Library Lover’s Month- Week Two

Last weekend (yes, I’m behind), we took our four year old to the main branch of our public library. It was time again for Science Alive! The library is filled with various tables of groups that relate to science. Kids can learn about their bodies, health, recycling, composting, animals, fish, astronomy, physics, you name it.

We went from table to table, looking at the various activities.

C’s favorite by far was the bee keeper’s table. There he got to see a hive (part of one) like the ones he’d been reading about in books. He saw what the cells look like, drones, and workers, and even the queen did a little dance for him. He was mesmerized.

He loved looking at river specimens under a microscope, the various fish on display, and he even took in a presentation on the various levels of a rain forest. During this presentation, he saw a vulture, tree frog, coati mundi, Burmese python, and a baby alligator.
Here’s a peek at what we touched:

See, there ARE more than books at the library!

Children’s Authors and Illustrators Review- Day 3

[I'm ahead of the game here. It's Monday. Groundhog's Day. And thanks to a virus thought up by some jerk with too much time on his/her hands, my pc at home is not fit to blog on.

So I have to go elsewhere so that I don't get behind on my challenge for the week.]

Today’s book is The Dreamtime Fairies by Jane Simmons.

The Dreamtime Fairies

This sweet little book tells the story of Lucy and her brother Jamie. Lucy loves to sleep, while her brother sometimes finds himself a little apprehensive about what lurks in the dark corners of their bedroom.

One night, Jamie and Lucy’s stuffed animal, Bear are having a hard time falling asleep. So Lucy decides they need to take a trip to get help from the dreamtime fairies. Off they fly in search of these lovely fairies who can help them get to sleep. They come across various animals that help them find their way into the woods where the fairies live.

When they finally reach their destination, the fairies come out of their dark homes and help the children and the animals fall asleep.

The story is so soothing and sweet (I can’t remember ever helping my little brother fall asleep), and the illustrations are beautiful. Dark blues give the readers a sense that they are traveling through the night and woods with Lucy and Jamie. The comforting glow that the fairies gave off when they came out of the darkness had my son ready to call upon them to help him get to sleep.

My son rated this bedtime story: 8 fairies. (I asked him why 8, he said he wished I’d read it more than once)

February Fun

Welcome to February! The shortest month of the year. Mardi Gras, Valentine’s Day, my birthday.

I was doing a little internet search today, and found out some crazy things about February that I never knew.

February is Library Lovers Month! Which is awesome, because I love the library. (and the library loves the fines I pay)

So this month I plan on taking a trip to my local library once a week to see what activities, new reads, and other fun things they have going on. Which I will share with you.

If you take a trip to your library this month, leave a comment if there was something that you found that you weren’t aware of.

Also, this week, February 1-7 is Children’s Authors and Illustrator’s Week.

So for this week, I will be blogging every day about a different children’s book that my son and I have enjoyed.

Here’s the first one:

photo from amazon.com

A few weeks ago my son came up to me and asked, “Mommy, if bees have queens, do ants have queens too?”  Well, I didn’t know the answer, so I went to the library in search of a book that we could read about ants that wasn’t over a four year old’s head.

The book above (obviously) isn’t about ants or bees. It is, however part of a series of books about various insects. And it’s the one I’ve had to read every day since last Wednesday, 3 or 4 times a day.

Written by Judy Allen and illustrated by Tudor Humphries, Are You A Grasshopper? is a great way to introduce  youngsters to the world of insects. It takes the reader through the life cycle of each insect, describing the different stages of life, what is eaten, what preys on the insect.

The book starts out with a question:

“Are you a grasshopper?”

It then proceeds to tell children what they would look like if, indeed, they were a grasshopper.

My son’s favorite part of the book is the description of how a grasshopper makes music:

“Pedal your legs up and down fast. The pegs rub up against your wings and make a ticking, chirping noise.

Keep going for about twenty seconds.

Have a break.

Then start again.”

The first time I read this, my son laughed hysterically.

“Mommy,” he said “If I were a baby boy cricket and I did that with my legs, it would drive you cuckoo bananas!”

Indeed it would.

Have I mentioned the illustrations yet?

No?

Well then, perhaps I should.

The colors are muted, very soft, like a spring day when everything is budding. And the detail put into the grasshoppers is wonderful, like looking at one under a magnifying glass.

The illustrations go a long way in showing a child what a grasshopper looks like during each stage of its life. This is especially wonderful for children who may not live in an area where they can see grasshoppers up close and personal.

The end of the book gives facts about grasshoppers that many people are probably not aware of:

Did you know…

“…there are more than 7,000 different kinds of grasshoppers?”

neither did I.

If you have a child who is interested in the insects around, I encourage you to check out this book together. Then be prepared to get a magnifying glass and go searching for the real thing in the spring.

Other titles in the Backyard Books by Allen and Humphries:

• Are You an Ant?
• Are You a Bee?
• Are You a Butterfly?
• Are You a Dragonfly?
• Are You A Ladybug?
• Are You a Snail?
• Are You a Spider?
  

These books are great for preschool-grade 3.

My son rated this book: 10 fuzzy bugs.

I’d have to agree.