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Saturday 22 November 2014

The Tear Thief

As well as running Little Scribbles' Stories and this blog, owner Deb (me) is a person-centred counsellor who works with children, young people and families. I am currently working with Oakleaf , a Liverpool based charity that is dedicated to helping children and families during the difficult process of grief and loss, as a result of death or separation from a loved one. 

We were recently featured in this years Children in Need programme and are partly funded by the charity. As you would expect, the publicity drove more people to our services and whilst we are doing the best that we can to support as many children and young people as possible, we still need lots of help. Take a look at this BBC video to hear more about Oakleaf's services 



The team are busy looking at fun ways to fund raise and will be taking part in next Month's Santa Dash in Liverpool. I will not be taking part myself but I am thinking of innovative ways to raise money with my family and friends, if you do have any ideas, please let me know!

In the meantime, I will be donating all profits from one of my favourite Barefoot Books, 'The Tear Thief'. All copies of the book, sold through my Barefoot Books page or over at Little Scribbles' Stories, will not only give a child a wonderful story to read but will also provide a little bit of help that will go a long way for Oakleaf.


Each night, in the hours between supper and bedtime, the Tear Thief carries her waterproof, silvery sack as she steals the tears of every child who cries. But what does she do with all those tears? This warm, poignant, and beautifully illustrated story offers a thought-provoking message and a starting point to share children's emotional experience. The book is a great tool for children to explore new feelings and emotions and enables parents to support with different situations that lead to children feeling sad. At the end of the book, we find out that all of the tears that children cry are placed onto the moon, so that it shines as bright as possible. There is an accompanying CD, read by Juliet Stevenson, that is ideal for bedtime reassurances and a dreamy end to the day.

I will keep you all updated on how much the book is making for the service and will also be holding some special book sales to support too. 

Thank you in advance to all those who support us through buying this book and don't forget to leave a comment if you have any fun ideas on how I can raise some more funds!

Buy your copy of The Tear Thief

Tuesday 11 November 2014

World Nursery Rhyme Week

This week sees children, and all those that work and care for them, celebrate World Nursery Rhyme Week. The week aims to highlight the importance of nursery rhymes in the development of language and communication skills and to champion just how much fun singing can be. We often include nursery rhyme time at the beginning of our storytelling sessions as it is a great way for little ones to get involved, have some fun and really practise their babbling skills.

We love to get our Nursery Rhyme Puppet Set out, which we put into a bag so that each child can have a go at choosing a puppet out of the bag and be surprised at what they get! It adds a little bit of fun to the session and encourages children to explore the bag and engage with the group as they all guess what song it will be.


You will probably remember a lot of nursery rhymes from you were a child or when children around you were growing up. For those who are a little rusty, Baby's First Book is great introduction to favourite nursery rhymes and short stories that are ideal for babies and toddler. The illustrations are just beautiful, from the wonderful Clare Beaton once again, making the book a real keepsake and a great gift for Christmas babies or as a unique christening gift.



For a more laid-back singing session, Mrs Moon's Lullabies for Bedtime is a lovely book to encourage a peaceful nights sleep. Bedtime rhymes is also a very relaxing book, that fits not small hands and will have your little one drifting off to sleep in no time!

 

There ate lots of great resources on the World Nursery Rhyme Week website, but why not have some fun and think of fun activities that you can do with your little ones. After 3, 1...2...3...Baa baa black sheep.................

Sunday 2 November 2014

November Book of the Month

We can't believe that we have just typed November 'book of the month'! What a quick year it has been? We have loved introducing to new titles and old favourites and for November we are bringing you a bit of both. Our book of the month for November is ' Magic Hoofbeats ' from Barefoot Books. The book is back by popular demand, after going out of print for a few years. Magic Hoofbeats is a must for all horse lovers and would be a great addition to any child's bookshelf.



Children can lose themselves in the world of the equestrian with this beautifully illustrated collection of mystical tales of memorable horses. The collection brings together tales from many different cultures and traditions and is written by horse whisperer Joseph Sherman.

As with many Barefoot Books, there are fantastic endnotes that will educate children on different breeds of horse give you fun facts about this wonderful animal. The book also has an accompanying CD, which is ideal for a quiet pre-bedtime wind down or for long car journeys.

We love a good collection of short stories as it allows for great shared reading amongst the whole family, each reading out a story to practise storytelling skills and bonding together when discussing each others favourite story. As well as being inspired by the stories, children will be inspired by the fantastic illustrations by Linda Wingerter, so there is plenty of opportunities to get pencils and paints out for a creative post book craft session. A truly enchanting book.