Book Review – Princess Pigs & Leadfoot Hampsters (giveaway)

Editor’s Note: If you missed Karen Pantuso Swanson’s piece on buyer’s remorse and Barbie, check it out HERE. Now we have to fun pre-K reads and a double giveaway. Enjoy!
We do a whole lot of reading around here – nature stories, science stories, stories about different cultures, checking out stories about baby animals (that’s our [...]

Spring Break 2010 – Tween Must-Have Reads

Editor’s Note: If you missed Robin’s Spring Break craft roundup this morning, you can catch it HERE. Now, here’s a look at some must have Spring Break reads for those tweens in your life. Here’s the list:
Good Afternoon. It may be time for some quiet time around your house, making a trip to the bookstore [...]

Mom’s Book Shelf – Emily Schultz’s Heaven Is Small

Editor’s Note: If you missed Gayle Bates this morning, you can read her post on proactive consumption HERE. Now, here’s Robin with the book of the month for March. Here she is:
Iam mildly dark. Ken would tend to disagree, and go with a much darker assessment. My favorite authors are Rosario Castellanos, Keri Hulme and Joan Didion. I [...]

Mom’s Book Shelf – A Discussion on All That Matters

I have to say that I now have a whole new appreciation for Vancouver and its evolution as a city, as well as the unbelievable conditions under which people come to this country and endure with the hopes of a better life thanks to Wayson Choy.
His novel, All That Matters, was February’s book of the [...]

Book Review – The Love List of Kids Valentines Faves (giveaway)

Editor’s Note: If you missed out on the morning post introducing February’s author of the month, Wayson Choy, you can read it HERE. Now here’s Robin with a list of kid-approved Valentine’s Day books:
Love is in the air, and there’s nothing like a silly, fun, sweet children’s story to make Valentine’s Day great fun for everybody.
Sifting [...]

Mom’s Book Shelf – Wayson Choy’s All That Matters

I am so excited to announce February’s featured author and book of the month – mostly because I can’t wait to get started on a new novel and sink my teeth into a book that’s been on my shelf for ages.
As Chinese New Year nears, I wanted to take the time to examine Chinese-Canadian culture. [...]

Tween Reads from Maddy Erickson – Savvy by Ingrid Law

Editor’s Note: Good Afternoon. If you missed the discussion on Zoe Whittall’s novel Holding Still For As Long As Possible, you can catch it HERE.
Now, I’m excited to introduce Maddy Erickson as the newest addition to the crew of writers here at Our Big Earth. Maddy – as well as her reviewing co-hort Madeline McNamee [...]

Mom’s Book Shelf – A Discussion on January’s Featured Novel

Good morning. It’s been a month since we introduced our first Mom’s Book Shelf novel of the year – Zoe Whittall’s Holding Still for As Long As Possible.
Today’s space is all about getting in your thoughts and opinions about the book – if you had the chance to read it – or the issues that [...]

Books to Teach Kids About Chinese New Year

Editor’s Note: If you missed out on Rebecca’s morning post giving us a look inside the Waldorf classroom, you can read it HERE. Now, here’s Robin reviewing a cool collection of children’s books that help kids learn about Chinese culture and Chinese New Year. Have a great afternoon. Here’s Robin:
I get sort of droopy after [...]

Mom-P-Inc. – Discovering Community Literacy

When you say the word “literacy” the images of libraries and academia often come to mind. It takes you down a mental path of helping kids learn to read and guiding adults through the challenges of needing to be able to interpret for themselves written words in order to manage the day-to-day tasks.
To me, it [...]

Environmental Ed Books for Children (giveaway)

Editor’s Note: If you didn’t catch Karen Pantuso-Swanson’s sweet story this morning, you can read it HERE. This afternoon we have Gayle Bates sharing some of her favorite eco-focused children’s books. Here’s she is:
What a way to start 2010 – getting to talk about two of my most favourite things: the environment and books!
Recent years have [...]

