Common Ground by Molly Bang

"Long ago, a village was built around a commons. The commons was 'common ground' which belonged to everyone in the village." The villagers brought their sheep to the commons to graze, "But there was a problem....There was not enough grass for all of them."
So begins a simple parable to reveal our relationship with everything around us - the water, earth, and air we share and how each individual affects the world.
Molly Bang gives consice understandable historical scenes, each demonstrating the limitations of our resources. "But after cutting down so many trees, there are fewer and fewer forests. This is not good for the trees, or the forest creatures, or the forest soil."
A small book large in its message and illustrations. It invites discussion and stimulates thought. 
Visit the author's website at http://www.mollybang.com/Pages/common.html

Max's Chocolate Chicken by Rosemary Wells

Here is a charming story with lots of activities and connections for your little chocolate lovers!
When Max and Ruby go on an egg hunt, Ruby finds all the eggs-and Max finds only ants and acorns. But then he shows her what can happen when you put all your eggs in one basket!
Check out a very cute video to share as well.http://vimeo.com/2792562
For some activities, see westonwoods.scholastic.com/products/.../maxs_chocolate_chicken.pdf  and www.dcmp.org/guides/10072.pdf

The author has a website as well - http://www.rosemarywells.com/

Hockey by Bobbie Kalman

I know it is Spring time - but playoffs are going on - go Flyers!

Get in the game with Crabtree's exciting series on some of children's favorite sports.
Features:
-- the history of the sport
-- basic rules of play
-- equipment and safety precautions
-- techniques and quick tips for kids on how to improve their skills
-- action-packed photos showing boys and girls demonstrating moves
-- emphasis on the value of fair play and teamwork
-- how the professional leagues work



Grab your skates and hit the ice with Hockey in Action. This book brings to life the exhilaration of the fastest sport in the world using step-by-step instructions on how to play on the ice. Hockey equipment and rules of play are also described as well as such techniques as:
-- how to maneuver on skates
-- stick handling
-- passing the puck and shooting
-- making a save in the goalie's net

Pictures from Trip to Italy

Wow!  See the following link for some pictures from Italy -
http://www2.snapfish.com/snapfish/share/p=882101302471038895/l=13156096009/g=57692807/cobrandOid=1000/otsc=SHR/otsi=SALBFB

Ancient Rome, Pompeii, Amalfi, and Capri .............lots of food pics also ................

Growing Vegetable Soup by Lois Ehlert

Author and illustrator Lois Ehlert’s cut-paper collages are bold and colorful. The story of a father and child’s vegetable garden project is told in rhyme. While the text of the story is brief, each of the plants, seeds, and gardening tools illustrated is labeled, making this a book that’s fun to read aloud and then read through again identifying everything. The story begins with the planting of seeds and sprouts and ends with delicious vegetable soup. (Voyager Books, 1990. ISBN: 0152325808)