Celebrating Our Elders

The Stealers of Light
by Edmund Dulac, 1916



"Nobody can do for little children what grandparents do. Grandparents sort of sprinkle stardust over the lives of little children." - Alex Haley

In the United States the first Sunday after Labor Day is Grandparent's Day . An old African proverb states, "When an elder dies, a library burns." I encourage you to collect one story from your elder's on Grandparent's Day. Make it a family ritual. I guarantee those tales will be treasured when they have crossed over.




Here are some sites from around the world to help you honor our elders.

STORIES

The Dreaming Tree- Brazil
http://spiritoftrees.org/the-dreaming-tree
  
Grandmother’s Golden Dish – Serbia
http://tinyurl.com/ltocuh

Grandmother Spider Steals the Fire – Choctaw
http://tinyurl.com/nggvql

Grandmother Spider Steals the Sun – Cherokee
http://tinyurl.com/m2sqtq

Grandmother Wolf – China
http://members.home.nl/marcmarti/yugur/folktale/tale11a.htm 

The Lime Tree – Russia
http://tinyurl.com/np8382

Raven and His Grandmother – Aleut
http://tinyurl.com/lcdmgh

Story-Lovers.com - Grandparent’s Stories - As always, Jackie Baldwin provides us with a bounty or resources and Grandparent’s Day is no exception. http://tinyurl.com/l9lggz

CRAFTS AND ACTIVITIES

If you are a teacher or librarian, here are some crafts and activities to complement your curriculum on Grandparent's Day:

Activity Village – A wonderful page full of activities, printables and information on Grandparent’s Day. It's sure to put a smile on your face no matter what age!
http://www.activityvillage.co.uk/grandparents_day.htm

Apples4theTeacher - Coloring pages and crafts for Grandparent's Day.
http://www.apples4theteacher.com/coloring-pages/grandparents-day/

DLTK-Kids – Cute teapot craft with poem.
http://www.dltk-kids.com/crafts/grandparents/mteapot.html

DLTK-Kids – Grandma or Grandpa apron.
http://www.dltk-kids.com/crafts/grandparents/mgroovygrandma.htm


BOOKS

Grandparent's Day Reading Material – “These books may be found at your local public or school library. For your convenience, ISBN numbers, book reviews and related links have been provided on each detail book page.”
http://www.apples4theteacher.com/holidays/grandparents-day/kids-books/

Karen Chace 2009 ©

This blog post was researched and compiled by Karen Chace. Permission for private use is granted. Distribution, either electronically or on paper is prohibited without my expressed written permission. For permission please contact me at storybug@aol.com. Of course, if you wish to link to my blog via your website, blog, newsletter, Facebook page or Twitter please feel free to do so; I greatly appreciate your support and personal integrity.

Story Café - Charging Ahead!

I am very excited! We now have the schedule for the Story Cafe at ArtWorks in New Bedford, MA complete through 2010! This is a fabulous line-up, talent galore from around New England to Newfoundland, Germany and back again. In June and September, you get two featured tellers in one evening! What's not to love?

September 26, 2009 - Simon Brooks - New Hampshire
October 17, 2009 - Carolyn Martino - Rhode Island
November 7, 2009 - Michael Anderson - Massachusetts - This will not be a regular Story Cafe, but a special event at ArtWorks. Tickets required.
December 2009 - No Story Cafe
January 2, 2010 - Jackson Gillman - Massachusetts
February 13, 2010 - Leeny Del Seamonds - Massachusetts
March 6, 2010 - Marni Gillard - New York
April 10, 2010 - Michael Parent – Maine - This will be a fundraiser for ArtWorks/Story Cafe thanks to Michael's generosity. Tickets required
May 15, 2010 - Joanne Piazzi - New Hampshire
June 26, 2010 - Eshu Bumpus and Motoko - Massachusetts
July 24, 2010 - Katie Green - Massachusetts
August 21, 2010 - Bob Reiser - Massachusetts and Clare Vadeboncoeur - Rhode Island
September 18, 2010 - Dale Jarvis - Newfoundland
October 16, 2010 - Tim Van Egmond - Massachusetts
November/December 2010 - No Story Cafe

You can even sign up for your own ten minute turn at the mic and share a song, story, some music or poetry.

TIME: 7:00 P.M. – 9:00 P.M. (Open mic from 7:00 - 7:45. Feature begins at 8:00 P.M.)
LOCATION: Artworks, 384 Acushnet Avenue, New Bedford, MA
ADMISSION: FREE (Pass the hat for the featured performer except for November 2009 and April 2010: Tickets required for both of these events.)
AUDIENCE: 18 and older
DIRECTIONS: http://www.artworksforyou.org/hours.html
PARKING: http://tinyurl.com/5qdafo
Come early and explore downtown or enjoy dinner before the show. For information on historic New Bedford go to: http://www.downtownnb.org/

Get those calendars out so you can join us for one or more; it would be grand to see and hear you. Questions? Email me at storybug@aol.com.