Homework help now available at the library on Mondays

by Beth Cronk, Litchfield head librarian

            We are going to begin offering homework and reading help on Mondays at the library.  A Minnesota Reading Corps tutor who is working in an area elementary school will be available in the Litchfield Library’s children’s area between two and four p.m. on most Mondays beginning in December.  For the kids in Litchfield schools, this will be just a short window after school, but homeschooled students and ACGC students will have a little more time to work with.  Our volunteer is also available at the Grove City public library from ten to noon on Mondays when ACGC isn’t in session. 

            Students in elementary and middle school are welcome to stop in during this time for practice with reading or help with any kind of homework.  They do not have to be struggling readers; our homework help time is open to anyone.  High school students who need help with reading or writing-related homework can also meet with our tutor, who has taught elementary and middle school in the past.  At this point, we plan for it to be a drop-in program, but we may start signing kids up for particular times if we get a big response. 

            Minnesota Reading Corps is an AmeriCorps program.  AmeriCorps was founded in 1993 as part of the Corporation for National and Community Service.  It is sometimes called “the domestic Peace Corps”.  According to their website, the volunteers are mostly full-time, and they typically make a service commitment of 10 months to a year.

            Minnesota Reading Corps is the largest state AmeriCorps program in the country.  They provide trained literacy tutors to schools for children age three through grade three. Their tutors work in Head Start classrooms, preschools, and elementary schools throughout the state.  The goal is to help students who are just below proficiency in reading become successful readers by the end of third grade. 

            Why third grade?  It’s the year when students switch from learning to read to reading to learn.  Multiple studies have found that students who are behind in reading skills in third grade begin to fall behind their peers, because reading is an essential way that students learn science, history, and other subjects.  A study released in 2011 by the Annie E. Casey Foundation found that students who don’t read proficiently by third grade are four times more likely to drop out of high school. 

The Reading Corps follows a research-based program to help kids who are just a little behind in reading skills catch up so that they can be successful in school in the years to come.  We are happy to work with this valuable program to bring their trained tutors into our libraries.

Mark Your Calendars!

By Jan Pease

Here it is – the children’s department schedule for June, July and August 2013! Mark your calendars!

The theme for this summer is “Dig Into Reading,” and incredible things will be happening at Litchfield Library every week.  Our summer officially begins on June 6th.  Beginning at 10:00 a.m. and continuing throughout the day, children may sign up to participate in the reading program.   

Parents, please make sure your children are reading and practicing math skills during the summer break.   Children lose about 2 months of reading progress and as much as 2.6 months of math progress if they don’t practice those skills during summer vacation.  If children read just 15 minutes a day they will improve their reading skills over the summer.  Most teachers send home a math packet for the summer months, and   math sheets are available at the children’s desk beginning in June.   Our reading records are set up to support that magic 15 minutes a day, and children can fill up a reading record every two weeks  A full reading record can be traded in  for a small prize. 

June 7^th will be a big day at the library. Professor Marvel is visiting, and he will present his “Amazing Archaeological Adventures” at 3 p.m that afternoon. His magic is enjoyed by everyone, but is especially interesting for school age children. 

June 12^th marks the beginning of the story time programs.  Again, the library will offer Toddler Time for babies and toddlers on Wednesdays at 10:15.  Bedtime Story Time is for families with children who enjoy a bedtime story.  Children sometimes come in their pajamas!  Preschool Story Time on Fridays is planned for children ages three to six.  We have a good time, share a book, and work on a simple art project.  Children under the age of 3 must be accompanied by a caregiver.

Students who have finished   grade 1 or 2 are invited to Beginner Book Club Thursday  June 13, July 11, and August 8th  at 3:00 p..m.      Third graders   who find the Elementary Book Club books a bit difficult are also very welcome.  Students who have finished grades 3-5 are invited to Elementary Book Club Tuesday June 11, July 9, and August 13 at 3:00 p.m..  Students who have finished grades K-5 are invited to Fun with 4-H Thursday June 6, June 20 and July 18 at 3:00 p.m.

One Community One Vegetable will present story hour on July 19^th at 10:00, celebrating peppers.  Last year’s tomato story time was wonderful, so I’m really looking forward to this one. 

Anyone who loves baseball is invited to come to the library Friday, July 26^th at 10:00 a.m. to meet the Willmar Stingers!

And everyone loves animals, so plan to come to the library on Wednesday, August 21, to enjoy the Zoomobile from the Minnesota Zoo. 

Wow! What a great summer!  See you at the library!

I'm the Number One Fan of the Man from ... Illinois!

