Cyber Black Friday from Sleeping Bear Press

Black Friday doesn't have to be spent fighting amongst the crowds - you can complete your holiday shopping (and purchase your Christmas bedtime stories for sharing with children) from the comfort of your own home!

Lewis, J. Patrick and Beth Zappitello.
First Dog's White House Christmas.
September 2010.
Sleeping Bear Press.
Review copy provided courtesy of publisher.

Join White House dog, Bo as he invites his pooch friends from all around the world (a dog native to each country, i.e. - the Chihuahua from Mexico, or the English Bulldog from England) to learn (and share with readers) how different countries celebrate the Christmas holiday. From food traditions to gift giving traditions, all aspects of the Christmas season (and many of their origins) are shared in this fun-loving story that is perfect to encourage the exploration of how different cultures and countries celebrate a holiday that is so well-known by most!

Learning/Reading Activity:

• Incorporate some holiday traditions from other countries into your own family holiday celebration! This will provide awareness to your children about cultures and traditions that will likely have a lasting impact!
  

Donovan, Jane Monroe.
Small Medium & Large.
September 2010.
Sleeping Bear Press.
Review copy provided courtesy of publisher.

In this near wordless tale (with the exception of a little girl's letter to Santa Claus and later, her thank you note), children are given the freedom to imagine what one child wishes for for Christmas, and then, discover how a best friend (or friends) can be anything you make them out to be! On Christmas morning, it is evident that Santa has delivered the little girl three pages - one small, one medium, and one large. As the packages are opened, it is revealed that the child has been given three new friends - one small, one medium, and one large! Children will be smiling with delight as the story unfolds, while at the same time being given the opportunity to make up a story of his/her own to coincide with the illustrations!

Learning/Reading Activity:

• Have your child predict what will be found within each of the three packages left for the little girl by Santa Claus.
• Have your child create a list of something he/she would like to find inside each of the three packages if they were found underneath your own Christmas tree!
• For older children, have your child create a story of his/her own and allow them to write their story on each page!
• Use this story to teach your child the concept of small, medium and large. Use wrapped gift boxes. Have your child put them in order from smallest to largest and then largest to smallest. Allow your child to unwrap the boxes to find out what is inside each. Have them then line up the objects from smallest to largest and largest to smallest. You could really trick them by placing the items in the boxes in a mixed up order (for example, put the largest object in the medium sized box)!
  

Hagen, Carol.
The Night Henry Ford Met Santa.
September 2006.
Sleeping Bear Press.
Review copy provided courtesy of publisher.

Children will learn a bit about history (Henry Ford and his automobiles), as well as learning about Santa's workshop and how all those toys are produced so quickly to be distributed once children are asleep on Christmas Eve! The story is very fun and educational, likely capturing the attention of children due to the Christmas-like information shared within.

Learning/Reading Activity:

• This might be an interesting book to use with a classroom of children who are working to make a holiday gift for their parents. Perhaps you could create a "Gift in a Jar" for each parent/family, having each child in the class be responsible for measuring one of the ingredients that will be placed in the jar. Set this up production-line style (or even two production lines, depending on which jar gift you opt for and how many children are in the class) and children will quickly be able to understand how Santa (and Henry Ford) are able to mass-produce toys (and cars) using a production line!
  

Donovan, Jane Monroe.
Winter's Gift.
September 2004.
Sleeping Bear Press.
Review copy provided courtesy of publisher.

I'm not entirely sure that children will discover the appreciation and love that went into this story, but any adult surely will! An old man is going through the motions of the holidays on his own for the first time after having lost his wife that summer. Just when he feels hopeless about the upcoming holidays, the old man is given a sign that things will be okay and not to give up hope. Definitely a heart-wrenching tale, but totally worth sharing. If nothing else, children will love the illustrations and be more than fond of the certain surprise at the end of the story! The book would make a perfect gift for families dealing with the loss of a loved one for the first time this holiday season...

Learning/Reading Activity:

• Teach your child about the true meaning of Christmas by gifting this title to family who has recently lost a loved one - either a family you know or select a family from the Obituary page of the newspaper and send them this heart-warming tale of hope in times of a loss. If you are unsure of how to mail the book to the family, mail it to the funeral home mentioned in the obituary, asking the director to please pass it along to the family (as surely they will have contact information).
  

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. I am an Amazon Affiliate, so any purchases you make after clicking these images will result in my receiving a small percentage of the sale price!