The Big Book of Silly Jokes for Kids - Interview, Raffle and more!

ROCKRIDGE PRESS. presents THE BIG BOOK OF SILLY JOKES FOR KIDS “Why do fish live in saltwater? Because pepper makes them sneeze!” The Big Book of Silly Jokes for Kids is brimming with over 800 knock-knock jokes, riddles, tongue twisters, and silly stats for endless hours of hilarious entertainment anywhere. Learn About The Big Book of Silly Jokes for Kids

Purchase "The Big Book of Silly Jokes for Kids" by Carole P. Roman for lots of laughs today! A few months ago, to my assistant's delight, I was asked to write a joke book. I never thought about writing a joke book, and of all the subjects I write, that genre hadn't occurred to me. I love a challenge and accepted the assignment from the publisher. As we gathered what we needed to do, Brittney, my assistant chattered on about what a great idea the project was going to be. When I asked herwhy, she responded that a joke book was one of her favorite books when she was growing up. It brought her countless hours of entertainment in her youth, and she kept it for years. I thought about that when I selected the jokes to go in the book. I wanted it to be flexible for many ages. It had to be silly enough that a younger child would want to share it with an older sibling that would enjoy the humor as well. I cataloged the jokes, riddles, and tongue twisters to get more complex as the reader went deeper into each category of jokes. I also wanted it to be a multigenerational book that could be shared across a dinner table. Compiling the jokes brought back memories of my childhood with my brothers. I found myself calling them when I found an old chestnut we chuckled to in our youth. It made us laugh together as well as spark incidents we had long forgotten. Those jokes were as much a part of my childhood as they will soon be for my new readers. For instance, my brother laughed out loud when I asked him, "What's black and white and red all over? An embarrassed zebra!" I tried many of the jokes on my personal audience, my office, my kids, and my grandkids. I was delighted when the children ages ranging from 5 to 11, demanded copies as soon as we could get our hands on the early production ones. They parroted the jokes back, memorizing the punchlines and waiting to hear the explosions of laughter that followed. "Knock, knock. Who's there? Meow. Meow, who? Take me-ow to the ballgame!" It made me think about the value of this book. It had the potential to turn into a little treasure for parents. 1- It kept the kids busy for hours. They were engaged actually talking to each other. Each one couldn't wait to take their turn reading another joke. "What do you call a pod of musical whales? -orcaAn stra!" 2- Yes, reading my friends! They voluntarily wanted to read the book. The younger ones needed help; the older kids were eager to help! It's an excellent way for kids to exercise those reading chops! "What do you get if you cross a snake and a LEGO set? A boa constructor." 3- The book teaches children how to communicate. They can learn how to deliver a joke, make people laugh, get themselves out of an uncomfortable situation.  "What's more amazing than a talking llama?A spelling-bee." 4- Many of the jokes need to be explained. They have double meanings and are perfect gateways to conversations on everything from food to animals. "What animal grows down as it grows up? A goose!" 5- Tongue twisters are a healthy exercise for the mouth. I have a granddaughter who is globally aphasic. I started my tongue twisters with the easiest I could find to allow a beginner to have success. They become harder as the reader moves through them. My good friend and fellow author, Erica Graham, who is also a speech therapist explained the value of tongue twisters. "I saw a kitten eating chicken in the kitchen." Try saying that three times fast! 6- Knock, knock jokes are jokes that make kids stretch their imagination. They might have started with jokes from the book, but ended up inventing their own, that turned out to be hilarious. Even the ones they created that I didn't understand, left the kids in fits of silly giggles. "Knock, knock. Who's there? Juno. Juno who? Ju-no where Europe is on the map?" This one's great because you can get in a lesson on Greek mythology as well as a geography lesson. 7- Laughter is the best medicine. It really is. Nothing will chase away the clouds better than a shout of laughter. When the kids are not getting along, and they are out of patience, ask them to make each other laugh. That's is a much more pleasant sound than hearing, "Jason took my toy." or "Amanda won't stop touching my truck." 8- In this day of video games, sometimes I think kids have forgotten how to talk to each other. Reading a joke and waiting to see someone's reaction is a good lesson in communication as well as manners. They learn patience. "Why did the spider go to the computer? To check his website!" It brought back a memory of when my kids were young. We used to practice listening to each other. They learned they had to wait for the other person to finish what they are saying to respond. The book is also filled with silly stats that will prepare your child to be a game show contestant in the distant future! A bunch of bananas "Silly Stat: are called a hand." 9- Riddles and puns are thoughtful devices to make everyone stretch their minds. Some of them were incredibly clever. "What has a neck, but no head? A bottle!" 10- Lastly, I think there can never be enough laughter in the world, don't you? The end of the book is filled with blank pages and a few tips for a child to create their own brand of humor. Who knows where this book will take their imagination? Enter to Win! 5 Lucky Winners to receive a signed copy of “The Big Book of Silly Jokes for Kids” by Carole P. Roman. One grand prize winner to win a $50 Amazon Gift Card AND a signed copy of the book! ENTER THE RAFFLE Copyright © 2019 ROCKRIDGE PRESS & CAROLE P. ROMAN, All rights reserved. Our mailing address is: CAROLE P. ROMAN 338 JERICHO TPKE, SUITE 339, SYOSSET, NY 11791

