Did you know that Missouri Building Block Nominees are “voted most popular by preschool children in Missouri’s public libraries”? Last month I told you about two of this year’s nominees, “Duck” and “I Can Only Draw Worms.” Here are two more of the delightful picture books chosen for this year!
Daddy lion loves a meticulously kept lawn. Sweetie lion loves her new best friend, Charlotte. What happens when these two passions collide? Chaos and silliness of course, which makes “Dandy” by Ame Dyckman a preschool favorite! Parents will appreciate the message about the importance of family relationships. Overall, “Dandy” is a feel good story that couldn’t come at a better time. Continue reading “Awesome Read-Alouds: “Dandy” and “Everybody Says Meow””
Do you know what an anteater eats? The answer isn’t what you think it is! To find out, you have to read the Missouri Building Block nominee “What Does an Anteater Eat?” by Ross Collins. This is the story of a very cordial anteater and his quest to find a tasty morsel to eat. He meets other animals along the way and learns the snacking habits of his fellow forest friends.
**Spoiler Alert** You may want to get up and move to one of our favorite chants after you read this book. Clap and move along with Hilary and Dana as they show you the motions to “The Banana Chant.” Continue reading “Awesome Read-Alouds: “What Do Anteaters Eat?” & “Pokko and the Drum””
Hi! I’m Jessica, and normally, in a pre-COVID-19 world, I was in charge of finding iPad apps for the kiosks in the Children’s Services areas at our branches. Unfortunately, we live in a minimal-touch world right now, so, instead of switching out the apps like I normally would, I decided I would list out a couple of my favorite STEAM apps for iPads so you can play fun, STEAM-themed games at home!
I tried to include both paid apps and free apps from our library iPads. This is not a paid promotion; these are resources that come directly from library usage.
STEAM Apps for iPads
Composer’s Sketchpad by Alexei Baboulevitch
Click here to find it in the App Store: $3.99 (though it does take some trial and error)
Intended age range: 4+
The Composer’s Sketchpad has been one of my favorite apps to offer kids. It allows them to try out different instruments, compose music, save their work and make edits later. No musical experience is required! It allows kids to try things out for themselves, experiment with sound and share their work.
Of my recommendations today, this one is the hardest to engage with at first. It’s got a little bit of a learning curve, but once kids have mastered the basics, it’s really fun to jump right in and create!
Continue reading “STEAM iPad Apps: Learn and Play at Home!”
I just love painting! There’s something so satisfying about turning a blank canvas into a unique piece of art. I used to go to guided painting classes all the time—that is, until I bought all of the supplies to paint at home. All of this practice has given me the skills I need to guide a painting class for you!
You can paint along with me on the DBRL YouTube channel to make your own mini snowman. It’s simple enough for young kids, but it’s also a lovely painting for teens and adults to try! Continue reading “Paint Along: Mini Snowman”
Each of us is a member of many different kinds of communities. A community is a group of people who share something in common. Your community can be your neighborhood, your classroom, your place of worship, your town, your city, your state, your country or your world. The more you can find in common with others, especially those who are different from you in some way, the easier it is to establish peace and harmony. To introduce your child to the idea of communities, check out these resources.
Books
“Daniel’s Good Day “by Micha Archer
As Daniel takes a walk, he asks the people he sees the question, “What makes a good day for you?” He gets a variety of answers from a diverse group of people, all who live or work in his neighborhood. Continue reading “Virtual Activity Bundle: Community”
Some books are a joy for reader and listener alike! This is certainly the case with Missouri Building Block nominees, “Duck!” by Meg McKinlay and “I Can Only Draw Worms” by Will Mabbitt.
“Duck!” begins, “It was a quiet afternoon on the farm. The horse was swishing his tail, and the cow chewing her cud. The pig was wallowing in the mud, and the sheep was sheeping on the grass.” Suddenly, this tranquil setting is interrupted as Duck runs through the barnyard yelling at the top of his lungs! When the farmyard animals misunderstand him, and even make fun of him, Duck tries harder to get his message across. He finally does, but is it too late? This book will quickly become a favorite of your little ones!
