Johann Sebastian Bach : The Story of the Boy Who Sang in the Streets Life Story of Johann Sebastian Bach, a summary of the facts, a quiz and a writing activity. It looks at how he grew up and why he became famous.

Handel: The Story of a Little BoyWho Practiced in an Attic Contains a presentation of Handel's life, a summary of facts, a quiz and also a writing activity.

EDVARD GRIEG:The Story of the Boy WhoMade Music in the Land of the Midnight Sun This is a fun presentation, complete with his life story, summary of the facts, a quiz and a writing activity.

Chopin: The Story of the Boy Who Made Beautiful Melodies Fun presentation of Chopin's life story, complete with a summary of the key facts, a quiz, and a writing activity. This is a great way of studying the life of a famous person.

The chronicles of crows: A Tale of the Springtime (1848) - I have included the full poem, complete with the original pictures. I then provide it with the pictures and no words, and then the words and no pictures and finally as a simple CLOZE, where the students need to complete the missing word in the second line of each part of the poem. The pictures without words are a charming Victorian border. The students could write their own Spring poems in this section and make a lovely Spring display. I have always been drawn to crows, not in any dark teenage-poet way, but because they are big, handsome, super-clever, and remind me of the chilly Michigan spring. It seemed so charming at first, with the crows working together, building their homes, laying their eggs and raising their babies in great swooping flocks. But the story takes a ghastly turn as the nearby farmers gather to get rid of the rookery. I kept thinking that the smart, sassy crows would eventually outwit the mean, brutish humans. How wrong I was. The crows are shot and made into pies, even the young ones, and the birds that survive are left to mourn, “How well we know / There is no joy unmixed with woe.” Um, anyway, happy spring, and here’s a Monday assortment of pertinent items to help you get over the sense of mortal dread sinking in your chest after that morbid Victorian warning.

Holi is an Indian Spring Festival which is now celebrated around the world. My presentation comes complete with a story about why this festival is important (you can choose between a long or short version), a description of what happens and lots of colourful pictures of the event. In addition, you are able to read the lives of two Indian children as they get ready for Holi and what they do on the day. These could be printed off and read individually or they could be projected onto the interactive whiteboard and read as a class. The students could then think about how they would like to celebrate the coming of Spring and who knows, perhaps even have their own version of Holi in the classroom!