Connie Bergstein Dow

Read about these beautiful creative dance-centered picture books by

five talented authors. You will love these colorful books filled with fun, play, creativity, and movement!

 

 

Connie's picks for picture books about dance and creativity (published by Shepherd.com)

 

 

 Clap and rub your hands together to stay warm in the cold winter night!

 

 

"Owl Moon" Dance Story

 

 

"Owl Moon," by Jane Yolen, with beautiful illustrations by John Schoenherr, is a Caldecott Medal-winning picture book (Philomel Books).  It is a simple, magical story about a young girl and her father. It takes place in winter, at night, with different animals hidden in the pages. It can be incorporated into any lesson plan about the fall/winter season. Once you have read the book to the children, try the following movement activity.

 

Music:  A soft, instrumental musical selection, such as a selection from the group Wyndham Hill

 

Space:  The children can move all together in the shared space, or you can divide them up into two or three groups, with one group dancing while the others watch. Give the audience group a task, such as, Watch the other children dance and see if you can imagine what an owl looks like when he is flying through the forest at night.

 

 

 

Say to the children:

 

Now that we have read the story, imagine you are the owl from the book. You have big eyes that can see in the dark, you can turn your head very far in both directions, and you have big talons and huge, feathery wings. I will play some music. (Allow time for the children to develop each prompt through movement. Then move on to the next prompt).  

 

 

 

  What does it feel like to be an owl?  Perch on a high branch.  Now look all around at the forest and the sky.

 

  Now we will take off from our high branch, and fly into the forest.  

 

 

  What do you see far down below?

 

Continue the activity:

 

  What other animals might you see in the forest at night?  Can you dance like the bird? 

 

  The deer? 

 

  The fox?

 

  The raccoon?

 

  The field mouse?

 

 

 

  Now let's imagine we are the little girl, trudging back home in the snow with her father.  

 

  The snow is very deep!  Take big steps and lift your legs high to get through the snow.  

 

  Make shapes with your footprints: Can you make the shape of the moon in the snow? Star shapes? What other shapes would you like to make in the snow? 

 

  Now, step through the snow as fast as you can.

 

Conclude the activity:

 

  Look, there is your house in the distance!  We are almost home. Shiver and rub your hands together. Jump up and down to try to get warm. 

 

  Now imagine you open the door and go inside your cozy house.  

 

  Walk up the stairs, lie down in your bed, yawn and stretch, pull the covers up, and think about the amazing owling adventure you had in the cold winter night.  

 

  What will you dream about?

Do your little ones love to move, groove, dance, tap, rap, play, bend, twist, stomp, chant, freeze, balance, make silly shapes, jump, hop, slither, stretch, crawl, leap, tiptoe, twirl, and gallop? 

 

Our new picture book TAP AND RAP, MOVE AND GROOVE (Free Spirit Publishing) will inspire them to do all of these and more, plus they will use their imaginations while having fun.

 

The fourteen original dance chants, like "Tappity Rap," "Thumbs Up," "Lively Feet," and "Quack, Quack, Quack, Moo!" provide everything you need for a creative, playful dance activity, while at the same time, reinforcing early literacy skills. The activities also nurture important developmental skills such as body awareness, spatial awareness, listening to and following instructions, multi-tasking, and problem solving.

 

One of the best parts about this book is the gorgeous illustrations by talented artist Debbie Palen. The beautiful, colorful pictures truly capture the joy and energy of children in movement. Little ones will love all of the lively and fun characters Debbie created.

 

TAP AND RAP, MOVE AND GROOVE is coming in October, 2023, and is available for pre-order now:

 

 

Bookshop.org

Free Spirit Publishing

Barnes & Noble

Amazon

Target

 

 

Debbie and I are excited to share our fun-filled book with you!

 

 

 

Keep on dancing,

 

Connie

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Hello, and Happy Winter!

 

 

 

For this blog post, I have assembled a collection of many of my past posts about winter. They are all published in the SCBWI (Society for Children's Book Writers and Editors) 2020 Holiday Activity Guide -- Winter Activities for Grades PreK-Kingergarten, Ages 3-6, where you will find lots of other children's authors' ideas for winter fun.

 

 

By clicking this link, you will find the following winter movement activities:

 

 

Footprints in the Snow: A Movement Exploration Inspired by Winter
Winter provides endless inspiration for imaginative movement ideas. This activity addresses science, nurtures creativity, and encourages large motor skills practice.

 

 

Bird Count Picture Book, with a READ AND DANCE Lesson Plan
Susan Edwards Richmond wrote a beautiful picture book about the Audubon winter bird count, and I have created a playful movement activity about her story.

 

 

Snow Day! Indoor Activities to Supplement Outdoor Play
Playful and lively indoor creative movement activities about winter: Draw and Dance, Indoor Snowballs, Dance and Freeze in Snowflake Shapes.

 

 

A Winter Dance Story: The Most Perfect Snowman
A dance story about the picture book The Most Perfect Snowman by Chris Britt–a lively activity that's perfect for an interactive winter story time.

 

 

 

Christmas Story and Dance Activity: Sparkle the Snowflake
A lively holiday activity, built around an original story about a valiant little snowflake, with simple instructions for retelling the story through dance and music.

 

 

 

 

Keep on Dancing,

 

 

Connie

 

 

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*Named one of Free Spirit Publishing's Top 20 Blog Posts of 2020!

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