Will You Always Be Here? by Nadine Damo

Once upon a time, many moons ago I used to be a preschool teacher.  I taught preschool for a few short years and really enjoyed that experience.  It was nice to plan lessons without having to worry about standardized tests, being able to focus on social skills, and making learning fun for the little ones.  We ate snacks, sang songs, played with toys, made crafts, and read lots of books.  One of my favorite times of the day occurred after lunch.  We would turn down the lights, read a soothing story, play some soft music, and tuck the children in for their naps.  Zzzzzzzzzz.

It was important to read soothing books during that time... exciting books would fire the children up, making it hard for them to settle in for their naps.  Nadine Damo recently published her first book called Will You Always Be Here? which is a good example of the kind of book I would have read way back when.  It's a soothing story about a baby owl who is anxious about many things but finds comfort and reassurance in his father's... and Father's... strength and guidance.  Keep reading to learn more about Will You Always Be Here? and for a simple arts-n-crafts activity you can make with your students.

Disclosure: Affiliate links to Amazon are included in this post.

Story Summary

A heart-touching story of overcoming the fears and storms of life.  Under a full moon, little Peek-a-Hoot wakes up to see his Father, as always, watching over him.  But when a sudden storm arrives, little Peek-a-Hoot becomes afraid.  Will You Always Be Here? is a Christian children’s book with a powerful message of faith, love, and the reassurance we can all have, knowing that our Father watches over us too.  All proceeds of this book go to the orphaned children of Nakrekal, India.

🍎 Title: Will You Always Be Here?

🍎 Author: Nadine Damo

🍎 Publisher: self-published

🍎 Date: October 10, 2020

🍎 Pages: 28

Language Arts Minilesson

Will You Always Be Here? is a conversational story in which a baby owl named Little Peek-a-Hoot talks to his father about how he is feeling.  Little Peek-a-Hoot asks him questions and his father replies.  The conversation was gentle, loving, and reassuring... making Little Peek-a-Hoot feel safe and secure.

When reading Will You Always Be Here? with your younger students, you can read and talk about the story on a literal level.  In the illustrations, we can see Little Peek-a-Hoot and his father talking to each other.  Talk to your students about their families and how families take care of one another.  Who is in their family?  How do the people in their families help each other?  How do they make each other feel safe and loved?  Keep in mind that not all families look the same.  Adjust your class discussion accordingly.

You can also read Will You Always Be Here? on the metaphorical level.  Father Owl is not just Little Peek-a-Hoot's father, he is also a symbol that represents the Father above.  Talk to your students about G-d, the Father.  Who is He?  Where does He live?  How does He help us?  How do we know He's there?  How can we talk to Him?  Depending on the maturity level of your students, you can make this part of the class discussion as simple or as deep as you'd like.

Owl Paper Craft

Little Peek-a-Hoot and his father are cute little owls with brown and white feathers, pointed ears, large eyes, and pudgy bellies.   After reading Will You Always Be Here?... and after your students wake up from their naps... take some time to do this simple arts-n-crafts activity and make Little Peek-a-Hoot owls out of torn paper.

You will need:

• brown and white construction paper torn into bits
• dark construction paper
• circles cut out from yellow construction paper
• small triangle cut from orange construction paper
• googly eyes of different sizes
• gluesticks
• scissors

Note: Depending on the ages of your preschoolers and the amount of time you have, you may need to cut and/or tear the pieces to make the owls ahead of time.

Directions:

1. Glue a yellow circle onto a sheet of dark construction paper.  This will be the moon in the night sky.
2. Tear the brown and white construction paper into bits.  These will become the feathers.
3. Glue the brown and white 'feathers' onto the black construction paper to make something that kind of sort of looks like an owl.  
4. Help the students select googly eyes for their owls and glue them in place. 
5. Cut small triangles out of the orange construction paper and glue them onto the owls to make the beaks and feet.
6. As you are working with your students, reinforce important vocabulary words (owl, feathers, eyes, beak, feet, etc.) and the colors they are working with (brown, white, yellow, orange, etc.).  Keep it light.  Keep it fun.  Keep the learning happening.
7. Send the owls home or hang them on a bulletin board when dry.

I'm all about process arts-n-crafts, so it doesn't bother me when things don't turn out exactly right.  As long as learning takes place, the students are content, and the end products are cute... it's all good!

About the Author

Two years ago, Nadine Damo and her husband established two orphanages in Nakrekal, India when they learned about the horrible conditions millions of orphaned children live in. Many of them are homeless and trying to scrape a living on the streets. All of the proceeds from Will You Always Be Here? will go to their orphanages to provide food, clothing, medical care, and school books for the children. Nadine Damo talks about their orphanages in this interview with the people at Awesome Gang:

https://awesomegang.com/nadine-damo/

To learn more about Will You Be Here? and Nadine Damo, please visit Nadine Damo's author page:

https://nadinedamo.com/

author, Nadine Damo

Did you enjoy this blog post about Will You Always Be There? If so, check out these blog posts to learn about more children's books for young readers:

• Book: The Mermaid and the Grumpy Old Clam by Kirk Kirkpatrick
• Book: Love Grows Love by Lauren Grabois Fischer
• Book + Craft: Broccoli Rob and the Garden Singers by John S. Armstrong
• Book + Printable: Zester the Zebra and His Missing Stripes by Christen Conrad
• Book + Craft: Goo on My Shoe by Jacqui Shepherd
• Book + Printable: Great Cape o’ Colors by Karl Beckstrand

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