Catch the Possibilities

I could have scheduled this for an hour and a half! I thought kids would lose attention after a while, but we were racing to fit everything in.

[5 minutes] As kids arrived they got a nametag and a word search to work on while we waited for everyone to arrive.

[25 minutes] I started the program by having the kids make their own story stones. I purchased rocks at the dollar store (but certainly you could use "found" rocks, or have kids bring their own). I bought 13 bags of river rocks at the dollar store and had enough mediumish rocks that 20 kids could have made 15 story stones if they wished, so it was a good deal, I think. I saved some discarded magazines and put out stickers. Instead of Mod Podge, I just watered down some regular old Elmer's since I buy that by the gallon. We had a drying area off to the side so we could use the tables. I read a book after the story stones and my volunteer scurried to set up the other activities.


[~5 minutes] I had intended to read Let's Go Rock Collecting by Roma Gans, but I was worried it would take too long and we were already behind schedule. (I foolishly forgot to plan transition time that included washing glue off of fingers). Instead I read the book I had printed to put out at the Rock and Mineral Exploration table, which was included with this unit that I purchased from Teachers Pay Teachers. Well worth the $10! The word search and cover for the rock book (see Activity 2) were also included in that unit.




[25 minutes]

Activity 1: Geodes

I bought geodes from Oriental Trading Company and recruited old and mate-less socks from my coworkers. I put together a brief information sheet about geodes for the table and dug the hammer out of my "maintenance and cleaning" drawer and we were set. They make it sound easy, but some of the younger kids (program was for 6-12 year olds) had a hard time with it. But everyone enjoyed giving it a go. Best on the floor or outside I think. Also need an adult to supervise and help crack open stubborn rocks.

Activity 2: Rock and Mineral Exploration

I bought small rock and mineral kits off Amazon and let the kids explore them with the magnifying glasses, nail, and tile (for streaking) that were included. I had meant to grab a magnet off my file cabinet but forgot in the last-minute rush to get everything set up. Rock books were set out at this table with pencils for kids to make observations about their favorite rocks.


Activity 3: "Treasure" Rocks

I followed the directions from Growing a Jeweled Rose, and it worked pretty well. I wish I would have made my "dough" a little drier, because I ended up having to put them in the oven on a low-temp because I was afraid they wouldn't air dry overnight. I made pretty hefty rocks so they would have lots of sizzle, but smaller ones would have dried faster. For "treasure" I just used a bag of clear "luster gems" from the dollar store. For a pirate theme, plastic coins or large jewels from the craft store would be fun. I had eyedroppers and a spray bottle for the kids to use, as well as the option to have my volunteer pour vinegar out of the bottle on their rock.

Who knew rocks could be so fun?! :)

Credit for the Program that Inspired my Version goes to Joanna Axelrod (Escondido  PL) and Jennifer Lawson (San Diego PL)'s presentation for the California Library Association. Click on the link to see their version (and some other super fun sounding programs for teens).

I was needing some programs to reach out to the 6-12 year old age range, so I adapted the original for teens. I have had dismal success getting school-agers for programming during the school year (outside of school visits to the library or vice versa), even during school breaks, so this year I really wanted to see what sorts of things interest them enough that they might come to something not on summer vacation.

The only things I purchased for this program were: a hula hoop ($8 at WalMart), fortune cookies (though had I planned ahead, I probably could have gotten one of the multitude of Chinese/Japanese restaurants around to donate some), and some stretchy cord for making the masks.

Kids discovering the treasure in the Feely Box

I also had to construct a "Feely Box," which I did by repurposing a ballot box from our state book award for kids. I looked at this post, this one, and this one to help me decide how to construct the box. I ended up tracing around a fairly-new roll of masking tape to make the arm holes and cut pieces of scrap felt to cover up the holes. All the trinkets I put inside were items left by patrons that I have been collecting in a clear vase on my filing cabinet. They came in handy for something!

So without further ado: the program!

As the kids arrived, they chose a ninja mask to color, cut, and wear. Teen volunteers were indispensable tools to have! After 15 minutes, most of the kids were done, so I gathered up the rest to explain what they'd be doing.

I had 4 teens helping. Each teen was a team leader. Teams, as their first jobs, introduced themselves to each other and came up with a team name. We had some standards, like Kung Fu Ninjas, but more creative ones too, like Pajama Ninjas. The kids sort of sorted themselves into groups. I let siblings and friends and whatnot stay together and tried to match like kids with like kids for the rest. We had teams of 4 or 5.

The teams worked at their own pace and rotated through the following stations:

Ninja Skill 1: Patience. Activity: Playing Card Towers

• At this station, teams attempted to build the tallest playing card tower they could before moving on. Most of the kids could hardly get one layer, so really it was more like "can we make more than two cards stand up together" than building a tower. But I was impressed with their patience.

Plump Ninga

There are many things I enjoy about having the children's area in the old (1927) part of the building. We have these glorious double stacked windows EVERYWHERE, wooden book cases built into the walls, crown molding and decorative trim work around the vaulted ceilings. But one thing I do not enjoy is the fact that separate meeting and/or programming rooms were not a consideration for most libraries at that time. We have a small meeting room (just about the right size for a library board meeting), but any of the children's programming or larger adult programs we have upstairs by the fireplace (I know, we have a fireplace, squee!). Unfortunately, that happens to be in the middle of the children's fiction and we don't have any dividers or walls to cut down on general library noise.

So, let's just call this the storytime of the screaming. Because there was a lot of it. Mostly not from anyone actually at storytime.

As a result, this was not one of my most fun. Couple that with a toddler (whom I adore... she's been with me since she was a baby) accidently pulling my iPad and speakers (both personal items of course) off the top of the bookcase causing the speakers to momentarily stop working, and yeah. We just got through it!

We read:

The Sun is My Favorite Star by Frank Asch
Harold and the Purple Crayon by Crockett Johnson
Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star illustrated by Jerry Pinkney
Goodnight Moon by Margaret Wise Brown

We sang:
I'm a Book Baby by Denver Public Library
Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star by ScribbleMonster and His Pals

I had planned to include 2 other songs and not read as many books, but with the screaming and aforementioned toddler accident, my little iPad sans external speakers was not easily heard, so I stuck to two songs I knew I could belt out.

We learned:
Moon Rhyme from the CSLP Early Literacy Manual, pg. 31
Tiny Star from Perry Public Library
Reach for the Stars from Perry Public Library