4 Kids | Perfect Game

It was just over a year ago when San Francisco Giants' pitcher Matt Cain pitched a perfect game. What's a perfect game, you ask? Well, it's when a pitcher pitches a minimum of 9 innings without anyone on the other team reaching base. Matt Cain did it against the Houston Astros on June 13, 2012 -- the first pitcher to do it in Giants' franchise history.

 

You might be wondering where I'm going with this.

 

Well, for many of you, today is the first day of school. Yes, I know I blogged about "Back to School" last week (even though that was more about obedience school). But today I'm wondering how many of you will have a perfect game this year -- or rather, perfect attendance.

 

Perfect attendance. As in not missing even ONE day of school. Have you done it before? Huge props if you have. But on this first day of a new school year, why don't we make a promise to not miss even one day of school.

 

You can do it. You really can.

 

I know. I know. If you wake up in the middle of the night with stomach flu and spend the early hours of the day lying on the bathroom floor, I can understand staying home from school.

 

But really, haven't we all stayed home from school for no good reason? I don't want a show of hands here. But let's just be honest with ourselves. Lots of us have probably stayed home when we really could have gone to school.

 

So let's make this a perfect year! No faking being sick. Are you with me?

 

Here's the deal: if you stay home from school when you're really, truly not sick, you are going to miss something. Maybe it's an important assignment. Maybe it's an important math thing that you'll need the rest of your life. Maybe it's hearing a funny story read by your teacher. Maybe it's the chance to give the right answer to a question when no one else in your class can. That would be cool, right?

 

Staying home from school (or work) when I'm not sick reminds me of a great poem by Shel Silverstein, simply titled "Sick." You can find this poem in that great collection of Shel's poems, Where the Sidewalk Ends. "Sick" is the story of little Peggy Ann McKay who simply cannot go to school because she's got a whole lot of sickness going on. Here are my favorite lines:

 

My hip hurts when I move my chin,

My belly button's caving in,

My back is wrenched, my ankle's sprained,

My 'pendix pains each time it rains.

 

Pretty funny, right? I don't want to ruin the ending if you haven't read it yet. But let's just say Peggy Ann McKay learns a thing or two.

 

But seriously, make a promise to yourself to have a perfect game -- I mean, perfect attendance -- this year.

 

And don't forget, the library is full of great resources to help you with those school assignments. Visit us often.

 

Here's to a wonderful school year!

 

Happy reading!

4 Kids | The Giving Tree

My friend Lisa blogged about Shel Silverstein's beautiful story, The Giving Tree, a little while back. If you haven't read the classic book, please check it out from any SSJCPL branch library! It's a story about a boy and a tree...about how a boy's needs change as he grows up, and how the tree tries to do everything it can to give the boy what he needs.

I shared this book recently with my 5th grade friends from Stockton Collegiate International School. It's interesting how each of us found a different meaning in this story. 

Here's what some of my 5th grade friends thought:

"The Giving Tree is a sweet and nice story about friendship and loyalty." A.S., 10 years old

"The Giving Tree story meant that the tree cared for the boy. She valued the boy. She was good." -- Q.D.M.H., 10 years old

"The Giving Tree shows what a true friend will do just to keep you happy." S.D., 10 years old

"I think this book means that you should appreciate things." N.N., 10 years old

"This story taught me that you should be thankful and stay present and live your life right." D.S., 10 years old

Every time I read this book, it leaves a different impression on me. Thanks to my 5th grade friends, today I'm thinking about...

• what it means to be a loyal friend
• how we should all value one another
• how important it is to appreciate what we have
• being present in the lives of my friends and family

What does this book mean to you? Leave a comment and let me know your thoughts!

Book Bucket List | The Giving Tree

One of the most well known and beloved children's authors is Shel Silverstein. Known for his amusing, and sometimes strange, drawings and rhymes, Silverstein has become a kingpin of children's literature. He wrote the classics Where the Sidewalk Ends,  Runny Babbit: a Billy Sook, and Falling Up. 

One of Silverstein's most famous books is The Giving Tree, first published in 1964.  The story follows a moving story of a boy's relationship with a tree, and how it changes over time.  The story starts when the boy is a small child and the tree was able to provide simple and innocent things to the boy to amuse and shelter him.  As the child grows however, his needs change and become more demanding of the tree, but the tree still tries to do everything it can to accommodate the child.  The story has many interpretations.  Some see the tree as a selfless parent, sacrificing their own needs in place of their child.  Others see the book as a warning of how far someone should go to help someone before their own needs start getting ignored and forgotten.

This is a great book for a reader of any age.  It leaves the reader with an ending that is both sweet and sad, but still open to debate.  Did the tree go to far, or did it's love for the boy trump any of the fallout of her choices?  Either way, it is a great story.  It is also short enough for anyone to read in one sitting! (What could be better than that?)

Let me know what your opinion on the story is in the comments!