By Jan Pease

Oh my goodness!  Mr. Jim Gill will be HERE in Litchfield Friday evening May 3 at 7:00 for a free concert at the Litchfield Middle School gym.  Thanks to Litchfield Early Childhood Initiative, the Kindergarten teachers, and Litchfield ECFE, who have joined with Litchfield Library to provide this incredible event. Mr. Gill is in town to speak at the Minnesota Kindergarten Teachers’ Conference, and has agreed to provide a concert for families the evening of May 3.

Jim Gill, an award-winning musician and author, offers more than a show to watch.  Each concert is an opportunity for family play!  In concert, Jim strums energetic rhythms on his banjo while everyone claps, sings, dances and even sneezes along to the silly and inspiring musical games that he creates.

This year's Family Room Tour celebrates Jim’s five awards, over 20 years, from the American Library Association….the same organization that famously grants the Caldecott and Newberry awards for books.  This unprecedented string of awards includes a 2012 honor for his most recent release, Music Play for Folks of All Stripes. 

Jim Gill’s distinctive music play creates a family room in the concert hall.  Come and join in the fun! 

Jim Gill is a musician and author with unique credentials among children's artists.  Jim is a child development specialist, completing his graduate studies in child development at the Erikson Institute of Chicago with a special emphasis on the study of play.  For this reason, each of Jim's recordings and books is created as an opportunity for playful interactions between a child and a caring adult.  Anyone who has experienced one of Jim's family concerts knows that rather than performing for the children and parents, Jim leads them to sing and play together.

Jim has released six award-winning CDs of music play for young children that are favorites in family rooms, classrooms and playrooms.  Jim is also the author of two children's books.  His latest, A Soup Opera, is a sing-along opera inspired by concerts that Jim performs with symphony orchestras.  The book received an American Library Association award in 2010.

I hope that parents and kids will participate in the playground build, and then come on Friday night at 7 for an evening of fun.  Thanks, Mr. Gill, for this press release, and for coming to our town on your Family Room Tour.

The Best Gift

  By Jan Pease

The holidays always remind us of family who are no longer with us, and we especially remember my husband’s mother, Elsie, who was born December 23, 1911.  In her lifetime she saw many of the great events of the 20^th century.  She lived through two world wars and many military actions and conflicts.  She remembered the Great Depression very well.  Elsie saw the introduction of the wonders of electricity, radios, television, flight, space travel and computers, dishwashers and tv remotes. 

Two days short of 101 years after Elsie’s birth, her great-grandson Andrew came into our world.  I think that makes him my great nephew.   The world he will grow up in is so different   from hers.   There are so many more people in our world, an estimated 7.06 billion compared to only 1.6 billion people in 1900.  Thanks to technology, our world seems much smaller.  Elsie worked at a switchboard in a telephone office back in the day when the operator actually connected the callers.  We saw our first pictures of Andrew on a smart phone and on Facebook.  

But some things are the same.  Babies need time and love and patience.  They need tummy time. They need skin to skin, face to face contact.  They learn the most from their first teachers, parents who love them.

Have you seen a small child tap a book to see what will open?  It’s so cute, but I cringe when I see a child do that, even if mobile technology is the way of the future.  I believe that children need to be exposed to books, to learn how to hold a book and to turn a page.   They need to hear songs and stories in mom’s or dad’s voice, and enjoy the feeling of cuddling together with a bedtime story.   They need to ask what and why again and again.  They need our presence. 

Rosemary Wells, the famous creator of Max and Ruby and other memorable characters, has a wonderful website, www.rosemarywells.com.   Besides activities and information, Ms. Wells included the texts of  a speech she gave, “Children at Risk,” in 1998.  The message is just as important today.   Ms. Wells said,  “A mother, taking time every day, to read a book aloud to her child, is giving her baby the gift of thought and language.  Reading often, starting young, a father gives his child a whole world of his own to dream. Parents who read to their children are giving of themselves, of their time. By not saying “I’m too  tired, I’m too busy, I want to do something else,”  they are giving love. They are giving their voice, their patience and more important than anything they are giving pure love."

 Great-grandma Elsie’s birthday was always lost in the hubbub of Christmas preparation when she was a child. We always tried to celebrate her birthday in her later years.   I don’t worry about little Andrew.   He is so wanted and so loved already that the only danger is that we will spoil him.  The McDuff stories by Rosemary Wells would be the perfect 1^st birthday gift! 

 And if you are sharing an iPad with your child, read the story with them now and then so they can hear that story in your voice.

Get Ready, Get Set, Mark Your Calendars!

