The Flat Stanley Project was started in 1995 by Dale Hubert, a third grade school teacher in London, Ontario, Canada. It is meant to facilitate letter-writing by schoolchildren to each other as they document where Flat Stanley has accompanied them. Dale Hubert received the Prime Minister's Award for Teaching Excellence in 2001 for the Flat Stanley Project.
The Project provides an opportunity for students to make connections with students of other member schools who have signed up with the project. Students begin by reading the book and becoming acquainted with the story. They create paper "Flat Stanleys" (representative drawings of the Stanley Lambchop character) and keep a journal for a few days, documenting the places and activities in which Flat Stanley is involved. Each student's Flat Stanley and its respective journal are mailed to other people who are asked to treat the figure as a visiting guest and add to his journal, then return them both after a period of time. The project has many similarities to the traveling gnome prank except, of course, for the Flat Stanley Project's focus on literacy.
Students may find it fun to plot Flat Stanley's travels on maps and share the contents of the journal. Often, a Flat Stanley returns with a photo or postcard from his visit. Some teachers prefer to use e-mail for its quicker travel time.
In 2005, more than 6,500 classes from 48 countries took part in the Flat Stanley Project.
The project was featured in a 2004 episode of the animated TV series King of the Hill, in which Nancy Gribble receives a Flat Stanley in the mail. Peggy Hill and Luanne Platter photograph it in a number of dangerous situations, resulting in the school's Flat Stanley Project being cancelled.
In early 2010, Darren Haas, a huge Flat Stanley advocate and applications architect, approached Dale Hubert with the idea of turning the Flat Stanley Project concept into an app for the iPhone.
Also in 2010, fans of the baseball team the St. Louis Cardinals were asked (via the team website) to petition US President Barack Obama to award the Presidential Medal of Freedom to Baseball Hall of Famer Stan Musial. A "Flat Stan" downloadable cutout figure was made available to encourage Cardinals fans to take a photo with Musial's caricature and send them in as petitions.
I've read about a little girl who goes by the name "Big Susan" and she gave every single one of her dollhouse dolls a gift for Christmas one year!
Everyone loves to receive gifts that is true but Susan had an even more important reason to give presents to her little family of dolls than most children. It was because her dolls came to life only once a year on Christmas Eve! Yes, from twelve midnight to the dawn of Christmas morning, none of Susan's dolls needed her to help them speak, move or even to feel. And it was for this specific reason, her doll family enjoyed dreaming and talking about Christmas on that very special night more than any other.
Are you curious about what kinds of treasures a little dollhouse doll could possibly want? I shouldn't spoil those surprises before you have a chance to read all about their lives in the dollhouse.
Once you read this entertaining little chapter book, you should be able to fill in the blanks with a listing of every gift the dolls in Susan's house receive!
Before Christmas dinner the dolls opened the following presents:
Little Susan's gift was a brand new _ _ _ _ and a baby _ _ _ _ _! Mrs. Doll's gift was a shiny gold _ _ _ _ _ _! Mr. Doll was given a brand new _ _ _ _ _ _ _. Jane received _ _ _ slippers. George opened up a _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _. Ann's gift was a _ _ _ _. Tommy got a birch-bark _ _ _ _ _. Mary opened up a toy _ _ _ _ _ _ and Freddie a _ _ _ _.
After Christmas dinner the dolls opened even more presents:
The little doll sisters: Jane, Ann and Mary opened gifts of _ _ _ _ for their hair. Tommy's second present was a white candy called a _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ and George unwrapped a toy _ _ _. Freddie finally recieved a _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _. He was so happy! Mrs. Doll opened a bottle of _ _ _ _ _ _ _ and Mr. Doll a _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _. The doll children opened a gift from Susan for all of them together to play with. It was a _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _. The Baby, little Susan was given a _ _ _ _ _ _ to play with made from a collar button. The whole family of dolls also recieved three gifts from Big Susan altogether. The gifts were a gold _ _ _ _ _ with a picture of Susan inside. A small box of real cinnamon _ _ _ _ _ and a tiny pack of _ _ _ _ _. The nurse doll opened a gift of Indian _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ and the cook doll a _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ with a real penny inside!
Printable for those of you who wish to use paper and a pencil.
The Witch of Hissing Hill holds so many cats. But, one is yellow now, what do you think of that!
