Early Bit Lits

November,  2012
Issue No . 31
KDL Blue
 
In This Issue
Harvest Parties
Nursery Nook
Music Minute
Learning with Crafts
Book Review
KDLville Early Literacy Play Spaces

Get Curious

Are you curious about animals, drawing, cooking or stories? Math, science, art or engineering? Join your host, the Man with the Yellow Hat, as he guides you through games and activities to pique your curiosity.

 

Check the online event calendar for dates and times. For ages 6 and younger. 

Nursery Nook

Roll, Roll, Roll Your Hands

 

Roll, roll, roll your hands

As slowly as can be

Roll them forward, roll them backward

Now fold your arms like me.

 

Roll, roll, roll your hands

As quickly as can be!

Roll them forward, roll them backward

Now fold your arms like me.

 

A fun, silly rhyme when you just follow the directions together!  This helps develop listening skills, gross motor, and the language of opposites.  You can also try  rolling your hands as high as you can be/as low as you can be; or in front of you and me/in back of you and me; or be as creative as you like!

Music Minute

Children's movies will often have a fun and well done musical score.  One such movie soundtrack is for the Disney/Pixar movie Brave.  Set in Scotland, the soundtrack celebrates the musical sounds and traditions of Celtic music.  Listening to this soundtrack is a great way to expose a child to a new style of music, start a discussion of other cultures and  reminisce about scenes from the movie.

 

Brave  

 

Interested in more movie soundtracks? Check our online catalog by searching for "soundtrack" and the name of the movie to place a hold on your favorite today. 

Greetings!

Kent District Library is here to provide you and your child with the skills needed to succeed in school and in life. KDL's Early Lit Bits newsletter is full of FUN and simple activities that will help foster that growth. For more information regarding the skills your child needs before he or she learns to read, visit the Play-Grow-Read section of the KDL website.  You can also stop by any KDL branch to speak with one of our helpful youth librarians. We hope to see you soon!

Learning with Crafts
Play-Grow-Read

Talking Turkey

 

Talking with adults helps children to develop vocabulary and language skills that help them to learn to read when they begin school. Here's a fun seasonal craft for Thanksgiving that will help get the conversation started.

 

Materials:

brown and yellow construction paper

scissors

one brass fastener

several paint color samples

a marker or pen

googley eyes (optional)

hole punch

glue

 

To Make:

Cut a circle from the brown paper. (This will form the turkey's body and head.) Cut a small triangle (a beak) from the yellow paper. Glue the googley eyes and beak to the brown circle to make the turkey's face.  Trim the ends of the paint samples so that they resemble feathers. Use a hole punch to punch a hole near the bottom of the circle under the eyes and beak. Use a hole punch to punch a hole near one end of each of the feathers.  Talk with your child about what it means to be thankful. Write one thing that your child is thankful for on the top of each of the feathers.  You can also add pictures to the feathers. Attach the feathers to the turkey's body with the brass fastener and fan them out to make a tail. You now have a thankful turkey decoration.

 

Tip: You can also use this craft to teach the words for colors. Write the word for each color on the top of the paint sample feathers.

 

Turkey Craft  

Book Review

I'm Bored by Michael Ian Black

 

The cover of this new picture book says it all! If ever your child has uttered these words, this book will remind them of all of the wonderful things he or she can do. In this story, a bored little girl tries to impress a potato by showing it how to play pirates, climb a mountain of laundry and do cartwheels. The pictures help tell the story, showing the reader that this little girl is anything but boring. The ending of the book will leave you laughing and never again will you have the "I'm bored" conversation without including a potato. As you read and laugh together, talk about what amazing things your child can do. You could even make a list of great ways to play when the winter blahs begin appearing. Imaginative play builds storytelling skills, which is a wonderful way to get your child ready to read!

 

    I'm Bored

KDLville Early Literacy Play Spaces

The KDLville play space in the Sand Lake branch opened just before our busiest time - Summer Reading 2012.  The kickoff on May 15 was a wonderful way to celebrate early literacy and get kids excited to visit the library. KDLville has continued to attract our youngest patrons with exciting activities that encourage the five early literacy practices of talking, writing, singing, playing and reading. It is amazing to watch the way parents engage with their little ones while they make an imaginary meal, put on a puppet show or play with the many games in KDLville. Whether using stringing beads, wooden blocks or rhyme-and-find bean bags, conversation abounds!

 

Themes and activities vary by season. This fall we are celebrating nature with woodland animals. As you walk into KDLville, make sure to "measure up" to our giant ruler - see which woodland animal you can reach!  Match up the animal pictures with the close-up of their eyes on Katie's footprints back to our play area. Color a fall leaf at our writing center to add to the giant tree in our reading nook. See if you can find all five baby elephants and their special words in our play area - what letter do the words start with?

 

If you're out exploring, head north to Kent District Library's very own big red barn in Sand Lake. Stop in for a visit and enjoy special time with your little ones in KDLville!

 
Magnet Wall