Maine Moose and Tall Tales

We finally finished learning about the great state of Maine, and will soon be moving on to our next state for our fifty states project.

We could not leave Maine without seeing a moose or two.

R giggled uncontrollably while I painted her hands to make this moose! She was so careful about placing her hands on paper to make antlers. I then did my best to draw the head and let her color it brown. Coloring never lasts more than a minute for her so this moose is a little pale.

There was no way that C was going to let me paint his hands, so he made this moose craft.

There were a few books added to our Maine list at the last minute.

C and R thoroughly enjoyed The Wicked Big Toddlah by Kevin Hawkes. This book is about an enormous newborn that is delivered by a stork to a very surprised family in Maine. It is narrated by the baby's sister and pokes fun at New England accents (obvious from the title). The illustrations really make the book. C and R especially love the illustration of the baby having his diaper changed - this required fire hoses, hazmat suits, and talcum powder sprinkled from a helicopter! Kevin Hawkes also illustrated Library Lion, another great book that I definitely recommend.

After reading The Wicked Big Toddlah, I remembered that Paul Bunyan was from Maine (actually, there is a bit of a battle between Maine and Minnesota about where the tall tale figure is really from, but all of the versions of the story that I have read claim Maine as Bunyan's birthplace!) and how could we not read about Paul Bunyan and learn a little about tall tales. C and R laughed all the way through Paul Bunyan by Steven Kellogg. (Speaking of Steven Kellogg, we adore The Pied Piper's Magic by him; I definitely recommend it!) An added bonus in this version of Paul Bunyan is that he travels across the country creating lakes, mountain ranges, and even the Grand Canyon. We sat down with a map of the United States and pointed out all of the places mentioned in the book.

I also found a great site that has folk tales, myths, legends, and ghost stories from all fifty states. American Folklore is a great site to visit. Click here for the alphabetical list of the states and their tales.

Next stop...New Hampshire!