The Best Graduation Gifts

By Holly E. Newton

The end of the school year connotes graduation time, celebrating many different levels of school completions. Books, as always, are the perfect gift and help commemorate this important event in a young person¹s life. Here is a list of some outstanding picture books celebrating the graduate.

For the younger reader celebrating a change in schools, here is a simple tale about judgment.

Zen Shorts, by widely acclaimed author Jon J. Muth, is a story that involves three tales. Three children become friends with a giant panda. He imparts a clever story for each child. One of the tales expertly demonstrates how we need to forgive. A young monk criticizes an older monk for carrying an unappreciative traveler over rain puddles, as he says, "She didn't even thank you!" The wise older man replies, "I set the woman down hours ago." The older monk was able to forgive and forget, while the young monk was still learning this lesson of forgiveness.

Another perfect book for the younger child is This Little Light of Mine. This picture book is based on the familiar song of the same title and is illustrated beautifully by the acclaimed E. B. Lewis. The words of the song describe how the light from within will shine on and on. But, the pictures tell much, much more. A young boy sees another youngster sitting alone, appearing dejected as he is slumped with his head in his hands. As the song progresses throughout the book, the boy invites the sad fellow to join his friends and before long a smile shines through the sad face. This book will surely strike a chord with all ages!

Sometimes it's the wordless books that seem to have the greatest message. Home, by Jeannie Baker, shows the progress of life through an open window. Ms. Baker has small remnants of a girl's life on the windowsill, displaying her growth though the years. For instance, the book begins with congratulations for the birth of a baby girl. Through the window, you see the proud parents in their back yard holding this new baby. There are older looking vehicles on the street beyond the yard. Several pages later, there's the girl as a teen putting makeup on in a mirror that's sitting on the windowsill. Beyond the yard is a full garden and beyond that newer looking cars on the street. There's much to observe and reflect on one's own growth throughout the years.

Sometimes biographies are the perfect inspiration for graduates. Walt Whitman: Words for America, by Barbara Kerley, is a look into the life of one of America's best and most famous poets. His poetry reflected the feelings of our country during the tumultuous Civil War. I found it fascinating that when Walt was young, he loved words and loved to read. He was always writing down feelings and expressions in his little notebook. In the Author¹s Note located in the back of the book, he states that when he was eleven years old, he was given a library card. Later he added, it was ³...the signal event of my life up to that time." Brian Selznick beautifully illustrated the pictures throughout the book, and he studied many historical documents and locations to accurately reconstruct this amazing poet¹s life.

Here is a perfect companion to Walt Whitman¹s biography. When I Heard the Learn¹d Astronomer is a wonderfully illustrated book by Loren Long, based on Walt Whitman¹s famous poem. This poem celebrates the amazing imagination that is budding in all of us. The incredible pictures take you to a young boy's experience as he ponders life and the stars, ³In the mystical moist night-air, and from time to time, look'd up in perfect silence at the stars.²

Mother Teresa, by award winning Demi, is an inspirational account of one humble woman serving those much less fortunate and extremely poor. This incredible woman gave all that she had throughout her life. Included here is wisdom that we can glean from her: ³Life Is An Opportunity --Avail It. Life Is Beautiful --Admire It. Life Is A Challenge --Meet It. Life Is Costly --Care For It. Life Is A Promise --Fulfill It. Life Is Sorrow --Overcome It. Life Is Too Precious --Do Not Destroy It.²

And lastly, here's a book celebrating and exploring the endless possibilities of life. Imagine a Day, by Sarah L. Thompson, and creatively illustrated by Rob Gonsalves, will spark your imagination --beyond imagination. ³Imagine a day Š when a book swings open on silent hinges, and a place you've never seen before welcomes you here.² Give a great gift to your graduate. Give a book to inspire, motivate and celebrate!

Visit Holly's Web Site!

Remember your Grad but don't forget Dad! One click gets you access to all the best Father's Day gift ideas on the web.
Click here for great Father's Day Gift Ideas!