By Jan Pease

“Fast away the old year passes.”    These words from “Deck the Halls,” dating back to 1866 or so, have been echoing in my mind.  Of course, that means that the tune is also echoing in my brain as an “ear worm” which is pleasant but irritating. I don’t know if it’s reassuring to realize that 147 years ago people were feeling that end-of-the year-is-coming-so-quickly rush.  I wonder what Thomas Oliphant would have thought about our modern rush.  He is believed to have written the words now sung to this old tune and I doubt if he knew how accurate “fast away the old year passes” seems today. 

It’s time to mark your calendars for the next season of library programming. We’re making some changes and I’m excited about what’s coming up in January.

After School Book Club will begin January 8^th at 3:15 and will meet on the second Tuesday of each month.  This book club is for students in grades 3-5.    Mary Hansen leads this book club and they always have interesting books and activities. The book for January is “Eleven Birthdays,” by Wendy Mass.

Toddler Time begins January 9^th at 10:15.  This weekly story time is planned for babies and toddlers through age two. Older children usually join us, but our emphasis is on very early literacy.

Beginners’ Book Club begins January 10^th at 3:15.  This new book club is for children in grades 1 and 2, but 3^rd graders who read below third grade level are very welcome.   The book for January is “Pete the Cat: I Love my White Shoes,” by Eric Litwin.  Beginners’ Book Club is planned for the second Thursday of each month.

Family Story Time also begins January 10^th at 7:00 p.m.  This is a weekly bedtime story time.  Children often attend in their pj’s; the expectation is that they go home and go to bed.  They often laugh as we sing our good night song, but I try to send them home without winding them up.

Preschool Story Hour begins Friday, January 11^th at 10:00.  This weekly story hour is planned for children ages 3 through 6.  Story Hour includes a simple art project.  We base a lot of our themes on the “We Care” curriculum, written by Bertie W. Kingore and Glenda M. Higbee and published by Scott Foresman.  This is an older curriculum, but I like it because it’s easy to adapt to our use at the library.

 

Young Adult Book Club begins at 3:15 on Monday, February 25th, postponed from January.  This book club is for students in Middle School through High School and is planned for the 4^th Monday of each month.  The book for February  is “Ashen Winter,” the second book of the “Ashfall” trilogy by Mike Mullin.

Fun with 4-H @ the library begins January 24^th.  Darcy Cole   has great ideas for students in kindergarten through grade five in 2013.  Bring friends, come and have fun each month while you learn.  This program is free and co-sponsored by Meeker County Extension and the library.

I always have a hard time getting used to a new year, and writing a new date, but I think that 2013 will be our best year ever at Litchfield Public Library. See you there!

What's Next?

By Jan Pease

I can’t believe how quickly time has passed. We are in the final two weeks of library programs as we finish this month.  

 Please add Thursday, August 23^rd, 3:00 p.m.  to your calendars.  Fantastic magician Robert Halbrook will present “Professor Marvel’s Dream Machines.” He says of this program, “GREAT BOOKS can inspire GREAT DREAMS!  Great dreams are the seeds for incredible inventions.  Professor Marvel’s Dream Machines – an All NEW show for the 2012 Summer Reading Program - will take your kids on a whirl wind journey through his world of always magical, often whacky, but very cool inventions; inventions born of DREAMS.”

Speaking of great books, four readers have shared book reviews with me this month.  Here, in their own words, are their reviews.

Logan, age 10, read “Marines,” by Jack Montana.  Logan says the book deserves four stars, “because it has lots of information about Marines which is great for reports”.  

Josiah, age 11, read two books about sharks.  Sharks, by Rhoda Blumberg, is an older book.  Josiah says it deserves three stars, and read it “because I like sharks and I want to learn more about sharks.”  He also read “Sharks,” by Gary Lopez.  He gave the book four stars, “because I like sharks and I’m going to Florida in August.”

Corbin, age 12, read “Class Clown,” by Johanna Hurwitz.  He gave the book four stars.  His review: “The Class Clown is about Lucas Cott, who needs to learn that there is a time and place for every thing, even for telling jokes, something I need to learn.”

Raechel, age 16, read “Harvest of Rubies,” by  Tessa Alshar.  She gave the book five stars.  Her thoughts on the book: “This is Tessa Alfshar’s second Biblical fiction novel (first being “Pearl in the Sand”) and in this book she goes through the importance and value of our worth in the Lord, our Father.  It’s not what we do that makes us worthy, but who we are in Him.  The main character, Sarah, is easy to relate to, as she goes through struggles and doubts that we all face at some point in our lives.   The allegory, as I suppose you could call it, of the Gardener and the grape vines was powerful, true, and just wonderful.  I highly recommend this book, and am so thankful God led me to read it when I did! 5 stars most definitely.  Ages recommended: 15+”

I get excited every time a young person hands me a book review.  These are readers and thinkers who offer a glimpse of their unique perspectives and personalities.  Enjoy the rest of July, and come visit us at the library, where it’s always comfy and cool. See you at the library!

