RECIPES FOR KIDS (AND ADULTS)

I recently had a 1st grade class in the library, and one of the students asked if we had any cook books. I was sure that we did, but I had never thought to look for our section of student cook books. Let me tell you, I am so glad that this student brought this section of our library to my attention. Just like gardening, I believe that baking/cooking can be so empowering to children because they do the work and then they have a product at the end that they have created. How cool! The recipes in these cook books for kids are easy and FUN (although the kids should still create the food with adult supervision, of course).

Mrs. Keeney and I were browsing through a couple of the books the other day, and we found some TASTY recipes. One book in particular caught our attention: "Indoor S'mores and Other Tasty Treats for Special Occasions" by Nick Fauchald. It's from a series of books called "Kids Dish", and all of the books are worth checking out. They group the recipes by difficulty level (Easy, Intermediate, Advanced) and the directions come with words AND pictures. I found a few recipes that I am excited to make over the weekend, and I posted one of my favorites below just to show how cool these books are. I will let you know how it turns out after I make it this weekend.

There is now a cook book display at the back of the library, so feel free to check out some of these fun books for yourself, or encourage your students to check them out!

Campout Banana Boats

Ingredients:
4 bananas
1/4 cup mini marshmallows
1/4 cup chocolate chips
4 teaspoons brown sugar

Tools:
butter knife, cutting board, measuring cups, measuring spoons, 4 12-inch squares of aluminum foil, baking sheet, oven mitts

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees (with parent supervision).
2. Remove peel from one side of a banana.
3. Use the butter knife to cut a small wedge out of the banana.
4. Place 1/4 of the marshmallows, 1/4 of the chocolate chips, and 1 teaspoon of brown sugar into the wedge of each banana.
5. Cover the banana with the banana peel. Wrap each banana tightly in aluminum foil and place on a baking sheet.
6. Ask an adult to bake the wrapped bananas for 8 minutes or until the chocolate has melted. Let cool for 10 minutes and serve.

APRIL IS NATIONAL POETRY MONTH!

April is National Poetry Month! In honor of this fun month, I am posting some videos of poets reading their poetry for kids. Shel Silverstein's is by far my favorite, but all of them are wonderful and worth watching as an adult or as a child. Also, check out the Poetry Foundation's website. They have many resources for children, including "Children's Poet Laureate Presents", "Classical Baby: The Poetry Show", and "A Child's Garden of Poetry", all of which contain videos meant for children. Enjoy!

 

Shel Silverstein Reading "Ickle Me, Pickle Me, Tickle Me Too"

Mary Ann Hoberman Reading "All Kinds of Families"

 

Video Here

 

 

Kenn Nesbitt Reading "I Taught My Cat To Clean My Room"

 

 

This one is a little advanced for kids, but how cool to see Robert Frost reading his famous poem, "Stopping By Woods On A Snowy Evening"

 



FIRST DAY OF SPRING

First, I would like to apologize for the horrible smell emanating from the library yesterday and today. The microwave and I had a small disagreement yesterday, and the result was an extremely overcooked Hot Pocket, a panicked librarian, and lots of smoke. I have learned my lesson and will not be using the microwave again for a long long LONG time.

In other, more important, news, we have some Spring displays up in the library! The display as you come in is full of Spring books and covers a variety of subjects, from earthworms and frogs to rain and umbrellas. We also have a "Reading Helps You Grow" display, which contains books about gardening, flowers, and seeds. Last but certainly not least is a poetry display, which is in the back of the library. It contains poetry for all grade levels, in various forms (free verse, haikus, etc), and covering a variety of subjects (monsters, princesses, animals, etc). Hopefully the kids will grab one of these books.

 

And on the horizon for next year....I am thinking about starting a book club for interested 5th grade students. I still have to get permission for this and speak with other teachers about ideas, but I think the student interest for it is there. I recently went to a conference, and one of the presenters had some great ideas about how to run an elementary school book club. More to come on this later.

 

Have a great first day of SPRING!



IS IT SPRING YET??

Despite the overwhelming amount of snow we've had and the cold temperatures, Spring is indeed around the corner! I know I can't wait! With Spring comes some fun book topics, such as ooey gooey earth worms, flowers and gardens, thunderstorms and rain, umbrellas, and fun spring animals.

To make it easier for teachers and students (and me) searching for Spring books, I made a list of Spring-related books in our Destiny catalog. It is super easy to find, and it lists titles related to all the Spring things I listed above. Here's how to find it.

1. Go to Sycamore Park's library catalog.

2. On the left, there are three options: Library Search, Destiny Quest, and Resource Lists. Click on Resource Lists. 

3. It will say "My Lists". On the right are two tabs: My Lists and Public Lists. Click on Public Lists. 

4. Click on Spring Titles. 

Now that everything is thawing and it doesn't physically hurt to go outside, it might be a great time for students to start exploring the world around them and take a plunge into science! I listed some websites below that might encourage children to embrace the warmer spring weather, learn about the world, and delve deeper into science. Enjoy!

TryScience

This website helps students experience the excitement of contemporary science and technology through on and offline interactivity with science and technology centers worldwide. Areas of the website include "Adventure", "Experience", "Field Trips", "Curious?", and "Live Cams". 

