Happy new year and welcome to 2025! This year, our overarching theme is STRENGTH. Research shows that children who exercise regularly have enhanced cognition and perform better academically. Because there are so many great things happening in a child's body while they exercise, including hormone release, stimulated central nervous system, and increased oxygen to the brain, children who exercise reap a ton of benefits. Not only is their cognition enhanced, but children who are physically fit also tend to have an easier time regulating their own emotions. Get kids moving this month (and the whole year!) in order for them to be physically and mentally stronger!

BOOKS

• 8 & UNDER // "Becoming the Best Me" By: Bre Davis
• 8 & OLDER // "The Academy" By: T.Z. Layton

WORKSHEETS

• 8 & UNDER // DOWNLOAD PDF
• 8 & OLDER // DOWNLOAD PDF

Being kind is contagious! This month we are asking our kids to do a random act of kindness each day. Research shows that when we do kind things out in public, then others tend to follow that lead and do kind things too. This month both of our books are about being kind. For the younger children the book "Built to Last," focuses on building a friendship through play. Our patch has a dragon on it, and it is modeled after the artwork in this book. In our book for older kids, "Saving Winslow," one child takes care of a sick baby donkey and finds out that caring for one thing helps him learn to care for everything else more deeply. Enjoy delving deeper with your children this month into what it means to be kind.

BOOKS

• 8 & UNDER // "Built to Last" By: Minh Le and Dan Santat
• 8 & OLDER // "Saving Winslow" By: Sharon Creech

WORKSHEETS

• 8 & UNDER // DOWNLOAD PDF
• 8 & OLDER // DOWNLOAD PDF

Making people laugh improves their health! This month we are asking our kids to make others laugh. According to the Mayo Clinic, laughter improves our health by increasing oxygen flow in our bodies and allowing our brains to release endorphins that improve our mood and lessen physical pain. Children who are taught humor from an early age also tend to have better social skills. By learning and practicing jokes, children learn timing, delivery, appropriateness in different social situations, and that humor is healing. This month, hold on to you hats and get ready for some good belly laughs!

BOOKS

• 8 & UNDER // "Knight Owl" By: Christopher Denise
• 8 & OLDER // "Stand Up, Yumi Chung" By: Jessica Kim

WORKSHEETS

• 8 & UNDER // DOWNLOAD PDF
• 8 & OLDER // DOWNLOAD PDF

Spending time with dogs is good for our health! This month, we are celebrating our furry friends by reading stories about them and thinking about their positive impact on humans. People who spend time with dogs have better short and long term health outcomes, according to the National Institute of Health. Dogs lower your blood pressure and help us regulate our emotions, among many other things. Teaching children how to interact properly with, and spend quality time with dogs (and other animals), will have positive effects on them as well. Take some time this month to talk to your children about how animals can make our lives better.

BOOKS

• 8 & UNDER // "Rescue and Jessica: A Life-Changing Friendship" By: Jessica Kensky, Patrick Downes, and Scott Magoon
• 8 & OLDER // "The Eyes and the Impossible" By: Dave Eggers and Shawn Harris

WORKSHEETS

• 8 & UNDER // DOWNLOAD PDF
• 8 & OLDER // DOWNLOAD PDF

This month our Tribe Kids theme is MEMORY. We challenge our Tribe Kids to learn more about history. Why is it important to remember things that have happened in the past? Kids can choose any particular fictional character that they are interested in, and learn how it came to be. What is this character based on? Who is the character modeled after? In learning the backstory to our favorite characters, we may learn something more about our own culture and society. After doing the research, tell someone what you have learned and pass that knowledge along!

BOOKS

• 8 & UNDER // "Finding Winnie" By: Lindsay Mattick and Sophie Blackall
• 8 & OLDER // "Winnie's Great War" By: Lindsay Mattick, Josh Greenhut, and Sophie Blackall

WORKSHEETS

• 8 & UNDER // DOWNLOAD PDF
• 8 & OLDER // DOWNLOAD PDF

Studying those who have come before us allows us to understand who we are more deeply. When determined people work towards a common goal, it becomes easier to achieve. This month, we learn about the DETERMINED humans who worked together to end WWII. In June, we encourage grown-ups to help children examine history and learn from the examples of the women and men who helped change the world simply by doing their jobs. Children can change the world, and when they see that many individuals have had a large impact on the course of history by being determined, they will be inspired to do their best as well.

BOOKS

• 8 & UNDER // "Grace Hopper: Queen of Computer Code" By: Laurie Wallmark and Katy Wu
• 8 & OLDER // "The Bletchley Riddle" By: Ruta Sepetys and Steve Sheinkin

WORKSHEETS

• 8 & UNDER // DOWNLOAD PDF
• 8 & OLDER // DOWNLOAD PDF

This month, our Tribe Kids theme is ADVENTURE. We challenge our Tribe Kids to go on an adventure (with their grown up), outside, without any electronics. The adventure could be a 40 minute long ruck to a new place or even a short expedition to climb a tree that they have never climbed before (of course, with grown up support). The truth is, allowing kids to design their own adventures helps them develop their courage as well. When kids are allowed to explore their surroundings and satisfy their curiosity in healthy ways, with adult supervision, they will grow their confidence as well.

BOOKS

• 8 & UNDER // "The Fastest Girl on Earth!" By: Dean Robbins and Elizabeth Baddeley
• 8 & OLDER // "The Girl Who Rowed the Ocean" By: Alastair Humphreys

WORKSHEETS

• 8 & UNDER // DOWNLOAD PDF
• 8 & OLDER // DOWNLOAD PDF

BOOKS

• 8 & UNDER // "Aloha Everything" By: Kaylin Melia George and Mae Waite
• 8 & OLDER // "Call it Courage" By: Armstrong Sperry

BOOKS

• 8 & UNDER // "Some Pig" By: E.B. White
• 8 & OLDER // "Charlotte's Web" By: E.B. White

BOOKS

• 8 & UNDER // "How to Make Friends with a Ghost" By: Rebecca Green
• 8 & OLDER // "The Puppets of Spelhorst" By: Kate DiCamillo and Julie Morstad

BOOKS

• 8 & UNDER // "War Horse" By: Michael Morpurgo and Tom Clohosy Cole
• 8 & OLDER // "War Horse" By: Michael Morpurgo

BOOKS

• 8 & UNDER // "Piper Chen Sings" By: Phillipa Soo, Maris Pasquale Doran, and Qin Leng
• 8 & OLDER // "The Legendary Mo Seto" By: A. Y. Chan