  

 

All Aboard! Here We Go!

By Jan Pease


On Monday afternoons, Elle Dinius and I load up my car and drive south to bring a little bit of library to Cosmos, which is still without library service because of the terrible fire in February, 2011. We find ourselves in a large, empty room in South Elementary School, and prepare for two hours that go by faster than anyone could imagine.

We arrange the room to our liking, with tables and chairs, bean bags and a story rug. We try to bring activities that will interest children from toddlers through about grade 5. Elle displays books on some of the tables. Other books are in totes that we pull out and open.

I present a short story time. This week only the very youngest children came over. They weren’t much for singing or dancing, but they enjoyed the story, “Caterpillar Spring, Butterfly Summer.” All of the children did the craft I planned for younger children, which was to make butterfly magnets out of clothespins and coffee filters. The butterflies and moths turned out very well.

The older children made night shirts, just like we did at the Litchfield, Dassel and Grove City kickoffs. Some of them were really pretty; some of them were almost too scary to sleep in. The theme for the older group was “Night Shivers,” so I read “The Wolves in the Walls,” by Neil Gaiman. We talked for a few minutes about what makes a book scary or not scary. They agreed with me that the story was funny and a little bit scary, but that the illustrations by Dave McKean are downright spooky.

Special guests are also involved with our little bit of library. Curtis Alan Hed performed on June 18th. The Wildlife Wizard and the Wonder Weavers are coming in July. We’re hoping for cooler weather than normal, because the room is not air conditioned.

The best part of our trip to Cosmos is watching “our” kids fill up their book bags with books to take home for the week. Our little library is on the honor system. We don’t know what we have in every tote, so new discoveries can be made each week. We don’t know what they take home, and we trust that the books will come back. They take home a full bag and bring back a full bag, so we know it’s working. It’s a little like the internet but with books.

Elle and I will be at the Cosmos little bit of library in South Elementary School every Monday from 4-6 p.m. through the end of July. We hope to have a summer reading party in the Cosmos park August 6 at about 5 p.m. to finish out a great summer.

Summer reading kickoff today!

School's out for the summer! Come in today between 3 and 7 to sign up for the summer reading program, pick up a book bag, and paint a t-shirt.

Get Ready, Get Set, Synchronize Your Calendars!

By Jan Pease

Mark your calendars! This will be another exciting summer of activities at the Litchfield Library. The theme this summer is “Dream Big, Read.” Brian Lies did the artwork, and bats are featured prominently. We’re happy to have our own bat, Belvedere, who will be hanging around through the summer months.

The kickoff for summer reading is Monday, June 4, from 3-7 p.m. This is a change from our usual schedule, but we’re anxious to have our readers get started. Readers can sign up to participate and be rewarded for reading, make something to bring home, and have a picture taken with Belvedere.

Summer Book Clubs are moving to Tuesdays at 3 p.m. Elementary Book Club will be on the 2nd Tuesdays, Middle School Book Club book club will be on the 3rd Tuesdays, and our new Teen Book Club will be on the 4th Tuesdays.

Thursdays will be very busy in June and July this year. Thursdays @ the Library start at 3 p.m., and we’ll be done by 4:30. Something different is planned each week for students in grades K-5, including Fun with 4-H, special guests, storytelling, and more.

Wednesdays and Fridays will continue to be our story hour days, with toddlers coming on Wednesdays and Preschoolers coming on Friday. If families come on Thursday nights, we will read bedtime stories, the same stories used on Friday mornings.

Here is what’s planned for June:

June 4 3-7 p.m. Kickoff for Summer Reading!

June 6 10:15 a.m. Toddler Time “A Wishing Story Time”

June 7 3:00 p.m. Thursday@ the Library: “What Kind of Genie are YOU?”

June 7& 8 7 p.m. & 10:00 a.m. “Bats Story Time”

June 12 3 p.m. Elementary Summer Book Club

June 13 10:15 a.m. Toddler Time: “Goodnight Moon”

June 14 3:00-4:00 Thursday @ the Library: Fun with 4-H

June 14 & 15 7 p.m. and 10 a.m. “Night Night Animal Sleepover” (bring a toy that will sleep over)

June 19 3 p.m. Middle School Book Club

June 20 10:15 a.m. Toddler Time “Owls: Who Hoots?”

