September October 2011

Autumn by
Alphonse Mucha, 1896

I can hardly believe that summer is already singing her swan song. In Massachusetts the night air is already tinged with the crispness of fall and it won’t be long before the leaves begin to dress themselves in the vibrant colors of autumn.

Soon it will be time for school, pumpkins, scarecrows and Halloween! Believe it or not, September is also National Chicken Month! I have listed stories, curriculum and more to keep you clucking along!

In September I will take part in the first Teller to Teller conference call, courtesy of LANES on September 15 from 7:00 P.M. – 8:00 P.M. This is a free service and the topic will be Story by Story - Building a School Storytelling Troupe; there will be time for Q & A. I will share my nine years of experience directing a student troupe; the good, the bad and the interesting! There will be other  storytellers and teaching artists who will be sharing their expertise on a variety of topics in the coming months. Registration is free; the only requirement is that you be a LANES member. Questions? Contact Yvonne Zinicola, Executive Director at director@lanes.org or go to www.lanes.org to become a member. Feel free to ask me any questions about the upcoming teleconference call as well.

Remember, if you need websites for other special days don’t forget to search the newsletter archives. I have also listed a few below at the end of the newsletter so you just have to point and click. A Google search box is available on the main newsletter site at http://storybugnewsletter.blogspot.com. I also offer more resources on my blog as well. You may find it here: http://www.karenchace.blogspot.com/.

If you have any comments or suggestions please drop me a note at storybug@aol.com . Wishing you an autumn filled with the last rays of summer, crisp, cool night air and the comforting scent of home fires burning in the distance. See you in November!

Warm wishes,
Karen Chace
www.storybug.net

"Some day you will be old enough to start reading fairy tales again." ~ CS Lewis

September is National Chicken Month. Here are some tales of our fine feathered friends!


STORIES

Black Snake and the Eggs – Liberia
http://tinyurl.com/3wk2qb5

Blue Hens Chicks – USA
http://tinyurl.com/3s22hpm
Why Does the Hawk Carry Off Chickens - Africa
http://tinyurl.com/3ozkyna

Why the Kite Eats Chickens - Africa
http://tinyurl.com/3v2txr7
Why Chickens Scratch the Ground - Phillipines
http://tinyurl.com/3jp2pts

September 23 is first day of fall; here are some stories to celebrate the new season.

Why the Leaves Have Many Colors in Autumn – Native American

http://tinyurl.com/3thfsu9
The Big Leaves – Nigeria
http://tinyurl.com/3zucd5z
The Magic Pumpkins - Ukraine
http://tinyurl.com/42eny7g

Silly Sanu’s Story - India

http://tinyurl.com/42b8qhv
Jack O’Lantern - Ireland
http://tinyurl.com/43z93s2

One of my favorite pumpkin stories is The Pumpkin Child, a folktale from Persia. It can be found in Persian Folk and Fairy Tales by Anne Sinclair Mehdev.
http://www.amazon.com/Persian-Fairy-Tales-Sinclair-Mehdevi/dp/B0007DKJU6



BOUNTIFUL BLOGS

Sue Black – Storyteller, Teaching Artist and Bully Prevention Specialist, Sue offers insight on a wide variety of topics. Her writing and information is always spot on!
http://sueblack1.wordpress.com/


BUSINESS NOTES

Differentiate and Dominate:10 Ways to Make Your Business Stand Out by John Jantsch
http://tinyurl.com/3zfh49y

How to Target a Local Audience Online by Hostway

http://tinyurl.com/34ndrkb

Top 10 Things Customers Don't Want to Hear, And What You Should Say Instead
by Bill Lampton, Ph.D. http://tinyurl.com/3aeqedl

CRAFTS

How to Make a Fairy Tale Pumpkin

http://tinyurl.com/3jxq5ug
Pumpkin Crafts and Activities
http://tinyurl.com/3eljh4l
Autumn Leaf Placemats
http://tinyurl.com/3fnrt2w
Creative Nature Notebook Craft
http://tinyurl.com/3k62yzh

ArtistsHelpingChildren.com - Lots of chicken crafts her from preschool to high school.
http://tinyurl.com/3s644ly
Hen (Chicken) Paper Craft - Handprint craft in the shape of an egg.
http://www.dltk-kids.com/animals/mpaperhen.htm
HelloKids.com - Cute chicken craft with a video to help you along. http://www.hellokids.com/c_19625/kids-craft/fun-kids-craft/chickens

"Tell me and I'll forget; show me and I may remember; involve me and I'll understand.
~ Chinese Proverb

CURRICULUM

Teach Kids With Chickens

http://tinyurl.com/3zkprdp
Chicken Facts
http://tinyurl.com/445hlb5

Autumn Leaves Curriculum Connections
http://tinyurl.com/434r2xr
Education World – Wonderful resources on fall, pumpkins, weather, apples and more.
http://tinyurl.com/lshqcj

Pumpkin Folktale Reading Lesson Plan

http://tinyurl.com/3q4jxfx
Pumpkin Unit for Grade Two – Many, many links to bring a patch of pumpkins into the classroom.
http://mrscjacksonsclass.com/pumpkins.htm
Scarecrow, Scarecrow – From Kinder Korner – Extension activities, songs, book suggestions and more on scarecrows and all things related to autumn.
http://www.kinderkorner.com/scarecrow.html

EDUCATION HIGHWAY

I have moved this section to my blog. Every issue the old information will be deleted and new events will be listed. If you have an upcoming event I will be happy to list it for free. Please go to this link http://tinyurl.com/6e5mk9l for the specific directions and format then email it to me at storybug@aol.com with the subject heading “Education Highway.”



READER’S THEATERS

The Apple Dumpling

http://www.whootieowl.com/pdf/AD/Rdrs-Theatre.pdf

The Pumpkin in the Jar
http://www.whootieowl.com/pdf/RID/PJ/Rdrs-Theater.pdf

SONGS AND FINGERPLAYS

Alphabet Soup – Alphabet Songs and Fingerplays
http://www.alphabet-soup.net/dir2/applesong.html

Bellaonline.com - Fall Songs and Fingerplays

http://www.bellaonline.com/articles/art46980.asp


SPOKEN WORD/STORYTELLING VENUES

I have also moved this information to my blog. You may find it at this link. http://tinyurl.com/3w7yutc. Also, if you have any regular spoken word and storytelling venues such as guild gatherings you would like to list send them to me at storybug@aol.com and I will be happy to add; this is a free service. Directions are at the above blog link.


Additional resources from a few of my previous blog post to help you greet fabulous fall in style!


Apples - Fall brings us an abundance of apples. This is a blog post I wrote in September of 2008. It is filled with stories containing apples as well as lesson plans, history and folklore.
http://tinyurl.com/3fcyr27

Chinese Moon Festival – Celebrate with stories of the moon.
http://tinyurl.com/3ncx87e

Curriculum Connections – A compilation of all the curriculum links from my blog gathered in one spot! http://tinyurl.com/4xsaw5k

Ghouls, Ghosts and Goblins – Fall brings us Halloween as well. This blog post from 2010 is filled with stories, lessons plans, crafts and more will help you woo the spirits right to your door…in you dare! http://tinyurl.com/5s9qee6