Dig Into Reading 2013 / Midsummer Picture Books

We've gotten some amazing picture books perfect for the summer season lately, and I just wanted to share them with you - along with some not-so-new titles that are just as perfect for summer story times at home or at the library:

Alfie Is Not Afraid by Patricia Carlin // A boy and his dog, Alfie are set for a night camping under the stars.  The boy knows Alfie will protect him because Alfie's not afraid...right?
Toys in Space by Mini Grey // What happens when you leave your toys outside on a warm summer night?

Water in the Park: A Book About Water and the Times of the Day by Emily Jenkins // A summer day in the life of a park and all of the people & animals that visit.
It's a Firefly Night by Dianne Ochiltree // One, two, three, four, how many fireflies can you count?
The Watermelon Seed by Greg Pizzoli //  Yum, watermelon! But what happens when you swallow a seed??
All the World by Liz Garton Scanlon // Families and friends all over the world enjoy a long summer day.
Boom, Boom, Boom by Jamie A. Swenson // One little boy finds out the best way to weather a thunderstorm is with his teddy bear and a friend (or two, or three, or four!).
Scardey Squirrel Goes Camping by Melanie Watt // Can Scaredy survive the great outdoors?
Flotsam by David Weisner // A boy's day at beach takes a very unexpected turn...

Dig Into Reading 2013 / An Indiana Jones Book Party

This was a really fun program to plan as part of the summer reading program at my library!  I had seen a pin on Pinterest about an Indiana Jones birthday party and thought the idea would fit great with the "Dig into Reading" theme this year.  I had to be a bit more creative than I expected though, because most of the ideas I found used whips, fake "blow guns", and darts which is fine if you trust your kids in your own home, but in the library I thought it would be asking for disaster, haha.  So all of the activities I came up with are safe, with no blow guns in sight!

First, I made up a couple of games - a matching (or Memory) game based on Indiana Jones LEGO characters & a map matching game.  You can download a printable version of Indy LEGO game here to share with Indy fans of your own.

The map matching game I made up using a map outline image (blown up using Block Posters) for the base map and then outlined and marked copies of the continents with the countries and cities that Indy visited in the movies.  The goal of the game was for the kids to match up the continents on the right spots on the map and then see if they can name the continents, countries, and cities marked on each piece (the answers were on the back).

For a craft, kids made Indy-style messenger bags out of construction paper and yarn to wear while on their "treasure hunt".

The main activity of the afternoon was a treasure hunt made up of clues that led kids around the Children's Room.  Each clue directed kids to a different area of our nonfiction section using the Dewey Decimal system as a guide.  (ie. Find the spot where the shark books live) At the end of the hunt was a mini treasure chest with fake gold coins which kids could turn in for a prize.  They were able to finish pretty fast (I made up little Dewey guides for them to use), but they seemed to enjoy it!

This was a very well-attended event and everyone had a good time - I hope it gives you some ideas if you ever want to have your own Indiana Jones adventure party!

Summer Reading 2013 / DIY 3D Garden Bulletin Board

Excuse me for getting sucked into summer reading land for awhile, there!  I'm back with a little DIY project you can use for a bulletin board, book display or any other fun space that needs a perk up for the summer.










To go along with the summer theme, I made up a garden scene with underground layers of dirt and soil visible.  Each week in story time, a different type of burrowing animal is featured so after story time each week I'm adding the animal to our bulletin board. (So far it's just rabbits & badgers!)  For an extra pop, I make up 3D butterflies, dragonflies, flowers and carrots to add to the board.  They're so easy to make and are pretty cute (if I say so myself) so I thought I'd share some easy instructions to make your own.  Just follow the photos below!

Butterflies, 

carrots, 

dragonflies, 

and flowers!  Once you have all your pieces finished, just staple 'em up on your bulletin board!  It's really hard to get a good photo of the bulletin board in my library since it's not by any windows, so here are a couple closer photos of how I used these pieces: 

Happy bulletin board making!

Summer Reading 2013 / Preschool Picks

May in the library means my coworkers and I are up to our ears in summer reading prep!  One reason I like this year's theme, Dig Into Reading, is because you can go so many different directions with it (digging & dirt, construction, gardening, caves and archaeology, dinosaurs & prehistoric creatures) depending on the age group you're working with.  We are right in the middle of making school visits to our local elementary & preschool classes so I thought I'd share some of my favorite book picks for sharing with the younger crowd:

1. Underground by Denise Fleming takes readers on a journey to discover all the different kinds of creatures that live under our feet!
2. Goodnight, Goodnight, Construction Site by Sherri Duskey Rinker and Tom Lichtenheld uses rhyming verses and colorful illustrations to put each piece of construction equipment to bed for the night.
3. Who Digs? by Michael Rex uses flaps to help children learn about all different types of digging.
4. Stuck in the Mud by Jane Clark follows a mother hen and her barnyard friends as they try to rescue a baby chick from an especially sticky puddle of mud.

I don't usually use books with the older kids because I see them in large groups (like 75-200 students at once) & sharing picture books doesn't work as well in that setting (at least in my limited experience!).  But if you'd like Dig Into Reading book suggestions for the older crowd, check out my summer reading bookshelf on GoodReads!