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  An Easter Story for Children—and Adults By Carol A Brown   When working with young children who have little or no understanding of death and resurrection of Christ, it is best to use concrete examples showing how new life actually happens.     I tutor young school children in an afterschool program sponsored by my church. Children come from many different cultures, races, and backgrounds. The one thing in common is their interest and curiosity about the life and times of people from the Bible. Children usually relate well to David and his victory over Goliath, Adam and Eve creation story, and the birth of baby Jesus (though most of the time there is confusion about whether or not Santa Claus was at the manger scene).   The most challenging story is the Easter Story. Explanations of death and burial can be daunting. Even with the death of a relative most children have not experienced the trauma of a funeral and the viewing of de...

An Anchor for Your Soul      

  The North Carolina School Library Media Association recently presented the annual state conference for school library professionals. Because I am from a family of readers, I thoroughly enjoyed this 100% virtual event planned and produced by NC school librarians. The conference was a polished, well planned collection of best practices from across the state. The event was managed with the successful coordination of event software, Facebook, email, and other conferencing tools. Sched.com was an efficient scheduling software that permitted registrants to view the entire scheduled presentation, select the presentations for the day, and add these to a personal calendar. It was the best I’ve seen for keeping up with busy conferences and keynote speakers.   Pre-recorded presentations were skillfully presented during each scheduled segment of the conference. At the end of the 3 days, registrants can return to the NCSLMA website and view and all presentations. Th...

Life and Learning in Our Community  Leaders in our community are unsure of,  and continue to debate, the safest yet effective way for educating our children. To date, school-age children attend school one week while learning remotely on alternate weeks. Teachers must manage classrooms with both in-school and in-home students simultaneously. This type of setting was never taught in the Methods courses for Teacher Education. I sympathize with their challenges. But, I worry more (as do their teachers) about the welfare of the children.   Learning is hard even in ideal settings. Concepts, skills, ideas, and rules must be processed, understood, and applied to everyday life. It requires time for learning along with the scaffolding provided by a parent, mentor, or professionally trained teacher. These challenges are a reality in our pandemic world. Everyone suffers--those with many resources and those without resources. It is particularly hard in homes where parents are wor...

    ___________________________________________________________________   As retired faculty member at East Carolina University, I have opportunity to teach for various programs in the College of Education. I also tutor neighborhood children at the Backyard Buddies afterschool program sponsored by Oakmont Baptist Church.   Recently I began writing short devotionals for online magazines. And, I am grateful for family members (and friends), living in South Carolina, Tennessee, Alabama, North Carolina, Oklahoma (Pennsylvania, Illinois, and   Arkansas).   ___________________________________________________________________________________

    You often hear people say, “You’ve got your mother’s smile”, or maybe a family member may comment, “you walk just like your Dad”. In 1979, gospel singer Amy Grant released an award-winning song entitle d “Father’s Eyes.” 1               The lyrics go— “She’s got her father’s eyes; eyes that find the good in things, when good is not around; eyes that find the source of help when help just can’t be found…” We like to be recognized for these positive attributes.   For some people, having a family resemblance may not be the best thing to think about. A lot of bad habits and negative attitudes can be characteristics of moms, dads, siblings, and other family members. Others may not have known their father or even had a chance to meet him. But, help is on the way. There is a family that nurtures and provides a caring circle of love.   What does God give us?  ...