The Wisdom of Children – The Freedom of Innocence

Editor’s Note: Good morning. Karen Pantuso-Swanson is with us this morning sharing a lovely story that displays the ease and confidence that come with the innocence of childhood. Enjoy. Here she is:
“Kids: they dance before they know there is anything that isn’t music.” – William Stafford
My mom is a tap-dancer. She taught me to dance when I [...]

Book Review – Red is Best & Bella’s Tree

I cannot tell you how many times we have woken up in the last few weeks, our daughter launching herself onto the couch to check for snow outside, only to be bummed out at the perma-gray with no white stuff in sight.
“We live in a rainforest kiddo”, I gently remind her each time she asks [...]

Mom’s Book Shelf – Zoe Whittall’s Holding Still for As Long As Possible

One of my major resolutions for the new year is to spend more time reading for myself, something that went by the wayside far too long ago. I tried very hard to get back into it last year, was even blessed enough to be invited to be part of an incredible book group filled with [...]

Year In Review – The Best Children’s Books of 2009

One thing that never seems to give in our house is the love of a great story. We pound through tons of books and if anyone knows what she likes best, it’s the 4-year-old.
We’ve had such a great time discovering some seriously great new reads this year to spend afternoons curled up on the couch [...]

Book Review – Favorite Stories to Celebrate the Solistice

Editor’s Note: Good afternoon. If you missed out on the morning post, you can check out Rebecca’s post on Waldorf Kindergarten classrooms HERE. Now, we’ve got four of my favorite books to celebrate the solstice with your kids through stories.
Although we are just short of a week away from celebrating Christmas, one of my [...]

Kids Book Review – Winter Gems for a Roaring Fire

Editor’s Note: If you missed our morning post, Gayle Bates gives us a peek into holiday traditions around the world and how to take part in some global giving HERE. Now, we’re checking out two Winter children’s book faves that are a part of OBE’s holiday events at the Filberg Lodge.

Chestnuts roasting on the fire [...]

Book Review – The Dino Adventures of Cats & Dogs

Editor’s Notes: Good afternoon. If you missed out on the morning post from Rebecca on the tradition of advent, you can catch it over HERE. Now it’s time for a review of two very fun children’s books and a giveaway…

We have moved into the comedy portion of our daily story routine these days. There’s still [...]

Book Review – Sometimes You’ve Gotta Go Kid

Editor’s Note: If you missed the morning post on the amazing things kids say that make us rethink our perspective from Karen Pantuso-Swanson, you can read it HERE. This afternoon we have a book review and a giveaway. Have a great afternoon.

There are some books that you and your kids are just generally going to [...]

Book Review – Stories To Make Dark Days Fun

Editor’s Note: Good afternoon. If you missed out on this morning’s post, you can catch Dr. Elaine Kerr’s educational piece on childrens eye health HERE. Now, we have two children’s book reviews about stories that make the lack of light during Winter a bit more magical and a giveaway to go with it. Have a great [...]

Book Review – Not So Scary Monsters & Witches

Some kids love Christmas. Some love Easter. Mine, she L-O-V-E-S Halloween. I love the wawawahhhhhhhh coming from her when describing vampires and ghouls. But, really when you ask the tiny person what kind of stories she wants to read right now, the terms mildly spooky, a little mysterious and a lot funny are on the [...]

A Salmon’s Sky View

When I start pulling out the turtlenecks and cozy socks, it’s a sure sign that Fall is setting in around the Comox Valley.
The trees are still mostly green and kids aren’t even back in school. But, both the tiny person and I are counting the days until our very favorite nature spectacle of the year [...]

Rhyme Time with Julia Donaldson

There’s a theme in our house right now. We have the time to rhyme about slime on a dime. It’s not a crime, a bit sublime without an ounce of grime.
So, when we look for a book that has a lyrical hook, it’s no surprise that children’s author Julia Donaldson is exactly what we took.