1. movement.nytimes.html
... Utah includes marital skills in high school curriculums; Florida makes a marital course a high school graduation requirement. And Oklahoma's governor, Frank Keating, also a Republican, has just ...
http://www.smartmarriages ...movement.nytimes.html

2. High School Graduation Project
... Home > High School > High School Graduation Project ... Rubric Introduction to the Graduation Project An Individual ... parents and school personnel and is a requirement for graduation ...
http://www.centralcolumbi ...raduation/project.htm

3. Department of Defense Education Activity , DoDDS High School Graduation Requ...
... in some high school level courses may receive credits toward graduation. DoDDS Graduation ... ... All courses to meet the science credit requirement must contain a laboratory component as ...
http://www.dodea.edu/college/grad.htm

4. High School Graduation Equivalency
...   HIGH SCHOOL GRADUATION EQUIVALENCY Students Who Are Not High School Graduates may satisfy the high school graduation requirement by submitting the California Certificate of Proficiency or the ...
http://enrollment.csusb.edu/HighSchoolGradEq.html

5. Westside High School | Graduation Requirements
... driving force for Westside High School. The purpose of ... meet a Service Learning requirement, complete a Future Plan ... a diploma candidate. Graduation Requirements (Knowledge ...
http://www.westside66.org/63819138132157/

6. EPAA Vol. 11 No. 1 Dorn: High-Stakes Testing and the History of Graduation
... court case left the test requirement in a large state ... of high-stakes testing on graduation could not have existed a ... ago. Few students attended high school, graduation was not ...
http://epaa.asu.edu/epaa/v11n1/

7. Higher Standards for High School Graduation
... to increase the minimum state requirements for high school graduation to 24 units of credit, effective for the class of 2010. The current requirement is 22 units. The proposed policy would increase ...
http://www.dese.mo.gov/ne .../gradrequirements.htm

8. The Parenting Project
... New York State , toward implementation of the states new parenting preparation high school graduation requirement. These teachers were trained and mentored for a year before their work was ...
http://www.parentingproject.org/lessons.htm

9. Just For Teachers - October 2001
... Many states have a high school graduation requirement of community service in an attempt to uplift the teenagersí thoughts from themselves to the world around them. How can we, as piano teachers ...
http://www.pianowomen.com/teachers1001.html

10. Flushing High School
... SO) Contact SO PSAL Sports Job Opportunities Contact Us Bulletin Board (0005) New High School Graduation Requirement Code As a result of changes issued by the State Education Department, a new ...
http://www.flushinghighsc ...w_bbm.jsp?REC_ID=1194

11. Deval Patrick, Democrat for Governor of Massachusetts
... I support the MCAS, including the addition of a science component, as a high school graduation requirement. However, I do not believe it should be the sole assessment of student academic progress ...
http://www.devalpatrick.com/issues_education.cfm

12. cbs5.com - Bay City News Wire
... to the state's high school exit exam to an ... Area Bay City News Wire HIGH ...
http://cbs5.com/localwire ...SE/resources_bcn_html

13. Graduation HQ - High School Graduation Gifts
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14. February/March 2003
... Florida already requires "marriage education" as a high school graduation requirement. News From Around the World Belgium Second to Recognize Same-Sex Marriage Belgium recently became the second ...
http://www.unmarried.org/ ...ters/feb-march03.html

15. M-A Career Center - Deadlines
... While it may be true that the class you started first semester is one that is not required either to meet a high school graduation requirement or a college entrance requirement, that should not lead ...
http://www.macareercenter.com/faq.html

16. FaithfulReader.com - The Faithful Fifteen Feature -- Leisha Kelly
... The life lessons are so important it would make a worthy high school graduation requirement. I have also been richly blessed by Charles Sheldon and C. S. Lewis, among others. I read and enjoy so many ...
http://www.faithfulreader ...s/15_kelly_leisha.asp

17. Yakima Valley Community College | Running Start
... Step 4 Eligible students contact high school counselors to discuss remaining high school graduation requirement, and to identify appropriate YVCC classes. High school counselor provides student with ...
http://www.yvcc.edu/RunningStart/default.asp

18. Computer Vocabulary Quiz
... great site with cool illustrations North Carolina Department of Public Instruction's webpage regarding the Computer Skills Test which is a High School Graduation Requirement: NCPublicSchools.org> ...
http://www.watauga.k12.nc ...mputer_Vocabulary.htm