Once upon a time everything was status quo on Hissing Hill. Sizzle the witch bred witchy cats who yowled at the moon, had sharp white teeth, hissed at every living thing and were blacker than the blackest midnight! These cats helped witch clients make the most 'hateful magic.' In fact, no true wicked witch could cook a successful magic potion without a black cat staring at her brew! But all of Sizzle's success at breading the most hateful spitting cats was about to change...
Gold was born. Gold wasn't like any other cat that had ever been born on Hissing Hill. She had the power of 'good magic.' This power gave her a genuine heart to heal witchy aching feet and she could also reverse 'hate medicine' and unbeknownst to the greater witchy clientele, yellow witch cats could change entire cat communities if allowed to live only a few moments among them. These cats reverse toxic spells and turn old hags into sweet little old grandmothers. Read or listen to the cat tale below to find out what happens to Gold on Hissing Hill.
I stumbled upon this unusual book called "Varenka" inside of the stacks of an old used bookstore back in the 1990s and thought it a wonderful story about faith. As my children grew older we would read it together and talk about the very terrible things that happen during war. Because it is difficult to find books that are age appropriate for this topic (ages 4 - 9), this one by Bernadette Watts stands out and comes highly recommended by our family.
"The eyes of the Lord are everywhere, keeping watch on the wicked and the good," Proverbs 15:3
Deep in the forest - there lived a poor little peasant grandmother who was very wise for her years. Her name was Varvara meaning faith or trust, but the few who knew her called her Varenka; a nickname that changes the former into a faith that is foreign or strange.
Varenka's cottage was located far from any town or city. It was filled with simple necessities like: a stove, a table with chairs, a pantry with shelves for plates and food, a cot for sleeping above the stove and most important, an icon on the wall surrounded by flowers.
One day, people from far away began to run from the city, they took little with them. They were in such a hurry that they ran past Varenka's cottage. A few of them hesitated at Varenka's home and warned her to flee even deeper into the forest.
"In the west there is horrible fighting and so many are dead."
But Varenka could not join them; she feared for the fate of her poor animals and for the care of children she often found wandering, lost in the forest.
So, Varenka bolted the door to her cottage, and began to pray to the God she knew. Her icon portrayed Him as a small child in the arms of his mother. His eyes were wide and knowing; those eyes could see everywhere and everyone who trusted in Him.
"Please, please build a wall around my house so that soldiers when they pass here, will not see me." Varenka pleaded.
As the short anxious week passes Varenka shelters a small group of people in her cottage: an elderly shepherd with a goat, an artist with his potted plant and a lost orphan child with her dove. Each of these characters prays with Varenka for God to hide them apart from the soldiers and violence. But God is quiet and they all wait.
Then ever so gently the snow falls all night before the soldiers arrive - and the small forest dwelling and all of it's hidden people are saved from the enemy.
After the snow melts, war ends in that part of the world and the people saved by the God who sees - thank him for a new chance at life.
Our little doll party idea here is based upon the award winning children's book "The Best Loved Doll.'' Written by Rebecca Caudill after observing her child at a neighborhood birthday party given for her friend from the neighborhood.
Caudill "watched as her daughter took her shabby but much-loved doll to a party and a sensitive mother awarded her a medal."
In the book three awards are given for: beauty, age, and mechanical genius to three lucky winners out of 12 girls attending the birthday party with each of their favorite dolls. But, there is something missing from the competition. That something was made very clear while each child explains 'why' they chose to bring a particular doll for the competition.
Betsy explains why she chose Jennifer to the crowd of little contestants.
Jennifer is not pretty; her features are torn and mended from all of the play and adventures that she and Betsy have had.
Jennifer is not old, she is a newer rag doll from Betsy's collection.
Jennifer has no fancy mechanical features: she does not play music, or talk when you squeeze her tummy or sit at a tiny pretend sewing machine while she appears to operate it.
Betsy had a doll much prettier and another much older and still another who could pretend to sew!
But Betsy loves a torn and tattered rag doll the most. Jennifer is the doll who listens to her at night in bed. She is the doll that Betsy carries everywhere on adventures. She is the doll that doesn't mind rough play at all and smiles at everything Betsy does. Jennifer is always there for Betsy whenever she needs a friend.
While Betsy is talking, the birthday girl's mother realizes she has made a mistake.
Quickly and discreetly, this mother makes a fourth award for Betsy's doll Jennifer. Check the book out from a library to find out what happens next and go to hear the book reviewed online.
