Toms River Branch Trick-or-Treat

I really enjoy Halloween. This year, I held a program called Halloween Runway where kids walked our red carpet then trick-or-treated throughout the library. My coworker held a Spooky Story Time program. Enjoy the pictures!

Expelliarmus: A Harry Potter Program

On Monday, July 11, the Toms River Branch of the Ocean County Library will host Expelliarmus! This Harry Potter- themed program will include Potions class, Wand Making, and a trip to Hogsmeade. In Potions, ‘students’ at Hogwarts will brew a mixture that will reveal the nature of their souls (with the help of seltzer water and food dye!). Wand Making will involve dipping pretzel rods into melted chocolate morsels and decorating with sprinkles and the trip to Hogsmeade will garner cockroach clusters, every flavor bean sampling, and other delicacies. In preparation, I’m making props to enhance the atmosphere.

Music and Movement

The best management technique of all is to be totally focused on the activity. Show enthusiasm and build anticipation. If YOU are involved, the children will be involved (p 11).

Of course, it doesn’t hurt to remove all chairs from the room, essentially forcing parents to get involved. I hold a monthly program called Music and Movement for ages 3 through 6.

On our library’s event page, I encourage parents and children to wear sneakers and comfortable clothing “as both will be doing a lot of moving!”

A general announcement to silence cell phones and participate in the program with their child(ren) never goes amiss either.

I designed Music and Movement to promote good health by blending appropriate books, music and movement for an invigorating experience.

Some of my favorite books to choose from include:

Craig, Lindsey. Dancing Feet.
Cronin, Doreen. Wiggle.
Cronin, Doreen. Stretch.
Davis, Kate. Who Hops?
Ellery, Tom. If I Were a Jungle Animal.
Fuge, Charles. This is the Way.
Gravett, Emily. Monkey and Me.
London, Jonathan. Wiggle, Waggle.

I usually read 2 to 4 books per program and work them between movement segments to give folks a breather. As a facilitator, I wear yoga pants, a library T-shirt and I always bring a water bottle!

I also incorporate movement activities that require kids to act out stories or songs. For example, I’ve tweaked Michael Rosen’s performance of We’re Going on a Bear Hunt (watch the YouTube video) so kids are slapping their hands on their thighs while singing “We’re going on a bear hunt. We’re gonna catch a big one.” Then I pretty much follow his lead. The kids LOVE it.

Other fun acting out songs/stories include:

Baby Beluga
Baby Shark
Shake My Sillies Out
We are the Dinosaurs (Laurie Berkner)
The Monster Mash (for Halloween fun!)

You can get creative with the songs for other holidays and seasons.

I also incorporate ribbons/streamers for songs including:

The Wheels on the Bus
The Freeze Dance
Walking on Sunshine (with bubbles) or other pop hits (give those parents a break! I personally love the Glee songs)

Rhythm Sticks, Shakers, and/or Bells can be used as well. For great ideas on using these tools, consult 101 Rhythm Instrument Activities for Young People by Abigail Flesch Connors (quoted above) or Mother Goose on the Loose by Betsy Diamant-Cohen (check out her site).

I like to keep some consistency in my closing songs across ages and programs to signal the end. My two favorites: “The More We Get Together” and “Twinkle Little Star.”

Mother Goose: An Early Literacy Program in Detail

I posted earlier about Mother Goose but I’ve decided to expand on that earlier post due to interest from other bloggers and my moms. If you would like to see the rhymes I use, I have put them together in a PowerPoint show on my wiki, Bugs in the Coke Machine (click on MotherGoose.ppt). I’m also going to upload videos of myself performing the Mother Goose program.

In this first video, I greet the mom and babies with my usual Hello & How Are You song (from the “Wiggleworms Love You” CD, 2005) followed by the rhyming section with a “Two Little Blackbirds” variation (Quiet and Loud) and “I’m Driving in my Car,” and “Where is Thumpkin?”

In the next segment we move to body rhymes: “Wiggle and Waggle,” “See-Saw Scare-a-down,” “This is the Way,” “Can You?”. Then it’s time for animal fun with ”Five Little Monkey’s” and “Six Little Ducks.”

This is followed by scarf and drum activities (“This is the way,” “The Wheels on the Bus,” “We’re Marching to the Drum”). We close out with our goodbye song, “Twinkle, Little Star.” Many of the moms will remain in the room up to 15 minutes after the program is over, playing with the puppets, instruments, and just chatting/making play dates. It’s a great social time for new moms especially.

So I hope you have an idea of the rhythm and flow of the program. This was a group of non-walking babies so it was a lot more lap time and less movement. The walkers tend to have more scarf/drum/music activity than the non-walkers. You can add rhymes to the program and toss out the ones you don’t like. Some I enjoy singing and sometime I prefer to use the CD player. Coming soon, a Mother Goose playlist with my favorite versions of my favorite songs.

