Kids Share Books

*The links below are to some of our larger workshops.

**All of our books are free to read as PDF books.

************************

Africa

2017 Kids Share Zambia Workshop 

The Kids Share Zambia book was made for the child and community who created the book with us. 

Follow the journey of school children living in rural Zambia, with Kids Share Workshops and World Vision. Learn about their dreams for a better future, and how they travel far for education and for their families who struggle to give them everything they can. And the girls and young women who safely want to grow into strong women and choose their own future. I am Zambian, Who Am I?

Title: Kids Share Zambia: I Am Zambian-Who Am I? Authored by the Children and teens at the Bimbe Primary School and Home of Hope, at World Vision Zambia’s area development projects. 

In developing countries, education is not a given right, but a privilege for those who can afford it. In these cases, families are selling what little they have to keep their children in school and often can’t continue their education. In addition, children have a lot of chores in the early morning hours, walk far distances to school, are often hungry and worry about drought. By night, children try to study and read by candlelight because electricity is too expensive. Yet astonishingly, they often give the biggest smiles with warm hearts. Through native songs and dance, children find solace in a very challenging childhood…

United States of America

2015 Kids Share Newtown Totems Workshop

(No book was published but you can read the PDF stories!)

EagleHeart (large)Please enjoy reading the PDF file below of the children’s storytelling. After completing her/his personal illustration, each child took 15-30 minutes to write about a Native American Totem, Zodiac Animal. This simple and fun storytelling exercise connected the children to a totem through a cognitive awareness writing process. Next, each child enjoyed the opportunity to read their unique story to the group. Please take a look at Newtown Totem Stories

2013 Kids Share Newtown Workshop

Click Here to Read the PDF Book!

Title: Kids Share Newtown: Adventures in Time Travel And Other Amazing Stories!

8.5″ x 11″ (21.59 x 27.94 cm) 

Welcome to Newtown, Connecticut, as seen through the eyes of its children. It is a place with a flagpole in the middle of Main Street, and two-dollar movies at the old town hall. It is a place of afternoon sports practice, dance and music lessons, Scout meetings and play dates, and weekends filled with baseball games, Sunday school and hikes in wooded parks. It is a place where the start of summer is marked by the reopening of the local ice cream stand, where autumn means apple-picking and hay mazes, and where winter brings historic homes alive with dazzling lights. It is a place of wonder, of joy, of belonging and of promise…

The Americas-Central

2012 Kids Share in Costa Rica, Oregon & Vermont Workshop  

(No book was published.)

Thanks to the support of Partners of the Americas volunteers, travel grants and Green Mountain Coffee Roasters traveling funding, Kids Share Workshops was able to reach over 200 children in Costa Rica, Oregon, and Vermont!

With tremendous volunteer support from the Costa Rica Partners and Oregon, many children were able to experience paper art therapy and how to beautify recycled material. Although this was not our typical bookmaking workshop but a shortened art therapy program, we hope to return to a couple of Partners of the America’s communities in both Oregon and Costa Rica and spend up to two weeks focusing on creating a book together.

2011 Kids Share in Guatemala & Vermont Workshop  

(No book was published.)

Thanks to the support of Partners of the Americas Guatemala chapter leaders and travel grants, Kids Share Workshops was able to reach a small community in Panajachel located on Lake Atitlan. Although this smaller workshop was not supported by Partners of the Americas volunteers, a connection was made with the Guatemala City Chapter.

With volunteer support from the Guatemalan Partners, our team was able to learn more about the many programs supported by Guatemalan volunteers. Kristina and her children enjoyed living with a host family in Guatemala city while meeting with the chapter board members and discussing future two weeks, Book Making Workshop locations.

2009-2010 Kids Share in Nicaragua & Vermont  Workshop 

(Click here to read this book!)

Kids Share San Ramon, Nicaragua and Vermont, United States of America: Cross Cultural-Book Building by [Nicaragua-Vermont, The Children of]

Kids Share San Ramon, Nicaragua and Vermont, United States of America: From North America to Central America, Awakening the artist and author inside …
(Volume 2) (English and Spanish Edition)
Nov 22, 2013, by El Roblar, Nicaragua, The Children Living in Vermont, U.S.A. and El Roblar, Nicaragua and Montpelier, Vermont, The Children of…

South Asia

 2008 Kids Share in India & Vermont  

(Click here to read this book!)