Peter J. Liang Author Interview - Originally posted on Medium.com

Author Interview — Peter J. Liang, Founder of Leadership4Kids and Creator of “I AM A LEADER” Journals

Peter J. Liang

Jul 26 · 6 min read

https://medium.com/@peterjliang/author-interview-peter-j-74ae0d8a0158

This article first appeared in Absolute Author Publishing House Author Interview, July 20th. Thank you Dr. Caudle for a great interview!!

Author Interview — Peter J. Liang, Founder of Leadership4Kids

Tell our readers a little about yourself, where you grew up, where you live now, where you went to school etc.

I was born in a very small town in the Northeastern part of China in 1977. In the early 1990s, my family immigrated from China to upstate New York. My Dad was a researcher at the Northeastern Science Foundation in Troy, NY — he was a renowned geology professor — so there were always lots of books (and rocks) around the house, and that definitely had some influence on me. I grew up loving to read and write every day.

I studied Computer Science and Philosophy in college and then earned a MBA from Columbia Business School in New York City. After a couple of years working on Wall Street as an investment manager, I realized my heart was just not in there. So I launched an e-learning company in the early days of social network. It didn’t work out, but I learned a ton from being in the trenches as an entrepreneur. Then I worked as a management consultant for a while, where I advised clients on business and product strategy and ended up joining one of my clients, a global information services company, as a business and marketing executive.

In terms of family, I met my wife, Judy, in college back in 1997 and we got married in 2005. We have two children, Benjamin (10-year-old) and Audrey (7 years old) and we live a pretty simple and blessed life on Long Island, right outside of New York City.

What inspired you to create this journal?

A few years ago, as our children Benjamin and Audrey were getting older, my wife and I began exploring various after-school programs. There were certainly many options available for academics, sports, arts, or music, but we couldn’t find anything focused on leadership skills such as focus, confidence, mindfulness, and grit.

By that time, given my own experience with personal growth development, I understood how important these skills are. That’s when I heard the knocking from the inside, and I realize I need to do something about this.

So I founded Leadership4Kids and began a series of youth leadership workshops in my local community. The Leadership4Kids (L4K) program is an exciting, fun, action-packed program designed to help children gain specific skills so they can use in schools and other situations demanding leadership of self and others. These Leadership4Kids programs have become hugely popular and proliferated through word of mouths.

Read Peter’s mission here: My Mission to Change a Million Children’s Lives Through Leadership4Kids

As part of my Leadership4Kids program, I ask each child to keep a journal where I give them daily prompts related to different aspects of leadership skills. The goal is to help them develop self-awareness and a habit of gratitude and appreciation.

The “I AM A LEADER” journal came straight out of these “daily assignments” from this program. I used to print these out from my little printer and bind the pages myself. Then I had too many parents asking and it was too much for my little printer to handle, so I went to Staples’ print center and gave out copies to parents who wanted them.

After seeing countless examples of how a simple daily journal can help kids gain skills such as self-awareness, confidence and grit, and many parents coming up to me specifically thanking me for this daily journal practice, I know it’s time to get it published so more kids around the world can benefit from it.

Where did you get the inspiration for your cover?

The cover reflects my own eclectic style, and each element is uniquely meaningful to me. First, I love books, so of course, it has to be there, front and center. I also believe that learning, whether it’s about leadership or anything else, is always a journey and what better way to represent journey than a sailboat.

