  Who doesn’t love a good Christmas In July party?? Each year, my family breaks out the tinsel and jingle bells, decks out the porch and lawn, and enjoys our favorite holiday dishes under the sun. As the time for this annual celebration draws near, I began thinking: what would it really mean to have Christmas in July? Depending on the beliefs and traditions of your family, Christmas can look a variety of ways. However, I think most would agree that Christmas is generally characterized by love, goodwill, and charity. How amazing would it be to infuse summer with a little of that giving spirit? THAT is a Christmas in July I could get on board with!  In celebration of this most wonderful time of year, I have come up with 10 fun ways you too can spread a little joy this July! 1. Donate to a local charityMany charities survive off of holiday giving for the rest of the year. Give them a joyous boost this summer so they can continue to do good for others!
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5. Leave a treat for your garbage collector or mailman
Those summer days can be long and hot! Leave a cool drink and a kind note to show your appreciation!
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7. Make a conscious decision to smile and greet everyone you see
This is something small that can have a big impact.
8. Be a secret Santa!
Buy a little gift or make a card for a coworker, friend, or family member and leave it for them anonymously
9. Mow your neighbor’s lawn
The snow may have melted, but there is still outdoor work to be done! There is nothing quite so wonderful as coming home after a long day of work to see your lawn has been freshly mowed!
10. Pay for someone behind you in line
***
Do you celebrate Christmas in July? Tell us how you spread the joy in the comments below!
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It’s never too early to start picking up gifts for Christmas in December! With their fun, creative, and educational qualities, nothing makes a better gift than a book. Pick up a copy of This Is A. Blob today!
This is A. Blob is a masterfully illustrated picture book suitable for children ages 4-8. Written by Lori Kefalos, author of several animated shorts, including “Who’s that Knocking,” “Chug,” and “Croc, Pots and Wildebeests,” which was nominated for Best Independent Short Short, Ages 5-8, at the 2009 Kid’s First Film Festival and for best short at The Los Angeles Women’s International Film Festival, This is A. Blob is the first of a series following this bully.
This first installment follows the antics of A. Blob, a slimy, purple, blob-like creature who wreaks havoc on the elementary school playground with its bullying ways. As the story progresses, however, readers learn that A. Blob may have more than meets the eye.
Along with its powerful illustrations and rhymed verse for early readers, this story invites children to put themselves in the shoes of another. The book encourages readers to consider why bullies behave the way they do – and start to consider what can be done to help.
This first installment follows the antics of A. Blob, a slimy, purple, blob-like creature who wreaks havoc on the elementary school playground with its bullying ways. As the story progresses, however, readers learn that A. Blob may have more than meets the eye.
Along with its powerful illustrations and rhymed verse for early readers, this story invites children to put themselves in the shoes of another. The book encourages readers to consider why bullies behave the way they do – and start to consider what can be done to help.
 | BOOK 2 NOW AVAILABLE! A. Blob is back, and this time it's on a bus! As the slimy bully pokes and pesters the children of Lincoln Elementary School, it seems like they will never be able to ride the bus in peace. That is, until one brave girl takes stand. Can one act of bravery change everything--including A. Blob? Find out in this second installment of The Blob Series! |
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Ahh summer!
 | The sun is shining and it’s finally warm enough to get outside and move those muscles! With options like biking, swimming, and walking, there are countless ways for everyone to get out and get moving! Just as important as physical health, is mental health—something often overlooked during summer vacation. Thankfully, summer is also the perfect time to exercise your mind. |
That is the theme for 2016’s National Summer Reading Program: Exercise Your Mind…READ! If you’ve never participated in a summer reading program, I would encourage you to do so (many libraries have programs for adults, as well as children!). Typically, patrons are awarded prizes, or the chance to win prizes, according to the number of books they read. Depending on the library, themed games, speakers, and activities are included, as well, all with the goal of encouraging people to continue the important activity of reading over the summer months.
And it is IMPORTANT activity. Did you know, studies show that reading is one of the greatest activities you can do for both your mental health AND your physical health. Reading can increase intelligence, improve memory, lower heart rate and stress, enhance communication skills, increase empathy, and even improve sleep. Spring-boarding off of this knowledge, many libraries have begun incorporating physical challenges, such as hiking a park trail after reading a book on nature, recognizing the importance of total body health and the need to get kids moving in an increasingly screen-driven world.
And it is IMPORTANT activity. Did you know, studies show that reading is one of the greatest activities you can do for both your mental health AND your physical health. Reading can increase intelligence, improve memory, lower heart rate and stress, enhance communication skills, increase empathy, and even improve sleep. Spring-boarding off of this knowledge, many libraries have begun incorporating physical challenges, such as hiking a park trail after reading a book on nature, recognizing the importance of total body health and the need to get kids moving in an increasingly screen-driven world.
