The Carrot Seed

Title: The Carrot Seed
Author: Ruth Krauss

Illustrator: Crockett Johnson

The voice of reason says, "not a chance", "give up", "don't bother" - what do you do? Do you ignore all these negative opinions? Not if you're a little boy with buckets full of hope and determination, and one carrot seed.

This short, charming story is about a little boy who plants a carrot seed in the ground. His mother says, "I'm afraid it won't come up"; his father says, "I'm afraid it won't come up"; and his brother says, "It won't come up". But that doesn't stop the little boy from giving his carrot patch lots of attention and nurturing. He tends to it everyday. Everyone kept saying he should give up, but his determination was stronger than his doubt. And then one day, what happens? I'll let Crockett Johnson's picture tell the rest of the story. If you enjoy Johnson's Harold and the Purple Crayon (like I do), then you'll enjoy these illustrations too.

The story's message is simple: when you believe in something, do not let the naysayers steer you off course.

Craft idea: Plant a bean seed in an enviro-friendly, decompostable, paper cup (making sure to decorate the cup first, of course). Make a little vegetable label and attach to the toothpick to identify the contents of the cup (you'll see what I'm getting at when you see the book's illustrations).

Game idea: (ages 4 and up) Play a game of concentration with different vegetable pictures. Have the children name the image of vegetable (or read the word on the card). It's a game for memory and learning new words.

Program themes: gardening, vegetables, cooking

Other recommended title: The Curious Garden by Peter Brown

Ages 3 to 6

A Chair for my Mother

Title: A Chair for my Mother
Author/Illustrator: Vera B. Williams


Understanding how a child sees the world is difficult for an adult. Depending on the age of the child, the illustrations in a picture book are often more important than the plot or characters. I was sitting next to a toddler on a car ride and had this book in my bag. I pulled out the book and started flipping through the pages. Her eyes sparkled as we navigated along the bright, saturated hues Vera Williams has chosen for her book. She loved to stare at the page that features the "wonderful, beautiful, fat, soft armchair...covered in velvet with roses all over it." (I myself remember that page from reading it many years ago as a child).

The story of "A Chair for my Mother" has a beautiful message about overcoming obstacles and challenges (in this case, a fire that destroys their apartment). The story is narrated by the little girl, Rosa, and introduces a family unit that is not commonly discussed in children's books: a child, a mother and a grandmother. The mother works tirelessly as a waitress to earn a meager wage and one day, they return home to find their apartment on fire - everything is lost. Through hard work, the mother saves up her tips and purchases a new chair for their new start in their new apartment.

This story also offers lessons about the following:
-saving money
-the importance of family
-community support
-overcoming large setbacks

It is a story of triumphing over hardships (with beautiful illustrations).

CRAFT IDEA:
-print off an outline of a couch/chair (click on last image on the attached website) and have the child colour in their perfect design.

GAMES IDEA:
-a round of musical chairs

Ages 4 to 8