A big part of my philosophy when it comes to leadership is that “leadership intelligence is anchored in the body.” It’s less about ideas in the head. That’s why you see the anchor, and the sun represents “shinning,” which is part of the “centering exercise” I teach in the class.

As if that’s not enough, the compass reminds us that we all have to follow our inner compass and find our true north. The essence of leadership is and always will be about being true to ourselves.

What were your struggles or obstacles you had to overcome to create this journal?

Writer Steven Pressfield says it the best — we all have capital-R Resistance to our life’s work, in the form of procrastination, distraction, and self-medication. So that pretty much sums up my struggle as well.

The idea of the “leadership journal for kids” has been in my head for years and of course, eventually, I just got tired of telling myself “I will get it done someday.” I just got tired to the point, I remember coming back from a business trip, and somehow I got a shot of energy and inspiration and couldn’t really think about anything else.

So I just tapped into that energy, whatever that was, I definitely tapped into it. So I just worked on this project day and night for about two weeks straight, sleeping maybe an hour or two and didn’t stop until it’s done. Now I think of it, any time I created something reasonably meaningful, I go through a similar process.

Tell our readers about your journal.

As a parent, the fact that you are looking to develop leadership skills for your kids shows that you’re already doing an amazing job. “I AM A LEADER: a 90-Day Leadership Journal for Kids” is simply a tool to help you. This daily journal is a fun way to teach kids leadership skills such as confidence, gratitude, and grit that will help them grow and live a more fulfilled life.

Every day, the journal starts with a simple “centering” exercise, gratitude, and a few thoughtful writing prompts that focus on different aspects of leadership over a 12 week period. These topics include Gratitude, Self-Awareness, Courage, Power of Intention, Growth Mindset, Communications, Collaboration, Persistence, Goal Setting, Grit, Take Action, and Make a Difference in the World.

The truth is, if you look at leadership related material out there, the model of leadership has been made for men by men. It has a lot of military and industrial age roots. It’s not appropriate for kids, and it’s not appropriate for this day and age either. As parents, we definitely need something that works for kids and also, a model that works for the global and connected world we live in today.

That’s why I put together this leadership journal for kids. So any kid, anywhere in the world, can use it and benefit from it.

Who is your target audience, and why?

It’s for any parents who want to help their children develop leadership skills such as self-awareness, gratitude, confidence, and grit. In general, this journal is a great gift for kids 8–12- year-olds and many parents tell me it’s perfect for back-to-school and a unique birthday gift idea as well.

This journal is just the start. Longer term, my mission is to change a million lives through the Leadership4Kids platform, and it will be done in a number of ways, including:

• Leadership4Kids weekly classes and workshops in local communities
• I AM A LEADER — A 90-Day Leadership Journal for Kids
• I AM A LEADER — 5-Minute Leadership Stories for Kids
• I AM A LEADER — board game
• Leadership4Kids online courses on specific topics
• Leadership4Kids books and video courses
• Leadership4Kids Podcast
• Leadership4Kids Alexa App

This is a lot of work, I know. But this is meaningful work to me. I truly believe that children are gifts from God and nothing makes me happier to work with kids and seeing them grow, develop, and fulfill their full potential.

I always look at myself, not as a teacher, but an advocate for kids. As such, my role is not to give kids more “information” but to help them preserve their original wisdom and I do that through various games, exercises, and embodied practices.

Thank you.

Medium.com: https://medium.com/@peterjliang/author-interview-peter-j-74ae0d8a0158

Readers' Favorite: https://readersfavorite.com/book-review/i-am-a-leader

Medium.com Reviews: https://medium.com/@peterjliang/i-am-a-leader-a-90-day-leadership-journal-for-kids-debuts-as-the-1-new-release-on-amazon-c390984b976d

The Sum of All Parts by Carole P. Roman - Originally posted on Medium.com

The Sum of All Parts

Carole P. Roman

Nov 1, 2018 · 4 min read
For more like this article visit Medium.comhttps://medium.com/@caroleproman/the-sum-of-all-parts-cfe6438f7f9c

Picture found on ShutterStock.com

I get told a lot about my determination as if I have exclusivity in our family to that factor that drives my soul.

