001[music] Hello. Welcome to Calling All Kids. I'm your storyteller, Jennifer Temple. I'm so happy to have my friends at home watching as we read some holiday stories today. And guess what? I have a very special guest with me in the studio. Let's find out who's with me today. >> Um, my name is Maisie. >> Hi, Maisie. I'm so glad you came to join me today. We're going to have a lot of fun reading some holiday stories. Have you ever seen a nutcracker before? This is a nutcracker. And the couple of the stories we're going to read today have the nutcracker as the character. And guess what? The nutcracker comes to life. Isn't that kind of exciting? And do you know how a nutcracker works? Do you know how these work? So, if you have a
002nut and you're trying to crack it open, you open that. You take this handle in the back and open and see how his mouth goes down. You put the nut right in there and then you move it down and it cracks the nut in half so that you can eat it. Isn't that kind of cool? Great. So, we're gonna read a story about this a nutcracker that comes to life. Are you ready? Let's find out what this is all about. And I have some other smaller nutcrackers over here. All right. Our story is called My First Nutcracker. And it's written by ETA Hoffman. Eta are his initials. Are you ready to find out what happens in my first Nutcracker? Let's find out. Put on my glasses. All right. Here we go. You see the pictures?
003Okay. >> Great. On Christmas Eve long ago, two children peeked through a keyhole to watch their parents trim the tree. At last, the door opened. Clara and friends, come and see, their mother called. The tree sparkled from tip to trunk with delicious candy treats. Do you put candy on your tree at home? >> Um, no. Just ornaments and things. I like to hang candy canes on my tree. Okay. The tree sparkled from tip to trunk with delicious candy treats. Clara touched a sponge sugar fairy that winked in the candle light. Look at all the pretty things hanging. Soon after guests arrived for a grand Christmas party, merrynt filled the house. Suddenly, an old man wearing a cape as black as a raven's wings swept into the room. Children shrank back in fear. But not Clara.
004Godfather Drewzel Meyer, she cried. So it's her godfather. But he does look a little scary, doesn't he? With all his black on. But apparently he's not scary. The old man lifted her into his arms. Snow melted kisses on her cheeks. I have something for you. He handed her a wooden nutcracker. She looked at it. It looked like a wooden toy soldier. "He's wonderful," said Clara. "He's ugly," said Fritz. "He's full of surprises," said Godfather Dusmire. He showed the children how the doll would crack nuts between its teeth, just like I showed you at the beginning. "Let me try it." Fritz yanked the nutcracker from Clara's arms. crack. Its head hit the wall and the jaw broke in two. Oh no, Clara cried. You broke my toy. Godfather Drew dried Clara's tears with his handkerchief. Then
005he tied the cloth around the doll's head. He'll be fine by morning. She thinks she's feeling happier that he's going to be okay. The party ended. Parents bundled up their sleepy children and took them home. Clara tucked her nutcracker into a cradle beneath the tree and went to bed. When the house was still, Godfather Dusmile came back into the house. With gentle fingers, he untied the handkerchief and shook it out. The tears, remember, he waited Clara's tears with the handkerchief. He shook Clara's tears until the shimmering dust floated from the folds of the handkerchief. At midnight, "Let the magic begin," he whispered, and he vanished into the night. So, I wonder if he's a magician. Do you think he's a magician? We We'll see. Let's see if this is how he comes to life. As
006the clock hands inched toward midnight, Clara tiptoed down the stairs. She picked him up and lay beside him on the sofa. "I'll keep you safe," she whispered. She fell asleep just as the first bells chimed. Shadows stirred. Mice the size of men crept from the corners of the room. The mouse king led them on silent feet toward the nutcracker. Can you see their shadows here? Kind of look a little scary, don't you think? I wouldn't want to see giant mice the size of men. Suddenly, the Christmas [clears throat] tree blazed with light. Clara awoke. She saw the mice and screamed. The nutcracker's eyes flew open. He leaped up and drew his sword, leading his army of toy soldiers. The mice charged, sword splashing. The brave nutcracker cut them out one by one. Then he had
007to face the mouse king. Who do you think's going to win? The nutcracker or the king? >> Let's hope. Here he comes. The king pounced, GRABBING THE NUTCRACKER. NO. Clara threw her slipper at the mouse king's head. The king dropped the nutcracker. With a mighty thrust, the nutcracker buried his sword into the mouse king. The king fell to the floor and lay very still. It's kind of scary, isn't it? The nutcracker lifted the king's crown high above his head. The air shone from the moonlight when magic sparkled. Suddenly, a handsome young man stood there where the nutcracker had been. "What do you think happened?" "Who are you?" Clara said. "I am a prince. The mouse king imprisoned me in the body of the nutcracker." So, the prince was inside the nutcracker's body. Your godfather rescued