Kids Share Tibetan Children's Villages and Vermont, United States of America: Cross Cultural Sharing through Book-Building by [Children, Vermont Tibetan]8.5″ x 11″ (21.59 x 27.94 cm) 

Have fun exploring the first book in our Kids Share Workshops series, as we bring children living in rural India together with those living in the U.S. through an exchange of art and ideas! Here kids from both cultures share a bit of their lives, dreams and the things they care about. During the 2008-2009 school year, Kids Share Workshops and Publishing Inc. (KSWP) visited schools in Montpelier and Waterbury, Vermont, while also sending a workshop package to the Tibetan Children’s Village in Bylakuppe, India. In each location, kids created visual art.

Project Experience

Please contact Kristina for more details: kristina.kidsshare@gmail.com

Saffron from the SnapVille Family

SnapVille Family was created by Kids Share Workshops and founder Kristina Applegate in January 2019. She wanted to find a way to reach children through emoji characters that have facial recognition, allowing one to animate their own character. Kristina saw through her own children, how simple character interactive exchanges with friends and family had a very healing ability and, bringing the child and parent together in the new world!

Kristina’s motivation came from trying to communicate with her 14-year-old son and 16-year-old daughter. She quickly created Saffron from the SnapVille Family who is a Saugy, not a hot dog. And her entrepreneurial spirit saw a way to communicate with her children!

Many parents who are not tech savvy, can find it difficult to communicate with their children due to the gap of communication growing with technology. Currently, Kristina is using SnapChat characters to hopefully change that. The goal is to make it fun for parents and children to share short stories as a means of feeling better and happier.

*Until we have 100 subscribers here is our long Youtube address: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC5viHz9WNoOFN4Y7l-GQNxA/featured?view_as=subscriber

Illustrative Work

Clients have included; Tibetan Children’s Villages in Bylakuppe, India, Central Vermont Schools, USA, Portland, Oregon, USA,  San Ramon and El Roblar Nicaraguan (coffee communities), Panajachel Guatemala primary school, Eastern and Western Costa Rica (coffee communities), an ongoing partnership with the community of Newtown, Connecticut, and most recently, Chongwe, Zambia, Africa

Project Experience

2016-2018 Kids Share Workshops taught at the Bimbe Primary School and the Home of Hope, a safe house for young women in child protection. Our team was carefully screened to work with vulnerable children. We reached over 150 children. Kids Share was a Master Vendor with World Vision USA and Zambia.

Positive Feedback

Please scroll down and read quotes from; Organizations, Parents, Phycologist/Social Workers, and Team Leaders/Consultants.

World Vision USA & Zambia

Rahsaan Graham, Senior Director for Child Protection and Education with World Vision USA

September 16, 2017, “This was the first time World Vision has partnered with another organization like Kids Share Workshops in our education and development work. It was a great opportunity and we wanted to look at Kids Share’s programming to make sure it was technically sound. I partnered with colleagues in World Vision from our Child Protection Sector, Education Sector, our Psycho-Social Sector, Psycho-Emotional Development Sectors, and Youth Workforce Development. And they all looked at the Kids Share curriculum and we decided this was a great opportunity for us to really focus and work with them.

We looked closely at their social and emotional aspects of learning, the self-awareness that children have, to manage their feelings, motivation, empathy and even their social skills, and we saw that Kids Share’s curriculum fit right in the middle of the work that we were doing. We have built it into our first module in our Youth Ready work, Module One, Who am I? And who are we?

So, in our partnering with the two Zambian communities at the Bimbe Primary School and the Home of Hope, the Kids Share work has been a tremendous fit.

