Book Clubs in Person!

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Book clubs are in person in April!  Stop by to pick up a copy of April’s books so you can join us at the library! These book clubs are for adults only.

Books with Bite is reading The Midnight Library by Matt Haig.  The club meets April 8th at 6:30 pm at the library.

Fiction and Friends is reading The Necklace by Cheryl Jarvis.  The club meets April 22nd at 6:30 pm at the library.

Springtime Storytime!

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DON’T FORGET TO PICK UP YOUR TAKE HOME CRAFTS FOR THE WEEK! This week you will be making a beautiful Spring flower!

For Storytime we read “When Spring Comes” by Kevin Henkes, and “In Like a Lion Out Like a Lamb” by Marion Dane Bauer.

 

Yay! Spring has finally arrived! There is so much happening in nature right now!

One of the best things you can do with your child to celebrate Spring is to go for a nature walk. Notice the buds on the branches of trees, flowers beginning to bloom, perhaps even baby birds in a nest!

When you get home have your child draw what they discovered!

  • Another fun idea is to use broccoli to paint flowers. Just pour out some paint onto a paper plate and then dip the broccoli in the paint. Smoosh the broccoli onto paper, and ta-da! You just made a beautiful Spring flower!
  • Make coffee filter butterflies! Paint a regular coffee filter with bright and fun colors. Let it dry completely. Then gather the filter in the middle and pinch it so it looks as if there are wings. Take a pipe cleaner and fold it in half. Place it over the filter so the bended part of the pipe cleaner is where you have the filter pinched. Twist the pipe cleaner so that it holds the filter in place, with wings on either side. The remaining part of the pipe cleaner is the antennae!
  • Head on over to https://theimaginationtree.com/15-spring-activities-for-kids/ for more great Spring art activities for you and your children to enjoy!

 

St. Patrick’s Day & Rainbows at Storytime!

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DON’T FORGET TO PICK UP YOUR TAKE HOME CRAFTS FOR THE WEEK! This week we’ll be making magical Leprechaun Lookers to help you find a leprechaun!

For Storytime we read “How to Catch a Leprechaun” by Adam Wallace, & “Rain Before Rainbows” by Smriti Prasadam-Halls.

  • A fun indoor/outdoor activity to celebrate St. Paddy’s Day is to grab your homemade Leprechaun Lookers and go on a treasure hunt! Tape “leprechaun footprints” (picture of four-leaf clover) for your children to find around the house or yard that leads them to a pot of chocolate gold coins!
  • Play musical shamrocks! This game is just musical chairs but with shamrocks! Cut or print out some large shamrocks and place them in a circle around the floor. Turn on some Celtic or Irish music and go in a circle until the music stops. If you stop on a shamrock, you are still in the game, but if you don’t land on a shamrock, you are out of luck!

 

Check out this link for some more fun ideas! https://myboredtoddler.com/st-patricks-day-activities-toddlers/

Here’s another good one: https://kidactivities.net/st-patricks-day-games-fun-ideas/

Have fun!

That’s My Name! Storytime with Miss Molly

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DON’T FORGET TO PICK UP YOUR TAKE HOME CRAFTS FOR THE WEEK!

This week you will be making name bracelets!

For Storytime we learned about names. Learning names is one of the first and most important developments in early literacy. A child’s name is very important and special to them. It helps their sense of identity and builds relationships with other children. It also helps them understand the concept of print and letters becoming words.

This week we read “ My Name is Elizabeth” by Annika Dunklee, and “Thunder Boy Jr.” by Sherman Alexie.

Here’s a fun name/letter recognition activity to try using a few household supplies: https://www.schooltimesnippets.com/2015/02/clothespin-name-activity.html

  • Write your child’s name in big letters and then have them trace it with pipe cleaners.
  • Write your child’s name in big block letters then have them glue pom poms into each letter to make fun and colorful name art!
  • Sidewalk chalk/paint is always a hit with children. For a different spin, write their name for them then hand them a spray bottle to trace the letters with water.
  • Another site with some fun, artsy name activities: http://preschoolprofessional.blogspot.com/2010/02/name-sensory-activities-for.html

 

 

 

 

 

Let’s Play!

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DON’T FORGET TO PICK UP YOUR TAKE HOME CRAFTS FOR THE WEEK!

This week you will be making stories and playing pretend with 6 different Story Cubes! No matter what your child’s age is, story cubes will undoubtedly bring fun and imagination!

Get more ideas and story inspiration from https://www.imagineforest.com/ 

This week we are learning about imagination!

For Storytime we read, “Peg Leg Peke” by Brie Spangler, and “Henry’s Amazing Imagination” by Nancy Carlson.

Play is enormously important to early childhood learning, and dramatic play helps children develop a deeper understanding of the stories they act out as well as the people or creatures they pretend to be.  And these are only a few of the early literacy benefits of playing pretend!  Learn more about the benefits here: 5 Reasons Dramatic Play Matters for Child Development

Here are some more ideas to encourage pretend play and spark your child’s imagination:

  • Check out this link for your little library lover! You can print out everything your child needs to pretend they are a librarian! Be sure and stop by our library so we can get you set up with some real books to go along with your pretend library day!

http://learncreatelove.com/pretend-play-set-library/

  • All children love “dress-up”. Check out your local thrift stores and yard sales for Halloween costumes. Buy them up when they go on sale after Halloween. Let your kiddos explore being police officers, dragons, doctors, and astronauts!
  • Use boxes to create new worlds or turn your child into a robot!
  • You don’t have to have a fancy play kitchen to pretend. Grab some plastic cups and plates and let your child “cook” up an amazing meal! Pretend you are at a restaurant and let them “wait” on you. Leave some Monopoly money as a tip!

 

Don’t forget to join in on the fun sometimes. Research has shown that when parents or caregivers join in pretend play it deepens bonds and helps the child expand vocabulary, strengthen problem-solving skills, and promotes empathy. Plus, it can be really fun!