When our kids were small, one of our favorite things to do during the spring and summer was flying our kites in the park. To get us in the spirit of Kite Flying we pulled out some of our favorite books to read and here is a list of some of our family favorites. Enjoy!
Kite Flying by Grace Lin
The wind is blowing. It is a good day for kites! The whole family makes a trip to the local craft store for paper, glue, and paint. Everyone has a job: Ma-Ma joins sticks together. Ba-Ba glues paper. Mei-Mei cuts whiskers while Jie-Jie paints a laughing mouth. Dragon eyes are added and then everyone attaches the final touch . . . a noisemaker! Now their dragon kite is ready to fly. Kite Flying celebrates the Chinese tradition of kite making and kite flying and lovingly depicts a family bonded by this ancient and modern pleasure.
The Legend of the Kite by Chen Jiang Hong
A grandfather and his grandson build a kite for their local kite festival. Also included is the history of China\’s kite flying tradition.
Stuck by Oliver Jeffers
Floyd\’s kite gets stuck in a tree and he has to figure out how to get it down. First he throws his shoe which also gets stuck. He then decides to throw the other shoe which ends up with the first shoe and the kite stuck in the tree. This is only the beginning of a long list of hysterically funny things which get thrown up inot the tree to unstuck the kite. This is such a great read !
Days with Frog and Toad by Arnold Lobel
Frog and Toad enjoy spending their days together. They fly kites, celebrate Toad\’s birthday, and share the shivers when Frog tells a scary story. Most of all, they have fun together—every day of the year.
Days with Frog and Toad is a Level Two I Can Read book, geared for kids who read on their own but still need a little help. Whether shared at home or in a classroom, the engaging stories, longer sentences, and language play of Level Two books are proven to help kids take their next steps toward reading success.
Kites: Magic Wishes that Fly Up to the Sky by Demi
One of my favorite author/illustrators, Demi tells the story of how kites came to be. A long time ago in China a woman commissioned an artist to paint a dragon kite for her son. It was the mother\’s hope that this beautiful dragon which stood for wealth, wisdom, power, and nobility would be seen by the gods in heaven who would assist her son in growing up to be big and strong. Demi\’s art is exquisite in this great book.
How Ben Franklin Stole the Lightning by Rosalyn Schanzer
Wonderfully inventive art evokes the ebullient spirit of an American original, the great Ben Franklin. Told with narrative flair, this focuses on his famous lightning experiments. In an inventive way, Rosalyn Schanzer brings us a brilliant and ever-curious American original. This nonfiction picture book is an excellent choice to share during homeschooling, in particular for children ages 6 to 8. It’s a fun way to learn to read and as a supplement for activity books for children.
Ben Franklin was the most famous American in the entire world during colonial times. No wonder! After all, the man could do just about anything. Why, he was an author and an athlete and a patriot and a scientist and an inventor to boot. He even found a way to steal the lightning right out of the sky.
The Kite Festival by Leyla Torres
One Sunday morning, Fernando Florez and his multi-generational family go to town and discover a kite festival. With all the stores closed they have to work together to create a kite. This is such a sweet story.
Henry and the Kite Dragon by Bruce Edward Hall
Henry lives in Chinatown in New York City and loves to make kites with his grandfather Chin. While Henry and his grandfather fly their kites in the park, kids from Little Italy keep throwing rocks at them and destroying the beautiful kites. Henry and his friends decide that enough is enough. This book is based on a true story in 1920 when two groups of kids form different cultures came face to face to discover they have much more in common than differences.
The Best Winds by Laura Williams
A classic Korean tale is a warm, poignant story of a young boy who learns the craft of kite making–and the art of patience–from his loving grandfather. In the Korean custom, Grandfather practices the ancient craft of kite making. \”Tonight I will show you how to make a kite,\” he tells his grandson, Jinho. \”For the best winds will be here soon.\” Grandfather teaches him how to trace the kite on paper, paint it, and build the frame from bamboo sticks. When the kite is completed, it\’s so beautiful Jinho can\’t wait to fly it. And he does—without Grandfather, and without the best winds.
I hope you have many wonderful days reading about kites and good wind to go and fly a few.
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