19. Graduation Requirement | Guidance Services - Eastside High School
... Classification Credits 9th Grade Successful completion of 8th Grade 10th Grade 4 Credits 11th Grade 10 Credits 12th Grade 16 Credits Graduation 24 Credits To receive a regular high school diploma ...
http://www.ehs.sbac.edu/guidance/grad_reg.html

20. Fremont Police Department
... A two (2) or four (4) year degree from a college or university accredited by the Western Association of Colleges and Universities will be accepted in place of the high school graduation requirement ...
http://www.theblueline.com/feature/CAfremont.html

21. Precollege: The STEP Program
... One such test is the Georgia High School Graduation Test (GHSGT), a curriculum-based assessment of 11th graders and a high school graduation requirement. The test covers english, mathematics, science ...
http://www.cse.emory.edu/ .../precollege/STEP.html

22. Early College for ME :: FAQs
... However, you should not take a college course to meet a high school graduation requirement. back to top Why should I take an Early College course in high school? For some students, Early College ...
http://www.earlycollege.me.edu/faqs.html

23. USATODAY.com - Calif. Supreme Court reinstates exit exam
... reinstated the state's high school exit exam as a ... not graduating. The high ...
http://www.usatoday.com/n ...alifornia-exams_x.htm

24. FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
... A passing grade in the 10'th grade MCAS is a graduation requirement for a high school diploma. Initially, a passing grade was required in all subjects tested, but currently, only English and ...
http://www.arlingtoncare.org/FAQAboutTheMCAS.htm

25. www.NASFAA.org Lawmakers Introduce Numerous Katrina-Related Bills Dealing wi...
... H.R. 2131 repeals the pay reduction and high school graduation requirement for participation in the Montgomery GI Bill educational assistance program and delimits the date for entitlement to basic ...
http://www.nasfaa.org/pub ...trinabills092105.html

26. Getting into College - Stanford Medical Youth Science Program (SMYSP) - Stan...
... option. College-bound students should try to take the extra science, mathematics and foreign language classes that may not be a high school graduation requirement, but are sought by college admissions ...
http://smysp.stanford.edu/family/toolbox.html

27. California High School Graduation Requirement
California High School Graduation Requirement FireRocket Search Related Searches high school graduation crafts party theme for high school graduation high school graduation prank high school ...
http://www.california4.co ...aduation-requirement/

28. Second Languages FAQ
... High School Graduation Requirement Foreign Language Graduation Requirement & Frequently Asked Questions What is the requirement? When will it be in place? Does Latin count as a language for the ...
http://www.ncpublicschool .../secondlanguages/faq/

29. The Learning Corridor -- Academy of The Arts
... These credits meet the state's high school graduation requirement in the areas of physical education, social studies, and the arts. The arts training program is designed to prepare gifted and ...
http://www.learningcorridor.org/aarts/geninfo.htm

30. alabama high school graduation requirements
... & Mobile County Public School System & of the new exam requirement as they entered the ninth grade in the fall of 1997 when they received the Alabama High School Graduation Exam Requirement brochure ...
http://www.brcmschool.org ...chool-graduation.html

31. New Page 1
... Sr. High School Graduation Requirement Checklist Newsletter for Juniors 2005 Focus on Seniors Newsletter 2005 Peer Mediation - Letter to Parents Facts.org Florida's Bright Futures Scholarships Space ...
http://www.spacecoast.bre ...2.fl.us/Academics.htm

32. Fisher’s Landing Test Scores
... What part does the WASL play in a student's high school graduation requirement? Click here. No single test can tell you everything about a child's performance. Looking at information from a variety ...
http://www.fis.egreen.wed ...info/test_scores.html

33. VBCPS - Curriculum and Instruction - The High School Program (Grades 9-12) -...
... the practical arts graduation requirement. If you need additional information on Graduation Requirements contact Mike McGee at Mike.McGee@vbschools.com. Back to High School Curriculum Page Last ...
http://www.vbcps.com/curriculum/high/grad.asp

34. Desert Sands Charter High School Graduation Page
... receive a diploma from Desert Sands Charter High School, students will need to complete the ... ... complete 210 credits for graduation. 2. Included in the requirement above are the CORE ...
http://www.dschs.org/graduation.html

