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New Book Backstory: Warbler Wave

Warbler Wave will be released by Beach Lane, Simon & Schuster on February 13, 2018. See some spreads on S&S website. This book is the fulfillment of a dream, part of my life goal to share wonder. The text and photos are by me (April), with a bit of help from Jeff (a couple of photos, years of camera carrying, pointing out warblers, loving support, reviewing text, scientific fact checking, driving thousands of miles, 28 years of marriage, daily partnership in learning about nature).  We are both birders and the migratory journey of these amazing avian athletes is the highlight of our year. Below are some identification notes and discussion of the birds in the book.  Continue reading “New Book Backstory: Warbler Wave”

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New Book Backstory: Full of Fall

Full of Fall, my new photo-illustrated picture book, will be released by the superb team at Beach Lane/S&S  August 29 2017. Happy to say it has received three starred reviews (Publishers Weekly, Booklist, School Library Journal). Many devoted readers had questions about species and details in Raindrops Roll and Best in Snow. (Readers, thanks for embracing Best in Snow, which received four starred reviews and lots of coverage nationwide!) Below I’ve shared more details, in an informal way, for those of you digging into Full of Fall. I’m busy writing, traveling, and photographing for the release of four books in 2018 and 2019.

Full of Fall: Growing up in the foothills of the Appalachians, I came to a love of Autumn very early. I spent a lot of time wandering the woods of South Carolina, North Carolina, and Virginia. I loved studying fall leaves and leaf shapes.

Continue reading “New Book Backstory: Full of Fall”

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Let’s Go Nuts! Seeds We Eat

Let's Go Nuts! Seeds We EatStudying seeds and plant life? Working on nutrition or ecology in preschool through second grade? I hope this will help. My newest book, Let’s Go Nuts! Seeds We Eat was released this week by my marvelous publisher, Beach Lane, an imprint of Simon & Schuster. It’s a chant but with lots of, should we say, chewy endmatter. Once I started working on this book even I was amazed by just how many foods we eat are made from seeds. Just check out the pantry. Corn. Wheat. Lentils. Almonds. Soy milk. Popcorn. Pumpkin seeds.  I’m still eating some of the dried beans that made up the photos in the book. It was photographed at the South Bend Farmer’s Market, Bamber’s Superette, Saigon Market, and other local food spots, including Notre Dame University’s South Dining Hall!  Continue reading “Let’s Go Nuts! Seeds We Eat”

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Let’s Go Nuts! Seeds We Eat

Let’s Go Nuts! Seeds We Eat is a chant which introduces children to beans, nuts, grains, and spice seeds. Endmatter explains why seeds don’t grow inside our stomachs, why seeds are such great food, and how seeds fit into biology, ecology, and culture. This book completes the trio of books that includes Rah, Rah, Radishes: A Vegetable Chant  and Go, Go, Grapes: a Fruit Chant.

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Go, Go, Grapes: a Fruit Chant

Rah, rah, raspberries! Go, go, grapes! Prepare yourselves. Go, Go, Grapes: a Fruit Chant will be released May 22, 2012.  I’m proud of the luscious photos, which were taken primarily at our local farmer’s market, small grocery stores in our town, and a few markets I visited on travels. Several fruit parties had to be held to munch all the fruit I purchased from friendly fruit folk!

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April is poetry month

I’ll be doing two guest blogs for poetry month. Here’s the first, on Jama Rattigan’s Poetry Potluck. She’s featuring lots of poets, their poems, and recipes, all month long.

http://jamarattigan.com/2012/04/02/going-natural-with-april-pulley-sayre/

Am I a poet? Hmm…just considering that this month, after two folks asked me to blog about poetry. I blogged about this quandry on Katie Davis’ site.   I also discussed some of the math behind my chant/poetry work on INK. 

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Performing Rah, Rah, Radishes: a Vegetable Chant

Act It Out!

Divide students (or teachers) into pairs or small groups. Have each group write out and learn a stanza (four lines). They can decide how to perform it. Here are some aspects of the chant that performers have tried in the past:

saying the entire chant in unison

saying only part in unison

alternating speakers for each word

popping up then sitting down for each speaking turn

adding claps, snaps, and arm shapes

making poster art for each vegetable

bringing real vegetables to show when each is mentioned

Audio samples to help in teaching and reading Rah, Rah, Radishes: a Vegetable Chant and April Pulley Sayre’s other chant books (Trout, Trout, Trout: A Fish Chant; Ant, Ant, Ant: An Insect Chant; and Bird, bird, Bird: a Chirping Chant) are available on the front page of www.aprilsayre.com or athttp://www.aprilsayre.com/2011/04/07/the-chant-books-read-taste-teach/

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Rah, Rah, Radishes: A Vegetable Chant

Oh boy, bok choy! Rah, Rah, Radishes: a Vegetable Chant is out in stores. (Go, Go, Grapes: a Fruit Chant will follow in May 2012.) My thanks to all of you who encouraged me to keep pursuing a home for the veggie book.  I hope it encourages kids to taste delicious vegetable words and the vegetables, too.