Pete the Cat Saves Christmas by Eric Litwin and James Dean

Did I just hear a Christmas song on the radio? It’s only November 16th!

I suppose I’ll join in the madness and review a holiday-themed book that both my boys love: Pete the Cat Saves Christmas by Eric Litwin and James Dean (HarperCollins, 2012).

Opening: ’Twas the day before Christmas and Santa was ill.
In the cold winter wind he had caught a bad chill.
Will Christmas be canceled? Will it come to that?
“Never!” cried Santa.
“Let’s call Pete the Cat!”

Synopsis (from jacketflap): In this rockin’ new spin on the traditional tale The Night Before Christmas, Pete the Cat proves that giving your all in the spirit of Christmas is the totally groovy thing to do.

Theme/Genre: Holiday, Giving; Fiction

Suitable for: ages 3+

Why we like it: My boys ages 4 and 2 love Pete the Cat and this book is no exception…my oldest is already singing the catchy song! Last year, he also got to see “Mr. Eric” at a live performance here in Vancouver and loved it…his first ever live show.

I like how the central theme of this book is giving. “I’ll do it,” said Pete, “and although I am small, at Christmas we give, so I’ll give it my all.” As we read this book, my son asked, “What is giving your all?” I realize it’s a bit of an an abstract concept for preschoolers, but it led to a ‘teachable moment’ as they say, in which we talked about giving to others, doing our best, etc.

Resources: HarperCollins website has a downloadable activity kit which you could print out for students. The story and song are also free to download or stream here. Other ideas that come to my mind can be drawing a picture around the theme of “Though I am small, I can give it my all”. Also I think learning the song as a class would be oh.so.cute. You could record students’ voices reading the story on an iPad, and then grab a guitar and teach them the song! The kids at T.E. Scott where my husband teaches did just that! Check out their awesome video:

And here’s a little preview of the book from HarperCollins:

Have you been hearing Christmas carols where you live?!

Pete the Cat and His Four Groovy Buttons by Eric Litwin and James Dean

Happy Friday, everyone! Today I am participating in Susanna Leonard Hill’s Perfect Picture Book Friday…Check out her blog for great books and resources recommended by writers, teachers, parents, etc.

My choice for today is Pete the Cat and His Four Groovy Buttons which was just released on May 1, 2012 by HarperCollins.

Author: Eric Litwin

Illustrator: James Dean

Theme: Song; numeracy; subtraction. Coping: “stuff will come and stuff will go, but do we cry?”

Synopsis: Pete the Cat is wearing his favourite shirt-the one with the four totally groovy buttons. But when one falls off, does Pete cry? Goodness, no! He just keeps on singing his song- after all, what could be groovier than three groovy buttons? Count down with Pete in this rocking new story…(from HarperCollins)

Selection: “Pete the Cat put on his favourite shirt with four big, colourful, round, groovy buttons. He loved his buttons so much he sang this song…My buttons, my buttons, my four groovy buttons…Pop! Oh no! One of the buttons popped off and rolled away. How many buttons are left? 3! 4-1 equals three. Did Pete cry? Goodness, no! Buttons come and buttons go. He kept on singing his song”

Why we like it: My son is always drawn to picture books that include a song. He adores Pete the Cat and I find him charming too…he’s calm, cool, and collected and if he had a motto it would be, as the Brits say, ‘keep calm and carry on’…Also, the cutest thing about my son singing the song? Pronouncing “buttons” with an east coast accent (minus the ‘t’) like the kids and Eric in the book trailer:

Resources: There are activities (mostly related to the two other Pete the Cat books) on the HarperCollins website here. The song downloads are here. Pinterest has some links to various blogs with crafts and activities. I find it kind of strange that some bloggers charge money to download their activities that are based on James Dean’s images and Eric Litwin’s ideas. What do you think about that?

My own idea is an activity to appeal to kinaesthetic learners. As it is a great book for teaching numeracy, specifically subtraction, my suggestion is to:

1) Stock up on some buttons (hit up thrift stores), enough for each child to have four or they could bring some from home.

2) Read the story once and then hand out 4 buttons to each child. Have children stand in a circle and a basket/bucket/inflatable pool in the middle. They can listen to the story, dance with their buttons and when you come to the part where the buttons “pop” off, have children take one of their buttons and throw it into the bucket. It will be a fun yet visual and tactile way to learn subtraction.

In Vancouver the other day I was at my favourite children’s bookstore Kidsbooks, and snapped a photo of their window display of Pete.

window display of Pete the Cat at Kidsbooks (Vancouver)

Not only are they promoting the new book, but also Eric Litwin’s visit to the Vancouver International Children’s Festival. I’m planning on taking my son to see him…anyone else taken their children to a Pete the Cat performance?!