How to Give a "Best Loved Doll" Party for your own dolls:
The girls play games before the doll show and then have the awards ceremony afterwards. They play the game "pin the tail of the donkey." among others... For every award given there are prizes and ribbon awards given by Mrs. Anderson, the birthday girl's mother. Children may prepare their own versions of prizes as well, for their own doll shows.
After the games and doll show, the children in the storybook have refreshments at a big table while their dolls eat at a special smaller table, set with a Blue Willow doll tea set. Each doll has a tiny pink cup cake and each doll is given a party favor, a miniature doll fan.
At the big table children are treated to pink cupcakes and pink lemonade. Each guest also receives her own party favor, an umbrella small enough for a doll to use! (beverage umbrellas) Then the party ends with very happy dolls and even happier guests...
Maud Hart Lovelace (April 25, 1892 – March 11, 1980) was an American writer best known for the Betsy-Tacy series. Theseries started in 1938 after Lovelace told stories about her childhood to her own daughter, Merian. The character Betsy is based on Lovelace herself; Tacy is based on her childhood best friend, Frances "Bick" Kenney. The first book in the series,Betsy-Tacy, was published in 1940, and the last book,Betsy's Wedding, was published in 1955. The first four books increase in reading difficulty so that the child can grow up along with Betsy-Tacy. The Betsy-Tacy books take place mostly in the fictional town ofDeep Valley, Minnesota, which is based on Mankato. They cover the period from the late 1890s, when Betsy is five years old, until World War One, by which time Betsy is newly married and has recently completed a grand tour of Europe.
She was baptized in a Baptist church but joined the Episcopal church as a teenager. She went on to the University of Minnesota but took a leave of absence to go to California to recover at her maternal grandmother's home from an appendectomy. It was while in California that she made her first short story sale – to the Los Angeles Times Magazine. She returned to the university and worked for the Minnesota Daily, but did not graduate.
While spending a year in Europe in 1914, she met Paolo Conte, an Italian musician (who later inspired the character Marco in Betsy and the Great World). Hart married the writer Delos Lovelace when she was 25. Delos and Hart met in April 1917 and were married on Thanksgiving Day the same year. They lived apart until 1919, however, due to Delos' military service in the First World War.
Later, the couple divided their time between Minneapolis and New York (including Yonkers and Mount Vernon) for several years. After 1928, they lived in New York permanently until their retirement in Claremont, California.
They had one daughter, Merian (later Merian Lovelace Kirchner; January 18, 1931—September 25, 1997), named for Delos's friend Merian C. Cooper who directed the film King Kong which was novelized by Delos.
Nancy Drew is a fictional character appearing in many American mystery book series, movies, video games, and a TV show as a teenage amateur sleuth. The books are ghostwritten by six different authors and published under the collective pseudonym Carolyn Keene. Created by the publisher Edward Stratemeyer as the female counterpart to his Hardy Boys series, the character first appeared in 1930 in the Nancy Drew Mystery Stories series, which lasted until 2003 and consisted of 175 novels.
Mildred Augustine Wirt Benson (July 10, 1905 ‚ May 28, 2002) was an American journalist and writer of children's books. She wrote the most popular earliest Nancy Drew mysteries and created the detective's adventurous personality from 1929 to 1947. She contributed to 23 of the first 30 Nancy Drew mysteries, which were bestsellers. (listed below) Although Nancy Drew was conceived by Stratemeyer, who provided Benson with index card thumbnail sketches, Benson crafted Nancy into a spunky, plucky personality, with a daring, adventurous spirit. Beginning in 1959, Harriet Stratemeyer Adams revised and updated the Nancy Drew books written by Benson.
Benson never anticipated that the books would be so popular but she knew, as she was writing them, that she was writing something that girls were going to like because the heroine was unusual for her time. She said, "I always knew the series would be successful. I just never expected it to be the blockbuster that it has been. I'm glad that I had that much influence on people."
Most folks are not inclined to think of princesses as practical people! But then, most princesses are not forced to do the bidding of King Ludwig and Lord Garp! Bedelia, the most practical princess ever written about, always finds a way to outwit the absurd demands of her father and suitor . . . and in the end she finds very practical 'true love' with Prince Perian. This book by Jay Williams was a favorite between our two daughters and I know parents will enjoy the refreshing tale of a royal who makes remarkable choices due to her unique common sense!
An old worn copy of our children's favorite princess book. It's barely holding together!
