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The Little Mermaid
Discussions
While we each see things in our own way, I think this story leads itself to a great discussion on trading the freedom and blessings (in our Father's castle) we have when we live in grace for the apparent freedom offered by sin (the sea witch).
It may also be fun and motivating to let each child choose a behavior or virtue to work on to earn "years" for the mermaid. Perhaps you could create a sticker chart and offer a small reward for a certain number earned.

Science: Corals
Look at various types of coral online or in person and ask the kids to think about which types would have made the best castle for the king. Let them draw the castle. We happen to have a bunch of pieces of coral and large shells from Daddy's diving adventures, so I think I will let the kids play with them, making some mermaids out of Sculpey to occupy their "castle".
Use the internet to provide an explanation of how shipwrecks become reefs and homes to so many underwater creatures. This guy's web site has some very cool photos.
A coral reef rabbit trail would be quite easy to sustain, there's so much info at the library and online. If the kiddos seem interested just do a quick bit of research.
Maybe a trip to an aquarium would fit nicely here.

Music
The story talks about the party guests dancing to a hornpipe. Listen to the Sailor's Hornpipe together. Talk about dancing the old-fashioned way where people danced reels and jigs in large groups. Learn a dance or make one up and enjoy dancing together!
Experiment with your recorders. Try to play your own hornpipe tunes or learn the notes to one (no luck finding a link).

Literary Skills
If you allow it, the kids could watch Disney's Little Mermaid and do a compare/contrast of the two stories.
Read Tennyson's "Mermaid" together. Write your own poems in the voice of a mermaid.
Choose a quote from the story for copywork. Make a fancy first letter and create a fun mermaid/under the sea border.

Art
Check out John William Waterhouse's The Mermaid for picture study. Use different medium to create mermaid art.

The Steadfast Tin Soldier

Math
The soldier comes on a tin of 24. Use your discussions on twelve from earlier stories to introduce the concept of addition or multiplication. Egg cartons are great tools for illustrating 12 and 24.
Use colored popsicle sticks or cuisinaire rods to create place value pictures of 12 and 24. We use a painter's apron with three pockets marked ones, tens, hundreds. I put an index card with the number on it on the table and they put the appropriate number of popsicle sticks in each pocket.
Our mini-muffin tin has 24 spaces. The younger set can work on 1 to 1 correspondence by putting one marble in each compartment and counting.
Let an older child work on factors for 12 and 24. Use manipulatives to show all the ways you can divide 24 evenly.
Word problem: If the box had 24 soldiers and 23 had two legs and 1 soldier had one leg, how many legs were there. Illustrate your answer.
The toys come to life at midnight. Introduce the clock concepts of noon and midnight.

Language
There are lots of words in the story describing parts of your house: windowsill, window, gutter. Introduce these and some other words your kids may not know, baseboards, rafters, foundation, etc...Take a tour of the house and point these things out. Let them choose a small collection of toys to display on a window sill.
Tin soldiers....look up vintage and collectible toy sites and show child toys that were made of tin. What is tin? What is it made of? What about aluminum? Make a toy out of aluminum foil.

Connections
For tea time, we'll make 24 mini-muffins and decorate half with the soldier's heart and half with the ballerina's spangle. We'll talk about friendship, loyalty, and sacrificial love.
The stove in the story looks very much like our antique wood-burning stove, so we'll research a bit about it and draw it.
Make a cardboard castle for your toys to play in.
Make a paper boat.
The toy soldier gets eaten by a fish. Point out the similarity to Jonah and read the Bible story.
The rat wants to see the soldier's passport. Make him one.
Draw a picture of the troll. Discuss his behavior. What do you think motivated him to behave the way he did? Is his behavior sinful? Why?
This site has a fantastic picture of Danish soldier uniforms. Use it to draw a picture of the tin soldier.

HCA--The Nightingale

Geography
The obvious answer here is to do some Asian study. Map-related activities, cooking, looking at architecture.
Make a map of the palace grounds described in the beginning of the story. Mark the locations of the story's main characters.

