1. Reading with kids creates priceless memories for everyone
2. It promotes genuine communications with your kids
3. Consistent reading creates and establishes healthy bonding and love that kids need for development
4. Based on expert reviews all four books are educational and award winning
5. This passes on your value of literacy to children, grandchildren
6. Our books plant seeds that promote healthy lifestyles because they introduce and educate kids to sports, outdoor exploration and active play
7. The interactive point and learn in the back of the books appeal to a wide range of ages
8. Kids who read – succeed. Developmentally, it’s better than watching television
9. Sometimes, kids teach you through their experience of the story lines
10. There will be a day when your child will be grateful for it

For a fun, interactive game after the picnic, where children can go to meet the characters, visit http://burburandfriends.com

To learn more about the values that Bur Bur and Friends strives to reflect, visit http://farmershatproductions.com

This article was written as part of the March Carnival of Children’s Literature project at the Reading Tub. (See March 31, 2008 post.) The theme for march was picnics:

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For Immediate Release: Mar 21, 2008 – The Mom’s Choice Awards is an annual competition that recognizes authors, inventors, companies, parents and others for their efforts in creating quality family-friendly media products and services. These awards are designed to help teachers and parents choose excellent educational products for kids. For more information, go to http://momschoiceawards.com

Bur Bur and Friends™ received this prestigious recognition from an esteemed panel of judges that include educators, media and other experts who are parents, children, librarians, performing artists, producers, authors, medical and business professionals and others. (more…)

The School Library Journal recently featured Farmer’s Hat Productions in an article about the children’s book publishing scene in Minnesota. The article, titled: Land of 10,000 Publishers: Minnesota Children’s Book Publishing, dicusses the evolution of the industry throughout the state. Read the article below By Claire Kirch — School Library Journal, 3/1/2008

Minneapolis is a book lover’s paradise. There are dozens of neighborhood bookstores, a sleek new $125 million Minneapolis Central Library, and Open Book, the nation’s first facility devoted to the literary arts. No wonder it was dubbed America’s most literate city last year.

But one of the best-kept secrets is that Minneapolis and nearby Mankato have evolved over the past 75 years into major publishing hubs for the school and public library market. “[Minnesota publishers] are at the forefront in children’s nonfiction publishing,” says Wendy Woodfill, a children’s and young adult librarian at nearby Hennepin County Public Library. Susan Carr Brown, a children’s and teen librarian for Minneapolis Public Libraries, adds that local publishers do a great job supplementing the school curriculum and filling library shelves with rich information that kids need for classroom assignments and just pure fun. (more…)

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“Educators across the nation have been observing children’s waistlines expand,” according to retired principal and Peaceful Playgrounds founder, Dr. Melinda Bossenmeyer. “Pediatricians and legislators are starting to catch on.” One such example is new legislation throughout the state of Georgia brought forward by Sen. Joseph Carter (R-Tifton. ) He is promoting legislation (SB 506) that begins to address the epidemic of childhood obesity. (more…)

Farmer’s Hat Productions™ Receives National Parenting Award

MINNEAPOLIS (February 5, 2008) – Farmer’s Hat Productions™ , a Minneapolis company created by two mothers of multi-racial children, has recently been nationally recognized for the second time by the renowned iParenting Media Awards. The company won the award in the “2008 Best Product” category for its fourth book, “Anna Goes Hiking”, and for its Anna Doll. Both products are included in the Bur Bur and Friends™ children’s series. (more…)

February, 2008

Welcome to the world of Bur Bur. In this award-winning new children’s book series “Bur Bur & Friends,” young readers wander through a potpourri of adventurous outdoor activities with either Bur Bur and his family or Bur Bur’s multihued friends and their families. The books offer an earnest look at biracial families from a child’s point of view: In “Bur Bur’s Fishing Adventure,” young Bur Bur sets out on a fishing excursion with his daddy, who is Caucasian. Near the end of the tale, father and son deliver their hard-earned prize to Bur Bur’s African-American mom, and the sweet family delights in the day’s catch. (more…)