Day 1 and 2 in Philadelphia... That's right... Philadelphia!

     Welcome everyone from the land of brotherly love and sisterly affection! That's right, for the next week I will be blogging from the beautiful city of Philadelphia.  Diane, the director of the library, and I are in Philadelphia for the PLA conference.  My goal is to blog every day so that you can keep with us as we "Explore to Learn" in this new and exciting city.
     In saying that, however, I have a couple of admissions to make.  The first being that Philadelphia is not a new city to me, though it still is very exciting.  You see, I lived in Philadelphia for a short time in college.  The other admission, get used to seeing lots of pictures because I plan on uploading a few.
     So what did we do on our first and second day in the city?  Since the actual conference doesn't start until tomorrow, Diane and I have done a TON sightseeing.




DAY 1


After quickly unpacking, Diane and I took the city by storm.  First on the list, was accidentally stumbling upon the LOVE statue designed by Robert Indiana, a Mooresville native.  It is this statue that helped give Philly its nickname.

Next came a quick stop at the Liberty Bell as we were on our way to the Visitor Center.

From here, I highly encouraged Diane to make a trip to the Shane Confectionary with me.  I remembered this very quaint and authentic candy shop from my previous stay in the city and thought she might enjoy it.

And last on the list was a nice stroll down Elfreth's Alley, which is the oldest continually inhabitated road in America.  To say that this road is beautiful sounds a bit funny, but it truly is.  I love this street so much that I have had my picture taken here twice.

In 2008.

In 2012.

DAY 2


We slept in a little bit on Tuesday.  After a long day of traveling and sightseeing, it was nice to get a bit of a rest.  Diane and I started our morning with a quick bite at the Reading Terminal Market.  This placed is filled to the brim with food vendors as well as other novelty shops.  It's a fun atmosphere to get a true sense of Philly while also having the added bonus of people watching.


After grabbing a quick bite, we headed off to get our tickets for Independence Hall, a Philadelphia must-see.  If you miss Independence Hall, then you miss Philadelphia.  This is the place where our country began.  The place where the likes of Benjamin Franklin, George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, and John Adams met with many other men to discuss the trials and tribulations of forming a country and lasting government.  Can you tell I love this place?

Last on list of places to see was Eastern State Penitentiary.  This was actually my third trip to this historical landmark, however it was just as amazing as the first two trips. ESP was the first penitentiary  created.  When it opened its doors,  it's main focus was on reformation of the inmate.  Through solitary confinement, an inmate was supposed to be able to learn a trade during their 2-6 years in prison, while repenting their misdeeds in hopes of becoming a contributing member of society once released.  There were obvious flaws in the system and in 1971, ESP was forced to close its prison doors.  You are now able to tour the stable ruin and experience what it might have been like to be in prison in the early 1800s.

After leaving ESP, we made a quick stop at the Free Public Library of Philadelphia.  We are librarians after all.  To be perfectly honest, the building is amazing, however there seems to be a large area of wasted space.  The children's department, while staffed with wonderful and helpful people, was in the basement.  It was a bit small as well.  However, with 54 branches, I guess a large space isn't needed. 

Diane and I decided to bus back after the library because we were EXHAUSTED.  We rested for a bit, ate dinner at an overly crowded Maggiano's, an Italian restaurant filled to the brim with visiting librarians.  On a full stomach, we hit the sheets to get prepared for the First Day of PLA.  Stay tuned for more of our adventures.

T is for... Trains and Tyrannosaurus Rex

     I don’t necessarily know what it is like with your kids, but at our library, our kids seem to LOVE trains.  We have a train table at the back of the children’s section that kids seem magnetized to.  It’s like they just can’t help themselves.  At all hours of the day, you can hear, “Choo! Choo!,” coming from the back of the library. Thus, when it came time for Tt, I just knew I had to use trains.

Materials:  Index card with capital T, 4 black foam wheels on glue dots, 2 foam pieces cut to resemble train card, and crayons

Front of card

Back of card

1)    Color the capital T to look like train tracks.

2)    Trace the upper and lower case Tt on the back of the card.

3)    Place the train cars on the T.  Place the wheels on the cars.  Draw windows, if you prefer.

     The next craft this week was a little ambitious for my 4-6 year olds.  I knew that it might be when I decided to use it, however, I knew once complete; my kids would love the outcome.  So I went for it and decided to make Tyrannosaurus Rex out of paper plates.  Visit this website for complete instructions on how to make this fun and craft T-Rex.  Although the website says to use watercolors, I had my kids use crayons and they turned out great!

