s a photo of TechyDad’s prized copy:

I’m sorry Bilbo Baggins, I have nothing really against you I just did not like The Hobbit. Truth be told the style of writing just was not for me. This experience helped me in the classroom when I was teaching Language Arts to sixth graders. I could understand that not everyone would adore the books that I selected and had to help them to work around this. I even told them about my life experience being told I had to read something. Yes, humanizing and relating to my students helped.

Fast forward to the release of The Hobbit in the movies. You see, this is a favorite book for TechyDad and he really, really, really wants to see the movie. When we first were married, the Lord of the Rings movies were out and I tried to watch them with him. I fell asleep and never made it past the first part of movie one. Yes, I do believe that some of that was me protesting thanks to my reading experience in fifth grade.

Now I’m conflicted. Do I spend the money to attempt to see the movie with him and try to ease up my Hobbit Phobia, or just send him off to see it alone? Have you ever had experience reading a book where you just could not move forward?

Categories:
books looking back me moments

Tuesday Tales – The Importance of Early Literacy

Posted on December 18, 2012 12:00 am by TheAngelForever

A little known fact about me is that I am a Certified Reading Teacher. Though I am not currently in the classroom, we have always spent a lot of time reading with our boys. Tuesday Tales was actually born because of my love of books and hoping to share some of the items that we are reading as a family or individually.

Now, I watch as my youngest son is learning to read. It never fails to amaze me how kids adore this process. It truly is fun to experience. I still remember the early days of reading with toddler JSL, but now look forward to him reading me stories.

The holidays are a great time to gift books to children and adults alike. Remember to get them stories that will take them to near and far lands, encourage them to dream, and prepare them to be life long learners. Thanks to this, I thought it was fitting to share something I wrote for a former project below.

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It is never too early to start reading with your child. I still remember sitting on the couch with my infant son and a pile of my favorite picture books. As he got older, he would initiate reading time. By the time my youngest was a toddler, his big brother was already reading. Watching the little guy ask his big brother to read him a favorite book was priceless.

We have an impressive library of books within our house. As a teacher, I grew quite the collection of children’s books before we had our boys. When NHL was born seven years ago, we started buying board books. These were perfect to read to him. As he became a toddler, he could also “read” them independently. Whether it was Goodnight Moon, The Very Hungry Caterpillar, Pajama Time, or another favorite from Sandra Boynton, books were always around.

In addition to having our books at home, I have always brought the kids to our local library. The boys know exactly where the books are and love helping to pick out items. These days, libraries are even widening their selection of board books that are perfect for the toddler set.

When JSL was home with me, I heard about our local library having a story time. We went because it seemed like the perfect match for our love of books. During the story time, the librarian read everyone several stories, used the felt board with the kids and sang familiar classics to get the kids involved. It was also a nice time for the children to socialize and see how to work with others in a group setting.

Remember that children who are exposed to books at an early age are more likely to become early readers. Reading readiness comes from seeing others read and becoming familiar with the written language. When you read to your child, you are teaching them literacy skills. Seeing how to hold a book, turn pages, follow the words from left to right are all things that even a toddler will pick up before going to preschool. So, rather than buying your child a new toy that they may not really need, think about an old favorite book from your childhood and start a small library for your own house.

What book or author is a favorite of your child? As always, please share what you have read recently. Be sure to link up to your book posts in the comments below. Include something you read on your own, with a child, or someone else. Tuesday Tales are all about spreading the love for books.

Disclosure: Parts of this post were previously published on a project I worked on. The text is mostly the same, but I placed a new introduction to go along with a topic that continues to be important for families.

Categories:
books looking back Tuesday Tales

Online Reputation Management for Dummies

Posted on December 13, 2012 12:00 am by TheAngelForever

Blogging has opened up an entirely new world for me. When I started The Angel Forever almost six years ago, I had no idea that I would be building a brand. The reality is that slowly the need to think about how I present myself in Social Media and beyond as the person behind The Angel Forever became evident. I had to be the voice behind my blog and not simply Beth. Gone are the Tweets where I vent about things at school. Sometimes, you will still see personal items like notes about the crazy weather and parenting, but that is showing a side of my brand – the Mom.

At various Social Media events – including BlogHer, SheStreams, and Disney Social Media Moms – I took notes from people about how to build a brand. Slowly, I have been working on this. Of course, at the same time you also have to think about your online reputation. Not only do big companies have to think about this, but bloggers do as well.

Thanks to an opportunity with For Dummies, I was able to receive a copy of Online Reputation Management For Dummies.

Heading into 2013, I have goals for myself. With these items in mind, I need to be ready to manage my online reputation. Author Lori Randall Stradtman mentions “Expecting the best and preparing for the worst.” The inner Eeyore in me laughed and nodded at that statement. The reality is that you must be prepared and have a plan ready. The last thing you want to do is panic and let emotions guide you IF you need to fix something. As a victim of cyberbulling by someone who has targeted many bloggers over the years, I am always looking to learn. I adore that Stradtman makes a point to remind people that Reputation Management is not simply another way of saying damage control. She’s right. It’s a process that takes time and her book helps others to do this.

Online Reputation Management for Dummies is broken down into six parts that go further into depth on specific areas. The sections are:

Getting Started with Online Reputation Management —Learning what this means and what approach will be best for you.
Organizing Your Teams – In addition to an everyday team, you need to think about people/professionals that can be on your crisis team.
Listening Is Love – What monitoring tools to use, how to utilize SEO Keywords, and setting everything up to check what is being said.
Establishing Your Reputation – Engagement via Social Media, making your brand, defining your message, reaching out to groups, tips on writing to get attention, using visual to get message out there, and getting others to spread your brand.
Responding to Crisis: Your Step-by-Step Plan – How to manage issues as they grow, working on a crisis, and making personal connections (this was a life saver in my situation).
The Part of Tens – Reputation tips for special events, faceplant moments, and making readers/fans happy.

Since the book arrived, I have had time to scan it over and get a general feel for what is inside. What I have realized, I need more time to read certain areas that are more of what I will utilize in the weeks ahead. I know I need to monitor a bit more, especially with the past cyberbully issues. I also need to really home in on defining my brand and working with the writing tips like catchy titles, adding SEO keywords, creating lists, how to, and other items within Chapter 12: Writing Your Way to the Top and Chapter 13: Using Visuals to Spread Your Message. I already use Facebook, Google+, Twitter, and Instagram. Now to use them more to build my brand via Online Reputation boosting strategies from Stradtman while also being prepared to protect and respond IF something should happen.

Now I have a plan of action with the Online Reputation Management Cheat Sheets available online, along with my own outlines. As I enter 2013, I have a plan on where to focus my attention so I can get more specifics to utilize in my strategy from this book.

Do you have an Online Reputation Management strategy? I would love to know your thoughts on this topic thanks to our new Social Media and online world.