Stars, Planets, Heavens

"December 2012 presents a great big plateful of planetary delights, with all five visible planets shining in the night sky in the first half of the month...That’s only the start of what’s to come this month, as the new moon leaves a dark sky for watching the prolific Geminid meteor shower on the nights of December 12, 13 and 14, and the full Long Night Moon beautifies the night of December 27." ~ EarthSky Tonight

Things are a bit crazy here & it cannot all be blamed on the cat. Meanwhile, looking up at the clouds during the day & the night sky (or the online stand-in, oh my) is some relief. So, too, is reading through the stars, planets, heavens label on the Poetry Foundation website. xoxo

(mixed media print by Catrin Welz-Stein via My Modern Met)

Poems for Autumn

Here are some fall poems selected by the editors at the Poetry Foundation's terrific website. You can also do a search for more - the search function is excellent; save them in the feature 'my favorite poetry. And finally, if you are supposed to be writing but are stuck, some ways to unblock.

A busy day here; back tomorrow.

Ciao/GG

(photograph by Andrew Chung-Gon via English Muse)

Hummingbirds

We're reading up on ruby-throated hummingbirds (& the other varieties, as well) today because we saw some this weekend, apparently on their migration south. (To be clear, we knew nothing about hummingbirds except they are beautiful & native to North America.) They are so beautiful; tiny but tough. For a great resource visit Cornell's All About Birds.

Two more hummingbird links: hummingbird cupcakes & a coloring pages for children.

GG/xo

(photograph by Sam Alvano of his wife Abigail hand-feeding hummingbirds! Giulia wants to do this, ahem. More photos.)

September 11

New York magazine's The Encyclopedia of 9/11 contains archives & new material. It's an excellent resource.

PS: A gentle reminder that people experienced this tragedy differently. Telling others to "get over it" is never ever a good way to start a conversation about that day or any other catastrophe. It's going to end that conversation, though.

(photograph via Instacane via Cup of Jo)

Clouds

Have you noticed clouds lately? Do you remember the types of clouds? We forgot. But we did see a spectacular horse-in-a-cloud the other day. The phenomenon of perceiving images in clouds, rocks, & the like is called pareidolia. Pareidolia is a type of apophenia.

A few cloud links:

If you want to brush up on more than your Greek & teach some children about clouds, start here.

Capturing clouds at 20,000 feet. Spectacular photographs.

A song (partly) about clouds...

ciao/xo

(photograph by Anka Zhuravleva)

Summer Stars

The Summer Triangle consists of three bright stars – Vega, Deneb and Altair – in three separate constellations. If you can find the Summer Triangle, you can use it to locate three of the sky’s smallest constellations: Vulpecula the Fox, Delphinus the Dolphin and Sagitta the Arrow. ~ EarthSky Tonight

It's that time of year: the Summer Triangle is here. Click through to EarthSky's smart & beautiful (& beautifully written) website for lots of links, photographs, graphs, explanations that even we can understand. You can follow them on Facebook, too, so that you don't miss a day's post.

ciao-starry-meow/GG

(photograph by Mariusz Sikorski)

Atlantic Puffins

Atlantic Puffins spend most of their time at sea — coming to land each spring to breed in colonies on northern seacoasts and rocky islands, like Seal Island in Maine, home to the puffins visible on our live cam. These colorful pigeon-sized birds lay one egg in their burrow homes, with the male and female sharing incubation duties for approximately 39-43 days. After the chick hatches both parents feed it fish for approximately 45 days. After that the “puffling” is large enough to fledge (leave the nest.) ~ Audubon Society

If you have children around, you can excuse becoming hooked on the baby puffin live cam at Seal Island in Maine on them. If not, you're on your own. National Geographic's Kids has a good creature feature on Atlantic puffins. And here's a short learning unit (with a coloring page & a crossword) on puffins.

Giulia is far too interested in the live cam, so we're off for a nap.

ciao/xo

(photograph by kenyai via Mother Nature Network)

Helping Kids Stay Creative

For an excellent list of sites to help kids stay creative, click over to My Life Scoop. There are a few GG faves & then some new-to-us.

Things are very busy here but we'll pick up the posting pace next week as we decamp to house-sit for Paris-bound friends.

ciao/GG/xo

(photograph by Jason Lee via My Modern Met)

Butterflies

He ran after butterflies,
Blue ones and red;
He did a hundred happy things—
And then went to bed.~ A.A. Milne

Butterflies are back in our area, what about yours? If you've some young ones around this summer, make sure to bookmark the Children's Butterfly Site. For everyone, Butterflies & Moths of North America (BAMONA) invites citizen scientists to participate in submitting their photographs & observations. The site is beautiful, definitely give this one some attention.

And if you're in the Washington, DC area (or will be visiting), Wings of Fancy is now on at Brookside Gardens through September 16. A must-see.

ciao-fluttery-meow/GGCM

PS: Nabokov's butterfly drawings. Lovely.

PPS: Needless to say, ahem, we do not condone making earrings out of real butterflies! (Just in case you were wondering.)

(photograph via Автор: Taesang)

Jane Austen Card Games

Playing cards is fun but sometimes the same old game is a bore. The Jane Austen Centre website has the rules for several games popular in Regency England. Head over & see if there's something that might be fun for the weekend. If that's not your cup of tea, play hearts. It takes a certain brashness to be good at that game (GG's editor is good at that game:)

ciao-meow/GGCM

(photograph by Jen Gotch via Automatism)

Poetry for Children

If Tuesday is any indication, this week is already lost to us. We'll try to regain some sense of optimism...soon. Meanwhile, the Poetry Foundation is a favorite site & their Children's Poetry section is new-to-GGCM but looks quite good. Cultivating a love of poetry cannot begin too soon.

ciao-meow

(Briton Rivière painting by via dflam)

The History of Rome

The five-year project "The History of Rome" is now ready & waiting for you in the form of 179 podcasts on iTunes (via Open Culture). It's an excellent resource for anyone but particularly for those who did not study ancient western antiquity at university. GG's editor is biased but (we think) if you don't understand ancient Rome, you don't really understand the the world now. Such a statement is one of an academic, to be sure, but we really do believe it.

