WorldWar II Night Before Christmas (November 2018)
by: Mike Guardia
Its Christmas Eve in 1944 when Santa visits the Allied troops in Normandy. The temperatures were frigid and the Allied Troops dreamed of having blankets, rations, coffee, and warm winter clothes.
The story is set to the rhythm lines of Twas the Night Before Christmas. Mike Guardia is an award-winning author, historian, and the father of two wonderful girls. See all of his books on Amazon.
Comment: I was sent a book copy so that my feature can be authentic and my own original thoughts for you. I am a member of Amazon Associates and any Amazon links I may be compensated on at no cost to you ONLY if you click then buy
A few nights ago I sent my son in for his pre-bedtime potty and to wash his hands. He is the child that at age 4 ALWAYS washes his hands after using the restroom as Daycare and myself have installed that method into his head. I noticed he came out of the restroom way too fast. “Hold on, Mister…did you wash those hands?” I got a “Huh?” look and he shoved his hands in my face and I smelled soap. It then hit me….we tell him to wash his hands and he knows to put his hands under running water, use soap and rinse but I have never actually given him any concept of why or how long. At 4 1/2 he is perfectly capable at comprehending the concept so I thought fast about all those books and articles I have come across on creative ways to help him learn and to not just wash his hands or brush his teeth, but to CORRECTLY wash and brush! Here is what I found and will use from now on with my own son……
Click for photo source
Washing Hands
Facts
80% of germs are transmitted by hands
CDC protocol is to wash hands in warm, clean & soapy water for 20 seconds.
The proper sneeze etiquette is to sneeze into your sleeve, NOT your hands.
Fun Ways to Encourage Hand Washing
Have your child sing Happy Birthday twice or the Alphabet song..any song, really. It needs to be a minimum of 20 seconds of their hands under water rinsing with soap!
Glitter! It is great for teaching hand washing for 2 reasons. First, you can put glitter on your hands. The glitter resembles GERMS. Have them see how easily the “GERMS” spread as you shake there hand, open a door, touch the flusher, etc… Second, glitter is a challenge to wash off. Give your child a paper towel and see them struggle removing the GERMS. Then have them rinse under cool water without soap-better, but still doesn’t get the GERMS. Finally, have them rinse with soap and warm water. The GERMS go away!
Buy the fun and colorful soaps for them
Brushing Teeth
Facts
It takes 3 years for toddlers to grow their 20 primary teeth
40% of kids will have a cavity by Kindergarten
2-3 years old is when self-dental care should begin-supervising them until about age 6-8
Use soft Bristle Brush with Flouride paste
Fun Ways to Encourage Teeth Brushing
Mix 3-4 drops of red food coloring in about 2-3 tbsp of water. Have your child rinse and spit out carefully into the sink or another cup. Let them look into a magnifying mirror and see their plaque and germs.
Put Tempura paint between your fingers and give them a piece of string. Demonstrate flossing. The paint is a bit challenging to remove resembling the work it takes to floss well.
Don’t forget the eyeball catching toothbrushes and toothpaste. Let them be Germ superheros. I did this with my son as I started him brushing his teeth (he brushes after I do it first as he is only 4). We went to the store and he picked out his own toothbrush and paste then he had his “weapons” for fighting the germ monsters that invade his teeth morning and night!
The 3 friends: Dawn, a serious fox, Tobin, a sweet pangolin, and Bismark, the loud mouthed, pint sized sugar glider work together to find the mystery of disappearing animals at night. Wit the helps of some other nocturnal friends they use teamwork, friendships and some humor in their journey to solve this mystery.
The 3 friends set out again to find the source of violent jolt that fractures the earth. Turns out it is a giant beast who is likely to attack again. They find an animal that can help, but isn’t easily trusted.
All of the forest’s pomelos have been mysteriously poisoned! Dawn, Tobin and Bismark need to find the cause as other animals are falling ill including Tobin! It is suggested it is monsters from the moon, but the 3 are doubtful. It is a race against time to find the mystery illness source.
My advice? Just buy all 3 books at once because they are so engaging you want more. It was hard for Anthony to put the books down as he got into the story. They are very well written leaving the reader so curious and really wanting to know the end result. To have book 2 and 3 waiting will encourage this excitement and keep them reading. Anthony is 9 and in the fourth grade. He followed along very well.
If they want even more make sure they visit the Nocturnals website. It is full of so much fun related to the stories. There are videos, discussions, games and more.
About the Author, Tracey Hecht
Tracey Hechtis a writer and entrepreneur who has written, directed and produced for film. Her first middle grade series, The Nocturnals was launched in 2016 with The Mysterious Abductions and The Ominous Eye. The American Bookselling Association chose The Mysterious Abductions as a Kids’ Indie Next List pick. Her third book, The Fallen Star was released in May 2017.
In partnership with the New York Public Library, Tracey created a Read Aloud Writing Program in 10 schools around New York City. During the year, she continued to conduct this program in over 35 schools, libraries and bookstores across the country. In June 2017, she launched a partnership with The Ryan Seacrest Foundation with The Nocturnals program at the broadcast media centers within pediatric hospitals. The first hospital was the Children’s National Medical Center in Washington DC.
When Tracey isn’t writing, she can be found hiking, reading or spending time with her family. Tracey currently splits her time between New York City and Oquossoc, Maine with her husband and four children.
When I hit middle school I was told by my parents and some friends that I was a motormouth. I talked and (perhaps it’s the Italian influences from my Grandparents who were the same way) I talked fast! I would here “Calm down, you’re talking too fast” or “My! You have a lot to say!” I learned and grew put of it in High School and like, Freddie the Fly am better off for learning to control my speech.
Kimberly Delude is a Certified Speech and Language Pathologist and this is her first children’s book. Freddie is told he is a motormouth and after meeting other just like him they work together to learn ways to pause and listen. It is in learning these new skills he finds out some pretty neat stuff about his friends all because he stopped to listen.
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