Dare to dream and live happily ever after!!!!

Once upon a time I was a little girl!  I was truly a little princess who loved to dream of meeting my prince charming! I had a few bumps along the way!  My family split ways and I found myself living with a stepmother!!!  She made me cook and clean and learn to sew!  At the time I related it all to a traditional childhood favorite Cinderella!

Cinderella is a book with many different versions.  This particular version is the Walt Disney version that I knew as a child.  It is considered a fairy or wonder tale.  It is a prose narrative and has many cultural variants.  It is a traditional story that has been passed down from generation to generation.

Cinderella is a young girl who lives with her stepmother and two stepsisters.  They do not like her very much.  They made her work hard every day doing chores around the house.  One day a letter arrived that stated "The king is giving a ball tonight.  His son, the Prince, will choose a wife.  Every girl in the kingdom must be there."  Cinderella was brave and said she would attend also!  They stepsisters just laughed at her.  The stepmother agreed under the condition that Cinderella get all of her chores done.  She ran to her room to celebrate with her friends, several tiny mice!  She got out an old dress to mend and make beautiful for the ball.  The stepmother and stepsisters made it almost impossible for poor Cinderella to get all of her chores done.  In the mean time her little mice friends worked hard on her dress to surprise Cinderella.  At the end of all her chores she walked slowly and very tiredly up to her room knowing she would never make it.  She opened the door and was very surprised to fine her dressed all finished!  She quickly dressed and ran to catch her family before they left.  The girls could not believe their eyes and ripped Cinderellas dress.  They left and Cinderella was standing there all in shreds.  As she cried a fairy godmother appeared.  "I am here to give you your wish" she said.  She worked her magic and in minutes had Cinderella in a beautiful gown and in a buggy on her way to the ball.  The only catch was the spell would be broken at midnight.  As soon as she walked in the Prince spotted her and asked her to dance.  He only danced with her all night.  When the clock struck twelve, she ran.  In the process of trying to make it home she lost a glass slipper.  The Prince ordered that every girl in the kingdom try on the shoe.  They tried the shoe on Cinderella and it fit perfectly!  She went to the palace and married the prince and they live "happily ever after".

This is a story that will touch your heart.  The hard working girl who is kind and deserving was rewarded in the end.  Being mean and selfish will get you nowhere in your life.  It is a life lesson that children need to hear.  This could be used in multiple grade levels.  It speaks of true friendship (Cinderella and the mice) and having dreams to work towards.  It shows to always have hope because dreams really do come true and there is light at the end of the tunnel of a bad situation.

Although I lived with a stepmother I learned that it was not so bad!  Now that I am grown up and have my prince charming with two precious children I realize that stepmother taught me a lot about who I am today.  I am thankful that she taught me to sew and cook and clean.  I worked hard growing up and learned to be nice to people and I am rewarded with a beautiful family.  My wish came true and we are now living "happily ever after"!

THE END

Poetry- Animal Style!!!

Poetry is never a genre I would think about as Children's Literature.  As I approached books about poetry I was pleasently surprised to find how fun they can be!  One paticular book I am blogging about is called "The Animal Fair" By Jill Bennett. 
What kids don't like animals?  This book is a great way to introduce poetry by using a familiar topic in a fun way such as alliteration.  Poems include furry animals, farmyard animals, snails, caterpillars, ponies, dragonflies, wasps, honey bears, pets, cats, birds, kangaroos, crocodiles, leopards and lions!  It also has poems about going to the zoo and the animal fair!  This list sounds like so much fun to bring into an early childhood classroom!  The illustrations are amazing and open a world of imagination. 
The poems are not only fun, they are very informational to children who are learning characterisitcs of animals.  Here is one example of a wasps.
                                Wasps in brightly coloured vests,
                                Chewing wood to make their nests.
                                Wasps, like rockets, Zooming High,
                                 Then dropping down where peaches lie.

And then dragon-fly
                                 When the heat of the summer
                                 Made drowsy the land,
                                 A dragon-fly came
                                 And sat on my hand.
                                 With its blue jointed body,
                                 And wings like spun glass,
                                 It lit on my fingers
                                As though they were grass.

These two examples are more informational than some of the others.  Some of the poems are silly and for fun.  These two particular ones could be used in a unit on Insects.  They tell of the bugs in a fun way but also describe them to a certain degree. 
I would use this book in my classroom throughout the entire year.  As you do units on winter and hibernation you could use the bear poems.  As you talk about animals in other countries you could use the poems on Kangaroos. 
This book serves multipurposes but also can be used just for fun.  It is a great tool to bring poetry into a classroom. 

                               

Hello ;)

Hey!  I am beginning a blog for a college class.  It is my first ever blog so we will see how it goes!  I am excited to start blogging! ;) I am an early childhood education major and the class I am blogging for is about children's literature!  If you are interested in children's books please follow me and if you have any advice send it my way!