June 21 3 p.m. Thursday @ the Library: Guests! PAK- Reduce, Reuse, Recycle

June 21 7:00 p.m. “Bats @ the Ballgame” Story Time

June 22 10:00 a.m. Story Time Guests! Willmar Stingers Baseball Team!

June 26 3 p.m. Teen Book Club “Defect” by Will Weaver

June 27 10:15 a.m. Toddler Time “What’s New? Story Time”

June 28 3 p.m. Thursday @ the Library: Fun with 4-H

June 28 & 29 10:00 a.m. “Counting Sheep” Story Time

And more is planned for the month of July! See you at the library!

The Library is a Magic Door

By Jan Pease
As children, moms, and dads poured into the library for Toddler Time last Wednesday, one of my co-workers overheard a small child exclaim, “The Library has a magic door! I do magic! Of course, we know that it was really the door opener, pushed by a little hand that opened the door, but what a great thought. The library has a magic door; the library is a magic door.

I wrote this essay on Saturday, after we finished an exciting week here at the library. On Wednesday, 29 children, moms and dads came to Toddler Time. On Thursday evening, 44 children, moms and dads came to the library for a Head Start field trip. On Friday, 36 children, moms and dads came to Preschool Story Hour. All of these families are making a big investment of time and energy in their children’s lives and deserve a round of applause. They are introducing their children to the wonder and magic of books.

Our spring story times have centered on nonfiction books. Animals are always an interesting subject to talk about with young children. This week we learned about Pandas and enjoyed a book with life-size pictures of zoo animals. I was amazed at how much these young children already know. We listened to animal sounds and the children recognized all of them except the zebras, who have a very strange call a combination whinny/bark.

I’m excited about story hour on Friday, April 20th. PAK, (Parents And Kids) a local group of parents and children who get together for interesting times and look for ways to serve our community, is coming to present a special story hour about Earth Day. PAK also has activities planned for Saturday, the 21st and the PAK parents will explain all about them. By the way, Earth Day is observed on Sunday, April 22nd.

Finally, the phrase “the library has a magic door,” rattled around in my head all week. I knew it from somewhere, but who said it? I finally found a small book by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, who wrote the Sherlock Holmes mysteries, in which he describes the books in his personal library. The title of the book is “Through the Magic Door,” and you can read it online at books.google.com, as it hasn’t been in print for about 60 years. He describes each book in his personal library as an old friend, in a surprisingly chatty work that gives a glimpse of a creative and educated mind. I wish I were as well-read.

I would go on from there to say that the library is a magic door. I hope that the children who walked through our door this week will always have a love of literature and learning. I’m glad that the library is a magic place for them and for me, too. See you at the library!

A Campaign for Media-Savvy Kids

By Jan Pease

Perhaps because my husband and I are of an age that, for our contemporaries, includes one or more grandchildren, I notice that we both enjoy watching parents interact with their children.  At the library, I especially enjoy watching little boys imitate their daddies as they walk out the door.  I also enjoy watching parents and children shop.  I was in a store last week and heard a child exclaim, “There it is!”  I looked around to see what interesting thing he was talking about, and it was a bright pink cleaning appliance!

Recently I observed a little boy, who should certainly be a salesman someday, trying to convince his dad that they should buy a certain brand of frozen pastries, because they are the best!  I looked up this brand, and one pastry has 170 calories, and 7 grams of fat.  Since one of these delicious treats isn’t very filling, it would be easy to consume 340 calories, with 14 grams of fat. Did I mention the 50 grams of carbohydrate, including 18 grams of sugar in two pastries? One of the other pop up pastries, not frozen, has a whopping 210 calories in a single serving. 

A packet of instant oatmeal also has about 170 calories, but only 1.5 grams of fat, plus the high fiber content is good for you and sticks to your ribs all day.  It also has a lot of sugar added, which is why I eat plain oatmeal.  But I digress.  What is the point of this? 

Why don’t children campaign for oatmeal?  How does a young child know that a brand of frozen pastries is better than the other pop up pastries?   How does a child know that a pink cleaning appliance is the one?   I’m not declaring war on toaster pastries or pink cleaning appliances.   I think I might be declaring war on TV commercials that target our children! 

How can we raise children who are media savvy in a world where we are all bombarded with commercial messages that promise better, brighter, cleaner, more delicious, gotta have it?   An important part of literacy is learning to think critically.  Applying critical thinking skills to media has led to a term that is new to me: media literacy.  I found an interesting essay about teaching children to think critically about advertisements on the Scholastic website for teachers, http://teacher.scholastic.com/ . Go to the website and search for Media Savvy Kids.  The article, by Meg Lundstrom, originally appeared in the November/December 2004 issue of Instructor magazine, but it is still very appropriate for 2011.