"The Practical Princess" is one of nine books that Jay Williams authored and collaborated with Friso Henstra to illustrate from 1969 to 1978.
"The Hidden House" published in 1990, a charming book for 2nd - 3rd grade readers.
Hidden away in the deep, darkened woods, live three long forgotten dolls. They're names were Winnaker, Maisie and Ralph. Each one was lovingly carved from wood by the old man named Bruno. Bruno made them so that he would have company in his quiet, private cottage in the forest. But, one day Bruno went away and his little cottage and family were forgotten... On Bruno's last day in the cottage, he left the three doll friends sitting in the window casement so that they could watch his quaint little vegetable patch and the rabbits and birds whenever they came for a visit. But after the old man left, the ivy grew and grew and grew. It covered the roof and walls of the cottage; indeed so much so that the little house seemed to disappear into the trees! Overtime, a young sapling even grew up through the floorboards of the kitchen. Small forest creatures even began to live inside the house. The dolls didn't mind. At least they had these forest animals for company. One day something new happened. But you will need to read the book for yourself to discover what this was. It's author Martin Waddell has written over seventy books and the illustrator, Angela Barrett has also designed sets for the theater as well as drawn lovely pictures for children's books.
This little clown was one of several dolls that I made using the largest body pattern inside the book. His body is sewn from unbleached muslin, the coloring in his face is made from embroidery and a soft colored pencil. Most of the doll characters in the book are either fairies or children, not clowns.
This book, Creating and Crafting Dolls by Eloise Piper and Mary Dilligan, is one that I have kept on my bookshelf for many years. (published in 1994) It includes very simple doll bodies plus a few clothing patterns that are perfect for a beginner sewer. But what I consider it's most wonderful contribution to my own books on sewing, are the playful/imaginative treatments given to the countless doll costumes photographed in the text. There are four volumes in this series by these two women. I only have this one, and I won't be giving it away anytime soon!
I used many different fabrics combined together for texture: a pink satin, a lavender felt, tulle and lace, lavender rick-rack, and a very rare dyed fur for his hair. The pom poms on his hat were from an old stash. The artists who wrote the book encourage innovative selections of recycled materials to create one-of-a-kind dolls.
Left, is an up-close photo of his embroidered face. Right, the incredibly soft texture of his appliqued wig is curly and bubblegum pink.
“When Luka’s grandmother makes a traditional Hawaiian quilt for her, she and Luka disagree over the colors it should include.” This story, "Luka's Quilt," illustrates the importance of maintaining individuality and creativity during the practices of traditional observance. An excellent story to read aloud for discussions with primary age students about tolerance for the young and respect for the old.
Lily Rose and her grandmother stitch together a quilt that tells a story about their move to California in a covered wagon in "The Elephant Quilt." They see the buffalo, make friends with Native Americans, and Rose’s mother gives birth to a little sister, Gila. Like so many quilters, the author pieces together many scraps of memory found in letters and diaries in order to tell a story that reflects American pioneer history. This bookis best used within the context of story telling through the art of everyday peopledoing ordinary activities.
"Amina’s Blanket" by Helen Dunmore is a chapter book for ages 8 – 10. “As Josie and other children in her class make a beautiful patchwork quilt to send to a war-torn country, Amina shivers alone in her darkened apartment in a country far away. One night in a dream, Josie visits Amina, experiences the traumas of war, and discovers a very special secret.” An excellent story imparting the necessity of teaching human empathy, Amina’s Blanket would be a perfect chapter book to include along with a classroom project focusing on a charity.
"In The Patchwork Path," by Bettye Stroud, a father and daughter escape slavery by interpreting a secret code hidden in the symbols of a quilt.
“The Patchwork Path is based on a story given to Jacqueline Tobin by African-American quilter Ozella McDaniel Williams at the historic Charleston, South Carolina, marketplace in 1994. The story, about how slaves used quilts to communicate on the Underground Railroad, had been passed down orally from grandmother to mother to daughter. The story was held secret in Ozella’s family until she insisted that Jacqueline “write this down.”
. . .This book is testament to the ingenuity and creativity of the many slaves who risked everything to gain their freedom.”
In ‘Mooshka’ by Julie Paschkis, Karla has a magic story-telling quilt that tells her bedtime stories at night, hides her from scary things under the bed and wakes her for pancakes in the morning. But, Mooshka, that’s the quilt’s name, fall silent when Karla’s sister Hannah is moved into her room. Read more about this special quilt to discover how Karla brings the quilt back to life again for Hannah.
