Literature

• Chin Yu Min and the Ginger Cat - by Jennifer Armstrong (wonderful illustrations with a lot of detail about Chinese culture and life.)
• Daisy Comes Home - by Jan Brett (Brett's books always include a puzzle.  In this one, set in modern-day China, all the animals of the Chinese zodiac are hidden in the landscape, in calendar order.)
• The Chinese Siamese Cat - by Amy Tan (The original Sagwa story with beautiful illustrations.)
• Wishbones: A Folk Tale from China - by Barbara Ker Wilson (The Chinese version of Cinderella.)
• The Emperor's Garden- by Ferida Wolff
• The Willow Pattern Story- by Allan Drummond
• The Boy of the Three-Year Nap - by Dianne Snyder
• Everyone Knows What A Dragon Looks Like - by Jay Williams
• 33 Multicultural Tales to Tell- by Despain.  Includes the Chinese folktales "Ah Shing Catches a Ghost" and "The Officer of Heaven."
• All the Way to Lhasa: A tale from Tibet - by Barbara Helen Burger

Science

• Cub To Panda - Jason Cooper
• Giant Pandas- by Jenore Franzen
• A snow leopard conservancy page with many images.
•  I found sloth bears VERY hard to research, but this, and the following, link seem to be reputable.

Korea

General Topics

• Welcome to South Korea - by Karen Kwek and Johanna Masse
• Fiesta! Korea- by Grolier Educational
• The Usborne Introduction to Asia IL
• Usborne's Peoples of the World

Activities

• We made a fan for Tano Day from the Festivals of the World book.
• Jin-Ju sticker paper doll from Dover.
• We *attempted* to make Kkaegangjong (a sesame seed pastry) from the Festivals book, but it didn't quite work out.  Still tasty, though!

Literature

• Magic Spring: A Korean folktale - by Nami Rhee (A wealthy, yet greedy, neighbor takes advantage of the generosity of an older couple, but learns a lesson the hard way.)
• The Firekeeper's Son - by Linda Sue Park (The story of the hilltop lights used to signal the Korean emperor that "all is well."  We enjoyed this one very much.)
• 33 Multicultural Tales to Tell- by Despain.  Includes the Korean folktale "The Mirror."

Japan

General Topics

• Fiesta! Japan - Grollier
• Welcome to Japan - Gareth Stevens Publishing
• The Usborne Introduction to Asia IL
• Usborne's Peoples of the World

Activities

• We made lots of origami, including a jumping frog (a bit tough) and a whale (great for K level) from Enchanted Learning.
• Fiesta! Japan has several craft activities, including a samurai newspaper hat and Shichi-Go-San paper dolls (these are origami-like and are really neat when finished.)
• We played the "Cherry Blooms" song from the Usborne  Round the World Songbook

Literature

• The Village Tree - by Taro Yashima
• The Adventures of Matamoro - retold by Ralph McCarthy (The "peach boy" story, told in rhyming couplets.  A fun read aloud!)
• The Moon Princess - retold by Ralph McCarthy
• Yoshi's Feast - by Kimiko Kajikawa (reminiscent of "The Deer Mouse's Wisdom" from the Lion Storyteller collection.)
• Grandfather Cherry-Blossom - retold by Ralph McCarthy
• 33 Multicultural Tales to Tell- by Despain.  Includes the Japanese folktale "The Listening Cap."
• The Tale of the Mandarin Ducks- by Katherine Paterson

India

General Topics

• Fiesta! India - Grollier
• Welcome to India - Gareth Stevens Publishing
• The Usborne Introduction to Asia IL
• Usborne's Peoples of the World

Activities

• Dover has a set of temporary henna tatoos in beautiful floral patterns.  My daughter enjoyed wearing these while we studied India.  We also enjoyed "Maya," a sticker paper doll by Dover.
• Paper plate peacocks from Enchanted Learning.
• We made Samosas, Indian toffee (burfi).

Literature

• Kipling, Kipling, Kipling - Rudyard Kipling wrote his stories to be read aloud and they are a delight to read.  My daughter loved them!
• "Snake Charmer" - Usborne Stories from Around the World
• Seasons of Splendour - Madhur Jaffrey (folk stories of the Hindu faith).
• "Little Babaji" - 20th Century Treasure of Children's Literature
• Mother Theresa - by Demi
• One Grain of Rice: A Mathmatical Folktale- by Demi
• "The Mouse Deer's Wisdom" - The Lion Storyteller (which is even more fun if you research Mouse Deer online!)

Israel

General Topics

• Festivals of the World: Israel - Grollier
• Welcome to Israel - Gareth Stevens Publishing
• The Usborne Introduction to Asia IL
• Usborne's Peoples of the World
• DK Bible Lands
• Place of Worship: Jewish Synagogue

Activities

• We learned and danced the "hora" from Festivals of the World: Israel.
• Using a pattern from Enchanted Learning, we made a driedel and played this for days.
• Baking Challah was a big hit!
• Enchanted Learning has a donkey printout to color with some
  general information.
• We watched Fiddler On the Roof.
• We explored more music from Israel by listening to the music of Itzhak Perlman's Jewish band, "The Klezmatics" - In the Fiddler's House.  Great stuff!

Literature

• Chicken Man - by Michele Edwards (a humorous story about life on a kibbutz)
• The Spotted Pony: A Collection of Hanukkah Stories - Eric Kimmel (telling stories on the eight nights of Hannukkah is a tradition that is captured in these traditional stories.)
• And Shira Imagined - Giora Carmi (A delightful tale of a young visitor to Israel who imagines "what if....")
• Old Noah's Elephants - by Warren Ludwig (a family favorite of long-standing.)
• Kingfisher's Jewish Stories - ed. by Adele Geras (modern stories for Hannukah)

Russia

General Topics

• Festivals of the World: Russia - Grollier
• Welcome to Russia - Gareth Stevens Publishing
• The Usborne Introduction to Asia IL
• Usborne's Peoples of the World

Activities

• There are a couple of good coloring pages for St. Basil's Cathedral - see *this*  and *this.*
• We explored  music from Russia by listening to the music of Tchaikovsky and other Russian masters.  One of my favorite cd's is "Russian Spectacular."

Literature

• "Baba Yaga" - Usborne's Stories from Around the World
• Told in Russia - (a collection of Russian folktales)
• Babushka Baba Yaga - Patricia Polacco (What happens when Baba Yaga wants to become a babushka?!)
• The Enourmous Turnip - by Alexie Tolstoy; one of the chain-story forms popular in Russian folktales
• The Giant Carrot -  by Jan Peck (another chain story, set in America, but based upon the Russian original.  Great humor here!)
• Luba and the Wren - Patricia Polacco (a wonderful tale with a great moral)

Science

• The Best Book of Wolves and Wild Dogs - Kingfisher Publications
• Taiga - by Elizabeth Kaplan (most of Russia is covered in either taiga or tundra; we're saving tundra for our Polar Regions study.)
• Siberian Tiger - by Jason Cooper