If you want to entertain/teach children about the ancient city, the BBC Primary History on the City of Rome is for them.

ciao-meow/GGCM

(photograph by Giampaolo Macorig)

Happy Birthday, Will

While we don't know William Shakespeare's actual birth date, he was baptized on the 26th of April (1564). Common practice had baptism at three days after birth, so happy birthday, Will.

For celebration & education:

The Folger Shakespeare Library in Washington, DC has a wonderful site, including sections for K-12 teachers. If you haven't been, please do visit when you come to Washington.

The Shakespeare Theatre Company should also be on your DC to-do list.

The National Endowment for the Humanities has excellent links for Shakespeare.

Remember Becky's phrases we owe to Shakespeare?

Always, always keep your Shakespeare Insult Kit handy!

Cheers/GGCM

(illustration by Jonny Hannah via Design)

You Belong @ Your Library

It's National Library Week. Visit the website to learn about activities surrounding the celebration. Maybe you've moved recently (or not so recently?) & don't have a card yet. The website is user-friendly & will help you find what you need. No matter where you live, visit the Library of Congress website. It's a resource that everyone with internet access can use, which is yet another valuable thing you can find at your library (most likely).

A little table pounding now: the freedom to read what you like is not a certainty. Visit the Banned Books Week link for information on challenges to books in libraries & schools. This is a list of the most frequently challenged books.

ciao-meow/GGCM

PS: A Funny Library Montage

(photograph via Classic Period Dramas)

Birds Up Close

Here's a good question from a friend. "What if I don't have transportation out to the country for these birding jaunts so many people talk about? I'm not about to rent a car & all of that. We feel left out."

No worries. We're urban birds ourselves. Honestly, no one is seeing birds any closer than watching a bird cam. Giulia has shown little interest (yet) but her editor swoops in to see Cornell Lab of Ornithology's Red-tailed hawk cam every day. Another daily stop is the very popular Decorah Eagles cam. These are amazing resources for anyone - with or without children to wrangle. Even if you have a passing interest in birds (we aren't major birders), you'll love to peep in. And you'll find yourself wanting to learn more.

For more up close (& colorful!) birds, we highly recommend looking at the weekly Top 25 Wild Bird Photographs.

ciao-cheep-meow/GGCM

(Paris café bird by liivia)

Happy Birthday, Mr Dickens

There is no shortage of online material for Charles Dickens enthusiasts for the natal day (& year) celebration. Those fortunate to live in London, should visit the Charles Dickens Museum. Online, they have a creative writing project for students. There are resource links for parents & teachers, as well. (The museum will close in April for renovations so plan accordingly.)

A new-to-us David Perdue's Charles Dickens Page looks excellent. So many links to good sites, synopses, illustration information, & much more. And, of course, Dickens 2012 is birthday central.

ciao-pip-pip-meow/GGCM

(photograph by Bob Penn)

Winter Night Sky

"For most of the world, the moon and the blazing planet Venus will be closest together for the month this evening, on Thursday, January 26, 2012. It’ll be hard to miss this brilliant couple in the southwest or western sky at dusk and early evening. The moon and Venus rank as the second- and third-brightest celestial objects, respectively, after the sun. They’ll set in the west at early to mid evening."-via EarthSky/Tonight

It's a bit daunting to go outside at night to look at the sky (in the winter, in the city). So we're "watching" via EarthSky's Tonight & also by following NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center on Twitter. Superb photographs & videos at the click of a mouse.

We're busy here doing some research for friends on their way to France & Italy in the coming months. Venice is on one of the itineraries. Hence, the moon-over-Venice photograph. For beautiful photos of Venice & the moon (& many other subjects), visit our friend Julie at Being Ruby. And heads-up, carnevale starts on February 11th!

ciao-starry-meow/GGCM

(photograph by Alex Hanoko)

Winter Weather

A winter storm is creeping in from the Pacific Northwest to the Midwest to...eek, here. Soon. If you're child wrangling tonight or this weekend, check in with the fun, interactive Weather Channel for Kids. The site is filled with games, climate change information, & more. (It's for grown-ups, too, we just decided:)

A related favorite site is EarthSky, especially the Tonight page. (The site is available in Spanish, too)

ciao-meow/GGCM

(photograph by Taesang via Автор)

Prepare for MLK Day

There's no shortage of information for ideas on how to spend the holiday. Mainly, we favor a mix of commemoration & service. If you agree (or would like to find out more), check in at the MLK Day of Service page at Serve.gov.

If you will be child-wrangling on Monday (or anytime this three-day weekend), check out the excellent ideas, cute photographs & free download printables at Preschool Daze. It's absolutely wonderful. We applaud Kristin for her generosity.

ciao-meow/GGCM

(MLK image collage via Preschool Daze)

A Story a Day Awaits

Head's up, readers: a free website with a new children's story each day.

By giving you a new story every day of every month, knowonder! is the perfect answer to help your child read twenty or thirty minutes every day and enjoy doing it!

Back to our holiday prep & re-prep: Giulia has just opened two packages. Not hers, either. Oof.

merry ciao-meow

(illustration via the Children's Room via Pinterest)