南華早報專欄：Lessons from the master
This article appeared on Tuesday 20 May 2014 in the South China Morning Post print edition as “Lessons from the master”. Leonard Marcus is a living encyclopedia of children’s literature who shares his knowledge through the many books that he has written, analysing the authors and artists who have created some of the genre’s greatest works. He has reviewed children’s books for The Washington Post and The New York Times, judged multiple book awards and curated exhibitions. In honour of the 50th anniversary of The Phantom Tollbooth, Marcus created an annotated edition with insights from author Norton Juster as well as Marcus himself. In my recent conversation with Marcus, he described The Phantom Tollbooth as “the Alice in Wonderland of our time – a book of amazing verbal inventiveness and a work of the most playful kind of philosophical reflection”. The Annotated Phantom Tollbooth, packed with so much commentary, greatly amplifies the experience of reading one of the greatest children’s books of the past half a century, and one of my childhood favourites. Marcus s
Between the lines: the Confucian way
Happy birthday, Siddhartha Gautama. In Hong Kong, Buddha’s birthday has been a public holiday since the 1997 handover. I suspect that it was accorded such status to allow workers an extra day of rest rather than for religious observation, because a number of Hong Kong Buddhists adopt Buddhism as a cultural philosophy without strictly adhering to its religious framework. In fact, there is often no clear boundary between Buddhism, Taoism and Confucianism. The Cheung Chau Bun Festival is a Taoist sacrificial ceremony that is celebrated on the same day as Buddha’s birthday. And Hong Kong people don’t mind practising or believing in several religions at the same time. They will practice and promote any religious or cultural tradition that is family-oriented. Veneration of ancestors is so valued in Hong Kong that there are two public holidays – Ching Ming and Chung Yeung – to give families time to pay respects at ancestral graves. Confucianism developed from the teachings of Chinese philosopher Confucius, and it is considered more of an ethical system than a religion. With an emphasis
書伴我行(香港)基金會祝大家「世界閱讀日」快樂!
聯合國教科文組織於1995年將每年的4月23日選定為「世界圖書與版權日」(World Book and Copyright Day)，藉此宣揚閱讀及推動保護知識產權。 為了慶祝今年的「世界圖書與版權日」，書伴我行(香港)基金會董事局成員Michelle Liu為本會於循道衛理楊震社會服務處油尖旺家庭成長軒安裝的第240個圖書館項目主持開幕禮，讓孩子更易接觸到優質的兒童圖書。
Between the lines: explaining Easter’s message to children
To me, Easter is all about children’s games, arts and crafts. This year’s activities included making Easter bonnets, egg decorating, and countless egg hunts. My children, on the other hand, are fixated with the Crucifixion. They chat about Jesus dying on the cross, which leads them to sing in unison a song with an upbeat tempo about the Crucifixion. Next thing I know, I overhear them continue with other dead people. Little sister: “A cross means heaven. Yeye [Grandpa] is in heaven, so Yeye died on the cross.” Big sister: “No, Yeye died in the hospital.” Little sister: “Oh.” This sobering talk makes the overflowing bag full of colourful giant chocolate eggs and bunnies that I have stockpiled in the closet seem somehow sinful and indecent. Children are fascinated with the Crucifixion because they only contemplate Jesus the man, rather than Jesus the Messiah. Thus they wonder about the physical pain of being nailed to a cross and they try to find answers to why people were so mean to Jesus. For child-friendly depictions of the gruesome Crucifixion, there are two wonderfu
「陳一心家族基金會」入圍美國國會圖書館2013閱讀獎最佳實踐
恭喜積極推動中港閱讀文化的「陳一心家族基金會」入圍美國國會圖書館2013閱讀獎最佳實踐。「陳一心家族基金會」聯合主席、「書伴我行（香港）基金會」創辦人陳禹嘉先生在經濟日報、大公報及南華日報中與你暢談「閱讀」。
「愛閱讀‧愛學習」計劃 2014
你的孩子喜愛學習嗎？對閱讀感興趣嗎？2014年「愛閱讀‧愛學習」計劃，請來專家講解如何改進孩子的學習動機、閱讀興趣及信心，不容錯過。 http://lovetolearn.asia/
繪本‧把幽默帶進每個家庭
具有幽默感的家庭可以增強與孩子的關係，一家人一起笑能創造一個積極、輕鬆和諧的家庭。每個家庭可以透過與孩子一起閱讀幽默圖書，並與他們欣賞及分享生活中的幽默事情，幫助孩子學習對事情的看法，怎樣與他人的生活相配合及解決問題。所以要擁有一個幸福及健康的家，幽默感是很重要的。 我們誠邀岳曉東博士及書伴我行導師王素瑩Percie於4月22日 (星期二) 晚上，為大家講解如何為家庭帶進更多幽默，座位有限，報名從速！ 報名 : http://openclass.hk/activity/2171