While I do have ambition and feel a need to live every day to the fullest, I can’t claim that I developed or nurtured these traits on my own. I think somehow they are inborn, bestowed from generations that came before us.

I have recently made contact with a cousin separated from our family at birth. We speak on the phone frequently, and I marvel at how much she sounds like my aunt, the mother she never met. Oddly enough, not only is her voice similar to my aunt, her expressions are echoes of her mother’s, and I have heard from my cousins that their new sister is so much like her, she could be a clone.

For me, I see my late cousin’s smile in the way she lights up in pictures, the way she tilts her head brings back my grandmother and our cheekbones were carved by the same sculptor.

Still, there are the things we don’t see, ambition, drive, determination, and perhaps things we are not happy about ourselves, laziness, procrastination, stubbornness, or even a bad temper. Can cheapness be inherited? Is courage embedded in our genes?

Where did they all come from? Are we the way we are by design or habit? Are the tics and tells that define us in the DNA handed down from our ancestors? When someone says you act just like your mother, is it from born from being in each other’s company or is it imprinted on our personalities?

I like to think I inherited the best from each of my parents. When I am told about my drive and determination, I look back to my father’s survival in the concentration camps. His life depended on his skill at adapting to unbelievably harsh circumstances. He was sheltered and protected as a child by his parents, yet from his entire family, he managed to find ways to live through the daily horrific events that became his life. It made me think of his familial history and the other historical events like the Inquisition or Pogroms, where his ancestors must have used their wits to triumph adversity.

My mother’s goodness, her patience, and her total devotion to family were part of what I loved best about her. Did that come from her mother, or grandmothers, and finally the great-grandmother I’ve heard in tales from the past?

My great-great grandmother was a woman who blended into the background, yet founded a business when females were not allowed or encouraged to thrive. She forged paths for her daughters encouraging them into business and professions that ensured survival as husbands died leaving them alone to raise children and provide incomes for the next generation. Did she pass down a resilience gene to my mom who was a person steeped in depression, yet always managed to make her children feel loved, cherished, and accomplished rather than the bite of her illness? Her unconditional love created a strong support to make us feel secure enough to try new things without fear.

I identify and define my two grandmothers with courage, one who survived the Holocaust and one who did not. My mother’s mother was rooted in pragmatism and practicality, and then there was my father’s mother, the one I never met who was fey and romantic and lost herself in books. She looked my father in the eye the last day of her life and told him what she saw, that he would be the sole survivor. They say she had the sight. Can her ability to divine the future be a trait that was handed down through the ages? Do I detect that gift in my grandchildren’s eyes?

My father would watch me read, curled up on the couch and with a wistful smile, tell me about his mother, who loved her books, and I brought her back to him.

Did my love of reading come from her? Is that also a gene that is imprinted on our DNA to be passed down?

On the flip side, how did I dodge the bullets of depression or procrastination that runs deep on one side of the family? I rejected them- can you refuse a trait? Is it possible to choose?

Just like my green eyes and the hair color I have hidden under layers of blonde highlights, I wonder where all my parts came from. Who honed them enough to survive and pass them down to me? Who ensured that I could dance through the raindrops and come back with each punch of adversity? Other than the rather large tire around my middle, I’d like to thank them.

https://medium.com/@caroleproman/the-sum-of-all-parts-cfe6438f7f9c

"The Big Book of Silly Jokes for Kids" by Carole P. Roman feature!

Check out this amazing feature my friend and fellow author, Erica Graham did on my new book, "The Big Book of Silly Jokes for Kids" 

https://www.goodreads.com/author_blog_posts/18623435-author-feature-carole-p-roman

Author Michael Okon Interview on Blog Talk Radio

Michael Okon is the award-winning, best-selling author of 15 books, including Witches Protection Program, Pokergeist, Stillwell, and The Battle for Darracia series, all of which were written under his nom de plume Michael Phillip Cash. Michael writes full time and lives on the North Shore of Long Island with his wife and children.

Check out this excellent interview with author Michael Okon while he discusses his strategy of writing and his latest book, Witches Protection Program.

https://www.blogtalkradio.com/indieauthorsroundtable/2019/07/13/author-michael-okon

Check out my friend Grady Harp interview about San Francisco Review of Books

Check out my friend Grady Harp interview about San Francisco Review of Books

The Wise Bear Stories

What are The Wise Bear Stories and who are they for?

