On-sale: May 10, 2014
Title: Springtime Dance
Price: $16.99
Contact: Valerie Smalkin
410.458.3326
Book Launching!
Maryland Zoo in Baltimore
Train Plaza
May 10, 2014
11:00 AM to 3:30 PM
with shows at
11:30 AM, 1:00, and 2:00 PM
Date:"May"10,"2014,"International"Migratory"Bird"Day"
Location:"Maryland"Zoo"in"Baltimore"
Link:,http://www.marylandzoo.org/event/international@migratory@bird@day/,
Author:"Valerie"Leonhart"Smalkin"
Illustrator:"Kimberly"Hopkins"
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About&the&Book&Launching&Event&
On!May!10,!2014!author!Valerie&Leonhart&Smalkin&and!illustrator!Kimberly&
Hopkins&will!launch!their!new!book!&!CD,!Springtime*Dance,!at!the!Maryland!Zoo’s!
Migratory!Bird!Day!Event.!From&11:00&AM&to&3:00&PM!Val!and!Kim!will!be!available!in!
the!Train!Plaza!to!sign!preKorder!CD!and!bookmark!gifts,!and!to!take!information!for!
personally!signed!copies!of!the!book!which!will!be!mailed!(free)!on!May!25,!2014.!The!
32Kpage,!fullKcolor,!offset!printed,!hardcover!book!with!CD!will!be!available!for!$16.99.!
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The!Maryland&Zoo!will!offer!ageKappropriate!educational!
programming!focusing!upon!local!migratory!birds.!!At!
11:30!AM,!1:00!PM,!and!2:00!PM!in!the!Zoo’s!Train!Plaza!
(or!the!Meeting!Barn!should!it!rain)&Silly&Goose&&&Val!
Smalkin&will!delight!children!and!adults!with!3!oneKhalf!
hour!programs!of!ventriloquism,!comedy,!singKalong!(and!
danceKalong)!songs!designed!for!2!to!12!year!old!children!
and!their!parents.!Featured,!of!course,!will!be!the!song!
Springtime*Dance,&the!basis!for!the!book!&!CD!package.!!
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Reviews&
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“Springtime*Dance!is!hummin’,!peepin’,!growin’,!squirmin’,!and!nestin’!
Refreshing!Cadence!for!a!Spring!Day!
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“Join!seasoned!musician!Valerie!Smalkin!on!a!childhood!adventure!of!prose!
and!song!in!newly!released!book/CD!combo,!Springtime!Dance.!Embracing!
the!signs!of!the!season,!each!page!of!her!stunning!picture!book!reveals!
glorious!springtime!happenings!that!invite!joyful,!thoughtful!discussion.!!
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“Illustrator,!Kimberly!Hopkins!has!created!memorable!and!accessible!
characters!(duck,!worm,!squirrel,!groundhog,!and!frog)!in!gouache!and!
digital!mixed!media!that!extol!springtime!colors!and!transformations.!!
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“The!reader’s!auditory,!visual,!and!kinesthetic!modalities!are!stimulated!
with!rhythm!and!repetitive!refrain.!Touches!of!sophisticated!humor!engage!
the!discerning!adult!reader,!as!well.!Discover!“shake,!aKshake,!aKshake!your!
tail!feathering”!with!Springtime!Dance!”!
K!Elizabeth!Legenhausen,!EdD!
The!Johns!Hopkins!University!
Thirty!Years!Tenure!as!Head!of!Independent!Schools!!
AIMS!School!Evaluation!and!Search!Consultant!
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“Valerie!Leonhart!Smalkin!is!a!consummate!musician!and!songwriter.!The!
light!jazzy!feel!of!the!music!oozes!springtime!and!exposes!both!young!
children!and!youngKatKheart!adults!to!the!world!of!jazz.!One!listen!to!this!
song!and!I!guarantee!you!will!be!singing!it!ALL!DAY!LONG,!imagining!the!
images!that!are!so!vividly!illustrated!in!her!companion!book.!It’s!a!JOYOUS!
work!!!!You,!your!children!and!your!children’s!children!will!enjoy!this!
offering!for!many!generations!to!come.!This!is!one!to!pass!down.!!
Mark!Stocker!
Chief!Sound!Engineer/!Music!Producer!
4:30!Studios,!Baltimore!MD!
About&the&CD&
The!Springtime!Dance!song!is!not!your!typical!children’s!ditty.!It!is!a!fast!moving,!jazzy!
patter!song!written!and!sung!by!Val!Smalkin,!accompanied!by!Buddy!Larkin!on!piano,!
Chris!Savage!on!drums,!and!Val!on!bass.!Val’s!vocal!style!is!thoroughly!her!own!but!
nonetheless!influenced!by!Ella!Fitzgerald,!Peggy!Lee,!Lena!Horne,!Nancy!Wilson,!and!
Diana!Krall.!Though!not!specifically!designed!to!do!so,!the!song!will!reinforce!learning!
left!and!right,!as!well!as!biological!details!relating!to!earthworms,!polliwogs,!groundhogs,!
birds,!and!frogs.!Included!on!the!CD!are!three!bonus!songs;!Dino!Dance,!Recycle,!and!Bam!
She!Bam.!All!are!simple,!yet!musically!sophisticated!singK!and!danceKalong!songs.!!
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Where&to&purchase&
Springtime*Dance!is!available!directly!from!the!publisher!at!www.smallkinmusic.com.!
SILLY&GOOSE&&&VAL!will!also!have!copies!for!sale!at!every!performance.!!Visit!
www.sillygooseandval.com!for!their!calendar.!!
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About&the&Publisher&
http://www.smallkinmusic.com!
Small!Kin!Music!is!a!sole!proprietorship!operated!in!Hunt!Valley,!Maryland.!