     I went a different route this week with my book selections.  I decided to go with short books that would keep my kids’ attention.  Lately, most of the kids have had a case of the wiggles and haven’t been able to sit through a whole story.  That’s not a big deal to me at all, though I do like them to at least attempt to listen to the story.  Thus, this week, I went with two shorter stories where the kids could participate in the dialogue.  The first book, Freight Train by Donald Crews, was great.  I was able to introduce the kids to what an award book is; Crews received a Caldecott nomination for this book, as well as discuss the parts of a train and colors.  My kids also had a lot of fun trying to guess what the train may be carrying.  My personal favorite, Smurfs!  That’s right, one kid in my class thought the blue freight car was carrying blue Smurfs! I love kids and their amazing imaginations!

     For the older kids, I went with the same idea and chose T is for Terrible by Peter McCarty.  By picking a shorter book, we were able to discuss dinosaurs, what they eat, how they lived, and why they no longer exist.  We also talked about whether or not we truly believed the Tyrannosaurus Rex to be terrible.  My kids decided that while not terrible, they are still scared of them!

     As for music, what better song to use for T-Rex than “Walk the Dinosaur?” I, personally, prefer the Queen Latifah version from the movie Ice Age, though the original version by Was (Not Was) is pretty great too!

     I also used “This Train” by Ziggy Marley with Willie Nelson.  I liked how smooth and upbeat this song was.  It’s not the typical “bouncing off the walls” music I normally choose, but it’s really great and I even caught a few of the kids swaying back and forth to it.

     Before I close this week’s post, I would like to mention one more T word, tornadoes.  Our library is located in Mooresville, Indiana which is in central Indiana.  Recently, the southern part of Indiana was heavily hit by tornadoes and in some places, people lost everything.  I thought I would take a moment a post a couple of links if anyone is interested in donating to help the cause of the many men, women, and children affected by these devastating tornadoes.  At this time, the authorities are saying the best thing to donate is money though there are quite a few groups taking loads of food, medical supplies, clothing, blankets, and other essential needs.  If you are able, please consider making a donation to aid those who are in need.

Ways you can help..

WISH-TV 8 School Supply Drive (click here for more details)

WISH-TV Disaster Relief Fund Donations can be made at any Huntington Bank Branch location or by mailing a check to: Indiana Disaster Relief Fund c/o WISH-TV 1950 N. Meridian Street Indianapolis, IN 46202 Salvation Army of Indiana

SMS: HOOSIER to 80888

800-SAL-ARMY

American Red Cross of Indianapolis

SMS: REDCROSS to 90999

Phone: 317-684-1411

If interesting in volunteering, contact the Red Cross at 800-733-2767 or visit the office: 510 East Chestnut Street DR384 Louisville, KY 40210.

Cleanup Volunteers: Those wanting to volunteer their time to the cleanup efforts need to register with the Indiana Voluntary Organizations Active in Disaster before heading to storm damaged areas. Call before you travel: 812-827-0519 or 812-287-0521 INVOAD Reception Center 723 Spring Street Jeffersonville, IN The United Way Volunteer Service is also operating from the same address.

     Well, that’s it this week.  If you watched the video, you know that a couple exciting things are happening next week.  I will be in Philadelphia all next week for the Public Library Association (PLA) conference.  I hope to at least post a couple of time while I am there to keep everyone updated on all of the fun we are having.  Sammy, on the other hand, has to stay here and help Miss Suzanne with my programs.  Lastly, our chicks will be hatching.  If you are interested in seeing baby chicks hatch from their shell, stop in the library any time on Tuesday, Wednesday, or Thursday and you may be lucky enough to see all the action.  Thanks and see you next week!

    

S is for... Sharks, Spiders, SAMMY, and Seuss!

     Sammy totally made me write his name in all capitals!  He really is that excited for his “special” day.  I haven’t had the heart to tell him that it is really just “S” week.  Oh well!  If it makes Sammy happy, then let’s go with it!

     Like I mentioned previously, the alphabet letter this week was “S.”  I decided to go with spiders, because everyone loves spiders, right?  Haha, no way!  I hate spiders, but the kids seemed to really be into this week’s craft.

Materials:  Index card with capital S, 8 strips of black paper, googley eyes, glue stick, crayons

Front of card

Back of card

1)    Color the capital S to look like a spider.

