Fair Grove Elementary School

Please consider bookmarking FG School's Tumblebooks subscription to your home computer as a great learning enrichment option for your students when they are not at school (link below).

It's October! Fall is here. The days are getting a little shorter. The leaves are starting to change color. And everywhere you look, there's the smell of pumpkin spice and apple cider! Which do you prefer this time of year?

TumbleBooks has a lot in store for you this month! We start off gently, with music and with the joy of balloons, but we end the month with some of our spooky Halloween favorites, and one sassy kitty!

October is also a time to appreciate teachers (on the 5th), overcome your fears (the 8th), and celebrate what makes you special (everyday! - but specifically the 10th)

CLICK HERE TO LINK TO OUR SCHOOL'S TUMBLEBOOKS SUBSCRIPTION

TumbleBooks features lots of books about music! We have international best seller "The Man With the Violin", "The Song of Middle C", "Pecorino's First Concert", "The First Music", and "The Best Mariachi in the World".

On International Music Day, we decided to celebrate the companion to "The Man With The Violin!" - "The Dance of the Violin"!

Be sure to check out our TumbleTunes as well!

Balloons Around the World Day is a day to celebrate the whimsy and joy of balloons!

The TumbleBook "Once Upon A Balloon" is a great way to enjoy the day, and bring some color into your classroom!

Today's the day to celebrate how hard teachers work to educate classrooms of children every single day! They're up early, to help with breakfast clubs. They stay late after school with team sports. THEN they spend evenings marking homework and planning the next day's lessons!

Teachers guide and hold students accountable for their actions in class, as Rosie learns in "I Will Never Get a Star on Mrs. Benson's Blackboard". She tries to be neat... she tries to give the right answer in class... but when Mrs. Benson recognizes and acknowledges Rosie's artistic talent, magic happens!

International Frugal Fun Day was created to encourage fun and family friendly activities that require little to no money to enjoy!

Whether you go for a picnic at the park, potluck with friends, enjoy a frugal and fun Saturday with family and friends!

"I'll Save You Bobo" is a lovely new book that highlights the joy of imagination and tech-free playtime!

Celebrated on the second Tuesday in October, Face Your Fears Day encourages you to face and overcome your fears!

Sometimes our fears are justifiable (like being afraid of hungry bears while you're out hiking!) but sometimes our imaginations get the better of us!

To a child's imagination, their own house can seem like the scariest place in the world: when the lights go out, every bump and creak is blown way out of proportion. "My House Is Alive" is a delightful story that helps kids understand what the noises in their house means, and why it happens.

Sometimes it seems like there's a special "day" for everything! Today, it's handbags!

Big or small, fluffy pink or black leather, handbags help safely carry our essentials while we're out and about.

But they can be more than just a tool! They can be an important form of self expression.

Just ask young Charlie. In "I Love My Purse"! He defies the gender norm, and in doing so also inspires his friends to express themselves more freely!

"And you'll cry if you want to"? Nope, not today!

Today's a day for "Why not?!" Have some fun and enjoy the company of friends and family.

(We hope you have some balloons left over from Balloons Around the World Day last week? And be sure to invite the animals from Music Day to DJ!

But don't let it get too out of hand. Like Moira. Moira invited her WHOLE school to her birthday! True, that was very generous of her... but maybe she should have asked her parents first!

Old Farmer's Day dates back to the mid 19th century. It's a day to honor the hard work and persistence of farmers around the world who work so hard to grow the food we eat.

Let's see what Old MacDonald - one of the best known farmers in children's literature and folk songs - is up to!

Canadians celebrate Thanksgiving annually, on the second Monday in October.

It's a day to give thanks and to show your gratitude for the bounties you've received this year, and to spend time with loved ones.

On the other hand, sometimes if you're a young, picky eater, Thanksgiving can be a bit of a horror show... What does Mom want me to eat now? Dad, do I really have to eat my vegetables?

It's all part of growing up: trying new foods, and deviously thinking of ways to hide food you don't want to eat! But beware... the food may not stay hidden for long, as Edgar, Allan, and Poe discover!

