Did you know that the Diary of a Wimpy Kid series by Jeff Kinney is now on Hoopla in eBook format? This series follows the story of Greg Heffley, a middle school student who discovers the ups and downs of growing up. The pages include funny illustrations that look like any kid’s doodles. These drawings make the book relatable for kids and break the text up nicely. Greg’s newest adventure, also available on Hoopla, is called “Diary of a Wimpy Kid: Double Down.” Continue reading “Diary of A Wimpy Kid Is Now on Hoopla!”
In “The Whale in My Swimming Pool” by Joyce Wan, a whale suddenly shows up in the wading pool of our young protagonist. He tries to get the whale to budge — even suggesting that the unwelcome visitor move to the neighbor’s superior pool, which has a slide! Eventually, he decides to quit fighting the whale and share the tiny pool.
“The Whale in My Swimming Pool” is a great book for story time! The illustrations are simple and sweet but large enough that they are clear and visible to a good-sized group.
Here are some ways you and your little aquanaut can extend the story: Continue reading “2016 Missouri Building Block Nominee: The Whale in My Swimming Pool”
It looks like it is Ragweed time again…No, not the ragweed that causes allergies! It’s time for this adorable book about an energetic little farm dog named Ragweed.
In “Ragweed’s Farm Dog Handbook” by Anne Kennedy, the main character is an expert farm dog ready to show you the ropes on how to be the best farm dog there is. He mentors the reader, teaching them everything from which animal wakes the farmer up in the morning to what job the cows do all day long.This story is bound to appeal to lovers of farms, dogs and comedy. Continue reading “Ragweed’s Farm Dog Handbook”
Close your eyes. Wait, open them! You have to finish reading this article. Okay, that’s better. Now imagine you are closing your eyes and thinking of a cute and fuzzy little penguin. Can you imagine anything more adorable? Go ahead, I’ll give you a minute. You can’t think of anything, can you? What if I told you that the penguin has the hiccups? You didn’t think it was possible, but that cute and fuzzy penguin got 50% cuter.
In our next Missouri Building Block nominee, “Little Penguin Gets the Hiccups” by Tadgh Bentley, poor Little Penguin gorges himself on chili and subsequently gets the hiccups. This book has some great opportunities for audience participation, as you have to help scare our cute heartburn-suffering protagonist. Besides talking to your child about the unpleasant side effects of eating spicy food before bed, here are some other activities you might enjoy: Continue reading “2016 Missouri Building Block Nominee: Little Penguin Gets the Hiccups”
I love to sew; I do it for fun and for relaxation. And I like to make things for my two grandchildren, so I was excited to discover “Sew and Play” by Farah Wolfe. It contains instructions for sewing 11 games for children.
First I made fabric pancakes decorated with brown felt syrup and yellow felt butter for the “Pancake Game.” I added a store-bought play skillet, plates and a pancake turner.
Continue reading “Books We Love: Sew and Play”
Declan is a very friendly monster. He says hello to everything in the forest, from the clouds to the stumps. He also really loves bunnies. He gets super excited when he sees them. Maybe a little too excited…
“Bunnies!!!” by Kevan Atteberry is a wonderful story with bright, inviting illustrations. The simple text is easy to read and understand and practically begs to be read aloud. “Bunnies!!!” can initiate conversations about meeting new friends and when it is appropriate to use loud and soft voices. This is also a fun story to act out with your children or with puppets. Regardless of how large or small your audience is, sharing the book is a delight and will leave you with a smile. Continue reading “2016 Missouri Building Block Nominee: Bunnies!!!”
I love working in the children’s area of the library, especially when I get to see all the shiny new children’s books come in. I instantly dive into these books to see what adventures and lessons are experienced by the characters. Recently “When Penny Met POTUS” caught my eye, partly because of the upcoming presidential election. I picked up the book to dissect the contents and to check for any hidden messages.
In “When Penny Met POTUS,” Penny goes with her mom to work and is told she will meet POTUS (who Penny believes is a friendly monster). But Penny must be patient while her mom has to complete some work. While she waits, Penny daydreams about who POTUS is and how she will help them with their job. What will Penny think when she finally meets POTUS? Will she learn what POTUS stands for? Continue reading “Books We Love: When Penny Met POTUS”
Everybody knows that Columbia rocks, but did you know there’s an easy and free way for your family to express that sentiment? The project is called CoMo Rocks, which, at its core, is a community-wide hide-and-seek game that sparks creativity within the people of the city.
The premise is simple: you decorate and hide rocks anywhere outside for people to find. The person who finds the decorated rock can then hide the rock in another location. Or they can keep the rock and decorate a new one to hide. This creates a perpetual cycle of making, hiding and finding. Fairview Park, Stephens Lake Park and Cosmo Park are just a few of the common locales for hiding and hunting your rocks. Continue reading “CoMo (and Ashland and Fulton) Rocks!”
This month for toddler story time I put on my brave face and brought out our collection of rhythm sticks. I’ll be honest parents–I wasn’t sure how this would go over with the toddler crew. Would the sticks be used for evil instead of good? Would they take flight across the room? Would a wee one poke their eye?
To my relief, using rhythm sticks turned out great! The toddlers were so excited to try out something new. They tapped, made noise and used them to drum on the floor. And, best of all, there were no accidents. Rhythm sticks will for sure become a part of my regular rotation of story time fun.
The benefits of using rhythm sticks with young children are endless. Rhythm sticks: Continue reading “Rhythm Sticks”
For most folks summer reading means fun, lighthearted beach reads. However, as summer winds down, you may find yourself in need of a break from the saccharine. If you are looking for a summer read with some substance and meaningful discussion, then look no further than Tara Sullivan’s “The Bitter Side of Sweet.”
This is Sullivan’s second novel and her first title for middle grade readers, but make no mistake — the subject matter in “The Bitter Side of Sweet” is not for the faint of heart. This novel deals with child slave labor in cacao farms along the Ivory Coast. Brothers Amadou and Seydou go to work one season on the farm in order to help bring in money for their family in a small Malian village. However, two years later they are still on the farm with no idea how much money they have earned or if it will be enough to pay off the debt they’ve incurred for living and working on the farm. Then one day a new girl, Kadisha, is brought to the farm. After several failed escape attempts on her own, she enlists the help of Amadou and Seydou to plot another escape. You’ll have to read to find out what happens next! Continue reading “The Bitter Side of Sweet”