008me. Your kindness and bravery broke the evil spell. Is that exciting? Now he's free. He placed the crown on Clara's head. Magic swept over her, changing her night gown into a dress fit for a princess. At that moment, a gentle voice called to them from outside. Come, it beckoned. Clara and the prince stepped into the snowy night. A soft breeze swept through them and carried them far, far away. Do you think this is really happening, Maisie, or do you think it's a dream? >> It's a dream. >> You think it's a dream? Smart. It swept them to a magnificent castle. "Welcome," said a beautiful woman in the doorway. "I am the sugar plum fairy." Clara stared. It was the fairy from her tree. So standing at the top of the tree was this fairy. And
009around her were all the other candy decorations from the tree and they had come to life. The fairy smiled. We saw how you saved our prince. Come in and let us dance for you. Wouldn't that be neat if all the candy started dancing for us? Clara sat beside the prince on a marshmallow throne. musician struck up a melody that set her toes a tapping. The first dancer, chocolate, whirled onto the stage. He spun round faster and faster until he smooth seemed to melt into a rich brown puddle. Then sweet coffee floated in on a sea of frothy lace. Chinese tea followed, bobbing deep bows and boughs. having their own special show. Next, snappy red and white peppermints tumbled and leaped like puppies at play. Finally, Mother Ginger hurried in and out popped her children from
010underneath her billowing skirt. Can you imagine having children hiding under your skirt? Must be a really big skirt. The music turned as gentle as a lullabi. The sugar plum fairy led the nutcracker prince to the floor. Together they danced a dreamy duet. Clara's heart soared. She thought looked so beautiful. You see her over here looking. The prince returned to Clara's side. Daylight is near. It's time to go. They climbed into a crystal sleigh piled high with pillows. As they soared into the air, Clara fell fast asleep. Is she still dreaming? Sunlight warmed Clara's cheek. She awoke to find that her handsome prince was once again a nutcracker, but his jaw was no longer broken, and on his head she found a crown. Did everything end up happy at the end? And you think it was
011a dream? I wonder. Whoops. I think our friends at home probably think the same thing that it was a dream. What do you think? Good job, Maisie. I hope you enjoyed that story. Do you all know that the Nutcracker is actually a ballet that you can go and see the story? Have you seen the Nutcracker before? >> No. You can see it in Boston and many, many places around have the Nutcracker ballet for you to see. And it's usually playing at this time of the year. Kind of fun. And now you know what really happens in the story. Great. Do you think if we did some magic that our nutcrackers would come to life? That would be kind of fun, wouldn't it? As long as we don't have the the mean mice coming in. Good
012girl. All right, we're going to read another netcracker story that takes place in Harlem. Harlem is a place, a town in or a city inside New York. So, it's one of the towns in New York and it takes it's called The Nutcracker in Harlem. You ready to hear this s story? And let's see if this is similar to the one we just read or if it's a little bit different. I think you're going to find it's a little different. You ready? Okay. Let's see. And they're beautiful pictures in here. The Nutcracker in Harlem. And this is written by Te Mcro. Look at here's the city. Looks like it's snowing. It was snowing in Harlem on Christmas Eve. The party at Marie's house swirled with colors gold and red and green. Mama and Poppy were dancing.
013Miss Addie sang and Uncle Cab played the piano. Marie loved the sound of Christmas. Are all the people singing? Join in, Marie," Uncle Cab called out. Marie looked down. She wished she could sing, but Maria was afraid that she wasn't very good at it. Certainly not like Miss Addie and Uncle Cab. The song ended, and it was time for gifts. Everyone, Uncle Cab, every year, Uncle Cab would give Marie a doll and Freddy some toy soldiers. They were carved with a from a magical wood. Uncle Cab always said he handed Freddy his gift and then he gave one to Marie. Do you know what he what kind of doll he gave her? Do you think it's a nutcracker doll? Let's find out. Here it is. A nutcracker, said Marie. A drummer boy nutcracker. Dum diddy
014dum dum dum dum played the nutcracker on his drum. Uncle Cab sang a tune to the beat of the little drummer. The room again filled with song. Everyone in the house was singing or dancing. Everyone except Marie. Remember, she didn't think she was very good at singing or dancing, so she just stood there with her new toy. Miss Addie knelt next to Marie. "Will you sing with me, Marie?" she asked. Marie shook her head. "Maybe next time." Miss Addie said, "Music lives inside everyone. You just have to let it out. Do you like to sing, Maisie? Yeah. Good. After dinner, Marie took the nutcracker and a slice of sweet potato pie and sat by the Christmas tree. The lights were soft and twinkling. She lay down close and closed her eyes and fell asleep. Uh-oh.