There are number of fun activities children can do throughout the summer to exercise their minds and build vital social/emotional skills that will prepare them for the upcoming school year. In light of this, and in keeping with this year’s summer reading theme, we’ve created 5 fun, outdoor activities designed to exercise your body as well as your mind! Each activity is based on a book that discusses important topics such as bullying and kindness so you can reach your reading goal while also building social/emotional skills! Each activity can be done at home or in a group. All you need is a little outdoor space and a cozy spot to read!
1. Kindness Scavenger Hunt
In this book, a young boy commits a number of thoughtless acts, such as littering and interrupting. Each time, he is asked “what if everybody did that?” Illustrations work with the narrative to show the reader what such a world would be like. The story goes on to ask “what if everyone chose to make the world better?” This story helps children learn the power that their actions can have on others.
In this book, a young boy commits a number of thoughtless acts, such as littering and interrupting. Each time, he is asked “what if everybody did that?” Illustrations work with the narrative to show the reader what such a world would be like. The story goes on to ask “what if everyone chose to make the world better?” This story helps children learn the power that their actions can have on others.
| A kindness scavenger hunt is the perfect activity to help drive home the lessons of Javernick’s story! Begin the activity by giving everyone a list of random acts of kindness to complete. Depending on how many adults you have, these can be acts throughout the city, such as picking up trash in the park, or acts around the home, such as writing a kind note and leaving it for someone to find or completing someone else’s chore for them. If you have enough people, split into two teams and see who can complete their list first. |  |
Once each team has finished their list, ask the children how they felt completing their acts of kindness. Did it change the way the viewed the world and the people around them? What do they think the world would look like if everyone did just one item on the list every single day?
Once each team has finished their list, ask the children how they felt completing their acts of kindness. Did it change the way the viewed the world and the people around them? What do they think the world would look like if everyone did just one item on the list every single day?
2. Giant Dominoes
This book beautifully demonstrates the power of something as simple as a smile. A fun way to provide a visual of this ripple effect is to build a domino chain! If you want to add a fun summer touch, try using these giant yard dominos.
This book beautifully demonstrates the power of something as simple as a smile. A fun way to provide a visual of this ripple effect is to build a domino chain! If you want to add a fun summer touch, try using these giant yard dominos.
With your children, imagine a scenario such as “A girl trips in the middle of soccer practice”. Have the kids think of a mean response to the incident and a kind response. These become the two domino branches. On a sticky note, write how the reaction would make the girl feel. From here, continue to imagine scenarios that are connected to one another, like in the book, occasionally branching off to portray opposite reactions. Then comes the fun part—knocking the dominos down! At the end, read the very first scenario and the very last outcome for each path and discuss how small, seemingly isolated actions can have powerful and far reaching reactions—for good or bad.
3. Slime Search
This activity is a fun, outdoor twist on the This is A. Blob Slime Craft we have posted about in the past. In This is A. Blob, by L.A. Kefalos, readers are introduced to a unique character named A. Blob that wreaks havoc on the playground with its bullying ways. As the story progresses, however, we learn that there may be more to A. Blob than meets the eye.
This activity is a fun, outdoor twist on the This is A. Blob Slime Craft we have posted about in the past. In This is A. Blob, by L.A. Kefalos, readers are introduced to a unique character named A. Blob that wreaks havoc on the playground with its bullying ways. As the story progresses, however, we learn that there may be more to A. Blob than meets the eye.
To begin the activity, mix up two tubs of slime (Depending on how large your group is, I would recommend making 3-5 times more that this recipe suggests since this activity is a little different than the one for which the original recipe was created). I would also recommend using hot water and slightly less borax to help make the slime softer and slimier.
 Image via tpcraft.blogspot.com | Inside each tub, hide a few small items, toys, or even laminated words that together could provide a bit of insight into someone’s personality. For example, hide a Polly Pocket doll, a toy cake, a toy soccer ball, a pencil, a heart, and a puppy toy. Once found, the children will write a short description of the character: “A girl who loves to play soccer, bake, and write. She is kind hearted and loves puppies.” Let the kids get as creative as they want. What do they think the girl might want to be when she grows up? What does she like to write about? You can have teams race against one another, or simply have them complete the activity. |
Next, ask the children if the slime made it easier or more difficult to find out about the character. Explain that the slime represents all the assumptions, insecurities, and hardships that people carry around. These things can often hide who we truly are. That’s why it’s so important to take the time to look past our assumptions and take the time to really get to know people, just like we got to know A. Blob in the story.
4. Walk In My Shoes
In Stand In My Shoes, readers follow Emily as she learns the importance of empathy and seeing life through the eyes of others. In this activity, children have the opportunity to practice empathy through silly role play.
In Stand In My Shoes, readers follow Emily as she learns the importance of empathy and seeing life through the eyes of others. In this activity, children have the opportunity to practice empathy through silly role play.
Gather several pairs of shoes that will be big enough for everyone to put on. Assign a character to each pair of shoes. The characters can be made up, people in the group, or even favorite characters from T.V. or a movie. Write these names on pieces of paper and then put the papers in a hat or some other container. Next, create several scenarios that the children might experience in real life, such as getting ready for school, going to a new place with new people, or going shopping. Write these scenarios down and put them in a separate container. Now comes the fun part!
