Celebration: 55 Ways to Celebrate Independence Day

Jul1

1. Read the Declaration of Independence. Take a Declaration of Independence quiz. Learn more about American Independence Day at Independence Day on the Net.

2. Sing or learn about The Battle Hymn of the Republic

3. Some picture books for July 4th:
Longfellow, Henry Wadsworth. Paul Revere’s Ride.Illustrated by Ted Rand. Dutton, 1990.
Dalgliesh, Alice.The 4th of July Story. Alladin, 1995. (reprint edition)
Spier, Peter. The Star-Spangled Banner. Dragonfly Books, 1992.
Bates, Katharine Lee. America the Beautiful. Illustrated by Neil Waldman. Atheneum, 1993.
Devlin, Wende. Cranberry Summer.
St. George, Judith. The Journey of the One and Only Declaration of Independence.
Osornio, Catherine. The Declaration of Independence from A to Z.
More picture books for Independence Day.

4. Nathaniel Hawthorne was born July 4, 1804. Advice from Nathaniel Hawthorne on Blogging.

5. Stephen Foster was born on July 4, 1826. The PBS series American Experience has an episode on the life of Stephen Foster, author of songs such as Beautiful Dreamer and Oh! Susanna.

6. Thomas Jefferson and John Adams died on the same day, July 4, 1826, fifty years after adoption of the Declaration of Independence.
Adams’ last words were: “Thomas Jefferson still survives.”
Jefferson’s last words: “Is it the fourth?”
I highly recommend both David McCullough’s biography of John Adams and the PBS minseries based on McCullough’s book.

7. Calvin Coolidge was born on July 4, 1872. He is supposed to have said, “If you don’t say anything, you won’t be called on to repeat it,” and “I have never been hurt by anything I didn’t say.”
Also, “we do not need more intellectual power, we need more spiritual power. We do not need more of the things that are seen, we need more of the things that are unseen.”
Amen to that.
More on Calvin Coolidge and the Fourth of July from A Quiet Simple Life.

8. You could make your own fireworks for the Fourth of July. Engineer Husband really used to do this when he was a young adolescent, and I can’t believe his parents let him. He tried to make nitroglycerine once, but he got scared and made his father take it outside and dispose of it! Maybe you should just read about how fireworks are made and then imagine making your own.

9. On July 4, 1970 Casey Kasem hosted “American Top 40” on radio for the first time. I cannot tell a lie; in high school I spent every Sunday afternoon listening to Casey Kasem count down the Top 40 hits of the week. Why not make up your own Top 40 All-American Hits List and play it on the fourth for your family?

10. Via Ivy’s Coloring Page Search Engine, I found this page of free coloring sheets for the 4th of July. We liked the fireworks page.

11. Fly your American flag.

12. Read a poem to your children about Leetla Giorgio Washeenton. Or read this biography of George Washington.

13. Read about another president you admire.

14. Miracle at Philadelphia by Catherine Drinker Bowen. Subtitled “The Story of the Constitutional Convention May to September 1787,” this book is the one that gave me the story of the US constitution. It’s suitable for older readers, at least middle school age, but it’s historical writing at its best. I loved reading about Luther Martin of Maryland, whom Henry Adams described as “the notorious reprobate genius.” Elbridge Gerry of Massachusetts who was”always satisfied to shoot an arrow without caring about the wound he caused.” (Both Gerry and Martin refused to sign the final version of the Constitution.) Of course, there were Madison, known as the Father of the Constitution, George Washington, who presided over the convention in which all present knew that they were creating a presidency for him to fill, and Ben Franklin, the old man and elder statesman who had to be carried to the convention in a sedan chair. Ms. Bowen’s book brings all these characters and more to life and gives the details of the deliberations of the constitutional convention in readable and interesting format.

15. Watch a movie.
Getttysburg is a tragedy within the tragedy that was the Civil War, but it’s also patriotic and inspiring.
Mr. Smith Goes to Washington has Jimmy Stewart demonstrating what’s wrong and what’s right about American government and politics.
I like 1776, the musical version of the making of the Declaration Of Independence, but it does have some mildly risque moments.
Other patriotic movies. And a few more.

16. Have yourself some BarBQ.

17. Play a game. Organize a bike parade.

18. Take a virtual tour of Philadelphia’s famous historical sites. Learn more about the Liberty Bell, the Betsy Ross Home, Valley Forge, Brandywine Battlefield, Independence Hall, and other sites.

