Sparkle Stories Blog
A home for Sparkle audio stories, crafts, recipes, and kind words!
Helping Children with Fear at Halloween
We have found that stories are the most effective and enduring way to help children process — and then release — these images so they can enjoy all the magic and fun the season has to offer. Here are two stories that we think might help.
Managing Anxiety with Renee Jain, SparkleCast Episode 3
In this episode of SparkleCast, Renee, David, and Rebecca discuss how storytelling can not only change perspectives but also help children face fears, dismantle panic and undo patterns of anxiety.
Storybox Playlist: Stories for Being with Fear
The stories in this playlist are all about being with fear, knowing where it comes from, and steps for managing it in a healthy, healing way. We hope these stories help anyone in your family who is feeling fear right now.
Friday's Kind Words: The Ideal Response
"Oh man, thank you so much for this explanation!Without realizing it, I was judging myself for not being as good of a mom as Martin & Sylvia‘s mom. Sometimes I am, but sometimes I’m definitely not. She ALWAYS has the ideal response to things!" ~ Patterson
Storybox Playlist: Stories for When Parenting Feels Hard
In this playlist, we want to share stories of our Sparkle character parents and some of their hard days. Although these parents sometimes seem to dance their way through life, it's not all sunshine and rainbows for them.
Friday's Kind Words: Inspired by Windward Ho
"Thought maybe you’d enjoy these pics from my daughter’s birthday, inspired by the Windward Ho! series. We love Sparkle Stories and could never be able to express in words all the gifts these stories have brought into our lives. Thank you!" ~ Jen
The Strengths of the Windward Pirate Girls
When we first started visioning the Windward Ho! series, we discussed in depth the importance of telling stories about strong girls. And not just strong in one way – but strong in a wide variety of ways. We want the girls of our world to know that they can be confident and kind, thoughtful and analytical, spirited and gentle.
The First Sparkle Coloring Book! Windward Ho edition!
Today we are so excited to release a project that's been a long time in the making: the Windward Ho! coloring book. Our awesome team members Jenny and Susan have created a fantastic PDF downloadable coloring book filled with all your favorite Windward Ho! characters.
Storybox Playlist: Stories from the Windward
This week we are presenting a fresh set of Windward Ho! stories and looking for Fiona, the lost shipmate. You'll get to know her a bit more in tomorrow's blog post, but for now, come explore the five books of the Windward Ho! collection.
Friday's Kind Words: Screen Free and Gentle
Thanks so much for an amazing, screen-free, gentle product. ~Kristen
Sparkle Kitchen: Breakfast with Martin & Sylvia
This week we've been highlighting the Martin & Sylvia series and today I present you with four beautiful and "so so so good" breakfast recipes taken from the Martin & Sylvia* stories. All of these recipes are very healthy and easy to make. So come have breakfast with our favorite brother and sister duo.
Martin & Sylvia Paper Dolls!
Today we are excited to announce the release of the Martin & Sylvia printable paper dolls.
Meet Martin & Sylvia!
We've gathered some fun facts about Martin and Sylvia to help your get to know them a little better.
Storybox Playlist: The Very Best of Martin & Sylvia
This week we've put together a double playlist, one featuring Martin and the other Sylvia. Most stories have both brother and sister in them, but the playlists below specifically feature either Martin or Sylvia as the main character.
Friday's Kind Words: Whimsical Yet Adventurous Stories
I absolutely LOVE Sparkle Stories for my son. We started listening when he was 4½. His favorite series is Junkyard Tales ~Lisa
Sparkle Crafts: Paper Animal Ears
These paper animal ears make for some simple but fun costumes for kids, whether your little ones want to dress up as a wolf, rabbit, cat, or a creative imaginary creature! They'd make a great project to work on while you listen to one of our many Halloween audio stories.
Sparkle Kitchen: Tuna Cakes
Tuna cakes are our family’s ordinary-day substitute for fancy crab cakes. A can of tuna and an egg or two are pretty non-negotiable, but you can customize the rest depending on what you can scavenge from your own junkyard…er, refrigerator.
Meet Ben Thompson!
The adventures of Ben Thompson are often at the center of the Junkyard Tales stories. A clever and world-savvy cat, he is friend to all in the Junkyard. He is always ready to share an adventure or pull together a group for some community fun.