Baby Beluga

“Baby Beluga in the deep blue sea/ Swims so wild and it swims so free/Heaven above and the sea below and the little white whale on the go….” (Raffi)

Anyone else grow up listening to Raffi? I think most kids in Canada did, particularly if their growing up years were the 80′s…

When I took my son to the Vancouver Aquarium a couple of years ago for the first time, he was enthralled by the belugas, so I bought him a squeaky toy beluga, and taught him the song I grew up listening to…Baby Beluga by Raffi.

We’ve been back plenty of times to the Aquarium, and I read recently that it was there where Raffi was inspired to write this song. So of course when I saw the board book featuring his song, I had to buy it for my littles! Here’s today’s Perfect Picture Book: Baby Beluga.

Author: Raffi

Illustrated by: Ashley Wolff

Ages: 1+

Genre/Theme: song, nature

Published by: Crown Publishers (an imprint of Random House), 1997

Synopsis: a song in story form that celebrates “the little white whale on the go”, featuring other Arctic animals, following him through his day of diving, splashing, squirting and singing, to nighttime when he is snug and warm.

Why I like it: I love books that I can sing when I read, and so do my boys. My oldest has learnt the song and  sings it to his younger brother who calls it “goo-ga”. The illustrations are beautiful and also feature other Arctic animals-good for expanding vocabulary and counting!

Resources: Raffi’s website has lyrics and sheet music for many of his songs, including Baby Beluga. The Vancouver Aquarium has a beluga webcam. Craft ideas can be found here. One early childhood educator filled bottles with water, added blue colouring and a white balloon (the beluga), taped the top, and the children loved shaking baby beluga around while they sang.

beluga at Vancouver Aquarium

baby beluga (on the right)

As you can see in the photo above, baby belugas are actually grey!

Anyone else ever visited the Vancouver Aquarium?

Check out more Perfect Picture Books at author Susanna Leonard Hill’s website!

Puff, Daddy!

So says my boy to his daddy. Or, “Puff, mommy” to me. But obviously “Puff, Daddy!” made for the better title.

I vividly remember the first time I heard the song, “Puff the Magic Dragon” by Peter Yarrow and Leonard Lipton, recorded by Peter, Paul, and Mary. It was grade one, and my teacher played the song for us while we sat for circle time and then we all sang along. I immediately loved it. Except for one thing. The child’s name was Jackie. And he was a boy. And I was a girl. (And still am). I couldn’t get over it for the longest time. A boy named Jackie?

Well, I suppose I’ve come to term with my somewhat androgynous name…even when I visited a remote village in the hills of India, when I introduced myself, the man replied..”oh yes, like Jackie Chan”…(sigh).

Anyways, back to Puff. Puff the Magic Dragon is a wonderful magical book about a little boy’s friendship with a dragon and the adventures and fun they have together in a land called Honalee.  Most people, at least in North America and of my generation, are very familiar with it, as it was made popular by the folk group Peter, Paul, and Mary in the seventies.  The book, published in 2007 by Sterling Press is a real treasure, full of whimsical illustrations by Eric Puybaret.

All in all, it’s a great book.  And the best is the twist in the story at the end suggested by the illustration…does Jackie Paper ever visit Puff again?  Better check out the book to find out!  I even got a little teary when I first read it. (Yes, I can be sentimental).  Pirates and ships, castles and toys, all make for a great book for boys!

A bonus is that the book also comes with a CD that has four songs (Puff included).

Meet Pete

A cat-lover I am not. I appreciate them, I suppose, but have been scratched and attacked too many times to really ever want to have one in my house. I’ve also sat on them a couple of times (accidentally…),and my husband’s allergy to them also confirms that cats will not have a future in our home.

An exception to the rule, however, is Pete. Pete the Cat charms me.  And he charms my boys…yes, even my baby.  He is calm, cool, and collected and if he ever had a slogan it would be, as the Brits say: “Keep calm and carry on”.

Pete the Cat: I Love My White Shoes (2010, HarperCollins) by Eric Litwin with art by James Dean is fun. Pete, a bold blue cat, loves going for walks but steps in various things that change the colour of his shoes. “But does he cry? Goodness, no!”(My son started saying this line, which is really quite endearing).  He keeps “walking along, singing his song”.
A bonus is that the book comes with a free mp3 download of a reading of Pete the Cat, which as it turns out, is actually a song.  A song that my son loves to sing along to.  It can also be downloaded free here.

So, for Pete’s sake, (I couldn’t resist), check out Pete the Cat.  James Dean, the artist, has a website devoted to Pete the Cat, and his paintings featuring Pete are sold in numerous galleries across the U.S. We love Pete the Cat and I think you may be charmed by him too.  Check him out here.