Mother Goose @ the Library

Our lap sit program for infants (24 months and younger) is called Mother Goose. In these videos, I am working with 8 moms and their infants. Here is a bullet point run down of the program:

• Individual sessions of Mother Goose (MG) run about 30 to 40 minutes.
• MG runs once a week over 3 weeks with the same parent/child pairs. At my library, we run a series every month during the school year and hold individual classes during the summer. We also hold individual classes on Saturdays about once a month.
• MG is a time for parents and their babies to play while learning techniques to improve early literacy skills.
• About 80% of the program is repeated each week with some new rhymes or songs. Repetition is important.
• I begin each session with our hello song, “Hello and How Are You?”:

• The greeting is followed by a rhyming section that includes corresponding body movement. In the video below, we are singing Two Little Blackbirds:

• As the children start moving, it’s time to get up and do more active play. In the videos below, I use shakers and scarves.

• I often use a drum and other manipulatives like ribbons or puppets to engage with the children. Bubbles and our goodbye song, “The More We Get Together” and “Twinkle Little Star” are repeated at the end of each session.

Stretch by Doreen Cronin

Along the lines of Wiggle and Bounce, Cronin’s Stretch is a book that begs for movement. You can also use this book with My Daddy is a Pretzel: Yoga for Parents and Children by Baron Baptiste and Boing by Nick Bruel for an exercise themed preschool story time. I know I love to whip out these titles when summer is nearing and the kids have ants in their pants, itching to play.

You can plan a program around just this title. Encourage kids to bring their swimming boards or a pilates mat so they can “stretch underwater…stretch on a wave.” Use bubble gum to stretch your lungs to take a breath, then blow out. Then you can group stretch!

Mugglefest: A Celebration of the World of Harry Potter

“The best Harry Potter party we’ve ever been to.” That was the praise the OCL Children’s services staff received upon completion of our first ever Mugglefest!

Over 20 children between the ages of 5 and 10 participated. We began with a true sorting. The Sorting Hat was placed in the front (with a cell phone set to speaker placed underneath). Prof. McGonagall read aloud each child who was promptly sorted, “William… yes… you are ambitious. A leader. You belong in SLYTHERINE!”

Once sorted, the students received a class schedule. It was off to Potions, Divination, and Wand Making. Here are some pictures.

Summer Reading Kickoff Carnival

 You may be wondering why I haven’t posted for a while. SUMMER READING is my only explanation. I haven’t been reading anything but picture books because I just don’t have the time.

Last Tuesday, we kicked off our summer reading program – Be Creative @ the Library – with a carnival. It was an idea I proposed during our brainstorming session months ago).

Librarians, with the help of our S.A.I.L. (Service and Achievement in the Library) teen volunteers, ran several stations. I ran the water balloon toss station. Other included: Bean Bag Toss, Temporary Tattoos, Sand Art Necklaces, Boppers, Dolphin Ring Toss, Sidewalk Chalk, Duck Pond, Limbo Contest, and Bead Bracelets. We sent them home with ice pops.

Princess Tea Party

I held two Princess Tea Parties this past Thursday. To include boys, simply call it a Royal Tea Party.  We had fun taking pictures with my tiara afterward!

Crowns: Michael’s – I bought crowns from Oriental Trading but they were flimsy. The crowns from Michaels were sturdy, though small. They fit high on the head, but they worked. And if you plan to attach gems, sturdy is good. They cost $3.00 per pack of 12.

Tea Set: Toys R Us – $15.00 for a set of four (includes cup, saucer, plate, forks/knife/spoon/tea spoon, creamer, napkin holder and pitcher – which weren’t sealed properly so I didn’t use those). I bought 4 sets to accommodate 16 kids. While this is expensive, I have used them 4 times now and will use them a total of 6 times this summer.

Other: Crayola Markers, Sharpie Markers, Stencils, Tacky Glue, and Gems.

Local Libraries Offer All Kinds of Free Activities

On their way to an "Oscar the Grouch Birthday Party" program

The Ocean County Library is featured in the Asbury Park Press’s LIFE section online as a rainy day destination for good free activities. But the library is more than that. Rain or shine, I foresee the Library replacing costly summer camps and trips to Six Flags as parents are looking for wholesome activities for their children.

In the vein of our summer reading theme, “Be Creative @ the Library,” we are offering a slew of art, theatre, and craft activities every day, all summer long. On top of this, we have book clubs for all school age children and a Teen/Child Reading Buddies program for those still learning to read.

You can check out all our programs with the Ocean County Library Calendar of Events.