Brilliant Mornings Heidi

A group of children from the history club "Artifact" travels to Arizona where they discover the layers of the Grand Canyon, visit the Navajo and Hopi people, hear an ancient legend and barely escape an angry elk.  Jonathan, one of the boys, learns a secret to overcome his trouble with running.

Be sure to order our children's history magazine, ARTIFACT, at brilliant-mornings.com for related stories, activities, games, comics and more - all focused on highlights from HISTORY! 

For authentic legends from Native Americans, this book is very helpful and rich:

Voices of the Winds: Native American Legends, by Margot Edmonds, Ella Clark, Ella Elizabeth Clark

Who made the footprints in the clay? Archeologists on Calvert Island have made a discovery, and we enjoy an exciting story of a family traveling to North America to explain their findings.  Could Tuya be the mother of the indigenous nations of North America? 


Please visit our website, brilliant-mornings.com and sign up for our mailing list to receive the children’s magazine, ARTIFACT; the first Volume is free for our listeners!  


Also, follow us on Instagram @brilliantmornings to vote on whether this story should be made into a book! 


Join us for the next episodes which includes a road trip across America! 


This podcast was written and produced by Heidi Illian.  Music (all but intro) from ep. sound. 


Write to brilliantmornings@gmail.com for more information. 

The 2022 invasion of Ukraine came as a shock to much of the world - but not to certain experts, who closely watch Russia's triggers.  

What does Russia seek above all else? What is its "special military operation" all about?  Find out some clues by listening to a captivating story of a baseball game - an analogy of Russia's military action in Ukraine which will help explain current events to the children in your family. With much to unpack, your family will be sure to have intriguing conversations after this episode! 

Playing a wild, hands-on game of football or singing along to well-known songs with a crowd as you watch your favorite drummer play, or gathering with family for clam bakes and bonfires as you dig your toes into the smooth sand of the New England beaches - do these things sound like what you or other young people today might do for fun? 

Can you believe that they originated with the Native Americans hundreds and even thousands of years ago?  Today we get to go back in time, jumping into the early 1600’s, before any permanent English settlements had been built.  We’ll fly over the Eastern Coast of North America with a momma duck and imagine what the lives of the thriving indigenous peoples looked like; and we might just catch a glimpse of Squanto and Pocahontas when they were little! 

Print out your free activity page from http://brilliant-mornings.com to use while listening to the podcast (scissors and glue will help too!). 

Find Ms. Stephanie and a wonderful Algonquin language story on video here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ac3nsmFQ2ok

The year 1600 is full of secrecy; as separatists in England begin to hold secret church meetings hiding from the Queen, that very Queen is holding secret meetings with the Ambassador of Morocco.  

What will come of all this? From the tropical rainforest of the African Congo, to the great Kingdom of Benin, to present-day Morocco and England, join a migrating Cuckoo bird with a sweet tooth to discover some of the key players of this exciting time in history!  
Check out our website Brilliant-mornings.com for resources that go along with this episode!

We borrowed quotes from Lewes Lewknor, an English courtier, who wrote about the Moroccan Ambassador’s visit, as an eye-witness!  He described the scene of Queen Elizabeth's royal court when the Moroccan Ambassador arrived. 






Intro and Outro Music by Matt Grajcar
Thank you to Ep. Sound for the following soundtracks:

Gorilla-growl-3-SBA-30011747
For the Love of England
Summer is Over
Horse Gallop Towards 1
In Front of Us
Caught in the Waves
ES_Wind Storm 5 - SFX Producer 

Follow an adventurous bird and a mysterious sailor through a life-changing trip through Korea and Japan, in the year 1600.  Understanding the world of 1600 helps explain our world today!  Visit brilliant-mornings.com for our free printables and amazing resources for your home or school!