Each person will now choose a character to play. Next, choose a scenario from the second container. Now, everyone puts on the shoes of their character and acts out the scenario as their character. Play out the scene for about 5 minutes, then have everyone switch roles, making sure that they stay true to the character the first person created. After everyone has had the opportunity to play several characters, take some time to discuss what happened. How did changing shoes change the way they reacted to the situation? Did it change how they reacted to the first character they played? Did this activity make them think about situations in their own life any differently? What will they do the next time they are having a difficult interaction with someone, or see someone having a difficult time?
5. Fill Your Bucket Race
Have You Filled a Bucket Today? has inspired countless games and activities to help children learn the powerful impact our words and actions have on others. This activity takes it up a notch by adding a fun water element! In this game, children are divided into two groups. Each group has a bucket of water, Dixie cups, a chair, and a second, smaller bucket. One child on each team is chosen to sit in the chair. Next, the child’s team mates must say something kind about the child in the chair. Encourage them to choose specific compliments and encouragements that go deeper than “you have nice shoes”. With each compliment, they are allowed to put one cupful of water into the smaller bucket. The goal is to see which team can fill their bucket the fastest. Whichever team wins gets to dump the buckets of water on the other team. Do this several times so that every child has the opportunity to “get their bucket filled”.
Have You Filled a Bucket Today? has inspired countless games and activities to help children learn the powerful impact our words and actions have on others. This activity takes it up a notch by adding a fun water element! In this game, children are divided into two groups. Each group has a bucket of water, Dixie cups, a chair, and a second, smaller bucket. One child on each team is chosen to sit in the chair. Next, the child’s team mates must say something kind about the child in the chair. Encourage them to choose specific compliments and encouragements that go deeper than “you have nice shoes”. With each compliment, they are allowed to put one cupful of water into the smaller bucket. The goal is to see which team can fill their bucket the fastest. Whichever team wins gets to dump the buckets of water on the other team. Do this several times so that every child has the opportunity to “get their bucket filled”.
Image found on FamilyCorner.com
After the activity, talk about how the compliments made each child feel, as well as how they felt giving the compliments. How can they fill the buckets of others each day in the future?
After the activity, talk about how the compliments made each child feel, as well as how they felt giving the compliments. How can they fill the buckets of others each day in the future?
***
What books and activities will keep you busy this summer? Let us know in the comments!
 |  |  |
This is A. Blob is a masterfully illustrated picture book suitable for children ages 4-8. Written by Lori Kefalos, author of several animated shorts, including “Who’s that Knocking,” “Chug,” and “Croc, Pots and Wildebeests,” which was nominated for Best Independent Short Short, Ages 5-8, at the 2009 Kid’s First Film Festival and for best short at The Los Angeles Women’s International Film Festival, This is A. Blob is the first of a series following this bully.
This first installment follows the antics of A. Blob, a slimy, purple, blob-like creature who wreaks havoc on the elementary school playground with its bullying ways. As the story progresses, however, readers learn that A. Blob may have more than meets the eye.
Along with its powerful illustrations and rhymed verse for early readers, this story invites children to put themselves in the shoes of another. The book encourages readers to consider why bullies behave the way they do – and start to consider what can be done to help.
This first installment follows the antics of A. Blob, a slimy, purple, blob-like creature who wreaks havoc on the elementary school playground with its bullying ways. As the story progresses, however, readers learn that A. Blob may have more than meets the eye.
Along with its powerful illustrations and rhymed verse for early readers, this story invites children to put themselves in the shoes of another. The book encourages readers to consider why bullies behave the way they do – and start to consider what can be done to help.
 | BOOK 2 NOW AVAILABLE! A. Blob is back, and this time it's on a bus! As the slimy bully pokes and pesters the children of Lincoln Elementary School, it seems like they will never be able to ride the bus in peace. That is, until one brave girl takes stand. Can one act of bravery change everything--including A. Blob? Find out in this second installment of The Blob Series! |
About Laughing Leopard Press
Hello! We are Laughing Leopard Press, an independent book publisher from Akron, Ohio. At Laughing Leopard Press, we’re interested in publishing works that contribute to our understanding of this wonderful world. Through this blog, we hope to add to that understanding with commentary on life, literature, and a few things in between. We hope you enjoy the blog and take some time to talk with us in the comments or on our social media sites. Happy reading!
For some more great reading, check out our latest release, This is A. Blob by L. A Kefalos. This is A. Blob is a picture book that deals with the sticky issue of bullying through an unlikely character that is a bit sticky itself! As readers follow the antics of A. Blob, they learn to put themselves in the shoes of another and discover there may be more to this bully than meets the eye…
This is A. Blob by L. A Kefalos. $14.95
$1.00 is donated to charity for each book sold on this site--half to St. Jude's and the other half to PetFix Northeast Ohio.
$1.00 is donated to charity for each book sold on this site--half to St. Jude's and the other half to PetFix Northeast Ohio.
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