‘Papa and the Pioneer Quilt’ by Jean Van Leeuwen is the charming story of the “wandering foot” quilt design.A small girl with a very large family wanders the United States frontier with her parents in search of the perfect land to settle. On her last journey to Oregon, her mother teachers her to collect fabrics and reuse them to design a quilt.
"Sweet Clara and the Freedom Quilt" by Deborah Hopkinson is based upon stories surrounding the underground railroad. The book is about a young slave girl’s determination to change her status from working the fields to sewing for her master’s wife. After learning to sew she eventually quilts a map to freedom for herself, her family, and also for future generations of slaves who would be willing to risk running from the same plantation.
"Under the Quilt of Night," by Deborah Hopkinson was written as a companion book to ‘Sweet Clara and the Freedom Quilt’ by the same author. It’s text is written in verse and describes the emotions and physical challenges experienced by slaves fleeing their former masters.
"The Quilt Story" written by Tony Johnston and illustrated by Tomie dePaola is about the generations of children and their pets who love a quilt. The quilt has sewn into it, the name of it's first owner, Abigail. Abigail's quilt is used for tea parties, dress up, and even hide and seek. Children of all ages will be charmed by Tomie dePaola's illustrations. I've included below an interview with this famous children's illustrator and also links to other websites about about him.
"The Keeping Quilt" by Patricia Polacco is about handing down memories of one's ancestors.
Patricia Barber Polacco (b. July 11, 1944, Lansing, Michigan) is the author and illustrator of numerous picture books for children.
She struggled in school because she was unable to read until age 14 due to dyslexia; she found relief by expressing herself through art. Polacco endured teasing and hid her disability until a schoolteacher recognized that she could not read and began to help her. Her book Thank You, Mr. Falker is Polacco's retelling of this encounter and its outcome.
Her family is of Russian and Ukrainian descent on one side and Irish on the other. The early years of Polacco's childhood were spent at her grandmother's farm in Union City, Michigan, the setting for many of her published stories. She now resides on another farm in Union City, originally called The Plantation. Although Polacco's grandmother died in 1949, when Polacco was only 5, "Babushka," or grandmother in Russian, nevertheless appears in several of Polacco's books.
After her grandmother's death, the family moved to Coral Gables, Florida, and then three years later to Oakland, California. Polacco's parents had divorced when she was three, and she and her brother therefore spent their early life living in two places: school years with their mother in the bustling environment of Oakland, California, and summers with their father and his parents on a farm in Michigan. Polacco was discouraged in school and did not learn to read until she was nearly fourteen. In junior high school, one of her teachers finally discovered that dyslexia was the reason for her not demonstrating confidence. In high school, she became friends with Frank Oz. Polacco wrote "When Lightning Comes in a Jar" as a tribute to her babushka, and to her Detroit Tiger cousin Billy. Patricia Polacco attended a University, majoring in Fine Art. She received her graduate degree and eventually received a Ph.D. in Art History. Patricia Polacco did not start writing and illustrating her first children's book until she was 41 years old.
Following the 40-year absence from the home of her youth, Polacco returned to Union City. With her daughter, son, husband, and parents she continues to write books that are like her life.
Patricia Polacco talks with school children about "The Keeping Quilt" and also reads the book aloud.
A story about how an artist teaches a greedy king, "It is better to give, than receive." This children's book by author Jeff Brumbeau and Illustrator Gail de Marcken lovingly teaches important moral lessons accompanied by fairy tale like explanations for traditional quilt patterns. First published by Scholastic in March 2001; this volume has won many awards from: Acclaim, Book Sense, Logos, and Parent's Choice.
In Baltimore's preparation for an expected attack on the city,
Fort McHenry was made ready to defend the city's harbor. When Major
George Armistead expressed desire for a very large flag to fly over the
fort, General John S. Stricker and Commodore Joshua Barney placed an
order with a prominent Baltimorean flagmaker for two oversized American
Flags. The larger of the two flags would be the Great Garrison Flag, the
largest battle flag ever flown at the time. The smaller of the two
flags would be the Storm Flag, to be more durable and less prone to
fouling in inclement weather.
Available documentation clearly shows that this flag was sewn by local
flagmaker Mary Young Pickersgill under a government commission in 1813
at a cost of $405.90. George Armistead, the commander of Fort McHenry,
specified "a flag so large that the British would have no difficulty
seeing it from a distance".
