Early Lit Bits

August, 2013

Issue No . 40

In This Issue

Our Earth: Dig It!

Music Minute

Learning with Crafts

Book Review

App Review

Dirt Desserts

Dig into great dirt dessert ideas and use your imagination to create fun, edible messes!

Check the online event calender for a program near you.

Nursery Nook

5 Little Ducks

Five Little ducks went out to play

Over the hill and far away

Mama Duck said: "Quack, Quack, Quack!"

Four little ducks came waddling back!

Continue singing this verse through "1 little duck went out to play..."

Then finish with:

No little ducks went out to play

Over the hill and far away

Daddy Duck said: "QUACK! QUACK! QUACK!"

Five little ducks came waddling back!

This classic is great to use with puppets, flannel boards, or cool animation for storytime anytime at all! Have children hold up their fingers and count down with you. It reinforces counting skills, one-to-one correspondence and fine motor skills.

-Trish R.

East Grand Rapids Branch

Music Minute

We often hear about comfort foods, but music can also be a comfort. Recent studies have shown that listening to music significantly reduces pain and anxiety during medical procedures. Favorite songs can serve as the perfect distraction during uncomfortable events, such as tending a scraped knee, getting a shot, or even saying goodbye after visiting friends.

Children love repetition. It creates a sense of control and comfort when they know what to expect. Singing familiar "comfort" songs when things are scary or stressful gives children a way to cope. Check out some of our children's favorites like Children's Favorites: 30 Classic Tunes for a variety of familiar and fun songs that can help in trying situations.

Children's Favorites

-Sara M.

Sand Lake Branch

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

Clothespin Word Puzzles

Fresh laundry drying on an outside clothesline is one of the sure signs of summer. Here's a way to reuse those old wooden clothespins to make simple letter puzzles. Pinching clothespins helps young children develop fine motor skills they will need to hold a pencil once they are in school. Matching and sorting letters also helps children learn the form and shape of letters and words.

Materials

Wooden Clothespins

Glue

Cardboard cut into rectangles (a cereal box works well for this)

Pictures cut from a magazine or printed from a computer

Glue

Markers or crayons

To Make

Write a word on a piece of cardboard. Add a corresponding picture to the cardboard cut from a magazine or printed from a computer. Draw one letter for each letter in the word onto a wooden clothespin.

To Use:

Have children find the clothespins that match each letter in the word and clip the corresponding pin over the letter written on the piece of cardboard.

Other Ideas:

Make a long strip of cardboard with the whole alphabet written on it and a clothespin for each letter. This is also a good way to have a child practice writing his or her name.

-Anjie G.

Walker Branch

Book Review

Romping Monsters, Stomping Monsters by Jane Yolen

Monsters are playing ball, riding bikes and picnicking at the Creepy Commons park in this new picture book. The two-page illustrations and rhyming text make this book perfect for reading aloud to a group. Invite listeners to guess the rhyming word that comes next, using the pictures as clues. In a one-on-one setting, have your little one point to various monsters in an "I Spy" game. Can you find the monster going for a jog? This story has rich action words, such as lope, hurl and teeter. As you read together, talk about what these words mean. You may even be inspired to create your own monsters with construction paper, or simply draw a funny shape and have your child create a monster face. Talking about new words and drawing are wonderful ways to get your child ready to read and write.

Yolen

-Liz W.

Plainfield Branch

App Review

If you are looking for a silly, interactive and well crafted app for young children, check out Toca Kitchen Monsters. In this app you and your child will have a chance to talk and play together as you feed two hungry monsters. As you play, you are able select from a variety of foods and 5 interactive ways to prepare them. The fun part is watching the monsters reaction when you feed it! It all depends on how the food is selected, prepared and spiced. While playing with your child, talk about the food and how you prepare it. Try introducing new words like "chop" and "blend". Talk about how you think the monster liked the food. Have fun and make the most out of screen time by playing together! This app is available free for iPad, iPhone and iPod Touch.

-Julie R.

Caledonia Township Branch