19. Host a (cup)cake decorating contest.

20. Download a free Independence Day wallpaper for your computer. More free wallpapers.

21. Photograph some fireworks. Check out some fireworks photographs.

22. Listen to The Midnight Ride from Focus on the Family’s series, Adventures in Odyssey, to be broadcast on Wednesday July 4th.

23. Read aloud the Declaration of Independence.

24. Listen to some marches by John Philip Sousa, performed by the U.S. Marine Band. I played several of these, not very well, on my flute when I was in Homer Anderson’s Bobcat Band.

25. Enjoy A Capitol Fourth, broadcast live on PBS from Washington, D.C.

26. Send an e-card to someone you love.

27. Pledge allegiance with Red Skelton.

28. Bake and decorate a flag cake.

29. When Life sends you an Independence Day, make lemonade.

30. July is National Hot Dog Month and National Baked Bean Month.

31. Fourth of July Crafts and Treats: cupcakes, windsocks, stars, hats, and more.

32. A patriotic pedicure?

33. More Fourth of July crafts.

34. Patriotic parfait.

35. Start an all-American read aloud, such as:
Johnny Tremain by Esther Forbes.
Eight Cousins by Louisa May Alcott.
Guns for General Washington by Seymour Reit.
Tolliver’s Secret by Esther Woods Brady.

36. Independence Day printables from Crayola. And more coloring pages from Moms Who Think.

37. Sing the U.S. national anthem, Oh, Say Can You See?, all the way through. Memorize at least the first verse.

38. More Fourth of July recipes.

39. We always attend the Fourth of July parade in Friendswood, Texas, except not this year since some of us will be traveling. Anyway, find a parade and take the kids or grandkids or neighbor kids. A Fourth of July parade is a celebration of American patriotism in a capsule.

40. Free printable patriotic U.S.A. calendars.

41. Fourth of July art projects for preschoolers and the young at heart.

42. Read a version of Patrick Henry’s great Give Me Liberty speech.

43. Check out A Book of Americans by Rosemary and Stephen Vincent Benet. It’s a great book of poems about various famous Americans, and I think lots of kids would enjoy hearing it read aloud, maybe a poem a day in July.

44. Make a pinwheel or other printable craft. Or print some games.

45. Spend some time praying for our nation’s leaders: President Barack Obama, your senators, your representatives, the governor of your state, your state representatives, and others.

46. Wear red, white, and blue. Or put red and blue streaks in your hair. When I was in junior high, flag pins and ponchos were in style. I had a flag pin and a red, white, and blue poncho, both of which I wore together. I was stylin’!

47. On July 4, 1845, Henry David Thoreau went to live near Walden Pond. Thoreau and Sherry on Clothing.

48. Any of the following nonfiction books for children would make a good Fourth of July history lesson:
The Story of the Boston Tea Party by R. Conrad Stein
The Story of Lexington and Concord by R. Conrad Stein
The Signers: The 56 Stories Behind the Declaration of Independence by Dennis Brindell Fradin
The Story of the Declaration of Independence by Norman Richards
The American Revolution (Landmark Books) by Bruce Jr Bliven
The War for Independence: The Story of the American Revolution by Albert Marrin
The Story of Valley Forge by R. Conrad Stein
Traitor: The Case of Benedict Arnold by Jean Fritz
The Story of the Battle of Yorktown by Anderson
Miracle at Philadelphia by Catherine Drinker Bowen.
The Story of the Constitution by Marilyn Prolman
In Defense of Liberty: The Story of America’s Bill of Rights by Russell Freedman
An American Plague: The True and Terrifying Story of the Yellow Fever Epidemic of 1793 by Jim Murphy
George Washington and the Founding of a Nation by Albert Marrin
The Story of Old Glory by Mayer

49. Host a block party or potluck dinner.

50. Take a picnic to the park.

51. Read 1776 by David McCullough or the two companion novels, Chains and Forge by Laurie Halse Anderson. All three would make great Fourth of July reads. Semicolon thoughts here.

52. Serve a Fourth of July “mocktail”–red, white and blue. (Lots of other ideas on Pinterest.)

53. More Pinterest. And lots more.

54. Host a Fourth of July water balloon fight.

55. Give thanks to the Lord of all nations for the United States of America, that He has made this country, sustained it, and blessed it. Pray that we will be a nation of people that honor Him.

Sunday Salon: Books Read in June, 2012

Jul1

Young Adult Fiction:
Bumped by Megan McCafferty. One word review: BLECH.
Sabotaged by Margaret Peterson Haddix.
Torn by Margaret Peterson Haddix. Good entries in this time travel series for middle grade readers.
Code Name: Verity by Elizabeth Wein. Semicolon review here.
War Horse by Michael Morpurgo. Semicolon review here.

