Take Your Child to the Library Day

Celebrate 

Take Your Child to the Library Day! 

Saturday, Feb. 1
10 AM - 2:30 PM 

Drop-in crafts, Lego building, games, a Scavenger Hunt and refreshments. We'll also be raffling off 5 subscriptions to Bookboard (a subscription service for children's eBooks). Find more info about Bookboard at http://bookboard.com/.

All ages! No registration is required.

AWE Early Literacy Stations are here!

We're so excited to announce the arrival of our AWE Early Literacy Stations! These self-contained, educational touch screen computer stations are loaded with programs for children ages 2-8. They contain over 60 top-rated, educational games which support early literacy and school readiness skills while making learning exciting and engaging. These machines are funded through donations from our Membership Drive. We hope you'll stop by the Children's Department and try them out!

The programs include these titles and more:
                                                                            
Getting Ready for School
World of Goo
Bailey's Book House
SpongeBob SquarePants Typing
Diego's Safari Rescue Giggles My Musical World
Sammy's Science House
My Amazing Human Body
USA Explorer

The Very Ready Reading Program: 1,000 Books Before Kindergarten

The Very Ready Reading Program: 1,000 Books before Kindergarten is a new library program that encourages parents and caregivers to read 1,000 books with their children before they enter kindergarten  – a goal experts say children need to help them learn to read for themselves.

Research shows that the more children ages 0-5 hear and view books read to them, the more prepared they will be to learn to read upon reaching kindergarten. Exposing children to 1,000 books before kindergarten not only builds reading readiness, but it provides 1,000 interactions to build supportive relationships with parents and caregivers.

How Does the Program Work? 

• Sign up online at  http://ct.evanced.info/coventrypl/sr/homepage.asp  or in the library. Visit the Children's Department to receive your Reading Journal and bag of goodies, including a bookmark, a sharing guide, and tips to help make reading aloud one of the most enjoyable and beneficial activities you will ever share with a child.
• Each time you read 100 books, bring your Reading Journal to the Children's Department to receive a prize,  a sticker and the next set of pages for your journal. A staff member (with your permission) will take a picture of your child to display on our 1,000 Books Before Kindergarten wall.
• Don’t be daunted! Just 3 books a day amounts to 1,000 books in 1 year, and this program is designed to give you  time over a few years to meet your goal.
• After finishing 1,000 books, your child will receive a special prize and an invitation to a “graduation” party. During the party the children who have completed the program during the previous year will be honored with a special story time, snack and a group photo.

Children's Book Week (May 13-19)

       Celebrate Children's Book Week This Week (May 13-19)! 

Established in 1919, Children's Book Week is the longest-running national literacy initiative in the country. Pop by the Children's Department all week and learn how to draw a Chinese Dragon using Letters! Or visit http://www.bookweekonline.com/bookmark and print one out yourself, along with a beautiful bookmark created by author-illustrator Grace Lin. Don't forget to check out some books!

BubbleMania: Comedy...with a Drip!

TUESDAY, JUNE 26 @ 2 PM

Our Summer Reading Program Kick-Off!

Bubblemania: Comedy with a Drip! is an eye-popping, belly-laughing, fun-filled bubble extravaganza! This unique program is loaded with visual comedy, quick wit, big band swing music and the untamed, often unbelievable qualities and beauty of bubbles! For ages 5 and up. Registration is required. Register online or call 742-7606.

Check out Casey Carle's website at http://www.bubblemania.com/ for videos, bubble solutions, and more.

TumbleBooks for iPad/iPhone 4!

TumbleBooks are available for the iPad and the iPhone 4!

Tumblebooks is an online collection of animated, talking picture books by well-known authors and illustrators. TumbleBooks are created by taking existing books and adding sound, music and narration to produce an electronic picture book which children can read, or have read to them! 

You can check out the iPad-compatible TumbleBooks by visiting the Booth & Dimock Memorial Library's mobile website at http://m.coventrypl.org/ on your iPad or iPhone and scrolling down to the bottom, where it says TumbleBooks! Once in TumbleBooks, click on the red STORYBOOKS icon. At the top of the next page, click on the green IPAD BOOKS icon (on the far right).

Now, simply click on the "iPad" button to launch the book of your choice! The book will appear in a small window at first, but to expand, simply click on the "full screen" button.

The books can also be accessed at home by going to the Children’s Room section of the library website (www.CoventryPL.org) and clicking on the Tumblebooks icon.

LEGO CLUB SURVEY

The Booth & Dimock Memorial Library's Children's Room would like to start a LEGO Club at the library this summer, and we need your input! Please fill out this brief survey to help us plan our club. Surveys will also be available in the Children's Room. Thank you!

http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/SVXZP2G

Donations of LEGOs are still needed! Starter sets are especially welcome. Please contact the Children's Room at 742-7606 if you would like to donate!

Early Literacy Tip

Did you know that writing letters and words can help your child become a better reader? Reading and writing go together.  Both are ways to represent spoken words and communicate information. Children develop a better knowledge of the purpose of meaning of reading through the act of writing. One fun way to encourage children to practice reading and writing skills is to play post office.  Most young children love to give and receive mail. You can make a simple mailbox with an empty tissue box or a shoebox, or try making the paper bag mailbox below. If your child cannot write on their own yet, have them dictate a message to you and write it down for them.

