All posts by Children's Staff
Dads and Donuts, June 11, 2016
Many dads (and moms and grandparents) gathered this morning for a fun time reading and singing together.
This book, The Super Hungry Dinosaur, had all of us “grrrrrrring” as the dinosaur tried to eat the boy Hal and his dog billy. Everyone stayed riveted to the story until the end to find out what the dinosaur does end up eating!
The main character in the story, Raggety Taggle, wondered, What Noise Does a Rabbit Make? He heard the cow saying “mooo,” the horse saying, “neigh” and the other animals and farm items making their sounds. After a bit of an adventure, Raggety Taggle comes to the conclusion that it would be okay to not make any noise!
A fun story that got everyone up dancing and wishing for their own “polka dot pants.” You can’t help singing along to this fun and delightful story.
In honor of the upcoming Father’s Day, we ended with a lovely story about the wonderfulness of dads! Happy Father’s Day to all.
Write With Your Child!
Have blank books 
available for children to draw and write their own stories.
Summer Reading!!!
Children ages 0-12 years old are invited to register for summer reading in the children’s room of the main library or at the MacKay branch. You can begin counting the time you spend reading as soon as you register.
Record the time you spend reading stories, or finding information in books. Listening to someone else read also counts. We want to encourage adults to read to children from the day they are born.
If one child reads to another child, that counts on both their logs!
Reading for 12.5 hours fills up a log. I know many of you can fill up more than one log. Bring each log to the Main Library or the MacKay branch when you are finished. We will give you coupons for discounts at area sponsors, and you will get a ticket to take a chance on our raffle jars.
Thank you to the Massachusetts Board of Library Commissioners, the Boston Bruins, and especially the Chelmsford Friends of the Library.
~Maureen
Read With Your Child!
Check out Storytimes on Chelmsford Telemedia
(Comcast Channel 22 or Verizon Channel 36) Listen to a half hour of stories every evening at 7:00 pm. The stories are read by the staff of the public library and school libraries in Chelmsford.
Talk With Your Child!
Talk to and with your
child during the day.
Talk in the car, while waiting in line, during meals, while doing chores, etc.
Family Day Care Traveling Storytimes – May 2016
Traveling to Family Day Cares this past month brought great enthusiasm from all. There was one week of solid rain and we felt it during storytimes. The children were antsy and restless. During those times, we did lots of movement and interacting with songs and books. Bringing out the shaker eggs always brings excitement but with one of the songs the children really enjoy shaking (tapping, clapping, waving) the eggs and then stopping. Using the sign for “stop,” the children shake their egg and then there is great silence when we get to “stop!”
The rainy days made the book Big Sarah’s Little Boots by Paulette Bourgeois very appropriate to read. In the story, Sarah loves her old rain boots and is pretty sure that the boots have shrunk. After trying many different ways of trying to stretch out the books, Sarah and her mom end up at the shoe store to pick out a new pair of rain boots. With a heart warming ending, the story interested all the children.
Another story the children could really relate to was Jackson’s Blanket by Nancy Cote. This is another story about an object that the main character is not ready to give up. Jackson’s family feels like it is time for him to pack his favorite blanket away since “blankets are for babies.” Jackson is not ready to do this and finds a wonderful solution to his problem. This story brought lots of smiles to everyone.
The story Lily and Bear by Lisa Stubbs is about the friendship between Lily and Bear. I really like this story because it shares the idea of being friends and doing things together that each person enjoys. In this story, Lily and Bear draw pictures and ride tricycles and then they pick berries and scratch their back on trees. A great lesson in the story for all ages.
Play With Your Child!
Make up a game to go with a book. 
For example, after reading an alphabet book, go for a walk to find different letters in nature.
Toddler Time, Friday, May 13
We joined together today for the last storytime of the session. As I mentioned before, Toddler Time on Fridays have been great fun and wonderfully successful this session. I have continued to be impressed by the participation of both the children and the grownups. You are truly being great role models for your little ones as you join in on the books, songs and rhymes. All of this interest and participation continues to help develop a strong foundation for the development of literacy skills. Here’s to all of you for a really great job!
In preparation for the annual Teddy Bear Concert occurring on Friday, May 20 at 10:30am at the Chelmsford Center for the Arts, we read the favorite Brown Bear, Brown Bear.
Our storytime schedule changes a bit during the summer. Storytimes for children 12 months and older will be held Monday mornings at 10:00am, beginning July 11. Check out our calendars online for other events happening in June and for the complete summer schedule for July and August. Also, toddlers are welcomed and encouraged to sign up for our summer reading program. Ask one of us for more information.
Baby Storytime, 0-12 months, Friday, May 13
We gathered together today for our last baby storytime of the session. 😥 Continue reading and singing to your baby everyday and come in and share your experiences with us. One family asked about the words to some of the songs and rhymes that we sing. I suggested the website “The Early World of Learning.” It is accessible through the Chelmsford Public Library website. Just link to the Kid’s Page and scroll down. “Early World of Learning” is under the Quick Links column on the right. Once you get into the site, if you click on the green frog at the button, labeled “Classics,” you will be offered choices to hear stories, songs and rhymes. Some of the songs and rhymes that we sing during storytime are on the website along with some other classic tunes.
Baby Storytime will resume again in the summer, beginning on Friday, July 8 at 10:00am.
In preparation for the Annual Teddy Bear Concert, we read Brown Bear, Brown Bear today. The concert will be held next Friday, May 20 at 10:30am up the street at the Chelmsford Center for the Arts. We hope to see you there.
Dads and Donuts storytime on Saturday, May 14
Who doesn’t love cookies? Our first story this morning contained a bit of a mystery, as we learned that all the other farm animals are content to eat their “traditional” foods (hay for horses, corn for geese, and so on); but the cow wants something a little different. So why does the cow love cookies? Read this rhythmic rhyming story to find out!
In the eyes of his child, a daddy is always twelve feet tall! This next story, with expressive large-format illustrations and simple text, celebrates the bond between daddy and child. Everyday activities are portrayed with affection, ending with a cozy bedtime story.
Did you ever wake up feeling grumpy for no particular reason? Though it was hard to imagine being out of sorts on such a beautiful, sunny day, everyone could certainly identify with Bird’s feelings– and we were glad when he finally found a way to exchange his scowl for a smile. I always like a happy ending!
It’s getting closer to strawberry-picking season in Chelmsford, so next we read this classic story of a mouse who only wants to eat his lovely red, ripe strawberry in peace. But of course, he has to worry about that big, hungry, strawberry-loving bear. Mouse tries a few different ways to protect his treat– and the answer is surprising yet perfect. Large, detailed illustrations tell the story almost without need for the text; and it’s guaranteed you will want to eat strawberries as soon as you reach the end of this story!
Our last story is also a classic– and also contains a bear. Since our annual Teddy Bear Concert is this Friday, May 20 (10:30 AM at the Chelmsford Center for the Arts), perhaps we have bears on the brain! This story of a family’s adventure contains lots of repetition, which lends itself to extensive audience participation. Thanks to everyone for helping me read this story!