Mary Pickersgill stitched the flag (with her daughter, two nieces,
and two African American servants) from a combination of cotton and
dyed English wool bunting. The flag has fifteen horizontal red and white
stripes, as well as fifteen white stars in the blue field. The two
additional stars and stripes, approved by the United States Congress's
Flag Act of 1794, represent Vermont and Kentucky's entrance into the
Union. The stars are arranged in vertical rows, with five horizontal
rows of stars, offset, each containing three stars. At the time, the
practice of adding stripes (in addition to stars) with the induction of a
new state had not yet been discontinued.
The flag originally measured 30 by 42 feet (9.1 by 13 m). Each of the
fifteen stripes is 2 feet (0.61 m) wide, and each of the stars measures
about 2 feet (0.61 m) in diameter. After the battle, the Armistead
family occasionally gave away pieces of the flag as souvenirs and gifts;
this cutting, along with deterioration from continued use, removed
several feet of fabric from the flag's fly end, and it now measures 30
by 34 feet (9.1 by 10 m). The flag currently has only fourteen stars—the
fifteenth star was similarly given as a gift, but its recipient and
current whereabouts are unknown.
The Flag was flown over the fort when 5,000 British soldiers and a
fleet of 19 ships attacked Baltimore on September 12, 1814. The
bombardment turned to Fort McHenry on the evening of September 13, and
continuous shelling occurred for 25 hours under heavy rain. When the
British ships were unable to pass the fort and penetrate the harbor, the
attack was ended, and on the morning of September 14, when the battered
flag still flew above the ramparts, it was clear that Fort McHenry
remained in American hands. This revelation was famously captured in
poetry by Key, an American lawyer and amateur poet. Being held by the
British on a truce ship in the Patapsco River, Key observed the battle
from afar. When he saw the Garrison Flag still flying at dawn of the
morning of the 14th, he composed a poem he originally titled Defiance of
Ft. McHenry (though some accounts hold Defence of Fort McHenry). The
poem would be put to the music of a common tune, retitled The
Star-Spangled Banner, and a portion of it would later be adopted as the
United States National Anthem. Since its arrival at the Smithsonian, the
flag has undergone multiple restoration efforts.
Flag that flew over Fort McHenry in 1814,
photographed in 1873 in the Boston
Navy Yard by George Henry Preble
The
flag that flew during that episode in history became a significant
artifact. It remained in the possession of Major Armistead, who was
promoted to brevet lieutenant colonel, for some time. Today it is
permanently housed in the National Museum of American History, one of
the Smithsonian Institution museums on the National Mall in Washington,
D.C. The flag was given to the museum in 1912, and has undergone
multiple restoration efforts after being originally restored by Amelia
Fowler in 1914.
Due to environmental and light damage a four phase restoration
project began in May 1999. In the first phase, the team removed the
linen support backing that was attached to the flag during the 1914
restoration. The second phase consisted of the most comprehensive,
detailed examination of the condition and construction of the
Star-Spangled Banner to date, which provided critical information for
later work. This included scientific studies with infrared spectrometry,
electron microscopy, mechanical testing, and determination of amino
acid content by a New Zealand scientist, and infrared imaging by a NASA
scientist. Planning and executing a cleaning treatment for the flag
following scientific analysis was the third phase. In the fourth and
final phase of the project, curators, scientists and conservators
developed a long-term preservation plan.
15-star, 15-stripe
"Star-Spangled Banner" flag
The
permanent exhibition, "The Star-Spangled Banner: The Flag that Inspired
the National Anthem," is the Smithsonian’s greatest effort to meet the
dual challenge of preserving flag and communicating to visitors its
history and significance. Following the reopening of the National Museum
of American History on November 21, 2008, the flag is now on display in
a two-story display chamber that allows it to lie at a 10 degree angle
in dim light.
The National Museum of American History produced an online
exhibition in conjunction with the reopening of Flag Hall in 2008. An
interactive component allows site visitors to closely explore features
of the flag in detail, download an audiodescriptive tour of the
exhibition for the visually-impaired, and hear the song performed on
original instruments from the National Museum of American History's
collection.
The protagonist is Miss Hickory, a doll made of a forked twig from an apple tree and a hickory nut for her head (hence her name). She lives in a tiny doll house made of corncobs outside the home of her human owners. Her world is shaken when the family decides to spend the winter in Boston, Massachusetts, but leave her behind. Miss Hickory is aided during the long cold winter by several farm and forest animals. Prickly and a little stubborn, she slowly learns to accept help from others, and to offer some assistance herself.
