Wednesday, June 24, 2009

Fairy Day

The official holiday for fairy collectors, believers, artisans and the young at heart. Celebrated around the world by those who love all things fairy. Join in on the magic with these three wonderful books!

Kane, Tracy.
Fairy Houses.
2001.
Light Beams Publishing.

Young Kristen is off to visit the coast of Maine for a week. Her parents promise there's a surprise to be had and Kristen's eager to go along! She even begins to guess what the surprise might be...
"Is it the lighthouse?"

"Those silly sandpipers on the beach?"

"The seals?"

"Our cottage?"
However, it's not until much later when they when the family goes for a walk in the woods that Kristen stumbles upon a sign that reads,
You may build
houses small
and hidden for
the fairies,
but please do
not use living
or artificial
materials.
The surprise awaiting Kristen is the opportunity to build fairy houses and even spot the fairies!She quickly sets to work, gathering materials to construct a fairy house of her own but is quickly disappointed when the vacation has nearly passed and she has yet to see a fairy. However, on the last day, just before she leaves for home, sure enough, the fairies slowly begin to appear!

The message is clear from this book - the key to building a fairy house is to use natural materials that are found within the forest... however, one should not take living materials for use in the fairy houses.Of all the houses here, the animals have chosen yours to visit. You have treated the woods with care and respect.Children, girls especially will love this story! It even comes with several pages full of tips about building your own fairy house! You can also check out some similar books by this same author as well as a video, all linked below.

Also by Tracy Kane:
Barker, Cicely Mary.
How to Find Flower Fairies.
2007.
Penguin Young Readers Group.

This book is absolutely beautiful! It's a pop-up book that shows children where to look if they're trying to locate flower fairies... the pop-up illustrations are such that you actually feel as though you're in the forest! It's amazing, and if you have a daughter who loves the concept of fairies, you must get this from the library or splurge and buy it for her!!!

Cicey Mary Barker has a bunch of other fairy-related books as well:
Shannon, David.
Alice the Fairy.
2004.
Blue Sky Press.

It's getting late, and I've lost my steam... so this is quoted from the book jacket!
Alice the Fairy uses her magic wand to change frogs into princes and things like that. She can also make leaves fall from trees and turn oatmeal into cake. Sometimes she can even disappear! Being a fairy is very useful - even if your spells don't always come out right. But best of all, you get to use your imagination! And what could be more fun?
This book is perfect for children today, especially those in a classroom! More and more I've been noticing that children seem to be lacking creativity and the ability to imagine things. I guess as a teacher, we have to teach them how to use their imagination... put them into situations that force them to be creative and use their minds! This book would definitely be appropriate for doing that!

Lesson Plans/Reading Activities:
Other Fairy Activities for Kids:
If you're interested in finding out more information about any of the books reviewed or if you'd like to purchase the books, click the cover image for a link to Amazon.com.
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