 I really like these five questions that could help open a great discussion about what advertisers are really trying to do.

5 Media-Savvy Questions That Kids Should Ask

1. Who created this message?
2. What creative techniques are used to get  attention?
3. How might different people interpret this message?
4. What lifestyles, values, and points of view are in this message?
    What was left out and why?
5. Why is this message being sent?
These are questions we all should ask, as we model making good choices every day. 

My next task is to find books on this subject, because when I searched the catalog for books to help children become media-savvy, I didn’t find any books in the Litchfield children’s collection.  You might try “Teach Your Kids to Think!: Simple Tools You Can Use Every Day”  by Maria Chesley Fisk, in the adult area at 155.413.  In the meantime, please talk with your children about what they see  on TV.  See you at the library!  

Resources for Parents and Students at the Library

by Beth Cronk, Litchfield head librarian

As we begin a new school year, there are many things to be excited about and sometimes a few things to be concerned about.  Our children get older and face new challenges.  Maybe they’ve had some difficulty with schoolwork or trouble with classmates.  One place I’ve always looked for help is at the library.  You can find books on all different kinds of parenting and educational issues.  There are also online sources of help available.

One new electronic resource that is newly available to Pioneerland cardholders is Tutor.com.  You can get to it by going to http://www.tutor.com/willmar and typing in your library barcode.  Live, one-on-one help is available from 2 p.m. to midnight.  You can even upload a paper for a tutor to work on with you.  There are resources to use on the site that are available all the time, including homework resources, SAT, ACT, and GED test prep guides, and even resume and interview guidance.  I took a quick look in the homework resources and found that you can choose a subject, like English, a school level, like elementary, and a more specific subject, like capitalization and punctuation.  Following that path, I found capitalization rules, a lesson in contractions, and some games that help teach capitalization and punctuation.  If you’re an iPhone or iPad user, you can download an app for the site.  I hope you’ll try it out!

We also have some new books at the Litchfield Library that may help parents to help and guide their children.  The book Red Flags or Red Herrings: Predicting Who Your Child Will Become is intriguing for parents who wonder how the traits they see in their child will affect their future.  The author, Susan Engel, is a developmental psychologist, educator, and mother.  She encourages parents to accept their children’s inborn traits, intervene for some issues, but to have perspective and not overreact about others. 

Nolo’s IEP Guide: Learning Disabilities is a legal guide written for parents.  Nolo is the premier publisher for legal books written for those of us who aren’t lawyers.  This book is a guide to advocating for your child who has a learning disability, understanding your child’s legal rights, developing an individualized education program, and resolving disputes with your school district. 

If you’re a homeschooler, you may be interested in Free Range Learning: How Homeschooling Changes Everything.  The author,  Laura Grace Weldon, advocates what she calls natural learning.  Falling somewhere between structured homeschooling and unschooling, Weldon recommends following the child’s interests, using meaningful work to teach, and connecting with others as natural ways to learn.  She also emphasizes the importance of play, curiosity, and slowing down.

Our new DVD Stop Bullying: Standing Up for Yourself and Others gives students concrete steps to take to respond to bullying.  This video is intended for students in junior high grades and up.  It shares advice from experts and stories from kids who’ve been in bullying situations.

Whatever kind of parenting or education-related topic you’re looking for, I hope you’ll take a look in our catalog or speak to someone on our staff to help you find something you can use.  And remember to try Tutor.com.  Have a great school year!

"How I Spent My Summer Vacation"

“How I Spent My Summer Vacation:" sweat beading on my face, running down into the third shirt of the day;  babies crying, small children running around, while I tried to think of ways to occupy older children who just don’t seem to understand how great a book club could be, and who really miss having access to computers and the Internet.  Kids asking “do you have a “Star Wars”  book” and having to tell them to try one of three or four big bins of books, which made finding a book title like finding information on the Internet. We knew it probably was there, but had no idea where.  I have a new fondness for Mr. Dewey and his decimal system.

This is how I spent eight Mondays (my day off!) this summer.  It’s easy to focus on the negative aspects of the situation as we brought the summer reading program to Cosmos.  Their librarian had retired, their library had burned, and the community was devastated by a series of storms and a fire that damaged a major business in the community.  Pioneerland Library System had a book drive, with more than 3000 excellent-quality books gathered for the children of Cosmos, and sent me with our student employee, Elle Dinius to provide books and activities for children.

 I will remember the positive experiences Elle and I had as we provided a summer reading program without having a library building.  First, the people in Cosmos were extraordinary. Custodians at the school were wonderful; they assured me that play dough will come out of the carpet.  The City of Cosmos personnel were always helpful and the principal of the school was delightful.  The parents who brought or picked up their children were enthusiastic about their children reading during the summer months. Bags and bags of books went home, and bags and bags of books came back.  Parents universally told me how much the Cosmos library meant to them, and how much they hoped a new library would be possible. Joy Housman brought her entire daycare, which added to the excitement every week. 