International Team Leaders & Board of Directors/Consultants

Kathy Chattoraj

Kathy Chattoraj

Artist, Owner Operator Future Picassos

January 3, 2019, Kristina worked with Kathy in the same group

I had the pleasure of working directly with Kristina on the Kids Share Zambia project. It was a pure joy to be a part of such gifted and talented team. Kristina’s professional leadership skills as well as detailed organizational skills made working together seamless and what seemed to be effortless. Kristina has endless amounts of Energy as well as an amazing and creative ideas. Working on any project with Kristina is a true gift and I look forward to the next time we can share another amazing Workshop together. See less

Kris Shonk Pfeifer

Kris Shonk Pfeifer

Graphic Designer specializing in creative design services and solutions

July 21, 2018, Kris reported directly to Kristina

Creative. Charismatic. Caring. Calm under pressure. That’s Kristina of Novaturient Workshops in a nutshell. I recently worked as part of the Kids Share Workshop Zambia team, on Kristina’s collaboration with World Vision. Kristina worked diligently to find World Vision USA as a partner to provide resources and a new location for Kids Share’s book-building workshop- with school children in Zambia. Kristina put together a creative, hard-working and dedicated team, that under her leadership, presented a workshop that enriched the lives of children who had never experienced a workshop like this, much less had art supplies at their disposal and a book to call their own. The book, which the students wrote and illustrated, tells their story – empowering them by giving them a creative outlet and a voice to share with others. Kristina wrote the curriculum for the workshop, worked graciously and professionally with World Vision to include them in her process and progress, and traveled with her team to Zambia to lead the program, and again to bring the students their published books and celebrate their achievements. I was fortunate to serve as art director and book designer for Kids Share Zambia, and Kristina was a dream to work with – inspiring, punctual, accessible and helpful, while giving me creative freedom to do my part in the project. Her personal artwork (Kristina is also a talented professional fine artist) which she created collaboratively through a storytelling brainstorming and art directing session with the students, added a beautiful touch to the book, and offered yet another creative teaching moment to the students. I very much enjoyed and was honored to be a part of this feel-good, empowering workshop for Kids Share Zambia. I hope to be able to work with Kristina again on her future projects. She is both a leader and an excellent team player, and I know she will be successful, and will continue to touch others with her passion and vision.
Pamela Getsie

Pamela Getsie

Director, Enrollment Services at Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Vermont

April 20, 2015, Kristina worked with Pamela in the same group

Kristina conducts herself personally and professionally with utmost integrity and compassion. She excels in public relations, rooted in her deep commitment to her vision. She attracts and retains volunteers, motivated by her limitless energy and empowering, respectful leadership. If you are looking to partner with a talented artist and highly effective businesswoman, I recommend Kristina Applegate with great confidence.

Lorena Frias, Partners of the Americas-Costa Rica

February 23, 2012, I appreciate immensely the wonderful opportunity I was given through Kristina and Kids Share Workshops to participate in the GMCR Kids Share workshops, representing Sister Schools. I was impressed by GMCR’s staff, their warmth and inspiration, CRn schools, staff and students, their discipline, dedication, and joy, as well as Kristina’s expertise and gift for bringing all of us together. Keep up the good work!

Phycologist & Social Workers

Keith Storace, Psychologist in Melbourne Australia

October 23, 2014, “Kids Share Workshops’ mission to inspire self-expression in children echoes my personal and professional commitment to encourage a child’s healthy sense of self in the context of connecting with the community. My interest in contributing to Kids Share Workshops stems from my chosen area of work that emphasizes the importance and impact of the child’s interpretation and belief about their environment and that art can be a welcomed catalyst for change within that environment.”

Kian F Jacobs, LCSW

Kian F Jacobs, LCSW

Psychotherapist/private practice at Kian F Jacobs, LCSW

January 21, 2014, Kristina worked with Kian F in the same group

Kristina had more energy than the 30+ Newtown children in the room. It was a fun experience, artistic, creative, sensitive, multi media and best of all curative for all involved. I would recommend Kristina for art work with children, especially since this form of expression has been diminished over the years in the standard academic system.