In “I Can Only Draw Worms,” author Mabbitt takes a silly and fun approach to counting to ten. The opening page starting with, “This book is about worms. (I can only draw worms.)” appears to tell it all. But does it really? Be prepared to giggle along with your children as the author introduces them to 10 of the “most creative” worms ever drawn! Filled with bright colors, funny words and a few surprises, “I Can Only Draw Worms” encourages children to do their best, even if they think they can’t. Continue reading “Awesome Read-Alouds: “I Can Only Draw Worms” & “Duck!””
I’ve been keeping busy, ordering all kinds of delightful books for the library! Once I order them, our Technical Services team processes the books and gets them ready to go on the shelves. We usually process books in the order we receive them but…can I tell you a secret? If you place a hold on a book, we’ll move it to the front of the line! So if any of these books catch your eye, put it on hold and you’ll get it that much sooner. Ready to read about some awesome books?
Picture Books
“The Bear and the Moon” written by Matthew Burgess and illustrated by Catia Chien
A young bear finds a friend and loses it in this gorgeously illustrated book. Bear wakes up from a nap to see a beautiful red balloon floating towards him and is filled with delight. Bear and the balloon are soon doing everything together dancing, climbing trees and rolling down hills. Yet Bear discovers that not all squishable things should be hugged and is overcome with sorrow at the loss of his friend. “Bad bear, he thought. Bad, bad bear.” Though it seems the bear is all alone now, the moon reaches down to him that night, gently stroking his fur and telling him, “Good bear. Kind bear. Don’t worry, bear.” I love that this book starts with joyful exuberance, transitions into grief and loss, and ends with self-love and forgiveness. This is a great choice to share with a little one as a bedtime story or an opportunity to talk through hard emotions. Continue reading “Brianna’s Books: November Favorites 2020”
For the next five weeks (skipping Thanksgiving), we will be reviewing all ten Missouri Building Block Picture Book Award nominees for 2020! These award nominees encourage reading aloud to children and are selected annually by a group of children’s librarians from Missouri. The books nominated for this award make for exciting and engaging story times for any group of kids. Continue reading “Awesome Read-Alouds: Piranhas Don’t Eat Bananas & Octopants”
Little felt birds are fun to sew and decorate. For this project, you’ll learn how to sew a simple bird out of plain and patterned felt. Birds can be decorated with buttons, beads, feathers and simple embroidery stitches. Add a ribbon to make a hanging or wire it to a grapevine wreath for a fun winter decoration. I recommend this for kids (and kids at heart) ages 7 and up. Younger children may need help from a grownup.
You will need:
- Felt
- Pins or tailor’s chalk
- Scissors
- Embroidery floss
- Embroidery needle
- 2 Buttons or beads (for eyes)
- Natural or synthetic fiber (for stuffing)
- Print and cut out the “sew a songbird pattern.” Place it on your felt. I used a plain color for the body and patterned scraps for the wings.
- Pin or trace around each pattern piece, then turn the pattern pieces over and pin or trace each one again. You should now have two of each pattern piece in felt, and they should mirror each other.
Continue reading “Sew a Songbird!”
November is National Novel Writing Month, during which people are challenged to write 50,000 words of a novel in 30 days. NaNoWriMo (as it’s abbreviated) is mostly done by adults, but kids can also take the challenge by writing their own stories. (They don’t have to be 50,000 words — just a few pages is enough to tell a great story). But what kind of story do you want to tell? Something personal, fantastic, mysterious, romantic, funny, scary or all of the above? And what’s the best way to tell your story? In prose or poetry? With illustrations? Maybe as a graphic novel? And how do you even know where to start? The books below will hopefully provide some helpful and inspiring tips for writing unique and captivating stories.
Every story is made of words, and Jerome, from “The Word Collector,”by Peter H. Reynolds, and Rocket, the dog in Tad Hills‘ “Rocket Writes A Story,” love to collect them. Jerome uses the words he collects to write poems and songs to share with his friends, and Rocket, who loves to read books, uses his to write a story about an owl he sees in a tree, who soon becomes his friend. Continue reading “NaNoWriMo for Kids: Telling Your Own Story”
