Nanna’s Button Tin

About

Nanna’s button tin is very special. It has buttons of all shapes and sizes and they each have a different story to tell. But today, one button in particular is needed. A button for teddy. A beautiful story about memories and the stories that shape a family.

Reviews

‘My 4 year old grandson loves this book. I had to round up buttons so he could put them in a box and we made up stories about them! This book reminds me of my Nana and my mother so it was heartwarming to read it to him and have him enjoy it!’ – Steph, Amazon

‘There are so many things to look at in the background that adults and children alike will love this book. It’s like a printed hug!’ – Bookseller’s New Zealand Blog

‘The story is heartwarming …  I found myself wanting to create a similar tin of memories for my daughter and I to share.’ – Babies to Bookworms

‘It is a wonderful book to read with one’s loved ones, and is sure to evoke beautiful memories, or perhaps even inspire new traditions, keeping alive family moments to treasure forever. Created with love and warmth, Nanna’s Button Tin is unsurprisingly a 2018 CBCA Notable Book for the Early Childhood category.’ – Ahmad Zabri, StoryLinks

Stories about family togetherness are very important in the life of a child. They reinforce family experiences and loving relationships, and when they are as warmly portrayed as those in this book, they become keepsakes. Books + Publishing

Background

My grandmothers were skilled sewers and they both had beautiful button tins. When I was a young girl, I loved shaking those tins, then I would tip out the buttons, sorting shapes and colours to make patterns and pictures and choose my favourites. Some buttons held precious memories; from a velvet party dress or a bear-shaped button from a cardigan. Memories of those button tins inspired this story about a girl and her nanna looking for a very special button.

Since the launch of Nanna’s Button Tin in 2017, I have shown my button tins and childhood friend, Eeyore, to students across Australia. I also love sharing button craft with readers. See the activity ideas below …

Teaching Ideas

Buttons are so much fun. You can sort them into shapes and colours. You can thread buttons to make a necklace, sew them onto your favourite jumper or glue them onto the cover of a workbook. What about PVA gluing a button onto a piece of card and then making it into something, like the children above? You could create a monster, the wheel of a tractor, a ladybird or a rocket button to blast off. Now write a sentence or a story about your picture. When you have finished, you could start your own button collection! If you don’t have a tin, glass jars work really well. I’d love to see your button collections and craft projects. Why not send me a photo …  Click here for more fun teaching ideas.

Behind the Scenes:

Images from Heather Potter’s notebooks

Heather has kindly given me photocopies of 15 pages from her sketchpads showing the development of characters as well as page design and storyboard details. These pages are now laminated ready for sharing with students during school visits.