Her [...]

Books for Girls Who Stand Out

Editor’s Note: Wow, what a gorgeous weekend. If you are wondering what to do with such a beautiful Saturday, come join the Our Big Earth crew out at the Filberg Lodge and Park in Comox today for Kids Day at the Park.
We’ll be there from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. helping kiddos make instruments out [...]

Maddy Erickson Reviews Fern Verdant

Editor’s Note: Good morning. Summer break kicks off this week and, for lots of parents, that means finding some perfect Summer reads for their families. Now, you can get some tips on THE tween Summer book list, and not from crazy, old parents.
Today, I’m excited to introduce Maddy Erickson as the newest addition to the [...]

Books Review – Fairy Folk & Spring Day Dreams

Long hot days this time of year make me want to find a big, giant maple tree to spread a blanket out under, unpack a lunch full of cool veggies and fruit and lay back to begin a few hours of uninterrupted day dreaming.
Since the likelihood of that happening is less than the odds of [...]

Guides for Tiny Explorers

Good Morning. With the sun making a regular appearance these days and our NeighbourWood Walks finally started back up, we are spending a whole lot more time outside right now.
My scientist kid told me the other day that she wants to be a paleontologist (actual use of the word, which makes my jaw drop) when [...]

Blog Book Tour – Crocodaddy

Once in a while we jump in on the KidBookBuzz.com Blog Book Tour and today we are checking out the very sweet, dad-focused tale of fun Summer imagination Crocodaddy by Kim Norman, illustrated by David Walker.
Early readers and picture books are the hot thing at our house right now – right next to crazy creatures [...]

Mom-Rated Family Learning Websites

The kiddo totally decides what is cool in our house.
Yeah, I lead her in directions I would like to see her pursue. But, cripes if she thinks my coffee filter butterflies are lame and I am a dork for any number of not-so-veiled attempts and exercising my parental will in the educational universe lately.
She likes [...]

Great Canadian Kids Nature Books

Spring brings out the scientist in me (ha, you all laugh. When am I not in science girl mode?)
I am a botanist/ecologist/microbiologist/nature loving curious type from the word go. But, this time of year I get serious about our nature learning and head out into the deep forest of the local bookstore for some non-library [...]

Homeschooling – Choose The Right Books

Editor’s Note: Good Morning. Today, Royston farmer and homeschooling mom Louisa McClellan is here to talk shop on how to find the right books for your kids.
Reading is a HUGE part of our lives around here and I, seriously, pound through dozens of books a month searching for the gems out there (long live the [...]

Books for Tom Boys & Spring

Good morning. It’s super late for me to be getting going this morning (8 a.m., yikes!). I am totally dragging my butt today in the work universe, mostly because I have plans to ditch the office long enough to spend the ENTIRE DAY outside combing beaches, roaming trails and wrapping it all up with a [...]

Crafty Imagination – Easter Masks

Is anybody else dealing with some seriously crazed kiddos lately? I’m hoping there’s something in the air and our tiny person hasn’t gone completely bonkers because she’s more than a wee bit wound up these days.
Normal, relatively quiet crafting that would normally take place around our house is not even an option at the moment. [...]

Book Review – Art Science & Messy Math

Once upon a time, in a land far, far away, there lived a kid who wanted to move her life to one centrally scientific and seriously fun location – Science World.
Somewhere between the dinosaurs and Lego land, her brain engaged the science universe (or at least the serious fun universe) and now there’s no turning [...]

An Interview with BC Kids Book Author Scott Higgs

Good morning. Today we’re checking out the charming tales of Haley & Bix, two best friends who are sweet, caring and totally cool.
Our daughter and I picked up the first in the series: Haley & Bix, Best Friends No Matter What, a while back and totally loved this easy reader.
So, we jumped at the chance [...]