Adult Fiction:
Palace Walk by Naguib Mahfouz. Semicolon review here.
The Summer of Katya by Trevanian. Semicolon review here.
Bridge of Scarlet Leaves by Kristina McMorris. O.K. but not a favorite.
Dorchester Terrace by Anne Perry. Typical Anne Perry. I think I’ve outgrown or just become tired of this particular series of Victorian-setting mysteries. Or Ms. Perry is becoming repetitious and boring.

Nonfiction:
Crockett Johnson and Ruth Krauss: How an Unlikely Couple Found Love, Dodged the FBI, and Transformed Children’s Literature by Philip Nel.
The Big House: A Century in the Life of an American Summer Home by George Howe Colt.

Saturday Review of Books June 30, 2012

Jun29

“He devoured books of every kind, feeding indiscriminately on religious works, history and literature, philosophy and physics. He had told me that he found indescribable delight in reading dictionaries for lack of other books.” ~Honore de Balzac

SatReviewbutton

Welcome to the Saturday Review of Books at Semicolon. Here’s how it usually works. Find a book review on your blog posted sometime during the previous week. The review doesn’t have to be a formal sort of thing. You can link to your thoughts on a particular book, a few ideas inspired by reading the book, your evaluation, quotations, whatever.

Then on Friday night/Saturday, you post a link here at Semicolon in Mr. Linky to the specific post where you’ve written your book review. Don’t link to your main blog page because this kind of link makes it hard to find the book review, especially when people drop in later after you’ve added new content to your blog. In parentheses after your name, add the title of the book you’re reviewing. This addition will help people to find the reviews they’re most interested in reading.

After linking to your own reviews, you can spend as long as you want reading the reviews of other bloggers for the week and adding to your wishlist of books to read. That’s how my own TBR list has become completely unmanageable and the reason I can’t join any reading challenges. I have my own personal challenge that never ends.

Letters of Charles Hamilton Sorley

Jun25

Charles Hamilton Sorley was a British soldier in the first part of World War I. He had been a student in Germany before the war and had some admiration for the German spirit and Kultur. He was killed in action at the battle of Loos on October 13, 1915. His father gathered and published Sorley’s collected letters after the war. I read excerpts from that collection in The Penguin Book of First World War Prose.

“Germany must be crushed for her wicked and selfish aspiration to be mistress of the world but the country that, when mistress of the world, failed to set her an example of unworldliness and renunciation should take to herself half the blame of the blood expended in the crushing.”

The country that failed is Britain, of course.

“I have had a conventional education: Oxford would have corked it. But this has freed the spirit, glory be. Give me The Odyssey, and I return the New Testament to store. Physically as well as spiritually, give me the road.”

“I shall march hotly to the firing line, by turns critic, actor, hero, coward, and soldier of fortune: perhaps even for a moment Christian, humble, with ‘Thy will be done’. Then shock, combustion, the emergence of one of these: death or life: and then return to the old rigamarole.”

The Germany Mr. Sorley writes about, confident in her moral and cultural superiority, sounds a lot like the United States in the twenty-first century. The German intent was to export the strength and courage and efficiency of the Germans (Prussians) to the rest of the benighted and deprived world. And if this mission must be done militarily, then so be it. Are we caught up in the same error? Or have we learned from the First and Second World War that cultures and mores, no matter how superior, can only be exported by persuasion and propaganda, never by force?

The Testament of Jessie Lamb by Jane Rogers

Jun24

The Testament of Jessie Lamb is a book about teen rebellion and the end of the world, and it was long-listed for the Man Booker Prize in 2011. The London Daily Mail called it “a wonderful evocation of teenage confusion, passion, and idealism.” I was not impressed.

Ms. Rogers says in a note in the back of the book that her influences were American Pastoral, a novel by Philip Roth, Kazuo Ishiguro’s Never Let Me Go, The Chrysalids, a science fiction classic by John Wyndham, and The Diary of Anne Frank. Because of the basic premise, a world that is dying because humans have for some reason lost the ability to reproduce, the novel most reminded me of Children of Men by P.D. James. But Children of Men was a much better book, IMHO.

The Testament of Jessie Lamb really is a depiction of teen confusion and hubris, and I can see the Anne Frank influence. However, maybe because I’m firmly entrenched in the “older generation”, I found it difficult to sympathize with the narrator, sixteen year old Jessie, and her know-it-all teen egotism. Without giving away the plot of the story, I’ll say that Jessie is out to save the world by sacrificing herself, and her parents think she’s making a huge mistake. Her parents are right. Jessie’s a fool, and the book never makes it clear that she is not a heroine, but rather a mixed-up kid who’s living in a very mixed-up world.

