All posts by Children's Staff
Sing With Your Child!
Sing songs that have accompanying hand movements.
For example– “Wheels on the bus” and “I’m a Little Teapot.”
Baby Storytime, 0-12 month olds, Friday, August 19
A large group gathered together today for our last Baby Storytime of the summer. For several babies and their families, this was their last Baby Storytime, as they are ready to move on to Toddler Storytimes! Happy First Birthday to many!
Storytimes will resume again the week of September 26. Baby Storytimes will continue on Fridays at 10am and I can’t wait to see all the babies and their caregivers. Toddler storytimes will be held on Mondays (10am), Wednesdays (11am), and Fridays at 11am.
Today’s storytime was joyous and spirited as so many grownups joined in on the songs and rhymes. It was fun time for all, ending with lots of smiles and giggles and bubbles!
We ended the session with another one of my favorites, a very cute, lift-the-flap story with a fun ending called Dear Zoo by Rod Campbell. Come on in during the storytime break to hang out in our play area, read some books and borrow some to take home!
Books for Preschoolers on Wednesday, August 17 and Friday, August 19
I scream, you scream, we all scream for (books about) ice cream!
Our ice cream-themed storytime coincided with our annual ice cream making program, which is always one of the highlights of summer in the Children’s Department. For those of you who couldn’t attend, here is the recipe we use to make ice cream. It’s fun and easy to do at home, even with very young children.
Ingredients:
2-3 cups ice cubes
3-4 tablespoons salt
2 freezer bags, 1 quart size and 1 gallon size
Duct tape
1 cup half and half
1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 tablespoons sugar
Place sugar, vanilla, and half and half in quart bag. Close the bag and seal the opening with duct tape. Put ice and salt in the gallon bag. Put small bag inside large bag, seal the large bag tightly, and shake for about 5-10 minutes, or until ice cream is frozen. Open bags carefully, discard ice and salt. Enjoy!
Kids: return your reading logs by Saturday, September 3
The Children’s Summer Reading Program is ending on September 3. Children will receive a raffle ticket when they return a reading log. The drawing for the raffle jars will be held at 5:15 pm on September 3. Winners will be notified on Tuesday, September 6.
Raffle tickets must be turned in by 5:00 pm on Friday, September 2 at the MacKay Branch. Those winners will be notified on Wednesday, September 7.
Good luck to everyone. Keep reading!
~Maureen
Write With Your Child!
Help your child to “write a letter” to someone and actually mail it.
Baby Storytime, 0-12 month olds, Friday, August 12
Today at Baby Storytime we talked a bit about the importance of literacy in the life of a young child. The handout entitled “Step Into Reading” was offered. It is a simple pamphlet that talks about the importance of reading aloud to your baby and gives you some tips and ideas of how to incorporate reading into your daily routine. For example, “Set aside a time each day, such as nap time, bedtime, or after meal times” to share books together. Also, “share books when you and your child are in a relaxed mood.” Please ask at the desk if you are interested in getting a copy of this informative pamphlet.
In addition to songs, rhymes, finger plays, movement and music, we also read a favorite book together during storytime. Remember that we have a lot of board books for you to borrow to bring home to read with your child.
Books for Preschoolers on Wednesday, August 10 and Friday, August 12
Row, row, row your boat
Gently down the bay.
We shared stories about boats
At storytime today!
Click on the book covers to find each title in our catalog.
Read With Your Child!
Encourage your child to read to OR pretend to read a book to a favorite stuffed animal.
Books for Preschoolers on Wednesday, August 3 and Friday, August 5
Summer is a great time for a family bike ride, and here in Chelmsford we’re lucky to have a section of the Bruce Freeman Rail Trail running right through the center of town. This week we read all about bikes in our preschool storytimes. You can click on each book cover below to find these books in the library catalog.
Baby Storytime 0-12 months on Friday, August 5
Today at baby storytime we had a diverse group that ranged in age from 6 weeks to almost one year old! Younger babies snuggled in their parent’s arms while the older ones showed off their almost-walking muscles. But all enjoyed songs, rhymes, bubbles, and a story. Today we read the classic Very Hungry Caterpillar. This and other Eric Carle titles are perennially popular for a good reason, as they combine large, luminous collage illustrations with simple but strong story lines. Click on the book’s cover to link to this title in our catalog.
If you enjoy Eric Carle’s books, try checking out our Eric Carle backpack. The kit contains several books, a DVD, and a stuffed caterpillar. Hopefully he’s not TOO hungry!