Special memories include a little girl telling me that she’s read more than 170 books this summer.  I remember a mom surprised at the sight of her very active little boy sitting with me and working diligently on a necklace and later, a bracelet of large beads strung on a leather cord.  He didn’t know that he was developing math skills like sorting and estimating.  He told his mom proudly that he was being very good!  I was able to fill requests for specific books for a young man.  I enjoyed our mad scientist experiments where we made bouncy balls and Flubber.  I marveled at their patience as several of the older children made little classic wooden cars. We made sun catchers and wind chimes, scratched off black coatings to reveal colorful designs; we decorated door hangers and large wooden butterfly magnets, and made  lots of cool necklaces and bracelets.

My final story time with the younger children was Monday the first of August.  Most of the children of all ages gathered around as we read the trickster tale “Love and Roast Chicken,”  by Barbara Knutson.  The older children listened from the table where they were working on projects, even if they were too grown up to sit in the circle.   They asked to sing the “Little Drop of Rain Song,” which in June they weren’t all that interested in singing.  They made felt guinea pigs, since the hero of “Love and Roast Chicken” is a guinea pig in Peru. When we made Flubber, it was such a big hit that the younger children wanted to make some, too.    Except for the heat, it was a really, really, wonderful afternoon.

I’ll be going back to Cosmos on August 15^th for a party in the city park to celebrate a great summer.  I already have some things in mind to try next year if Pioneerland asks me to visit Cosmos for another summer reading program, because I would definitely do it again.

Many family activities at the library

by Beth Cronk, Litchfield head librarian

We have a flurry of activity planned at our library in the coming weeks.  If your family is looking for something to do, we hope you’ll join us.

On Thursday, June 23^rd, the local Born to Read group is presenting a summer reading event at the library.  Storyteller Bob Gasch will perform at 6:30 p.m.  If you’ve ever seen Bob performing, you’ll know that he really entertains kids and draws them into the stories.  We’ll also do an ethnic craft and have a snack, both related to our “One World, Many Stories” summer reading theme.  This will be for families with children of all ages.

On Friday, June 24^th, we’ll have special guests for preschool story time at 10 a.m.  WonderWeavers Storytellers will be performing.  Tina Rohde and Colleen Shaskin, the WonderWeavers, are based in Eden Prairie and perform in libraries and schools all over the Midwest.  This is one of our Legacy events, which are wrapping up for the year.

If you enjoyed Robert Halbrook’s programs last fall, “Wizard’s School” and “Dark Tales of Mystery & Intrigue”, come see him again on Tuesday, June 28^th at 6:30 p.m.  He’ll be performing his new magic and reading show, “Professor Marvel’s World of Wonders”.   In the show, he’ll take the kids on an adventure through India, England, and other countries around the world, incorporating classic and contemporary children’s books.  This program is geared to kindergarteners through fifth graders, but even parents and grandparents enjoyed Wizard’s School in October. 

There’s no need to sign up for any of these programs; just come join us in the children’s department.

Our usual schedule of story times has resumed, with Toddler Time taking place on Wednesdays from 10:15 to 10:45; Family Story Time on Thursday evenings at 7:00; and Preschool Story Hour on Fridays from 10:00 to 11:00. 

The summer reading program is underway.  It’s open to kids ages 3 to 17.  If you haven’t signed up yet, ask us at the front desk or children’s desk, and we’ll help you get started.   If you have signed up, keep reading and count up to an hour a day of your reading time, and bring in your completed reading logs for prizes. 

Our two children’s book clubs are meeting this week and next.  The middle school book club is meeting on Thursday, June 23, at 3 p.m. to discuss Gulliver’s Travels (the group’s choice at last month’s meeting).  The after-school book club, which is for grades 3-5, is meeting the next Thursday, June 30, at 3 p.m.  There’s a book chosen for this month, but we might be spending most of our time on an art activity this time instead; you’ll have to drop in and find out.  Kids are welcome to join our book clubs at any time.  Just come to the meeting or ask at the library desk ahead of time to get a copy of the book. 