I’m just not a fan of teen rebellion, even though I sometimes live with it in my own house. (Oh, yes. It’s here, too.) And even though the adults in The Testament of Jessie Lamb are not much more mature or wise than Jessie is, I’m still on the side of the grown-ups. Poor Jessie could have used a few fully grown authority figures, or maybe a word from God, in her life to help her make decisions based on something besides misguided feelings and delusions of grandeur.

Ms. Rogers also says that Jessie is a sort of mirror image of the character from Greek mythology, Iphigenia, interesting because the name Iphigenia means “she who causes the birth of strong offspring,” and Iphigenia, of course, sacrifices her life for the good of her people. Wikipedia opines,

There are several possible reasons for Iphigenia’s decision. The first is that Iphigenia wants to please her father and protect the family name. Not only does Iphigenia want to please her father, but she also forgives him for making the decision to sacrifice her. The second reason is that Iphigenia sees this as a patriotic cause. Iphigenia realizes that if she dies, then the men can sail to Troy and win and protect their own women. If the men did not get to Troy to defeat the Trojans then all the Greek women would be raped and possibly killed. Thus, Iphigenia sees her death as saving hundreds of women. A third reason for Iphigenia’s choice could be a more selfish reason. Iphigenia wants to be remembered with honor through her self-sacrifice, unlike how Helen of Troy is viewed. While the concept of glory is mostly seen in the men who fight, here it is seen in Iphigenia. A final possible reason is that Iphigenia sees bad in her father and now has nothing to live for.

Almost all of Iphigenia’s possible motivations are brought up as motives for Jessie’s sacrifice, but none of them are really convincing. I came to the conclusion that Jessie was acting out of pure stubbornness, and that motivation didn’t endear her to me either.

So, my final analysis of this award-winning novel is that it’s thought-provoking but somehow lacking in warmth and appeal, with the kind of characters that made me wonder and want to be drawn in, but never really got me to snap at the bait.

The Always War by Margaret Peterson Haddix

Jun23

Margaret Peterson Haddix, Caroline B. Cooney, Ann Rinaldi: these are my go-to authors for upper middle grade and young adult fiction that is suspenseful and engaging but not too hard to read or so thick with pages and words as to be intimidating to the casual reader.

I’m not sure these mid-list authors get enough credit for what they do. Writing what we used to call a “hi-lo” book, high interest and lower reading level, is not so easy. The Always War is one of Ms. Haddix’s non-series books about a dystopian future in which the world has been at war for generations. In fact, no one, including the book’s protagonist, Tessa, can remember a time when The War wasn’t the salient reality that defined the culture of the country where Tessa lives.

The Always War reminded me of an episode from Star Trek, not any articular episode, but I could see the premise of the book being used as the premise for a Star Trek episode. The plot involves computers and helicopters and cultural expectations and courage and talents and the reasons for (and against) war. I recommend this one for young readers who aren’t quite ready for The Hunger Games and all its copycats and wannabes, but who want to join in on the dystopia bandwagon.

“Courage,” the general said in a hushed voice, as if he too were in awe. “We give this medal of honor for courage far above the measure of ordinary citizens. Only eleven people have earned this medal in our nation’s history. And now Gideon Thrall, a proud son of Waterford City, will be the twelfth.” He turned. “Gideon?”
The general lifted the chain even higher, ready to slip it over Gideon’s head. Gideon took a halting step forward, as if he wasn’t quite sure what he was supposed to do.
No, Tessa thought. To her surprise she was suddenly furious with Gideon. Don’t hesitate now! Be bold! You’re getting an award for courage. Act like it!
Gideon was staring at the medallion. Even from the back of the auditorium Tessa could see his face twist into an expression that looked nothing like boldness or bravery. How could he be acting so confused? Or … scared?
“For your bravery in battle,” the general said, holding out the medallion like a beacon. He was trying to guide Gideon into place. Gideon just needed to put his head inside the chain. Then everyone could clap and cheer again, and all the awkwardness would be forgotten.
Gideon made no move toward the chain.
“No,” Gideon said, and in the silent auditorium his voice sounded weak and panicky. “I … can’t.”
“Can’t?” the general repeated, clearly unable to believe his own ears.
“I don’t deserve it,” Gideon said, and strangely, his voice was stronger now. “I wasn’t brave. I was a coward.”
He looked at the general, looked at the medallion—and whirled around and ran from the auditorium.