015Do you think she's going to dream? Let's see if it's the same dream as our other book. Marie opened her eyes. The house had gone silent. Outside, it had stopped snowing. A full moon glowed in the sky, and the living room was filled with a ghostly white light. A rustling sound came from the top of the tree where Mama had hung her favorite ornaments, the glass birds. It was almost as if the blue glass bird was moving. It was the bird fluttered its wings and began to sing. Then the gold bird joined in. And the red one and the green one, too. Do your ornaments come to light, Maisie? When you hang them on the tree. Let's see what's going on. As the bird sang, the Christmas tree began to grow. It grew bigger and
016bigger until it towered over Marie. The ornaments, the presents, the dolls, and the soldiers grew too. Dum diddy dum dum dum de went the drum. The nutcracker played and played. The toy soldiers and dolls danced around the tree as the birds sang on. Crash! The music stopped. "Candy canes!" a voice squeaked. Marie turned. An army of mice, all in uniforms, were marching towards the tree. A g The mouse general was leading them. His chest was covered with shining metals. Candy canes, he repeated. Marzipan and chocolate charge. So they all were heading to the tree to get all the goodies hanging on the tree. Does Marie want them to eat her candies on the tree? Here they come. The nutcracker began to drum. Do you want to do that? Can you drum on your legs with
017me? Dum diddy dum diddy dum diddy dum went the nutcracker's drum. The toy soldiers lined up behind him. They marched toward the mouse army. One mouse turned and ran away. Then the entire army followed all except the general. So they were all running away. And the general, he's like the king in the other book, stayed and wanted to get his candy. I want sweet potato pie and candy. the general mouse shouted. He ran, jumped, and knocked the Nutcracker down. The drum fell to the ground. When the drumming stopped, so did the toy soldiers. The mouse army advanced again. So, they're brave now, and they're all coming back. Charge, the mouse general commanded. What could Marie do? So, her poor nutcrackers laying down. Here comes the mice. She's like, "What can I do? How can I
018help?" She picked up the drum and put the strap around her neck and she began to drum. Want to help me drum? Dum diddy dum diddy dum diddy dum. The mouse arm stopped. Turn. And ran away. The general glared, but Marie kept drumming until he too fled away. And they all turned back to mice and ran back. As the mice ran, they began to shrink, getting smaller and smaller. The toy soldiers chased the mice through a hole in the wall and out into the snow. The glass birds sang as the soldiers returned. Marie joined the nutcracker in a dance. They swirled around and around. They seemed to be on a cloud. It started to snow, but it wasn't even cold. Maria closed her eyes and began to sing. Do you think as she feels comfortable
019now I can sing? Marie, Marie, wake up. She opened her eyes. It was morning. Did I miss Christmas? Marie asked. Of course not, darling. Mama said. So, do you think this proves that she was dreaming with all that going on? I think you're right, Maisy. Under the tree were Marie's dolls, the Nutcracker, and something else, a drum. She picked up the drumsticks. Dum diddy dum dum dum diddy dum. Very good, said Uncle Cab. He began to sing a Christmas song. Mama and Poppy and Miss Addie all joined in. And so did Marie. Do you think they were surprised to hear her singing? Yeah. So, that was a Nutcracker in Harlem. That was a little different than the first one we read, wasn't it? Did you enjoy it? Good girl. You're doing so great. Are you
020ready to hear a story that I read to my kids every year? And even now, they're all grown up and it's a it's actually a poem that they made into a book. Isn't that kind of cool? and it's been around for years and children and parents and all kinds of people have been reading this for many years. Are you ready to read and find out? Okay, this is our last story today. You're doing an amazing job, Naisy. Thank you. And all our friends at home, I hope you're enjoying our stories as well. So, this is called The Night Before Christmas. And you know who this is on the cover? >> Santa. And Santa's wearing quite an interesting hat, isn't he? It's a special kind of hat that they used to wear many, many years ago
021when you're a pilot. And Santa's sleigh, does it have a roof on his head? The sleigh? No. It's all open, isn't it? So, he needs to wear something to protect his head. And then he has to wear goggles to keep him safe. So, let's read The Night Before Christmas. And it's written by Clement C. Moore. And it's actually a poem. So, you're going to hear a lot of rhyming words. You ready? And I bet you may have heard this before, but it's a fun story to read as we close out our time together. It was the night before Christmas. It went all through the house. Not a creature was stirring, not even a mouse. The stockings were hung by the chimney with Clare in hopes that St. Nicholas soon would be there. Do you know