Email:[email protected]!
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Biography&Valerie&Leonhart&Smalkin!
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Valerie&Leonhart&Smalkin,!ventriloquist,!musician,!composer,!and!writer!grew!up!in!
Baltimore,!Maryland.!Her!parents,!aunties,!uncles,!sisters,!and!brothers!(6!children!in!
all)!were!all!artistically!inclined.!Everyone!played!the!piano,!one!brother!flute,!one!
bass,!and!several!siblings!guitar.!Every!Sunday!night,!after!dinner,!they!entertained!
parents,!neighbors,!and!visitors!with!songs!and!revelry.!
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Though!always!studying!and!playing!piano,!Valerie!received!a!BA!in!Philosophy!cum!
laude!from!Goucher&College!in!1971.!Then,!being!basically!unemployable,!she!headed!
off!to!Berklee&College&of&Music!in!Boston!to!pursue!her!first!love…music.!However,!
the!life!of!a!pop!musician!in!the!early!70’s!turned!out!to!be!fraught!with!danger,!so!
Valerie!sought!an!easier,!calmer!path…Law!School.!!
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She!graduated,!again,!cum!laude,!from!the!University&of&Maryland&School&of&Law!in!
1977,!and!practiced!law!until!she!met!and!married!her!husband,!The&Honorable&
Frederic&N.&Smalkin.!After!giving!birth!to!Frederic&N.C.&Smalkin!in!1982!and!
Katherine&Chancellor&Smalkin,!in!1984!Valerie!was!stunned!to!discover!her!
adoration!of!preKschool!children.!Eventually!her!two!loves,!music!and!children,!came!
together!in!the!form!of!Val&&&Pam&Kindersingers,!writers,!performers,!and!coK
producers!of!John&“Kinderman”&Taylor’s&Emmy&award[winning!children’s&
television&program,!It’s*Kindertime*that!aired!on!WMAR!ABC!TVK2!in!the!90’s.!
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Since!then,!Valerie:!composed!and!performed!the!musical!version,!Chadwick*Sings:*A*
Little*Bay*Music,*of!Priscilla&Cummings'&International&Literacy&Award[winning&
book,!Chadwick*the*Chesapeake*Crab;!published!The*Early*Childhood*Curriculum!
with!Karen&Rupprecht;!and!composed!Babel:*The*Oratorio,!Signs:*An*Epiphany*
Musical,!and!Darrell:*The*Draggin'*Dragon.!As!Silly*Goose*&*Val!she!now!tours!
school,!libraries,!and!live!stage!theaters!in!the!MidKAtlantic!area!with!her!puppets,!
marionettes,!comedy,!and!music.!!
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Valerie!wrote!Springtime*Dance!in!Spring!2013!and!then!met!Kimberly&Hopkins!at!a!
Painted!Pallette!event.!Val!noticed!immediately!that!Kimberly!could!actually!draw!round!
circles!and!asked!if!she!were!an!artist.!That!conversation!led!to!lunch,!which!led!to!Kim’s!
illustrating!the!book!Springtime*Dance.*
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Biography&Kimberly&Hopkins!
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Kimberly&Hopkins,!is!a!Michigan!native,!who!spent!her!childhood!enjoying!the!
outdoors,!playing!piano!and!flute,!and!reading!lots!and!lots!of!books.!She!learned!to!
read!Laura!Ingalls!Wilder!books!before!kindergarten,!and!loved!the!illustrations!in!her!
favorite!fairytale!book:!Dean’s*A*Book*of*Fairy*Tales.!
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Her!love!of!books!prompted!her!to!graduate!from!Michigan&State&University!in!1996!
with!a!BA!in!English.!Her!love!of!computers,!photography!and!composition!was!
fulfilled!with!a!cognate!(minor)!in!Journalism.!
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From!1998–2001,!Kimberly!was!a!graphic!artist!for!Michigan&State&University’s&
Printing&Services,!an!inKhouse!design!and!printing!department.!Her!clients!included!
MSU!Athletics,!MSU!Bands,!The!Spartan!Marching!Band,!Intramural!Sports,!Jack!
Breslin!Student!Event!Center,!University!Services,!Recycling!and!Waste!Management,!
Women!in!International!Development,!College!of!Human!Medicine,!the!Alumni!
Association,!and!others.!
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She!decided!to!expand!her!experiences!beyond!her!beloved!alma!mater,!and!worked!as!
a!freelance!designer!for!a!short!while.!She!then!joined!Millbrook&Printing!(now!
Keystone!Millbrook),!in!Grand!Ledge,!MI!in!2002.!There!she!developed!and!honed!her!
skill!sets!in!print!design.!Her!main!focus!was!editorial!design!for!quarterly,!and!
monthly!publications.!!
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In!2005!she!graduated!from!Marywood&University,!with!a!MFA!in!Visual!Arts.!Her!
masters!program!included!a!children's!book!illustration!course,!taught!by!two!
wonderful!illustrators:!Megan!Halsey!and!Melanie!Hall.!It!was!there!that!she!realized!
how!much!she!enjoyed!drawing!and!began!the!dream!of!illustrating!for!a!children's!
book!someday.!
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After!the!graduation!and!the!birth!of!her!third!child,!Kimberly!moved!to!the!Baltimore!
area!in!2006,!where!her!husband!is!public!school!teacher.!She!began!her!own!studio,!
khopdesign,*LLC,!and!serves!as!an!art!director,!designer,!and!illustrator!to!her!
clients.!Her!awardKwining!work!has!appeared!in!books!including:!Designing*for*the*
Greater*Good,!Really*Good*Logos*Explained,!and!the!37th*Annual*Creativity*Awards.!
She!also!began!teaching!graphic!design!and!digital!design!at!Towson&University,!
where!she!continues!today.!
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