Materials:

Small paper bags

Marking pens

Scissors

Strong tape

Instructions:

Cut the sides and front of the bag down about three inches from the top, but leave the back side of the bag at full height. Write the child's name on the front of the bag and decorate the bag with markers, stickers, or crayons. Use strong tape to hang the mailbox to the child's bedroom door, or make a loop with yarn and hang the mailbox over the doorknob.  Make a mailbox for everyone in your family so that you can exchange messages with each other.

VALENTINE'S DAY CRAFT

Registration is open for our Valentine's Day Craft on Feb. 8 @ 4:15 - we'll be making Lollipop Mice! For grades K+. Call 742-7606 or visit our Events page to register.

Groundhog Day is Feb. 2!

Groundhog Day 2012 is tomorrow, Feb. 2! Phil will leave his burrow at 7:20 AM at Gobblers Knob in Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania, observe the weather conditions, look for his shadow and then make his prediction for the remainder of winter.

Visit the official website of Punxsutawney Phil to learn more about the history of Groundhog Day and to watch a video of Phil in action!

Visit the Children's Room and take home a book about groundhogs and Groundhog Day!
Some suggested titles are:

• Groundhog Day by Gail Gibbons 
• Groundhog Weather School by Joan Holub
• Groundhog Stays Up Late by Margery Cuyler
• Geoffrey Groundhog Predicts the Weather by Bruce Koscielniak
• Fluffy Meets the Groundhog by Kate McMullan
• A Garden for a Groundhog by Lorna Balian
• Gregory's Shadow by Don Freeman

Gung Hei Fat Choy!

 

Chinese New Year began yesterday, January 23! And...it's the year of the dragon! Chinese New Year is also called the Spring Festival because it marks the end of the winter and the beginning of the spring in the Chinese calendar. Stop by the library to learn more and to make a Chinese lantern!

Gung Hei Fat Choy is a new year greeting meaning "May You Become Prosperous."

 

ALA Youth Media Awards 2012

 

The American Library Association Youth Media Awards have been announced! Find them at this link, then check them out of the library!

Take Your Child to the Library Day

Take Your Child to the Library Day is Saturday, February 4th. Please join us and the Board of Trustees for crafts, stories and more from 11:00am - 2:00pm!

Babygarten & Terrific Tuesdays Story Times!

Don't forget!  Babygarten (ages 0 through 2) @ 10:15 AM and Terrific Tuesdays (ages 3-5) @ 11:30 AM story times start again tomorrow morning, Jan. 10! Visit http://www.coventrypl.org/childrens-services for complete info. No registration is required!

LEGO Donations Needed!

We'd like to start our first LEGO club - but we need, well, LEGOS! It's a great time of year to clean out your closets...


We're looking for donations of new and used LEGOS to get us started. Starter sets are especially welcome. Any donations made are tax-deductible and a receipt will be provided upon request. We appreciate your help!

Read a book. Give a book.

We Give Books is a free website that enables anyone with access to the internet to put books in the hands of children who don't have them, simply by reading online. Share the power and pleasure of reading and teach your child about helping others at the same time. Simply choose the charity you want to read for and then select the books you want to read. For each book you read online, We Give Books donates a book to a leading literacy group on your behalf. The more you read, the more they give.

Visit http://www.wegivebooks.org to read and give!

DECEMBER VACATION MOVIE MATINEES

DECEMBER VACATION MOVIE MATINEES
Tuesday, Dec. 27 & Wednesday, Dec. 28 @ 2 PM

Avoid cabin fever by coming to a movie at the library! We'll provide some munchies (but you can bring your own, if you wish). All ages. No registration is required.

Tuesday, Dec. 27: Mr. Popper's Penguins (Rated PG)
Wednesday, Dec. 28: The Smurfs (Rated PG)

CURIOUS? READ! The Curious George Reading Program

CURIOUS? READ! 

The Curious George Reading Program 

Curious George is set to help your child make the first step to reading success! The world’s most beloved (and curious) monkey will take you and your child on a fun-filled adventure at the library where you’ll explore the wonderful world of books. The reading program incorporates reading and sharing books together with fun-filled activities you can do with your child to support early literacy development. The single most important activity for raising a successful reader is reading aloud with your child!

Stop by the Children's Room to pick up your Curious George Reading Program bag to get started (while supplies last). Each bag contains a free gameboard, sticker and bookmark. Each week the library will have a new craft and early literacy tip to share with participating families. There are incentives for adults and children alike.

The program is both a Read With Me program for children who do not yet read on their own, and an Early Reader program for beginning readers. Being ready to read starts with babies – no child is too young to sign up! 

For more information, visit www.CoventryPL.org (where you can register online and download a gameboard and activity sheets) or call the Children’s Room at (860) 742-7606. The Curious? READ! Reading Program is sponsored by the American Library Association and Houghton Mifflin Company.

We're on Twitter!

The Booth & Dimock Memorial Library Children's Room is on Twitter! 

Follow us @DreyfusDragon!

Children's Books for Holiday Giving

A book is the PERFECT gift for a child...and children's librarians from across CT contribute their picks to the annual "Children's Books for Holiday Giving Booklists". There are fabulous suggestions for every age group! Visit http://www.ctlibrarians.org/displaycommon.cfm?an=1&subarticlenbr=32 to find these lists in PDF format, or visit the library and pick up some hard copies!