Mary Pellicci Hamilton

Mary Pellicci Hamilton

Harvard Global Mental Health: Trauma and Recovery Certificate Program

January 17, 2014, Kristina worked with Mary in the same group

Kristina brought not only her skillful artistic expertise to a grieving community, she also provided incredible compassion and grounding to the participants and their families. The children’s expressive smiles and excitement can be seen captured through the amazing photography by Keane Photography. The paper-art making process was healing on multiple levels and allowed the children to recreate order from chaos.The written story narration empowered the children with themes of superhero abilities and majestic power and control. KSW was embraced by the families and Newtown community. A win win for all!
Newtown/Sandy Hook Workshops (Two Year Workshops)

Juan Miguel Rizo

Juan Miguel Rizo

Looking for new job opportunities

January 14, 2014, Kristina worked with Juan Miguel in the same group

“Kristina was enthusiastic to bring Kids Share Workshops into our rural El Roblar, San Ramon, Nicaragua community in order to bring a writing and art therapy workshop to the children. The children of this community have little access to the arts and few own their own books. At the time Kristina did not know any Spanish but was able to work well despite this handicap. As her part time interpreter I placed Kristina with a coffee farming family where she lived for several weeks while teaching. I would recommend Kristina to work with rural families in Latin America because she is passionate about creating a better future for our children and values cross cultural connections between countries.”

Lauren Lee

Lauren Lee

Professional Writer and Editor | Animal Advocate & Rescuer | Freelance Article & Pet Content Writer

January 10, 2014, Lauren reported directly to Kristina

Kristina is not only a talented artist, but a true leader with a unique vision for bringing about positive change and healing through the creative arts. She is able to inspire others and lead in such a way as to bring out the natural talents unique to each person she reaches, whether it be a coworker, volunteer or workshop participant. Kristina has a natural, gifted way of dealing with children, which makes the workshops she leads a comfortable environment for children to share, grow, and gain confidence in their strengths. In this same way, she empowers parents, volunteers, and her co-directors to embrace their strengths and build on them.

Jennifer Ponte Canning

Jennifer Ponte Canning

Accomplished, versatile writer with digital design skills and experience across industries, channels and business areas.

January 8, 2014, Jennifer reported directly to Kristina

Kristina is an immensely talented artist and a tireless visionary who continually inspires those around her. Her energy and enthusiasm are irrepressible and infectious, her warmth genuine, and her ideas original. In addition to her outstanding work as an illustrator and portrait artist, Kristina founded a nonprofit, cross-cultural arts program that helps children express themselves through stories and illustrations, which are ultimately published in book form. Thanks to her leadership, Kids Share Workshops has grown from one woman’s dream into a strong team effort that continues to expand its reach worldwide. To know Kristina is to know that nothing can stop her from pursuing her passions. She is a remarkable person who makes good things happen. I am proud to call her my friend and colleague.

Kris Shonk Pfeifer

Kris Shonk Pfeifer

Graphic Designer specializing in creative design services and solutions

January 8, 2014, Kristina worked with Kris in the same group

I had the pleasure of working with Kristina as a volunteer for the Newtown Kids Share Workshop. Kristina brings enthusiasm, compassion, and creative talent to all that she does. She was able to manage and direct a large group of volunteers effectively, maintain a fun, positive, stimulating atmosphere for both students and volunteers, and provide an enriching educational experience through the well-planned curriculum. She is a strong leader and manager who is always willing to listen and problem solve, and works well in a team. Kristina is a highly skilled illustrator who amazes and delights with her work! I am confident she can be a success with what she puts her mind to next!

Patty Short

Patty Short

Non-profit expertise

January 7, 2014, Kristina worked with Patty in the same group

Kristina is a true visionary. Through her leadership, creative inspiration and determination, she founded Kids Share Workshops and Publishing, a non-profit that inspires children to share their lives through art and writing. Kristina touches the lives of all she meets with her inspired creativity, focus, quick wit, kindness and compassion.

Quotes from Parents:

April 16, 2015, My little man is super-duper excited about doing Kids Share Workshop for the second time. He loved, loved it the first time 2 years ago. So, the second time around would be even better. What a great way express creativity through art. This Kids Share Workshop starting end of this March is going to be awesome and a great way to Reduce, Reuse, Recycle and make it NEW!!!!”-Mai Tran

“The girls and I are so excited to be a part of yet another amazing Kids Share Workshop next week!!!”-Beth Gallagher Hegarty

“Super Excited to be working with these amazing Ladies Next week! Thank you, Kristina Applegate,!”-Kathy Gramolini, 3rd Grade Teacher 

“What a great bunch of kids, volunteers, teachers, mothers…I was only there one day but WOW what an experience. You go, girls…changing the world!” –Brenda Berda