022that Santa is sometimes called St. Nicholas? Yeah, he has different names. Do you have a nickname besides Maisie? No. The children were nestled all snug in their beds with visions of sugar plums dancing in their head. And m her kirchief and I and my cap had just settled our brains for a long winter's nap. They look like they're so excited, aren't they? They can't wait for the next day, Christmas. When out on the lawn there arose such a clatter. I sprang from the bed to see what was the matter. Away to the window I flew like a flash, tore open the shutters, and threw up the sash. He's like, "What's going on? Who's out in the lawn?" The moon on the breast of the new fallen snow gave a luster of midday to the objects
023below. When what to my wondering eye should appear but a miniature sleigh and eight tiny reindeer. Do you know a name of one of Santa's reindeers? >> Um, >> let's see. Can you think of one? Who's the one with the big red nose? >> Yes, Rudolph. Let's see if he has Rudolph traveling because usually he uses Rudolph when it's a foggy night. So, let's see if Rudolph is here. Okay, make sure. With a little old driver so lively and quick, I knew in a moment it must be Saint Nick, more rapid than eagles, his courses they came. And he whistled and shouted and called them by name. Let's see if we can see Rudolph here. Now Dasher, now Dancer, now Prancer and Vixen, on Comet, on Cubit, on Donner and Blitzen. So no Rudolph, so
024it must be a clear night. They need Rudolph with his red nose when it's cloudy out or foggy. To the top of the porch. To the top of the wall. Now dash away, dash away, dash away all. And look at Santa's sleigh. That's kind of cool, isn't it? Almost looks like a rocket ship. Wow. Fancy. As dry leaves before the wild hurricane fly, when they meet with an obstacle, mount to the sky. So up to the housetop the courses they flew with a sleigh full of toys and St. Nicholas too. Now do you see the cool things? These are all the instruments on his sleigh. Over here I thought this is really cool. Maisy if he gets thirsty at night or when he's driving if he wants some coffee or hot chocolate or milk he
025just pushes a button and he gets a cup. Isn't that a cool Do you have that in your car? I wish I had one of those in my car. And in here you see all the straps. They're each attached to one of the reindeer. So if he wants to have Dasher slow down, he pulls Dasher's rain and pulls it in. Isn't that cool? Look at all those fun things. And then in a twinkling, I heard on the roof the prancing and pawing of each little hoof. As I drew in my head and was turning around, down the chimney, St. Nicholas came with a bound. Who else did he bring with him besides his reindeer? Who do you think those little people are? >> Um, the nutcrackers. >> Yeah, they could be nutcrackers. Yeah. Do you
026think maybe they're his elves and nutcrackers all helping him out? I never thought he brought anyone with him, but I guess it's a big job. He needs some helpers, doesn't he? Look, here they all are. He was dressed all in fur from his head to his foot, and his clothes were all tarnished with ashes and soot. a bundle of toys he had flung on his back and he looked like a peddler just opening his sack. So they're vacuuming all the all the tarnish and soot off of him from coming down the chimney. It's dirty in a chimney. His eyes how they twinkled. His dimples how merry. His cheeks were like roses. His nose like a cherry. His droll little mouth was drawn up like a bow. And the beard of his chin was as white
027as the snow. This is one of my favorite pictures. Do you think he likes a little ornament of Santa? He's like, "Oh, they're hanging me on the tree." The stump of a pipe he held tight in his teeth, and the smoke it encircled his head like a wreath. He had a broad face and a little round belly that shook when he laughed like a bowl full of jelly. Ho ho ho. He was chubby and plump, a jolly old elf. And I laughed when I saw him in spite of myself. A wink of his eye and a twist of his head soon gave me to know I had nothing to dread. So the dad didn't think, "Oh, this isn't someone robbing my house. This is really Santa, so I don't have to worry about him." He
028spoke not a word and went straight to his work and filled all the stockings. then turned with a jerk and laying his finger aside his nose and giving a nod up the chimney he arose. I wonder if we try that if we'll be able to go up the chimney. Do you think that will work for us? I don't think so either. Maisy, you're right. He sprang to his sleigh. To his team gave a whistle and away they all flew like the down of a thistle. But I heard him exclaim or he drove out of sight. Look at that super cool sleigh. What do you think he said? Merry Christmas to all and to all a good night. I like to say happy holidays or happy Hanukkah and merry Christmas. Say every all of the different
029holidays, right? And to all a good night. Have you heard that story before, Maisie? No. I'm so glad then you enjoyed it today. And Maisie and I want to wish all our friends that are watching at home happy holidays. We wish you happy Hanukkah, merry Christmas, happy Quanza, and then a wonderful happy new year. And are you excited about a special gift that you want to get for your holidays? What is something you're hoping you'll get, Maisie? >> You know, I'm putting you on the spot here. Special toy. >> A microphone. Oh, a microphone. I like it. So, you can practice singing in it. [laughter] Great. Well, Maisie, thank you so much for joining us today. And can we say thank you to all our friends for watching? We hope everyone has happy holidays and
030happy new year. And thank you for watching. Can we wave goodbye? Goodbye everybody. Thanks for joining us. Daisy, you were amazing. [music] >> [music] [music]