My First Garden

This website, available in English AND Spanish, is easy to navigate and allows students to learn about how to plant their first garden. The website includes areas such as "Garden Gallery", "Show Me The Basics", "Garden FUNdamentals", "Planning My Garden", and an area for the teachers entitled "Teacher's Guide". 

The Lorax Project

This branch of Seussville.com is all about educating students about endangered species, the rain forest, and what they can do to help and keep themselves informed. It includes maps of rain forest areas, a list of what the kids can do to be environmentally friendly, and a pledge the kids can sign if they choose to "be a friend to the environment and help the Lorax". 

Catch the Science Bug

This website encourages kids to explore their own backyard and even consider a career as a scientist. The students can learn about various science subjects, watch videos related to the topics, and participate in activities both off and online.

GRAPHIC NOVELS HITTING THE SHELVES

One of the new trends in the library, and in Sycamore Park's library, is the presence of graphic novels. Many people dismiss graphic novels because they connect them to comic books. Some say they don't have a serious place in the library and in the students' journey to literacy. However, graphic novels are important in so many ways! As Macmillan.com says so well, "graphic novels are a great way to go for kids making the transition from image-centric books to more text-based books, and for those just learning English". Pictures give visual hints about what is happening in the story if children are struggling with the words. Also, because the story is told with panels of pictures, the students are challenged to think critically as they move from panel to panel. Macmillan's PDF about graphic novels and their place in the classroom is linked here and is an interesting read.

I can tell you that in Sycamore Park's library, graphic novels are EXTREMELY popular, and our collection is continuing to grow. They can sometimes be difficult to find because they are often placed in the nonfiction as they are considered a form of art. I have outlined some of the library's new and popular graphic novel series below in case your students (or you) are interested in checking them out! Some of them are quite entertaining!

Pilot & Huxley
Taken from Amazon.com: Pilot & Huxley get zapped to another dimension by aliens seeking to enslave Earth. Things get weird when they traverse a swamp of bees, battle a sea monster, and end up in the nose of a giant dragon. But with help from a girl who can transform into a monster, they might just make it back home.

Thea Stilton Series
Taken from Amazon.com: The Thea Sisters are five fun, lively students at on Whale Island, who want to be real, live journalists just like their hero, Thea Stilton. Between classes and friendships, love and small fits of jealousy, they’re finding life is really exciting!

Olympians
George O'Connor highlights an important person from Greek mythology in each volume of this exciting and beautifully illustrated series.

Frankie Pickle
Amazon.com talks about this graphic novel/chapter book hybrid: Wight's children's book debut introduces a protagonist as singular as his name. Frankie Pickle (short for Franklin Piccolini) fuels his everyday life with fantasy.

I hope you and your students enjoy this new book trend!

TEACHER FAVORITES

The votes are in! I have officially heard from almost all of the teachers and staff about their favorite books, and that means a fun new display in the library! When you walk into the library, you will now see a Teacher Favorites display (below).

Each of the books has a post-it on the front with the name of the teacher who chose that book as their favorite (one of mine is shown as an example below). The kids can then check out these books. Kids are already excited to be reading books their teachers love, and the books are flying off the shelves!

I was thrilled with the variety of books that were mentioned by all of the teachers. We had Charlotte's Web (thanks, Mr. Wygal!) and Little Women (Mrs. Meza!), which are such classics, and then we had newer books such as the bear books by Karma Wilson, recommended by Mrs. McFarland, and the Percy Jackson series. For the rest of this week, I am getting pictures of the teachers and staff with their favorite books for use in a digital picture frame in the library and for a bulletin board in the school. Fun things on the horizon!

FEBRUARY DISPLAYS

February means exciting displays in the library! Currently, the display as you walk into the library is for Valentine's Day! This includes nonfiction, picture, and chapter books for all grades.

There is also a display for Black History Month, and we have LOTS of new books for this topic. You could pick up Claudette Colvin, a Newbery award-winning book with moving illustrations for the older grades about fifteen year old Claudette who refused to give up her seat to a white woman on a segregated bus nine months before Rosa Parks. Consider grabbing Fifty Cents And A Dream, a beautifully illustrated look at Booker T. Washington as a young man. Or maybe you'll pick up Before John Was A Jazz Giant about John Coltrane and his love of music. We have books on Oprah, Rosa Parks, basketball stars, leaders of the political realm, inventors, musicians. We have modern stories and older ones. Come check out our selection!

And last but not least, the library now has three sections for books that are new to the library. One section is for new picture books, one is for new fiction chapter books, and one is for new nonfiction books. These new sections are labeled with large blue "NEW" signs, so keep an eye out for them! The nonfiction ones may be helpful in some of your lessons, and I am listing them below. Enjoy!

Citizen Scientists: Be A Part of Scientific Discovery From Your Own Backyard
590.72 BUR

Life in the Ocean: The Story of Oceanographer Sylvia Earle
551.46 NIV

Trash Origami: 25 Paper Folding Projects Reusing Everyday Materials
736.98 LAF

Island: A Story of the Galapagos
508.86 CHI

Harlem's Little Blackbird
782.42 WAT

Over and Under the Snow
591.43 MES