March April 2012

The Wind
by Emma Florence Harrison, 1914
Here in New England we’ve been enjoying an extremely mild winter, and spring is just around the corner!  I suspect Mother Nature will play a trick on us and ensure that March roars in like a lion! To that end I have added some stories about lions in this issue.

March 1 is also National Pig Day so there are some stories of to celebrate our curly tailed friends. These two months are full of fun with St. Patrick’s Day, Women’s History Month, April Fool’s Day and ahhhh spring! I have added some previous blog posts that are filled with stories and resources for you.


This month you can catch me at the LANES Sharing the Fire Conference in Albany, NY. I will be presenting one workshop and co-presenting another with the talented Simon Brooks. April will find me presenting at Northlands Storytelling Conference in Lake Geneva, Wisconsin. In June I will be part of a panel discussion at the National Storytelling Conference (NSN) in Cincinnati, Ohio with nationally known, award winning tellers and also presenting at the NSN Preconference for the YES Alliance (Youth, Educators and Storytellers) on organizing and teaching student storytellers. Each of these wonderful conferences offers a wide range of opportunities in a variety of disciplines. If you plan to attend any of these amazing conferences please stop by and say hello!

Looking for other resources on different subjects or holidays? Be sure to check out my blog and the newsletter archives; and don't miss my "Something Extra" section at the end of this newsletter for some other unique opportunities.

As always, I appreciate your time and support. If you have any questions, comments or suggestions please drop me a note at
storybug@aol.com .

Warmest wishes,

Karen Chace
www.storybug.net


"When we forget our stories, then we forget our dreams. When we forget our dreams, we lose our spirit."
~ Maori Saying


STORIES

The Dog and the Pig – India
http://tinyurl.com/3y9z8pk
The Impatient Pig – Nigeria
http://tinyurl.com/6hryg9l

How Come the Pigs Can See the Wind – United States
http://tinyurl.com/6ncsgdw
It’s Not True – Hungary
http://tinyurl.com/7b76ty5
The Old Woman and Her Pig - England
http://tinyurl.com/8yagce3
The Ram and the Pig Who Set Up House – Norway
http://tinyurl.com/84cw77s

The Three Little Pigs - England
http://tinyurl.com/7jtlmwx
The Curly-Tailed Lion – Dutch
The Foolish Lion and the Clever Rabbit
The Lion’s Enchantment - Spain
http://tinyurl.com/7wduovp

Lion and Jackal – South Africa
Lions Share – South Africa
http://www.sacred-texts.com/afr/saft/sft22.htm


Previous blog posts with resources that connect with the month of March and April.

The Wayward Wind – Folktales for March
http://tinyurl.com/7hdfvb4

Celebrate Women’s History Month: Women in “Her”story!
http://tinyurl.com/6s8uon9

May the Road Rise Up to Meet You…Celebrating St. Patrick’s Day
http://tinyurl.com/6mh53uf

Fools, Tricksters, Festivals and Spring!
http://tinyurl.com/4qskmq2


"Facts bring us to knowledge, but stories lead to wisdom." ~ Rachel Naomi Remen, M.D.


BOUNTIFUL BLOG

Hans My Hedgehog - Through a wonderful quirk of fate and the power of the Internet I connected with Jessica Boehman, an amazing illustrator living in New York city. She is a lover of fairy tales and I fell in love with her work. Would you like a peek? Take a look at her main site here http://www.hansmyhedgehog.com/index.html and treat yourself to her unique blog at http://www.hansmyhedgehogblog.blogspot.com/ .



BUSINESS NOTES

9 Habits of Highly Successful Small Business Owners by Stacy Karacostas http://www.businessknowhow.com/marketing/different.htm

Business Love Lessons How to Steal Your Customer's Heart Away! by Anne M. Obarski
http://www.businessknowhow.com/marketing/bizlove.htm

Distinguish Yourself as a Speaker by Bill Lampton, Ph.D.
http://www.businessknowhow.com/growth/distinguish.htm



CRAFTS

Enchanted Learning – Paper bag puppets, masks and more.
http://www.enchantedlearning.com/crafts/pigs/

Hand Print Lion – Easy craft for toddlers and preschoolers.
http://www.busybeekidscrafts.com/Hand-Print-Lion.html

Paper Bag Lion
http://tinyurl.com/88owk8u

CURRICULUM

The Three Little Pigs by Paul Galdone – This very complete lesson plan complements the
book using math, science and other activities.
http://www.hubbardscupboard.org/three_little_pigs.html
Lion Lesson Plan for 3-5 grade.
http://www.instructorweb.com/les/lions.asp
A Lesson to Compare and Contrast the Algerian folk tale How the Lions Kept the Animals Away
http://tinyurl.com/7lw4hxh

SONGS


Songs and Rhymes for March and Spring
http://tinyurl.com/82o48kx


EDUCATION HIGHWAY

Go to this link http://tinyurl.com/6e5mk9l for the listings. If you have an upcoming workshop, festival, or retreat event I will be happy to list it there for free. Specific directions are at the link.

SPOKEN WORD AND STORYTELLING GUILDS

You will find them here:
http://karenchace.blogspot.com/2011/08/story-slams-open-mics-and-storytelling.html
. If you have any regular spoken word, story slams, open mic and storytelling venues, such as guild gatherings, I will list them for free. Just send them to storybug@aol.com. Directions are at the link.

SOMETHING EXTRA

My colleague, friend and award winning storyteller Simon Brooks is trying to complete a wonderful project but he needs our help. Each summer Simon performs at Camp Exclamation Point (CAMP!) in Vermont. Many of the children attending this camp are extremely underprivileged and challenged in many ways. Simon is trying to raise funds to make this CD which will be GIVEN AWAY to the children at CAMP! If you would like to help by donating a dollar or more go to the children, Simon and I will sing your praises from the mountains of Vermont to the shoreline of Massachusetts! Interested? Go to http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/simonbrooks/simon-brooks-storyteller-new-limited-edition-cd

Are you barely treading water in the ocean of Social Media? My colleague and friend Carolyn Stearns will offer a preconference workshop at the LANES Northeast Storytelling Conference in Albany, NY this month: Her workshop, My Web Presence is Dead! And Other Fear Factors will have you swimming upstream in no time at all! Learn about You-Tube, Pinterest, Twitter, Facebook and create hands on learning as attendees upload fresh new content. Create a plan of action for building presence. Bring a laptop or iPad if you have one, and a digital camera if possible. We will share resources and become a team at promoting storytelling. More information on her preconference offering at https://lanes.memberclicks.net/stf-2012-friday-preconference-seminars