Posted on Monday, June 21, 2021 by Erin
Summer Reading is here, and we are celebrating all things with tails! Below are two fun crafts to create at home to celebrate summer.
You’ll need clothespins and these animals.
Posted on Monday, June 14, 2021 by Jerilyn
One of my sons has a snake for a pet. (I’m not a fan of snakes!) Fortunately my son is all grown up, so he and his snake don’t live with me. My other son has raised ferrets and kittens. But personally, I’m a dog fan. My children grew up playing with and taking care of dogs, learning responsibility along the way. There are lots of animals that make good pets—you can explore some pet choices by checking out the resources and activities below. Continue reading “Virtual Activity Bundle: Pets”
Posted on Thursday, June 10, 2021 by Brianna
For this month’s favorites, we’ve got elephants and dogs and bears—oh my! I couldn’t resist all the animal books for our “Tails and Tales” Summer Reading theme this year, but I did throw in a few others as well. Enjoy!
“Those Are Not My Underpants” written by Melissa Martin and illustrated by Troy Cummings
Have you ever noticed that the word “underpants” is somehow funnier than “underwear”? Try saying it out loud to compare. Now get ready to say “underpants” approximately 34 more times, because this book has a lot of hilarious repetition! It is possible you’ll get tired of saying this word, but I assure you, your kids won’t get tired of listening to it. One morning Bear Cub wakes up and notices a pair of underpants hanging outside his cave. They’re not labelled, and Bear Cub is determined to find their owner, so no one will have to go underpants-less. As he asks each of his friends, they all show off their own undies and demonstrate why the tighty whities in question can’t be theirs. Of course the mystery is solved in the end! This is a perfect book for this year’s Summer Reading theme of “Tails and Tales,” as readers will get a delightful tour of the tail-ends of various forest animals. Continue reading “Brianna’s Books: June Favorites 2021”
Posted on Monday, June 7, 2021 by Jessica S
June is upon us, and Pride is on the horizon! To celebrate Pride Month, the Mid-Missouri LGBT Coalition Event will be celebrating again this year with Mid-Missouri PrideFest. They have decided to ring in Pride a little bit later, on August 28th and 29th. For us, we thought we’d kick off Pride in June with our new booklist, “LGBTQIA+ Educational Resources for All Ages.”
When teachers come to the library and ask LGBTQIA+ related questions, they usually have three very specific questions:
Continue reading “LGBTQIA+ Educational Resources for All Ages”
Posted on Thursday, June 3, 2021 by Adam
It’s not quite here yet, but we’re only 17 days away from the summer solstice—the longest day of the year, and the first day of the most fun and lazy season of them all! Swimming pools, picnics, float trips, family vacations, long bike rides, campfire singalongs, afternoons spent with a good book, a welcome break from the daily grind of schoolwork—these are just some of the many pleasures of summer for kids and their parents. Here are some great books, songs, videos and a cool craft project to complement your summer activities or give you some new ideas for how to have fun in the coming months. Continue reading “Virtual Activity Bundle: Summer”
Posted on Monday, May 31, 2021 by Jerilyn
It’s vacation season! You may or may not be doing much traveling right now, but a good story or song will have you imagining yourself on a train, a bus, an airplane or a boat. Get your mind moving with these resources, then get your body moving with the songs and activity ideas. Continue reading “Virtual Activity Bundle: Transportation”
Posted on Monday, May 17, 2021 by Megan
This month I decided to highlight not one, not two, but THREE illustrators! Earlier this year, Grace Lin, Oge Mora and Yuyi Morales did a webinar about diversity in children’s books for the organization EmbraceRace. EmbraceRace collects resources for parents to help young children celebrate and learn about diversity in the world. Grownups, you can watch the full webinar here (1 hour 17 min) or you can watch the shorter one with your kids (20 min).
In the videos, the three women speak about their artistic journeys and how they approach drawing different characters for their books. As an artistic exercise, they then draw each other and talk about the wonderfully unique and loving experience it is to draw someone else.
EmbraceRace also included an action guide to help parents support their young artists as they learn to draw people and the world around them.
Just for fun, I decided to draw my husband since he is the person I see the most! He has a favorite red t-shirt, so I made sure to draw him in it. Who can you draw?
If you want to see more of their artistic flair, you can check out their books from your favorite library or the bookmobile!
Posted on Thursday, May 13, 2021 by Brianna
Yep, it’s time for another “Brianna’s Books.” There are so many good books coming out right now, it was hard to pick my favorites. But I did it, just for you! Check out my recommended reads below.
“Toasty” by Sarah Hwang
Have you ever read something so silly that it makes no sense, and yet it makes perfect sense? Toasty wants to be a dog, to bark and play and roll in puddles. Unfortunately, as a piece of toast, he’s made of bread. Puddles make him soggy, and cats don’t run when he chases them, but he is undeterred and heads to the dog park anyway. The dogs don’t exactly welcome him into their ranks, but he does make a new friend. I don’t want to spoil the ending for you, but reviews called this one delightfully absurd and said it has “the meandering joy of a small child’s storytelling logic.” Also just look at Toasty’s face! He’s so cute! Continue reading “Brianna’s Books: May Favorites 2021”
Posted on Monday, May 10, 2021 by Erin
Summer is almost here! We understand that getting to the library and checking out materials can be hard if you don’t live near our Columbia, Fulton, Ashland or Holts Summit library branches.
For 14 summers, the Daniel Boone Regional Library has provided a service for rural students where we mail books to kids and teens all for free! This program is called Books by Snail.
Getting started with Books by Snail is easy. First, sign up for the program. Just tell us what books your kids would like to begin with (or we can choose some for them). The more information, the better! With return postage already paid, we mail the books to your home. When your kids are done reading, send us the books back along with your request for more. Continue reading “Books by Snail 2021”
Posted on Thursday, May 6, 2021 by Adam
Beautiful weather is here, and there are so many fun things to do outside! One of the best ways to explore the wonders of spring and summer as a family in Columbia is on bicycles. May is National Bike Month, which was established in 1956 to showcase the many benefits of cycling and to encourage newcomers to give bikes a try. Biking is a great form of transportation and exercise – it’s good for cardiovascular health, helps your joints retain mobility, increases strength and flexibility and is a great stress reliever.
Here are some great books, videos and a DVD about biking that will help give little ones the courage and enthusiasm to ride for the first time and that will hopefully complement your family’s outdoor adventures:
Riding a bike for the first time without training wheels can be quite a challenge, and it often takes a bit of time to get used to. In “Froggy Rides a Bike” and “Off We Go!,” Froggy and Mole each need a little help taking off for the first time and maintaining their balance. Luckily, they have friends and family to cheer them on and help them up when they fall. The children’s show/Youtube channel Cocomelon also has a cute video and song that follows YoYo as she bravely learns how to ride so that she can join her friends as they cruise down the street. Continue reading “Get On Your Bikes and Ride!”