About The Author: Carolyn Sherwin Bailey (October 25, 1875 - December 23, 1961) was an American children's author. She was born in Hoosick Falls, New York and attended Teachers College, Columbia University, from which she graduated in 1896. She contributed to the Ladies' Home Journal and other magazines. She published volumes of stories for children like methods of story telling, teaching children and other related subjects, which include Boys and Girls of Colonial Days (1917); Broad Stripes and Bright Stars (1919); Hero Stories (1919); and The Little Rabbit Who Wanted Red Wings (1945). She wrote For the Children's Hour (1906) in collaboration with Clara M. Lewis. In 1947, her book Miss Hickory won the Newbery Medal.
The four short stories by Rumer Godden in this book include: Impunity Jane, The Fairy Doll, The Story of Holly and Ivy and Candy Floss. Each story is about a child and their adventures with his or her doll.
Three of the dolls live with many different children but do not find true happiness until they meet that one special child. One such doll, named Impunity Jane, longs for adventure and sport but finds neither until she makes her way into the pocket of a small boy named Gideon. Together they swing in the park, climb trees, and pretend to sail the high seas! This little frozen Charlotte doll never wished to live inside the secure, dull walls of a nursery. She hated being dressed up in fine clothing and displayed on top of pin cushions; the adventurous life was what Impunity Jane wished for and only a doll's truest friends can hear their wishes.
In a story called, Candy Floss, a fortunate little doll lives many happy years on the road with a carney named Jack until she is kidnapped by a very spoiled, selfish girl named Clementina. Candy Floss suffers a great deal of abuse at the hands of this child kidnapper before Clementina learns that dolls, like children, need to be nurtured and have their feelings taken seriously.
The Fairy Doll is full of Christmas magic. She lives from one generation to the next in order to teach each child in her family how to believe in themselves. Sometimes she must even leave the branches of the Christmas tree in order to aid those family members who need her the most.
However, Ivy who is the Christmas doll in the, The Story of Holly and Ivy, must patiently wish day and night for her poor little mistress to be adopted by a new family, before she can be united with her girl on Christmas Eve.
For each tale of every doll who first lived inside the mind of Rumer Godden, there are valuable lessons to be lived and learned by young readers.
About The Author: Margaret Rumer Godden was born in Eastbourne, Sussex, England. She grew up with her three sisters in Narayanganj, colonial India (now in Bangladesh), where her father, a shipping company executive, worked for the Brahmaputra Steam Navigation Company.Her parents sent the girls to England for schooling, as was the custom of the time, but brought them back to Narayanganj when the First World War began. She returned to the United Kingdom with her sisters to continue her interrupted schooling in 1920, spending time at Moira House Girls School in Eastbourne and eventually training as a dance teacher. She went back to Calcutta in 1925 and opened a dance school for English and Indian children. Rumer ran the school for 20 years with the help of her sister Nancy. During this time she published her first best-seller, the 1939 novel for adult readers, Black Narcissus.
A number of Godden's novels are set in India, the atmosphere of which she evokes through all the senses; her writing is vivid with detail of smells, textures, light, flowers, noises and tactile experiences. Her books for children, especially her doll stories, strongly convey the secret thoughts, confusions, disappointments and aspirations of childhood. Her plots often involve unusual young people not recognized for their talents by ordinary lower or middle-class people but supported by the educated, rich, and upper-class, to the anger, resentment, and puzzlement of their relatives. Wikipedia
Interesting Facts About The Author:
Rumer Godden married three times and divorced twice.
Her last marriage was to civil servant James Haynes Dixon in 1949
She had two daughters, Jane and Paula.
Someone attempted to poison both the author and her children before she moved back to Calutta in 1944.
Margaret R. Godden lived in three countries during her lifetime: England, India and America.
During the 1950s she became a Catholic.
She won a 1972 Whitbread award for The Diddakoi, a young adult novel about Gypsies, televised by the BBC as Kizzy.
She was appointed an Officer of the Order of the British Empire in 1993.
Margaret Rumer Godden died on November, 8, 1998 at the age of 90, after a series of strokes.
She wrote more than 60 books in her lifetime, 28 of those were for children.
The author had a pet dog named Piers.
Rumer Godden's books have been translated into many languages.