Language Arts
Discuss the various words used to describe people's status in the story: emperor, courtier, servant...discuss other similar words and what cultures they come from...king, queen, czar, lord, etc....
The real nightingale was "banished" from the kingdom...introduce other words with similar meaning. Share other stories where someone is banished or exiled. Make biblical connections and connections with saints.
Practice forming letters with watercolor paints in black, the way Japanese symbols are written.

Reading Skills
This story, with its minimal characters, would be easy to dramatize for family. Have fun with it.
Narrate the story to someone who has not read it, up to the point where the emperor banished the real nightingale. Let them guess the ending, then share the real ending.
Make a time line of the story's events.

Connections
Try to find some Asian fabrics or clothing items to look at or dress up in. The fabrics are so colorful and lovely. Have an Asian blend (we like Oolong) for tea, and serve it in small bowl-like cups with no handles (often Asian markets sell tea sets very cheaply)
The nightingale saved the emperor from Death by singing. Our prayers can do the same. Pray for the sick and the dying today. Perhaps you could visit a sick or elderly friend and share this story with them.

Nature Study
Look up a picture of a nightingale, draw or paint one. Listen to its song. What makes the nightingale's song so appealing?

Art
Draw the toy nightingale and deck it out with sequins or small jewels. Don't forget its wind-up key!
Check out some Audubon prints of birds. At this site all the images from Birds of America are available.
Look at some Asian watercolor art, especially some containing birds, gardens, etc...Here is a nice site.

Music
What instrument could best mimic the song of the nightingale? Listen to some classical music and try to identify a piece that sounds like a birdsong.

THUMBELINA IDEAS:

Math
The story says Thumbelina's mother purchased the plant for twelve pennies. Count out twelve pennies from a larger group. Use other coins to figure out other combinations that equal twelve pennies, e.g., one dime and two pennies.
Use an egg carton to illustrate the idea of "twelve". Let the kids collect twelve of some other item and place them in the compartments of the egg carton.
Thumbelina was no higher than your thumb. How high is that? Trace each family member's thumb and measure them. Draw a picture of Thumbelina that is exactly as high as your thumb.

Language
Use the math lessons on the number twelve to introduce the word "dozen". Introduce other words that describe amounts, like "few", "several", and "many." What is a "baker's dozen"? Where did the term come from? Take the kid's to the bakery and let them find items that come in dozens. Bring home a special treat and have tea!
The butterfly pulls Thumbelina by her "sash". What is a sash? What other words describe similar clothing items: belt, cummerbund, (I'm sure there are more). Find illustrations in picture books of these items. Play dress-up and make sashes for everyone's outfits.
Use the word "thumb" to discuss the silent "b" sound in many words. Point out other words that contain the sound, or let the kids try to think of some. Make sight word flash cards and practice these words.More Thumbelina ideas....

Nature Study and Science
Thumbelina bloomed inside a tulip. Look at pictures of and different varieties of tulips. Talk about bulb plants. What other flowers come from bulbs? Maybe you could plant some of your own.
The story of the toads and the lily pad could take you on a whole trail about amphibians or water plants. What's the difference between a frog and a toad? How do water plants grow? Where do their roots go? Try making a water garden.
The butterfly that rescues Thumbelina is white. Use a field guide to identify varieties of butterflies that are white. Choose one and draw it.
Look up what a May bug looks like. Draw one.
The story of the field mouse and mole could lead to a trail about rodents and burrowing animals. Find out more about these creatures, especially why the mole was blind.
Look for a picture of a sparrow. Find out what his song sounds like? What bird songs can you hear in your yard? What does it sound like the birds are saying? Draw the sparrow.

Geography
Look up Denmark on a map. What countries make up Scandinavia? Look at some other picture books set in Scandinavia (will link list and post later) What are some distinct elements of Scandinavian culture?

Creative Thinking
Make a bed for Thumbelina out of a walnut shell. Make a pillow and blanket as well. Sculpt a little Thumbelina out of Sculpey clay to sleep in it.
Design Thumbelina's wedding gown. What would the Queen of Flowers wear?
The story ends at the author's house, with him mentioned. Write a story that ends with you as a character in it.