Tag Archives: imagination

The Lottery Can Be Good For You

Even if you don’t win, playing the lottery can give you a different sort of payoff — an emotional one. The anticipation and excitement and hope of a lottery win activate exactly the same parts of your brain that an actual win does! Neuroscientists have been investigating the power of anticipation, and when it comes to the lottery and other cash prizes, you’ll still win big even if you don’t hit the jackpot. Think about it for a second — buying that lottery ticket kicks your imagination into gear. Whenever I buy a ticket, I spend a lot of time … Continue reading →

Dr. Seuss Series: If I Ran the Circus

This classic Dr. Seuss tale was first published in 1956. Our hero for this story is Morris McGurk. He has the most wonderful idea. Back behind Sneelock’s Store is a vacant lot, and if he can get all the cans cleaned out of it, it would make a fabulous place for a circus – but not any old circus, no. The Circus McGurkus! There will be acrobats, jugglers and clowns. Morris is really going to go all out to make this the greatest show on earth, or anywhere. He will, of course, have to make about five hundred gallons of … Continue reading →

Dr. Seuss Series: I Can Lick 30 Tigers Today! And other stories

Our first Dr. Seuss selection is “I Can Lick 30 Tigers Today!” A small Cat in the Hat sets out one fine morning, feeling proud of himself and proclaiming that he can lick thirty tigers. What he doesn’t know is that thirty tigers are waiting for him just over the ridge, causing him to rethink his bravado. First he asks the curly-haired tiger to step out of line, bringing him down to twenty-nine, and then he eliminates the first group, leaving a mere twenty-two. Anyone should be able to lick twenty-two tigers, right? Okay, maybe not . . . how … Continue reading →

Dr. Seuss Series: Daisy-Head Maysie

“Daisy-Head Maysie,” published in 1997, was one of Dr. Seuss’s later offerings to the world of children’s picture books, and is unusual in that the main character is a human child as opposed to a Seussy creature of some kind. There are actually no creatures in the book at all, with the exception of the Cat in the Hat, who is the narrator. And I don’t know if he counts as a creature – he is a cat, after all, and cats are rather common. As we start our story, we meet Maysie, who is studiously reading a book in … Continue reading →

The Joy of Found Toys and Made-Up Games

In chatting with my nearly-grown teenagers, we find ourselves talking about their memories from their childhood—different games they played and adventures they remember. It strikes me that some of their fondest memories are of games they made up themselves and toys they invented from found items. Despite thousands of dollars spent on the latest and greatest educational toys—their best moments were with found toys and made-up games. My son was the king of doing all sorts of creative things with sticks and rocks. He would spend all morning choosing just the right stick or I can remember coming home from … Continue reading →

Crispin: The Pig Who Had It All – Ted Dewan

Is it possible to indulge your piggy just a little too much? Yes, it is, as we’ll soon find out by reading “Crispin: The Pig Who Had It All.” Crispin Tamworth was a very spoiled little pig, and at Christmas time, things got even worse. He would receive the most extravagant gifts, but he always grew bored with them quickly, or they would break. Every cool computer game, every wonderful ride-on toy – you name it, he would get it, and get bored, and it would break. What a neverending cycle! But just this last Christmas, something was different. When … Continue reading →

Pigs Aplenty, Pigs Galore! – David McPhail

In “Pigs Aplenty, Pigs Galore!” David McPhail capitalizes on his main strengths – clever illustrations and charming rhymes. The tight rhythmic cadence will make reading this story aloud all the more fun. Our main character was sitting in his easy chair, reading a book late into the night, when he heard some strange crunching sounds. When he goes into the kitchen to investigate, he slips on a banana peel, left there by a snacking bovine, and lands on a pile of pigs eating dates and figs. They were all over his kitchen, eating him out of house and home! They … Continue reading →

Sylvia Jean, Drama Queen – Lisa Campbell Ernst

I was first drawn to this children’s picture book by the title, and then by the picture on the front cover – a pig,dressed in a ballgown, wearing a crown and waving a flag. That’s an attention-getting book if I ever saw one. Her name is Sylvia Jean Connelly, and she lives in a make-believe world. She has a wide variety of costumes, suitable for whatever might come up. The perfect outfit to wear to the dentist would, of course, be a superhero costume, because superheros aren’t afraid of the dentist. You should of course dress as a swan if … Continue reading →

Chimps Don’t Wear Glasses – Laura Joffe Numeroff

A departure from her “If You Give a Mouse a Cookie” series, Laura Joffe Numeroff gives us “Chimps Don’t Wear Glasses,” an imaginative look into the animal world and how it relates to us as humans, encouraging the reader to let loose and be creative. I’ve found frequently in my explorations into children’s picture books that the illustrations surpass the text, and that is certainly true in this case. The illustrations are fantastic. We begin with a picture of a chimp rock band, all dressed to the teeth (some looking remarkably like Elton John) and the words, “Chimps don’t wear … Continue reading →

Imagination—It’s Not Just for Children

Think imagination is kid stuff? Or at least something that is not suitable for matters of business? The fact is imagination can play a big role in how well we are able to keep ourselves motivated and work in the direction of our dream—whether it is business-related, or personal. Imagination is important to the entrepreneur. We need to be able to imagine what we would like our businesses to be like, how we would like them to evolve, and what we want our lives to be like incorporating a home-based business into our lifestyle. All of this “work” takes imagination. … Continue reading →