This April, for our “Around the World in 12 Dishes” series, we are traveling to France! We were fortunate to visit France several times when we lived in London, and thoroughly enjoyed the fresh, local ingredients, phenomenal artisan cheese, and the delectable pastries. We decided to incorporate these elements into our evening by doing a French cheese taste test, enjoying a fresh salade nicoise, and finishing with by some coconut macaroons.
Cheese. A visit to France is not complete without tasting some of the gorgeous French cheeses. After the main meal in France, a course of cheese is often served with the salad before the dessert. In fact, even French school lunches often include a cheese course (drool over samples of French lunch menus here). When we were in France, we were told that there are so many types of French cheeses that you could try a different variety every day for a year and not ever repeat. We decided to hold our own French cheese taste test! Continue reading
Finding similarities and differences when reading fairy tales from around the world hones kids’ critical thinking skills, and helps them to focus on the details. Even the Common Core Standards includes this in one of their “Reading Literature” standards:
Compare and contrast two or more versions of the same story (e.g., Cinderella stories) by different authors or from different cultures (RL.2.9.).
There are many reasons to read fairy tales to children- especially because they’re whimsical, creative, and fun! Today we’re looking at Gingerbread stories. Continue reading
Posted in Around the World, Asia, Australia, Australia and Oceania, China, Europe, Food, France, Ireland, Literature, Mexico, Norway, Russia, The Americas, UK, United States
Tagged fairy tales, fiction children's books, folktales, Gingerbread Man stories
People celebrate carnival around the world the week before Lent, a Christian period of fasting and reflection. Traditionally held in areas with large Catholic populations, carnival often includes a parade with costumes and music- yet each country has their own unique traditions. Let’s look at some unique ways people celebrate carnival around the world.
Creative Commons Photo by: David Edgar (2006)
Posted in Around the World, Belgium, Brazil, Bulgaria, Celebrations, Dominican Republic, Europe, France, Germany, Guatemala, Italy, Peru, Russia, The Americas
Tagged Carnaval
Today’s guest post comes from Amy Broadmore, the mother of three young children ages seven, five, and two. She spends her time teaching and learning from her children, running, and searching for great picture books. She recommends children’s literature with captivating stories and gorgeous illustrations on her blog Delightful Children’s Books.
I love the ability of good stories to both entertain and teach kids at the same time. Here are ten of my favorite stories set in countries around the world. These are, for the most part, fictional stories. Yet, they introduce kids to real places and real experiences. These stories help kids imagine what it would be like to celebrate Eid in Kuwait, go on a family road trip in Australia, wait for the Biblioburro to arrive in Colombia and more. Continue reading
Posted in Africa, Asia, Australia, Australia and Oceania, China, Colombia, Europe, France, India, Kuwait, Literature, Malawi, The Americas, The Gambia, Ukraine, United States
This is part of a series of articles on real families who are embracing and incorporating cultures and languages into their lives. If you you would like to be featured, send us a note. Today’s guest post is written by Gabrielle Blair (US), a designer and mom of 6 adorable kids whose family is currently living in the French countryside. Gabrielle originally wrote this post for her site “Design Mom,” and has graciously given us permission to repost it here.
Our school year is winding down here in France, so I thought it would be fun to write up another little update on our kids’ experience in the local schools. I hope you enjoy it!
The first thing I wanted to mention was handwriting. I snapped the photo of the chart below in the 6-year-old’s classroom at my kids’ school. Having good handwriting is a big deal here! And seems to be a universal skill. Even at the village market, all the signs for fruit and veggies are hand written in beautiful script.
Current DVD cover
You might remember the quiet 1956 French film The Red Balloon from when you were younger. In this short fantasy film, red balloon follows around a young Parisian boy, getting Pascal into trouble at school, waiting outside his home when his mother won’t let it in, and trying to avoid a group of bullies with the boy. After a sad climax, there is a happy ending.
You can watch the entire film on-line here, buy a copy of the DVD, or take out a copy from your local library. Before watching the movie, get out the map and tell your kids that the setting is a neighborhood of Paris, the capital of France. The main character is a little boy named Pascal. I also showed them a flag of France, and told them to find the flag in the movie (it is displayed outside the school). While we were watching it, my daughters pointed out Continue reading