2)    Trace the upper and lower case Ss on the back of the card.

3)    Accordion fold the 8 strips of black paper to make the spider legs.

4)    Stick on the googley eyes and glue down the accordian legs to create your spider!

     Our second craft this week was rather creepy and scary as well. SHARKS!  Yes, I know it isn’t Shark Week, however, it fit so well, and the craft I found was so cute.  All you need is a paper plate, scissors, glue stick, and blue construction paper.  If you really want to get festive, add some googley eyes to the mix.  I found the craft here.

     I know that I work in a library and that I should be up-to-date on great kid lit, however, as mentioned before, I have a tendency to pull books that my kids just don’t like.  This, however, was NOT the case this week.  I found the BEST books for both spiders and sharks!  In fact, my shark book had spiders in it!  Both of these books are funny with some humor that is not only great for kids, but adults as well!

     You know, I often write about the songs I use in class, however, most of them are action based.  Let's be honest, when you work with 0-6 year olds, the more action, the better!  However, I also have two great "Goodbye" songs that my kids really like.  In fact, I have had one parent ask me where she could find the goodbye song because in my class, is triggers the start of "clean-up" toy time and she was hoping it would do the same for her child at home!  I think that is just hilarious! 

The first song I use is called the "Goodbye Song," by Playhouse Disney.

The other song I often use is from this CD.

It is the last song in this video and starts at 7.32.

     Well, that seems to be all for this week! WAIT!!!  I forgot one really important thing!

Today is Read Across America Day.  This is in celebration of Dr. Seuss' birthday.  In fact, if Dr. Seuss was still alive, he would be 108 years old today! WOW!  Here at the Mooresville Public Library, we love Dr. Seuss!  I mean, who doesn't?  Here are some of our favorite Seuss books.  What are yours?

This was my FAVORITE book growing up! My poor
mom had to read this to me over and over!

     Well, that is officially it for this week!  Next week is T.  The possibilities a limitless with T.  Come back next week to see what we think of!

R is for... Racecar! AND Cauli Le Chat Appreciation Day! (Wait, there's no R in Cauli?!)

     I know I say this a lot, but it was a big week at the Mooresville Public Library this week!

1)    It was Cauli Le Chat Appreciation Day! More on that later.

2)    We got our eggs for our annual chick hatch.

3)    We had all of our regularly scheduled programs!

Sounds busy, right?

     For those of you who don’t know, Cauli Le Chat is our feline roving reporter here at MPL.  February just so happens to be Cat Appreciation Month and Cauli wasn’t feeling the love.  Thus the Boss Lady, as Cauli calls her, decided to declare Wednesday, February 22, as Cauli Le Chat Appreciation Day.  Of course, we had to celebrate this monumental occasion in Story Time as well. So, what did we do?

The banner we made for Cauli Appreciation Day.
Yes, we. Though he will loathe me admitting it,
Sammy the Toucan helped me create this beautiful banner!

In honor of Cauli Le Chat Appreciation Day,
we read many cat books! Splat the Cat is
a funny guy that every kid will be guaranteed to love.

Another favorite of mine is the Laura Numeroff
"If You Give," series.  You will not be disappointed
if you pick this one up.  Though be prepared,
you child will probably want a cupcake at the end!

A great book to talk about animals, shapes, and sizes,
as well as love.  This is a cute book that is short and to
the point.  Your child will have no problem sitting through it.

All kids at the library were allowed to participate
in the Cauli Appreciation Day Color Contest.
Stay tuned, winners will be announced on Tuesday!

     As the second note mentions, our library got eggs!  That’s right, for the third year in a row; we will be hatching chickens at the library.  Last Friday, we started regulating the temperature of our incubator, and on Tuesday the eggs were put in, beginning the three week process.  Sometime next week, we will start candling the eggs to see if life is beginning to take shape and in three weeks time, we will have baby chicks running all over the library.  If you are interested in fostering baby chicks for a couple of weeks, call us at the library to get all the details!  If you would like to follow the chicks' progress, follow Miss Suzanne's chick blog at

Fresh eggs just ready for incubating!

The incubators. We will start with just one,
howeveronce the eggs hatch, we will move them
to the second incubator for fluffing. 

And the finished product, for now.  The eggs will remain
in the incubator for three weeks.  After this period we will
hopefullystart to hear chirping and eggshells cracking as
our babies make their way into the world!  It really is exciting!