WOW!!!! Omg, the stories were amazing!!!! What an awesome job on the art and stories the kiddos did. Love, love it!!!! –Mai Tran

Amazing experience for all!!! Keep up the good work Kristina!-Beth Gallagher Hegarty

April 21, 2013, “Kids Share Workshop is awesome and brings out the creativity of the mind, the kids love loved it!”-Newtown Parent

[It was] an opportunity for my son to express himself and [to] heal.”-Sandy Hook Parent

“After the events that occurred here, I thought it would be wonderful for my child to write and put her thoughts elsewhere.”-Sandy Hook Parent

“[It offered] an excellent creative outlet.”-Sandy Hook Parent

“Team building!”-Newtown Parent

“My child had so much fun.  She was excited every day to go!”

“It was an amazing opportunity to expand your imagination and creativity.”  ~Participant

“Loved, loved, loved them [the activities].  Loved the imaginative stories and activities that corresponded with them!”

“The Kids Share team are superheroes!”

“Word cannot express the Kids Share leaders. They became our family.”

“[They were] compassionate, sensitive, and understanding.”

“The friendships we still have after the workshop!”

“Getting [the opportunity] to work together was very healing.”

Please read about us in The Newtown Bee!

 

Consultants

The Kids Share Workshops are taught by professionals, in most cases are 50% in the field and 50% using an online classroom platform.

Independent Consultants

Film-making Non-for-Profit

From the Heart Productions

From the Heart Productions is based in Oxnard, California was founded by Carole Dean. Carole has an extraordinary film production past, with impressive connections in the film industry, that has lead to her success in giving back in a big way! Please visit her organization’s page to learn why we are so honored to have teamed up with From the Heart Productions!

Home

Our mission at From the Heart Productions Inc, a 501(c) non-profit, is helping indie filmmakers get film funding.  We do that through our Roy W. Dean Grant, our Fiscal Sponsorship Program, and the Intentional Filmmaking Class.   Since 1993, we’ve assisted hundreds of documentary, feature, short films, and web series in getting funded.

Film Maker and Photographer

Wari Om

Wari Om, film-maker and photographer joined our team in 2016 working with Kids Share Zambia. His work has made it into the big screen and has been awarded by some film festivals, more recently Mantra – Sounds into Silence, premiered 2017 at The Rubin Museum of Art, NYC.

His work and love for yoga often take him back to India, among other Asian countries. Wari also runs the Omshanti Yoga Studio with his two siblings, and together they also organize the annual Barcelona Yoga Conference, one of Europe’s biggest Yoga festivals with presenters and participants from all over the world.

Wari’s work with Kids Share Zambia, brought his expertise in film-making, producing an outstanding film trailer and 42 length documentary film, which was executed outside of Lusaka and the Lower Zambezi in Zambia. In addition, he filmed and directed Sophie Beem’s GLOW video, which was produced during a Kids Share Zambia workshop celebration. GLOW: https://youtu.be/BOQa8dueqBY

We value his expertise in the field and direction when on location. When not filming Yoga practice worldwide, we look forward to continuing our work with Wari documenting projects around the globe with other organizations!

Development of Government Grant Capturing

Federal Capture

President / CEO, Mr. Daniel Ganz is a senior executive with 20 years of experience designing, winning, managing, and implementing USG and non-US funded programs in the United States, Latin and Central America, Eastern Europe, the Middle East, Africa, and Central Asia.

Throughout his business development career, he has created rigorous processes and systems that helped clients protect its core contracts and expand into new global and domestic markets.

In 2017, Dan became a member of the Board of Trustees for The Fund for Peace,  a US non-profit, non-governmental research and educational institution. Founded in 1957, FFP “works to prevent violent conflict and promote sustainable security.”

Federal Capture is actively on standby to consult with Kristina Applegate in helping to secure new funding with interested non-profits wanting to develop a Kids Share Workshops. Dan has been a key advisor in guiding Kristina’s consultant team in the process of capturing funding through the US government.