Stories for you Ears with Odds Bodkin

There once was a little, orange record player. You know, the kind that had it’s own case that you could close up, tucking the electric cord inside and would play LPs or 45s if you hadn’t lost the little insert that made the tiny records fit on the turn table.
It followed me everywhere – on [...]

Magic Tales of Unicorns, Dwarves & Discovery

Our house seems to draw a huge crowd of the mystical and magical lately. Every since we discovered Forest Fairies with the help of our friend Maureen (of Strong Start fame) and The Last Unicorn showed up in the DVD player, our house transformed into a fairytale land that pretty much skips the prince and [...]

Family Literacy – Caldecott Award-Winning Style

Good morning. For the last few days, I’ve been meaning to pull something substantial together as a part of Family Literacy Week in Canada. But, my mental idea bank wasn’t letting me withdraw much in the way of anything labeled “substantial.”
Thankfully, there are brilliant people out there who are great at lending a hand in [...]

Book Review – Jan Brett’s Winter Fun

There are a few truly great children’s book authors – storytellers who can take a piece of imagination and bring it alive with the touch of a pen.
They’ve got that magical touch, mesmerizing children (and parents too) for generations. Jan Brett is one of those greats.
Maureen over at Brooklyn Elementary Strong Start first introduced us [...]

Best Children’s Books of 2008

Being there to watch stories spark a remarkable imaginary universe for our daughter has been, by far, one of THE BEST and most amazing things that has come from the last year.
I am a story junkie, always have been, loved ‘em so much I made a career out of telling them.
So, discovering amazing books has [...]

Book Review – Winter Tales of Survival & Hope

Ken was horrified that I’d brought a book like this home from the library. While I went for what was shaping up to be a long visit to the midwife on Tuesday, he and the tiny person broke into the latest stack of books and CDs that had come home with us from the library [...]

Holiday Gems for the Heart (& The Kitchen)

I like to think of our family as a crew of non-traditional traditionalists.
We love Christmas and birthdays, presents and sweets. But, in ways that present the age-old traditions of those times with a classic sense of heart, not necessarily a classic point of view.
After falling hard for Eve Bunting’s holiday gem The Night Tree this [...]

Nature Journal – Trumpeter Swans

When I was a kiddo, nature and I had an odd relationship. Growing up at the base of the mountains, the grandeur of nature’s “big-ness” struck me every time I walked outside. I wanted to explore, just to be left alone to check out the world.
On the other end of the deal, a mild [...]

Blog Book Tour – This Is The Feast

When I first got the invitation to join in the blog book tour for This Is The Feast by Diane Z. Shore, illustrated by Megan Lloyd, I wasn’t entirely confident as we here in Canada have long passed our Thanksgiving holiday.
But, all it took was opening the package, personally sent from Shore, with a handwritten [...]

Usborne Learning Books Bring Reality to Life

Editor’s Note: I totally forgot to post this earlier. I’ve got free Usborne toddler books That’s Not My Truck and That’s Not My Train for random commenters today. So, jump in!
There we were in the bathroom at the Courtenay library, camped out in the last stall trying to take care of business before story time [...]

Love Stories of Fall

Fall is magic. Even when the blustery wind and endless rain sets in, the contrast of perpetual gray against the brilliance of the golden hills and mountainsides makes us all want to stand there a bit in awe.
OK, not too much, as days like the last few remind me that we are headed into a [...]

Spooky Stories of Bones and Bunnies

In a little, tiny house on an everyday sort of street lived a little girl who loved monsters.
It seemed her destiny to dig those spooky ghouls, as her dad had adored them even longer than her, creating more than a few in his time, and they lived everywhere in that house – framed, in notebooks, [...]

Little Green Books

Hi. My name is Robin…and I’m a book-a-holic.
It doesn’t matter, really, what kind of book it is. I more than likely get an e-mail newsletter about it. I love to look through lists, check out what’s new – and I love kids books most of all at my current place in life.
The only problem is [...]