If you’re not a child but a senior citizen, there’s a library book club for you, too.   We have a book club for retirees/seniors that meets at Emmaus Place on the first Thursday of every month at 1 p.m.  We have decided to carry on through the summer this year.  Because of the renovation project beginning at Bethany Home, we will be meeting in the activity room in the basement of Emmaus Place instead of our usual meeting place, the Fireside Room.  For our next meeting on July 7th, we’re reading The Sun Also Rises by Ernest Hemingway.  The books are not always that literary, but we do read classics from time to time.  Other recent books we’ve read include The No. 1 Ladies’ Detective Agency, The Haymakers, and They Named Me Marjorie.  If you’d like to join this book club, stop in to talk to me or give me a call at the library. 

One activity that’s for all ages is our book sale.  Our monthly Friends of the Library book sale normally takes place on the third Saturday of every month.  In July, we’ll be holding it on the Saturday of Watercade instead, July 9^th.  Prices range from 10 to 50 cents per item, and the proceeds benefit the Friends of the Litchfield Library.

Look where you’re walking as you make your way here through the construction!  But we hope we’ll see you here at the library in the coming weeks.

Kids ask good questions

by Beth Cronk, Litchfield head librarian
6/3/11

I’ve been speaking to elementary school classes from Litchfield for the past few weeks, telling them about our summer reading program and about the library in general. Our children’s librarian, Jan Pease, usually leads these presentations but has been out on medical leave, as she wrote in last week’s column. While I have really missed having her here taking care of children’s programming, it has actually been a good opportunity for me to introduce myself to kids in Litchfield. Since then, they’ve been saying hello to me like I’m a familiar person when they come into the library, which is fun for me. It’s also been fun to hear the questions they come up with when I ask them what they want to know about the library and about summer reading. I’ll share some of those questions and answers with you.

One of the basic questions is “How do you get a library card?” The answer for a child is that they need to bring in a parent or guardian, who can fill out the application for them. We need to have the parent with them in the library when they apply, because there are responsibilities that come with a card. The card is free. If they’ve had a card before and lost it, there is a $3 fee to get a replacement card.

I’ll give you the answer for an adult while we’re at it: bring in a photo ID and something that shows your current address. This can be accomplished with one document if you have a current driver’s license. Then you can fill out an application and get your free card.

One of the questions we asked the kids is “How many books do you think we have here in the library?” Their answers ranged from 300 to infinity. It’s somewhere in between. According to our 2010 annual report, we have 46,513. We also have 1306 audios (books and music) and 2255 videos. These numbers are always changing, of course, and we’ll firm those up a bit when we do inventory later this year.

The kids asked me, “How many people come in the library every day?” That’s a good question. We count everyone who comes in the door for a week, twice a year. Based on those statistics, we have about 77,584 visits to the Litchfield Library in a year. That comes out to roughly 249 visitors a day. Yes, it’s a busy place.

One of the kids asked if they need to come to meetings to be in the summer reading program. The answer is no, you just sign up at the library, pick up your sheet for keeping track of time spent reading, and bring it back in for a prize when it’s complete. I also told them to be sure to pick up a new sheet once they’ve finished one, because we don’t want them to read for only two weeks in June; we want them to read all summer long. Kids can lose a month of reading progress in school for every month of summer vacation if they don’t keep reading. We want them to keep it up so that they’re ready to go in September when school starts again.

Even though kids don’t need to come to any programming for the summer reading program, we do have a kick-off party happening on Thursday, June 9th, from 6-8 p.m. Kids can sign up for the summer reading program, make crafts, and listen to musician Dennis Warner at 6:30. Elementary school students can also come to Fun with 4-H, to Summer Vacation Book Club (for 3rd through 5th grade), and to family story hour on Thursday evenings. There will be a couple of other fun events for kids coming up this summer, as well.

Some children wondered how we got all of the books in order on the shelves. Their teachers and I told them that the library has moved a few times since the first Litchfield Library was built in 1904, and that it all was set up in this building around ten years ago. But we’re always working to put the books in order on the shelf when they’re returned or when new ones come in: fiction in alphabetical order by author’s last name, non-fiction in Dewey Decimal order.

I was also asked, “What’s the oldest book in the library?” (I’m not sure!), “What’s the newest?” (there’s something new every week), “How many books can you check out at a time?” (the computer will stop you at 99, but you should limit yourself to what you can keep track of), and “Is this your job?” I am so privileged that this is my job. There’s always so much to do, but it’s a beautiful and fulfilling place to work, and it’s great to make connections with kids and help them understand that the library is for them. I told them that if they ever need help, they should ask a librarian and we’ll help them find what they’re looking for in the library.

Storyteller Bob Gasch performing Friday 5/13

For our final story hour of the season, professional storyteller Bob Gasch has kindly volunteered to perform this Friday, May 13th. Our preschool story hour begins at 10 a.m. and ends around 11. Bob will tell farm stories and lead the kids in songs. Come join us for some fun!