The Wise Bear Stories are a series of children’s personal development books, designed to help a child deal with the anxieties and emotional challenges they face in life, as well as giving them strategies to maximize their individual potential. In essence, the stories help a child to develop a balanced mind.
With the books aimed at 5 - 11-year old’s (although the principles apply to all ages) my chief aim is for the stories to act as a ‘skilled’ preventative to potential mental health conditions. If a child has the chance to learn these principles while they are young, it will give them the tools to maintain mental wellness throughout their life. A balanced mind is about the strongest guarantee a child could have for mental wellbeing.
Recent research suggests that as many as 1 in 6 young people (Anxiety UK) will experience an
anxiety condition at some point in their lives, this means that up to 5 children in every state school class may be living with anxiety, whether that be OCD (obsessive-compulsive disorder), social anxiety and shyness, exam stress, worry or panic attacks.
Research also shows that untreated children with anxiety disorders are at higher risk to perform poorly in school, miss out on important social experiences, and engage in substance abuse, but 80 percent of kids with a diagnosable anxiety disorder and 60 percent of kids with diagnosable depression is not getting treatment.
If there was a simple engaging medium such as stories that helped children (and parents) make sense of some of their challenges and bring their mind back to balance they might avoid mental health problems later on in life, as well as perform better now.

How are The Wise Bear Stories different?

Wise Bear Stories are different... they are not morally based trying to teach right from wrong, nor do they always follow the common mindset models often promoted! Instead, they share timeless principles of true human behavior, which whilst known for centuries, is understood very little and coached even less.
The strapline for Wise Bear is... ‘Helping You Through Life’s Journey’ and that's exactly what I hope Wise Bear will do for children and families across the World. They are the perfect bedtime story.
Each story ends with an affirmation and a short exercise to reinforce the lesson a child has been reading about. This is a great opportunity for teachers & parents to work with the child and help them apply the lessons directly to their own life.
There are 6 stories in the first series, with 30 stories planned.
'

How did The Wise Bear thinking come about and how was it perfected?

Since a young age, Scott Cranfield has been fascinated with and studied ways to help himself and others live the most inspired and fulfilled life possible. His journey has involved travelling the World attending countless programs and courses covering just about every area of life with the World’s leading teachers.
As a father, he wanted to share the best of what I had learnt with my children. He found a very effective way of doing this was through bedtime stories. He would create stories involving the challenges and anxieties his children had experienced that day and at the centre of each story, He created a character called Wise Bear. During the story, the children would share with Wise Bear what was upsetting them or causing them to feel anxious. Wise Bear would use his vast experience and wisdom and share a whole new way of looking at these concerns to bring acalming balance to the children’s mind, a balance they couldn't find on their own. Without a doubt, working on these stories has been the most inspiring work he has ever done. It's a project that has utilized and combined both his 30 years of coaching and 15 years as a father.

About the Author:
Scott Cranfield the Author of Wise Bear has coached at the highest level for over 30 years, appearing on TV, radio, magazines, as well as hosting multiple seminars and being a key note speaker. His coaching covers subjects from life coaching and family relationships, to sport and business. You can read his story here: https://www.scottcranfield.com/scott-cranfield.

The Feedback The Wise Bear Stories has had:
During the research stage, the most common feedback I received was... “this information and help is badly needed” Please check out some of the testimonials on the website, including some from leading educators, doctors and psychiatrists.

Schools:

Scott has started to visit schools to share Wise Bear thinking and principles with the pupils. These sessions have proved very beneficial for the children with some wonderful testimonials received. In May 2019 the BBC took an interest in this approach and filmed Scott working with the children at a primary school. You can see the clip here... BBC News Website:https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/av/uk-england-london-48147698/children-s-mental-health- the-story-books-bringing-help
Part of Scott’s mission is to get the books into 1000 schools and to that end, he will be looking at ways to support schools that are interested in having The Wise Bear Stories in their library. Scott will be hosting webinars offering free support coaching to teachers who are interested in sharing this approach in their school.

Our Media:
To find more information about The Wise Bear stories, here’s where you can find us: The website www.thewisebearstories.com,
Facebook: www.facebook.com/TheWiseBearStories,
Instagram: @thewisebearstories