35. Courses - Summer of Excellence - The Honors College, Univ. of Arizona
... If you seek to complete a high school graduation requirement by taking an SOE class, you should consult with your high school administration first. Here are some useful facts about SOE to help guide ...
http://www.soe.honors.arizona.edu/courses.htm

36. Arts Assessments for Washington State: Performance Based and Classroom Based...
... States Arts Essential Academic Learning Requirements (EALRs) of grades five, eight, and ten (high school). We are piloting at least two items at each benchmark level for each arts discipline. Dance ...
http://www.newhorizons.or ...ies/assess/joseph.htm

37. 14850 Sports: Sentence a joke for basketball brawlers who betrayed us
... I had to do more community service to fulfill my high school graduation requirement! And get this; Jermaine O'Neal had the audacity to announce, just before getting into his limousine outside the ...
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39. Crescent View High School Graduation Page
... the 10 credit minimum requirement. 4. Effective January, 2006 ... complete the California High School Exit Exam (CHSEE ... shall complete a graduation exit assessment using the ...
http://www.cvchs.org/graduation.html

40. Alaska's "High School Graduation Qualifying Examination": Web Resources Page
Alaska's "High School Graduation Qualifying ... like the closest school being a mountain ... empirical studies: a high ses/white -- lo SES ... for this new federal requirement." The new system ...
http://www.srv.net/~msdata/ahsqe.html

41. Geography/World History Course Requirements for High School Graduation
... Listed below are states that include stand-alone courses in one or both of these fields as a requirement for high school graduation. * = No explicit mention of ìgeographyî or ìworld historyî State ...
http://www.ecs.org/clearinghouse/39/02/3902.htm

42. Reed High School
... Remember that some high school courses will meet a high school graduation requirement but MAY NOT be accepted as an academic credit by your post-secondary institution or by the NCAA. Some colleges ...
http://www.washoe.k12.nv. ...urses/coursesmain.htm

43. Cleveland Municipal City School District schools - district elementary, midd...
... Beginning with the class of 2007, the OGT will be a high school graduation requirement (thus replacing the grade 9 proficiency test). The OGT is a standards-based test, which means that it measures ...
http://www.greatschools.n .../district_profile/56/

44. Earth Science Project Resources
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http://www.odysseyscience ...-science-project.html

45. UT Admin Code R309-300. Certification Rules for Water Supply Operators.
http://www.rules.utah.gov ...ode/r309/r309-300.htm

46. Graduation - High School Graduation Gift
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47. High School Graduation Requirements in the U.S. for LEP Students - NCEO Minn...
... the exit exam requirement, students who do not meet passing standards do not receive high school diplomas. In essence then, it is possible for a student who has met all other graduation requirements ...
http://www.education.umn. ...ePubs/MnReport13.html

48. ASD -- A&E -- HSGQE
... each year until they meet the proficiency requirement. Once the student with a certificate of ... ... Items The practice items for the High School Graduation Qualifying Examination (HSGQE) were ...
http://www.asdk12.org/depts/assess_eval/HSGQE.asp

49. Cleveland Central Catholic High School - Graduation Requirements
... 5 Graduation Requirements A minimum requirement for graduation from Cleveland Central Catholic High School is 24 units of credit. Every student is expected to carry a minimum of six credits including ...
http://www.centralcatholi ...on_requirements.shtml

50. Colorado State University Office of Admissions
Fast Facts Academics Transfer Equivalency Admission Requirements High School Graduation Overall Academic Performance Requirement in Mathematics Additional Factors Competitive Majors Specialized ...
http://admissions.colosta ...mis&subnavarea=hsgrad

51. Education Information - Your resource for finding great education articles
... High School Graduation Poems (15) ...some will be good and some will be bad; these poems will share powerful memories with the entire class. When someone writes a graduation poem, they usually do so ...
http://users.telenet.be/education/

52. Project_earth
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53.
... Information High School Graduation Requirements Recommended ... 4 credits of Math during high school. It is recommended that ... Communication Application requirement and credit of the student ...
http://www.northlandchris ...tion_requirements.htm