     And now on to our regularly scheduled program, Letter of the Week!  This week was all about the letter R.  I went with racecar because I thought the boys in class might appreciate it.  I also later realized that I could have used road to coordinate with racecar.  Oh well, here is what the letter R looked like this week!

Materials:  Index card with capital R, 2 sticker racecars, and crayons

Front of card

Back of card

1)    Color the capital R to look like a road.

2)    Trace the capital and lower case Rr on the back of the card.

3)    Peel the racecar stickers and stick them on.

     The book I chose to read this week is one that I have actually already ready to the 4 to 6 year olds so it may look a bit familiar.  He Saves the Day by Marsha Hayles was a great read for the 2 and 3 year olds.  Although it didn’t eexactly state racecar in the book, it was very obvious that the boy character was riding along in his make-believe racecar.  It is a fun and exciting book, with a great ending for all the moms out there!

     Well, that’s it!  Personally, I think that’s enough excitement for one week! I am exhausted!  If you watched this week’s video, you would know that next week is Ss.  Sammy the Toucan thinks I should dedicate this day to him.  Who knows, guess you and Sammy will both have to wait and see what new and exciting things happened next week! Stay tuned!

Love is in the air… Happy Valentine’s Day!

    

     Growing up, Valentine’s Day was kind of a big deal in my family.  Not in the traditional chocolates, flowers, balloons, and jewelry kind of way.  Valentine’s Day is actually my parents’ wedding anniversary.  Yes, my parents are schmoopy and got married on Valentine’s Day.  Imagine that wedding, will you?  Anyways, I have always spent Valentine’s Day celebrating with my parents, and this year was no exception.  Although, I did also get to have three whole days of Valentine’s celebration with my Story Time kids and boy was that fun!  You would have thought it was Christmas all over with how excited my kids were!

     As usual, let’s celebrate this holiday through pictures!

Books

I read this book to my 2-3 year olds.  It was the perfect
length and also allowed the kids to participate by guessing what
was underneath the flap. It was fun!

I read this book to my older kids because it is a little bit longer.
Filled with all of the cutesy "kitty" love stuff, this book
is an excellentread to describe love to kids.

Although not about Valentine's Day, I still used this book for Pajama Time.
I especially like this book because all of the animal are made from hearts!
We had a great time counting how many it took to create each animal.

Another great Valentine's story told in rhyme to "Twas the Night Before Christmas."
Although I didn't use this book this year, it always makes my list because it
is a quick, upbeat read that the kids like to hear.

Crafts

These are some of the Valentine's I had my kids color!
After they were done coloring, I collected the cards and took them
over to Miller's Merry Manor, an assited living facility for the elderly.
They LOVED getting the cards and it was nice to be able to bring a smile to their faces.

I found these here.  I absolutely love them!
I think they would be great for Valentine's to hand out.

How cute is this?  Though I seriously considered doing
this for my crafts, I dediced to go a different route.  Find this craft here.

Another cute craft I found online.  Very simple! 
Trace your child's hand.
Fold down the middle and ring finger.
Then glue to a heart! 
A simple way to say "I love you" in American Sign Language.

Songs

Although I didn't use this song, I found it on YouTube

and think it is SO cute! Watch and listen!  You will see!

I really like to use this song during Valentine's!

The song is upbeat and my kids enjoy that it isn't

your typical "kids song."

Games

I played HEART bingo with my 4-6 year olds.  This is great
to work on larger numbers with kids as well as give a little
incentive to be an active listener! We had so much fun with this one!

Goodies

Ok, I know I said this would be all in pictures, but, I changed my mind.  Every holiday, I like to give my kiddos goody bags.  I try to make them fun and different for each holiday.  I also try VERY hard to make them age-appropriate. Though buying things for my babies can be difficult, its a really fun challenge!  This year in their goody bags were crayons, chocolates, strawberry chewy hearts, suckers, pencils, kazoos, stickers, and candy hearts.  Each kid also got a heart-shaped crayon I found on Pinterest!

     Well, that seems to be all for Valentine's Day.  Next week, we take another break from the alphabet to celebrate Cat Appreciate Month.  My library will be celebrate the fabulous Cauli le Chat, our feline roving reporter. Stop in to donate cat or dog food to the Morgan County Human Society in Cauli's honor.  We hope you tune in to see what all the fuss is about!