Community Engagement Director, Operations Director 

Kristina Applegate

Kristina has twenty-two years of business development and management experience, including over ten years of creative workshop, curriculum development.  She has contract experience with small and large non-profits, in developing and monitoring teams designed for various creative workshops. Specifically focused on international and domestic funding for projects that increase young peoples’ and underserved populations’ access to information and civic dialogue via cultural gatherings, community events, and creative workshops. 

Kristina has implemented initiatives such as; cross-cultural awareness in rural coffee farming and education, poverty issues, environmental issues, cultural issues between the eastern and the western hemisphere and child protection. Kristina also worked with the Newtown/Sandy Hook community after the 2012 school shooting, using the art of expression to better support children, parents, and teachers in the healing process from the traumatic events. In 2017 Kristina directed a short and long featured documentary film in Zambia, with the support of USAID and World Vision. In 2018 her films were recognized in two film festivals; InShort Films out of Nigeria and Universal Film Festival in the USA. In 2010 Kids Share Workshops was awarded, cross-cultural awareness by the United States Board on Books for Young Readers (USBBY) in Washington DC, where the Kids Share Vermont to Tibet resides in the Library of Congress. 

Co-Operations Director

William Tapley

Will.SeaCaptainWilliam Tapley trained at RADA. He grew up in Australia and England, finishing schooling in America. He served ten years of military service with the world’s second oldest regiment: the Honourable Artillery Company in the City of London. He represented the regiment in rugby and cricket and was a regular national medalist in competitive combat shooting, cross-country skiing and biathlon (ski & shoot).

William represented Britain in the 1996 Camel Trophy (off-road driving), making the first ever motorized crossing of the Borneo jungle. Played rugby (clubs have included London Wasps and Harlequins), rides motorbikes, sails yachts (won the 1999 Presidents Cup in Fiji) and drives cars across deserts for charity. He sings in a jazz band in his spare time. And has frequented 47 countries. His acting career landed him in; Band of Brothers, Second in Command, The Secret Agent, Stormbreaker, The Contract, V for Vendetta among others, and most recently was seen in the Netflix Original, The Crown (TV Series).

William is married to Kristina Applegate. They have a mutual love of travel, and mission to help spread social activism through creative storytelling, using film-making, and photography as the main tool. William helps manage and monitor projects in some of the toughest locations.

Creative Workshop Development Director

Kathy Chattoraj

kathywariarrivingzambiaFounder of Future Picasso joined Kristina’s team, with the Kids Share Zambia workshop in 2016-2018. She is an excellent creative program director and instructor. Kathy teaches daily with students living in Greenwich, CT. Her innovative and problem-solving teaching skills are outstanding!

We value her management ability as a business owner. When not teaching for Future Picasso’s, Kathy assists with development in art-related projects with Kristina.

Graphic Design Consultant

Kris Shonk Pfeifer

Graphic Design Professional at Pfeifer Design

Kris has been designing logos and book designs for Kristina’s Workshops since 2010. More recently in 2013, Kids Share Newtown book design and 2018 Kids Share Zambia book design.

Filmmaking

Below are films created by Wari Om and some directed by Kristina Applegate. We also have our original KSW trailers below!

We LOVE our original Kids Share Workshops trailers by Matt Dec at Creative Difference!

Wari filmed and directed Sophie Beem’s GLOW video, along with the others below, which was produced during a Kids Share Zambia workshop celebration. GLOW was created for the children and community working with Kids Share Zambia and, was shared during our final celebration when books and artwork were handed out to all participants and, community leaders.

The Luso Dancers above were filmed while on location with Kids Share Zambia. Below founder Kristina Applegate filmed while Wari was creating the video.

About

“One child has the potential to empower and positively change their community, country, and the world!”

The Mission of Kids Share Workshops since 2008 has always been to inspire and empower youth by working cross-culturally together, sharing his/her lives and communities through filmmaking, creative art, and writing workshops. This results in a documentary film and published a book for each participant to have as an inspiration to the power within!

Kristina Applegate, Kids Share Workshops

Is a woman-owned, small business; focusing on creative workshop development with other non-profits, through team building. Active recruitment of team leader professionals who lead young people in the creative arts. The focus is on the arts (cultural affairs), education and humanities. 

“Man cannot discover new oceans unless he has the courage to lose sight of the shore.” -Andre Gide

Photographs by Wari Om and Logo by Pfeifer Design