Getting Ready to Get Back to School

Back to school can be a stressful time of year for kids and adults alike, but luckily the stress is matched by the excitement of seeing old friends, meeting new ones, and anticipating the many adventures of the coming year.

There are lots of skills kids need to succeed in school, and stories are an engaging way to teach students these skills starting on day one. That's why we're offering 20% off all books in our Back-to-School category through the end of August! Books in this category address one or more of

What to Expect
For the youngest students heading off to their very first day of school, books are a great way to introduce them to what to expect, from where they'll go to who they'll meet to what sorts of activities they might take part in. Back-to-school reads help make the unknown a little more familiar.

Sammy Spider's First Day of School

Rules
Rules. Every classroom has them, and showing students why we need these rules helps them feel more engaged and invested in keeping their classroom a safe and fun place.

No Rules for Michael

Kindness & Cooperation
It's never too soon to start teaching students the value of being kind to one another and to the world around them. These great reads may even inspire students to start good deed projects of their own!

Joey and the Giant Box
One Good Deed
My Name is Aviva
Speak Up, Tommy!

Making New Friends
Making new friends is an important - but sometimes scary! - part of any new school year.

Sammy Spider's New Friend

Songs, Lessons, and More!
Introductions to the alphabet, first Hebrew words, prayers for new beginnings, songs for Shabbat, and more are all gentle and fun lessons for that busy first week back to school.

I Say Shehechiyanu
Shabbat Shalom, Hey!
Alef is for Abba
My First Hebrew Word Book
My First Yiddish Word Book

August Book of the Month: Goldie Takes a Stand

This month, Kar-Ben is thrilled to introduce a new feature on our website and Facebook: the Kar-Ben Book of the Month! Each month, we're going to feature a book from our current season that we think is particularly relevant, interesting, or exciting. Each book of the month will come with a guest blog post from the author and a book trailer, as well as additional information on why we love the book!

Our first featured Book of the Month is Goldie Takes a Stand: Golda Meir's First Crusade by Barbara Krasner. Even at the age of nine, little Golda Meir was known for her leadership skills. As president of the American Young Sisters Society, she organized friends to raise money to buy textbooks for immigrant classmates. This story is a glimpse at the early life of Israel's first female Prime Minister.

We love this book because it has an empowering and compassionate message for children. Goldie notices the needs of her classmates, and isn't daunted by the setbacks she faces when trying to solve that problem. It's also a great story, based on true events, about Israel's first female Prime Minister! Pick up a copy here.

Writing about Golda Meir’s early days in Milwaukee, Wisconsin

a guest post from Barbara Krasner

In August 2010, I was spending two weeks at a writers retreat at the Highlights Foundation in Pennsylvania. There was a slight break between the two weeks over a weekend. On that Sunday, I was invited as press to attend the annual reading of the Moses Seixas and George Washington letters of religious tolerance at the Touro Synagogue in Newport, Rhode Island.

I wanted to take a break from writing intensely during the first week. I perused the titles on the Highlights shelves and found Golda Meir’s autobiography. That Saturday night, ensconced in a flea-bitten motel across the bay from Newport, I began to read Golda’s autobiography. Her voice was unmistakable, full of self and authority.

At first she wrote of her beginnings in Ukraine and her immigration to the United States, specifically Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Then within two pages, she described the formation of the American Young Sisters Society and how she, as president, marshalled their resources to buy school books for their classmates who could not afford to buy their own. I knew this was the story I wanted to share.

Researching Goldie’s early life

Many resources could tell me about Golda Meir, the Israeli prime minister, but few allowed me to delve deeply into young Goldie’s life. I contacted the Milwaukee Jewish Historical Society and spoke with archivist Jay Hyland. He was able to locate the September 2, 1909 Milwaukee Journal article about the American Young Sisters Society and their fundraiser. It even had their picture. Jay sent me the article.

Historical accuracy is important to me as a historian, so I consulted histories of the Jewish community in Milwaukee and, through the help of a friend in the Milwaukee school district, a history of the Milwaukee public school system. I also worked with Norman Provizer, director of the Golda Meir Center for Political Leadership at Metropolitan State College of Denver, to ensure accuracy. Dr. Provizer and I had some discussion about the spelling of Goldie’s maiden name, because it appeared in historical records in a variety of ways. We finally presented it in the back matter as Mabowehz and Mabovitch. Spelling back then wasn’t as important as it is now.

Accommodating Goldie’s strong voice

It’s unusual to have the main character of a picture book speak for herself. Goldie’s voice was so strong that using the first person “I” was the only way to get her bravado across. She was a force to be reckoned with and her attitude had to come out through the story.

What would Goldie do?

I’ll be promoting Goldie Takes a Stand! Golda Meir’s First Crusade, naturally (as Goldie would say) in a program called, “What Would Goldie Do?” She set high standards for herself, and I suspect for everyone around her. In this program, I’ll pose some scenarios and ask kids what they would do. Then I’ll ask what Goldie would do. I bet there’ll be some differences! We’ll talk about some ideas how they can practice tikkun olam, repairing the world, just like Goldie—how they can help someone they know to make his or her life just a little better.

Contact Barbara about her programs.

Jewish Ties to Black History Month

February is Black History Month and we would like to highlight two unique stories that have ties to African Americans and Jewish Americans.

Carolivia Herron (author of the acclaimed Nappy Hair) based her book Always an Olivia on her unique ancestry. In the story, an elderly black grandmother passes on the story of her family's Jewish origins to her young granddaughter, Carol Olivia. As family members flee the Spanish Inquisition, are kidnapped by pirates, and eventually sail to America, one daughter in each generation is given the name Olivia, from the Hebrew Shulamit, meaning "peace," to honor the Jewish part of their ancestry.


Always an Olivia reminds us that Jewish people have a variety of backgrounds. It's a great introduction to tracing your family's lineage, or doing a classroom project on family trees and ancestry. Many times, what makes us different can actually bring us closer together.

Dr. Herron is an acclaimed storyteller, professor, and tikkun olam activist based in Washington, D.C. To learn more about Dr. Herron, including her creative process and her thoughts on being an African American Jew, here is a fascinating interview from emPOWER Magazine.

In their new book Hot Pursuit, authors Stacia Deutsch and Rhody Cohon re-imagine the fateful car ride of three Civil Rights workers in 1964 Mississippi. Mickey Schwermer and Andrew Goodman were young Jewish men who came from New York to Mississippi during the Freedom Summer, when many organizations worked to register black voters and establish better schools during a time of segregation and inequality. There they met James Cheney, another worker. While riding together on June 21, 1964, the three men were stopped for a false traffic violation and taken to jail. They were released later that night, only to go missing before they could make it back home. Their bodies were found weeks later; they had been brutally beaten and shot.

Hot Pursuit tells an important story and reminds us of the value of tikkun olam. James, Mickey, and Andrew devoted their lives to fighting segregation and improving the lives of others. We remember them during Black History Month as we look back at how far we've come, and think about what we can do in our own communities to educate others about tolerance.