An Interview with Jeanne DuPrau

I love talking with other writers, getting a bit of insight into how their creative brains work and how they pull everything together.
Jeanne DuPrau and I had the chance to trade questions in a brief interview recently as she heads off to promote Diamond of Darkhold and her soon-to-be-released movie City of Ember.
As a part [...]

Tween Reads – Diamond of Darkhold

For a long time, parents with older kiddos have asked me to offer up book reviews for the tween crowd. We read and read, and read some more around here. But, chapter books and novels hadn’t been a part of our repretoire – until my oldest nephew fell in love with books and now inhales [...]

Harvest Tales

I love Fall.
How can you not dig a time of year when the toques come out, the skies turn a brilliant shade of blue and everything delicious in the comfort food universe is fresh from the fields?
So many of the quiet, heartfelt, comfortable memories in my life come from picking apples in Eastern Washington State, [...]

Potty Humor Reads & Funny Phobias

I’ve been going over and over in my head how to start this book review. There’s no really delicate way to admit to it. I’ve always been the kind of kid – mostly because anything to do with the topic was absolutely banned in my house as a child – who believes in the value [...]

The TumbleBooks Library

So, there I was snacking down on rice crispie treats, watching the tiny person soak herself in the only bit of water available at low tide at The Filberg when it was revealed to me.
The kiddo, she was soaked…and cold…and would eventually fall hands-first into a big, red jellyfish.
But, at least I knew that when [...]

6 Reads to Make the First Day of School Easier

I’m so sorry for the late post this morning. Sort of.
As many of you know, CVK is in the midst of a major redesign, which is code for “Wipe sleep off of the to-do list for at least 6 months.”
I broke the code last night after two weeks of major sleeplessness and, about 7:30 a.m. [...]

What’s Gonna Work? Team Work…

Where oh where has my Summertime gone?
Seriously, I am ill prepared for the onset of soggy wetness of Fall on the island – still totally imagining that I had at least another month of chances for beach runs and leisurely hikes without having to consider unholy amounts of rain gear and busting out the turtlenecks.
And, [...]

Book Review – Reverse Psychology to Eat & Sleep

Ken and I, we were quite skeptical at first.
These books, they seemed too easy to actually work.
Could it be possible that all we had to do was read an engaging story, with adorable, lovable characters who didn’t want to eat or sleep to make our grumpy 3-year-old think that eating and sleeping was cool?
No…way, we [...]

Book Review – Running Through The Meadow

Since I finished reading Food Not Lawns by H.C. Flores I’ve spent a lot of time thinking about the changing face of yards.
When I was a kid, a big yard, perfectly mowed and glistening green was the envy of every parent in the neighbourhood. But, it wasn’t the manicured lawn I loved.
I spent most of [...]

Book Review – Life on The Farm and Ferdinand

When I was a kid, I loved the loners.
The ones who stood out and moved away from the crowd always won my heart – especially if they found themselves stepping back in the name of a big, gentle heart.
Characters like Thumbelina, Aslan and Pippi Longstocking took their rightful places as staples in the imaginary world [...]

Summer Reading Together

Editor’s Note:
Mom and CV teacher Helen Oliphant has dropped by today to lend us a hand getting into the learning that happens away from the classroom this Summer.
She kicks it all off with tips on how to help your kiddos get reading, with a little help from mom and dad.

“Thurs. June 2, 1977.
I want to [...]

Book Review – Learning to Lend A Hand

For late-night or early-morning readers, I apologize for our technological glitch with the Rainy-Day Book Club this morning. Apparently, I shouldn’t start working when half asleep. The results are, as you saw, half:)
Back to the business of great books.
In the middle of the first of what surely will be many rounds of defiant testing of [...]

Discovering Living Books

When we first started talking about homeschooling our daughter, I started to read.
I researched nearly every homeschooling philosophy out there, scanned blogs, subscribed to newsletters, checked out and pored through a huge pile of books from the library and realized pretty darn quickly that we are an eclectic secular homeschooling family.
There are bits and pieces [...]