Saturday Review of Books: June 23, 2012

Jun22

“My salvation was reading, reading good books, taking refuge in those worlds where life was glorious, intense, one adventure after another, where I could feel free and be happy again.” ~Mario Vargas Llosa

SatReviewbutton

Welcome to the Saturday Review of Books at Semicolon. Here’s how it usually works. Find a book review on your blog posted sometime during the previous week. The review doesn’t have to be a formal sort of thing. You can link to your thoughts on a particular book, a few ideas inspired by reading the book, your evaluation, quotations, whatever.

Then on Friday night/Saturday, you post a link here at Semicolon in Mr. Linky to the specific post where you’ve written your book review. Don’t link to your main blog page because this kind of link makes it hard to find the book review, especially when people drop in later after you’ve added new content to your blog. In parentheses after your name, add the title of the book you’re reviewing. This addition will help people to find the reviews they’re most interested in reading.

After linking to your own reviews, you can spend as long as you want reading the reviews of other bloggers for the week and adding to your wishlist of books to read. That’s how my own TBR list has become completely unmanageable and the reason I can’t join any reading challenges. I have my own personal challenge that never ends.

Same Sun Here by Silas House and Neela Vaswani

Jun22

The blurb says that this epistolary middle grade fiction novel is “narrated in two voices, each voice distinctly articulated by a separate gifted author.” I’m assuming that Ms. Vaswani wrote the letters from “Meena”, an Indian immigrant girl who lives in New York City, and Mr. House wrote the letters from “River Justice”, a boy who lives in the mountains of Kentucky. The two children are pen pals who prefer writing and sending letters the old-fashioned way—by snail mail.

The book takes place in 2008, and the election of that year, in which Obama became president, is a central event in the book. Neither Meena nor River knows why anyone wouldn’t be excited about Barack Obama becoming president. They write to each other about issues such as mountain top removal (a destructive way of coal-mining), prejudice, rent control in NYC, pollution, immigration policy, and about how all of these political issues affect them in their daily lives. They also write about family and school and difficult times and the ups and downs of becoming a teenager.

Even though the politics in the books didn’t match mine, and I could have wished that the two children would have explored the differences between the political cultures in Kentucky and New York with a little more balance and nuance, I did enjoy the story. Mostly I liked the honesty that Meena and River shared in their letters. They sounded like real children/young adults, and their friendship grew in an organic, believable way that kept me reading in spite of my frustration with the political agenda that peeked out at me in the subtext.

I think the politics will go over the heads of most elementary school aged children, and they’ll just enjoy the story.

Nature Poems for Kindergarten and First Grade

Jun21

I made this list for some reason and thought it might be useful for some first grade teacher or homeschooler who is looking for poems to use for memorization assignments. I think memorizing poetry is one of the best things you can have a primary age (or any age) student do to improve their appreciation for language and words and just to make school fun.

Who Has Seen the Wind by Christina Rossetti
I Meant to Do My Work Today by Richard LeGallienne
Spring Song from Pippa Passes by Robert Browning
The Pasture by Robert Frost
The Snake by Karla Kuskin
A bird came down the walk by Emily Dickinson
The Reason for the Pelican by John Ciardi
April Rain Song by Langston Hughes
The Woodpecker by Elizabeth Maddox Roberts
The Wasp by William Sharp
What Is Pink by Christina Rossetti
Night Creature by Lilian Moore
Sunflakes by Frank Asch

Do you have a favorite nature poem that’s just right for beginning poetry memorizers?

The Summer of Katya by Trevanian

Jun21

A couple of weeks ago when we played Book Tag with the theme of Summer Setting, Summer Reading, Debbie at ExUrbanis recommended this novel, saying that is was “part mystery and part love story.” So I borrowed a copy from the library.

And it is part mystery and part love story with a bit of psychological thriller and a ghost thrown in for free. The setting is the summer of 1914, just before the outbreak of World War I in southern France, near Basque country. Our narrator is a middle-aged Basque doctor who is recalling, in 1938 on the eve of yet another war, the days of his youth before he went off to fight in the Great War.

Dr. Montjean is a faithful and trustworthy narrator, but he doesn’t really understand the events and people he chronicles. There are lots of twists and surprises here that I certainly didn’t see coming. And the dialogue and the descriptions were both quite well-written, enough so that I eschewed my usual bad habit of skimming over long narrative passages.

Trevanian, the author, lives in the French Basque mountains, so the setting should be true-to-life. The description of a traditional Basque festival, complete with dancing, drinking, fighting and semi-pagan ritual is worth the reading of all the events leading up to it. Then there’s the Freudian, early twentieth century atmosphere that makes this novel just the right medicine for a good summer read.