Happy 74th Birthday, John Lithgow!

Mr. Lithgow is a world-famous actor and writer. In the 1990s, he starred in the popular sitcom, "3rd Rock From the Sun" with Joseph Gordon-Levitt, and most recently he played the venerable Winston Churchill in Netflix's hit series "The Crown".

We're so excited to have him as an author in our collection! He's written and narrated several books for Simon & Schuster, 5 of which appear in TumbleBookLibrary, including this favorite, "I Got Two Dogs."

This week is Earth Sciences week!

Take some time out today to learn about how the world works and how it impacts your life.

Some great titles include:

"Lifetime": relating numbers to animals' lives, and enhancing your perspective on the diversity of life in the natural world.

"Reproduction in Plants": introduces children to photosynthesis and the symbiotic relationship between plants and animals.

"Dinosaurs Roar, Butterflies Soar": discusses the longevity of butterflies in the natural world, and the changes they'd have seen as a species living from the time of the dinosaurs to today.

"Trout are Made of Trees": is about ecology and the lifecycle of the natural world. How one thing's decomposition contributes to the nourishment of another: back and forth, in balance, forming an ecosystem.

"Our Seasons": shows the changes from season to season, and how the natural world - including us - adapts and changes.

"Turtle, Turtle, Watch Out!": From titles that focussed on the environment and the earth as a whole, we now zoom in on a specific species... the sea turtle.

We observe National Color Day annually on October 22. Color is a very powerful element in our lives. It has the power to influence our mood, to draw our attention, to communicate important messages, and even to cause alarm.

But what happens when your imagination runs amok with colors? Brigid knows! Enjoy the Munsch classic "Purple, Green, and Yellow!"

Happy Birthday, Pablo Picasso!

If he were alive today, Picasso would be 138 years old.

Picasso was a world-famous artist, and I think perhaps it's fitting that his birthday is the day after International Color Day, because his work is often vibrantly colorful!

The story of "Pigasso and Mootisse" was inspired by the friendship between Picasso and Henri Matisse and shows how two people can be both rivals and friends, and inspire each other to greatness.

Frankenstein Friday is celebrated on the Friday before Halloween.

TumbleBooks' resident Frankenstein is Frank! A friendly little monster who just wants to dance... unfortunately his sewn-together body can't quite stand up to the pressure of Frank's enthusiasm!

*Note that while this TumbleBook is age-appropriate, some images might be a little frightening for some of our young and/or sensitive readers.

Due to their ability to convey story and message with a flick of a wrist or the arch of an eyebrow, animation and illustration are very close-knit art forms.

So today we're presenting "Caillou Tidies his Toys" in honor of International Animation Day. As a classic children's cartoon, and now a TumbleBook favorite, Caillou teaches children valuable life lessons in a simple and accessible manner, and in a way that could not be replicated in any other medium.

Cats! They're mischievous, sassy, and very particular little characters!

None more so than Laverne. She lives with pug, Frank, and they see things very differently! After reading Laverne's side of the story, be sure to check out Frank's side for a different perspecitve!

Happy Halloween, everyone!

Whether you go ALL OUT on your costume (zombie princess prom queen, anyone?) or you prefer the classics (white-sheeted ghost!) we hope you have a safe, and SPOOKY day!

Some Trick-or-Treating safety tips!

Wear reflective tape on your costume.

Wear comfortable running shoes with firmly tied laces so you don't trip.

Don't zig-zag across the street from house to house and ALWAYS look both ways when you absolutely must cross the street.

Only trick-or-treat with an adult.

Only visit houses with lights and Halloween decorations.

Avoid costumes that cover your face and restrict your vision.

Carry a flashlight.

Bundle up against the cold! (As we like to say up north: there's nothing more Canadian than wearing a snow-suit under your Halloween costume!)

And finally, have your mom or dad inspect your candy before eating. Throw away any candy with damaged or ripped wrappers.

Stay safe and have fun!