Stories with a Sleep Charm

We have a new bedtime routine.
Books and stories have always been a part of our evening ritual. But, it wasn’t until the tiny person graduated from board books and we started discovering the world of classic storytelling that the warm, quiet and connective time spent reading her to sleep entered into our lives.
Of course, it [...]

Women of Heart

When I was a tiny person, I dreamed of life as a great explorer.
I lived in my imagination, with an entire universe of imaginary friends who roamed the sidewalks and pounded the pavement of the city with me, in search of magic.
As many are, mine was a complicated childhood. Disappearing into a world where I [...]

Spring Break Reading Adventures

After a long Winter of snowy tales, the tiny person and I hauled out the books about blooming flowers, baby animals and sunshine a few weeks ago to get ourselves geared up for the activity of Spring.
I’ve definitely had a tough time charging myself up lately…whether it’s the chill factor in the mornings or feeling [...]

Spring Migration

The swans are disappearing.
The thousands of lovely, white, long-necked beauties are vanishing by the day after packing local farm fields snacking down all Winter.
Thankfully, they aren’t being destroyed. It’s just time for them to head back to Alaska because a cozy rainy season on the island means they’ve got some baby making to attend to [...]

Nature’s Tasty Treats

When I was coming up with the excellent reads for this installment of The Rainy-Day Book Club, it seemed most fun and appropriate to honour the debut of our gardening journal Sprouts and the incredible yummy goodness that February brings us from Eastern Canada in the form of maple syrup.
While many parts of North America [...]

Book Review – Global Movement

As our daughter gets older, she’s all about telling stories – not only with her words, but with every part of her being. She loves to sing stories, dance stories and make up stories about creatures that can only be described by jumping around in the craziest of ways.
Books are always a great way to [...]

Book Review – Kids Food & Youth Culture

Eating and art are two things that kiddos of any age cannot escape in today’s culture. Discovering the wonders of exotic foods and the beauty of art in all forms is such a great way to open families up to new ideas, cultures and adventures.
The good news is that there are plenty of ways – [...]

Book Review – The Magic Forest

I am in love with the forest.
Growing up in – and living most of my life surrounded by mountains and wilderness – something deep inside always resonated profoundly with me.
Strangely I didn’t really begin to understand why until I started plugging into nature from a kiddo’s perspective.
Getting on your hands and knees to look up [...]

Arctic Tales

I don’t want to be a part of the generation who has to some day explain why Canada’s amazing north vanished in our lifetime. How the mighty creatures of the Arctic and the intensely rugged Inuit culture literally melted away.
Never in our history have we as a society been more aware of our direct impact [...]

Book Review – Classics for Any Bookshelf

I had entirely different plans for today’s Rainy-Day Book Club.
I wanted to plug you in to some gems this holiday season that are about celebrations from around the world like Hanukkah, Winter Solstice, St. Lucia Day and Kwanzaa. Unfortunately, I searched high and low locally and found, well, not much that I would consider really [...]

Kids Books with Holiday Charm

Finding sweet, sentimental holiday stories for tiny people with a nod to tradition and a modern flair is no easy task. In the last couple of weeks I have pored through my fair share of seasonal tales.
I was completely impressed with the library’s wide range of stories of celebration from around the globe. But, while [...]

Book Review – Monstrology 101

Welcome to the first edition of the CVK Rainy-Day Book Club.
A while back, in the midst of pulling together portions of our Rainy-Day Survival Guide, I was out cruising local book stores and ran into a pal who said that she’d stopped reading with her young kiddos because she had no idea how to find [...]

Teaching Kids Financial Literacy

After a few weeks on the island, my parents are heading back East today and we’re hitting the road to Victoria pretty quick this morning.
We’ve all had such a great time just hanging out and soaking up being a family, it’s a bit of a blue day around here.
So, I thought I’d pull out an [...]