High Flying Times

Storytime today was all about space and rockets! We read an Ezra Jack Keats book about kids with so much imagination that junk took them on a space adventure! It was called Regards to the Man in the Moon, and the illustrations were beautiful! We read about sheep in space in the book Sheep Blast Off! by Nancy Shaw. Our final book was Here in Space by David Milgrim, where a boy and his pets investigated all the wonders of Planet Earth.

Next came two crafts! On black paper, we made a tinfoil rocket flying through a starry sky. The rocket's flames were made of strips of crepe paper. We sure had fun with all those circle and star stickers!

Then we quickly colored a white strip of paper, made a cylinder with it, taped it up and folded a nose cone at the top. We stuck it on a straw launch pad, blew into the straw, and sent our paper rockets flying!

High flying times at the Gordon-Nash this morning! Such fun!!

Up, Up & Away!

Mrs. Simard said tonight was a blast at the Gordon-Nash Library! Summer Reading Program participants made three kind of rockets and blasted them into the air in three different ways.

Kids had fun with rocket #1 - a thin decorated paper tube with a closed-up end, slid down onto a straw. Blow into the straw, and up it goes!

Next, RocketMouse! Each person made a cone body, some ears, and add a rubberband tail. Then they perched RocketMouse on top of a soda bottle. To force the mouse into the air, slam the sides of the bottle together really hard and quickly. Pop!! And up she goes!

The third rocket was designed from cardstock with a nose cone and fins. Kids were careful to make the cylinder of their rocket the same diameter as a film container. Some of them personalized their rockets with words and designs.

At the launch pad, the film can was inserted into the base of the rocket, after being filled with Alka-Seltzer and a little water. Some of those little rockets reached amazing heights! That's why we were all wearing our safety glasses, just in case!

There was no time for the geyser! Maybe next week we can try. In the meantime, here's a link to a video of a real geyser! And thanks so much to the guys at The New Hampton Transfer Station for collecting plastic bottles for us!

The Project Across the Street

From the windows of the Children's Room, kids have watched in fascination at the ongoing building renovation at the New Hampton School across the street. We've been entertained by so many big trucks and so much heavy equipment! This afternoon, they had machines there laying rows and rows of sod to create an instant lawn! I was so disappointed there were no children at the library to share the excitement with that I ventured outside and across the street to record it!

The sod was delivered on the back of this big flatbed truck. See the rolls on the back? That's rolled up live grass - with dirt! Click on the picture to make it bigger and you'll see the grass sticking out of the rolls!

One by one, the rolls got attached to a machine that drove back and forth across the dirt, unrolling the grass as it moved. It was pretty impressive! Watch!

Thanks to the people at All Ways Green for letting me record them doing this awesome work!

Let's Build!

Today's Storytime was all about constructing and building. First we read Building a House by Byron Barton, a book that showed step-by-step how a house was made for a family. Then we read The Three Little Pigs by James Marshall and were reminded about the materials the little pigs used to construct their houses.

Later there was time for a craft or an activity - or both! Some made houses from straw(s) or sticks or cardboard "bricks", then decorated their yards with flowers, insects, and even some pigs!

Others chose to build with the same materials (although "bricks" were the favorite) and try to "blow the house down" using their breath, a fan, or a hair dryer!

We finished the hour by reading If I Built a House by Chris Van Dusen, and shared our favorite room in this boy's house. (Mine was the Flying Room!) Storytime this week sure was fun!

Lego Night

The Summer Reading Program is in full swing at The Gordon-Nash Library! At tonight's program, Jim Harvey of LEtGo Your Mind brought Lego components to make motorized cars! Kids collaborated with partners to build the base, adding gears and wheels of their own choosing. With a Lego motor on top, the cars were able to zip across the room! There was lots of problem-solving as teams adjusted parts to make sure their cars would race. One person even figured out how to make her team's car race backwards!

Time to race the cars! Thanks, Jim Harvey, for a wonderful night of building fun!

Beetles & Bugs

Butterflies...ladybugs...fireflies...ants. We started Storytime by listing our favorite insects! Then we read I Love Bugs by Emma Dodd, a book which mentioned even more insects - and a spider! Next, we read Mr. Mosquito Put on His Tuxedo by Barbara Olenyik Morrow. This funny rhyming book tells about Mr. Mosquito, who goes to a ball with his insect friends and, with the help of his family, ends up saving the party from ruin. We also read Clara Caterpillar by Pamela Duncan Edwards, a story of a caterpillar and her companions and how they learn to accept each other. There were so many words that started with /c/ in this book!

Then we made a mosquito from various materials. A straw body, pompom head, pipe cleaner thorax and six legs, and a pool noodle segment for an abdomen. Foil wings were added, then reinforcement eyes and he was finished!

But do you notice his tail end? It's cut with a deep "v" shape - and when kids put it in their mouths and blew in it, it produced a humming sound - that sounded a bit like a mosquito! 

And here's a song we sang, to the tune of "The Wheels On The Bus":

The bees in the flowers go buzz, buzz, buzz,  

Buzz, buzz, buzz - buzz, buzz, buzz 

The bees in the flowers go buzz, buzz, buzz

All summer long. 

The caterpillars on the leaves go munch, munch, munch, 

munch, munch, munch - munch, munch, munch 

The caterpillars on the leaves go munch, munch, munch 

All summer long. 

The crickets in the fields go chirp, chirp, chirp,

chirp, chirp, chirp - chirp, chirp, chirp

The crickets in the fields go chirp, chirp, chirp

All summer long.

The fireflies at night go blink, blink, blink, 

Blink, blink, blink - blink, blink, blink

The fireflies at night go blink, blink, blink

All summer long.

 

The Gordon-Nash Library certainly was "buzzing" with activity today!

It's Natural! Camouflage & Mimicry

Barry Draper came to the Gordon-Nash tonight to talk about camouflage and mimicry and how living things protect themselves through their appearance. Snowy owls, tree frogs, butterflies - he gave us many examples of how NH creatures blend in with their surroundings or take the appearance of something far more dangerous than themselves.

To see camouflage in action, kids looked at insects and other small creatures that Barry brought with him. Armed with paper and pencils, they divided into small groups, took their magnifying glasses, and investigated life in small containers of pond water.

  

Kids illustrated what they found and gave their creatures creative names, based on their appearance.

Then they shared their findings with the rest of the group. What great observations!

The hour flew by! What a wonderful opportunity to look closely at some of our smallest creatures. Thank you, Barry, for an interesting evening of investigation - and fun! 

...and thanks for continuing the learning in the parking lot 

long after the hour was done!

Here's a link to Barry's blog - check out his great nature photos!