Penguins

On this very cold Thursday morning, Storytime was all about penguins. Here's a cute little song we sang, to the tune of "I'm a Little Teapot"-

I'm a little penguin, on the ice. 

I think the cold is very nice. 

I can hop around 

first once, then twice. 

I think cold is very nice.

Today we read several penguin books. Tacky the Penguin by Helen Lester was a funny story about a penguin with odd mannerisms and how he saved his friends by just being himself. Turtle's Penguin Day by Valeri Gorbachev was about a turtle who dreamed he was a penguin, so he dressed like one to go to school. In Flight School by Lita Judge, all Penguin's friends joined together to help him soar like an eagle! And the rhyming book, Playful Little Penguins by Tony Mitton, told about groups of penguins playing, helping, and even sleeping in tight little groups. Do you know why?

Here's the craft we made - paper plate penguins with pointy beaks! We sang and danced with our penguins after they were finished!

After Storytime was all over, Brandie read us a funny book because we wanted to hear it. Thank you, Brandie!

STEM Saturday: Frozen!

What a wonderful surprise to see snow falling on the very morning of this month's STEM Saturday, where we did science explorations with snow and ice! Unfortunately, the storm kept some folks at home - but it gave those who attended a chance to catch snowflakes and view them under a magnifying glass!

We gathered snow in plastic cups, marked the level, and predicted how much water there would be when it melted. See how close we were? Looks like there is not very much water in snow!

Are mittens warm? We put thermometers inside our mittens to see. The temperature in there was about the same as the air temperature in the library. But when we measured with our hands inside the mittens, that's when the temperature went up. We think mittens must keep your body heat in.

After looking at photos of Arctic animals, we put one hand in ice water - the closest we could get to their Arctic environment. Brrrrr! Then we put on a "blubber glove", a plastic bag inside another bag filled with cooking shortening. We tried to feel the cold of the water, but could feel nothing but warm. Good thing seals, walruses, and narwhals have so much blubber!

Ice cubes and salt inside a tin can made frost on the outside. Salt poured on a string that was laying across an ice cube made the ice melt, then reform so it stuck to the string. Salt changes the melting temperature of ice. This must be why towns use salt on our icy roads!

We read Bob the Snowman by Sylvia Loretan, about Bob who travels south and then back north in a surprising way. On the iPad, we looked at photos of snowflakes that "Snowflake Bentley" took in the early 1900s. Because it was too warm to make them ourselves, we marveled at pictures of frozen bubbles. We finished the hour with a frozen treat - popsicles! Thanks to everyone who braved the elements and made January's STEM Saturday so "cool"!

Do You Want to Build a Snowman?

Snowmen and snowflakes were the topic of this week's Storytime. In Perfect Soup by Lisa Moser, Murray (who was in a hurry) went to great lengths to find a carrot he needed for his soup. Snowbaby's parents tried everything to help him sleep in Snowbaby Could Not Sleep by Kara LaReau. No Two Alike by Keith Baker followed a pair of birds on a snowflake-filled journey through a gorgeous winter landscape as they compared things that looked similar. And the rhyming book In the Flaky Frosty Morning by Karla Kuskin was about a snowman built by some kids and how others added to it. We sure say lots of endpapers with snowflakes!

We used felt circles and colored paper to make snowmen with real buttons and "carrot" noses. Then we painted them into snowy, wintery scenes using Q-tips! Just like snowflakes, no two were alike!

Mitten Weather

It was nice to see so many Storytime friends after the Thursday holiday closures and last week's late opening. Even though the weather was finally above freezing, it was still mitten weather! We read The Jacket I Wear in the Snow by Shirley Neitzel, a repeating rebus story, as well as one of the many versions of The Mitten, this one by Jim Aylesworth. This story is based on a Ukrainian folktale about a child who loses a mitten in the snow, then animals come along to use it as a cozy den. We especially liked the picture where the mitten exploded from too many animals! One Mitten by Kristine O'Connell George was another lost mitten story, but the child found it in the end. And David McPhail's Sam's Winter Hat was about a boy who kept losing (and finding) his pieces of his outerwear, one by one!

We decorated paper mittens with ribbons, stickers, jewels, crayons and more, then attached them together with a length of yarn. Very pretty! Very fun!

Feed The Birds

Brrrr! What a cold week this has been! Thursday's morning Storytime was cancelled due to a late opening, but our afternoon time was held - with one attendee! We read Have You Seen Birds? by Joanne Oppenheimer and Backyard Birds of Winter by Carol Lerner. As we read, we identified birds we have seen here in New Hampton.

Then we made a feeder for our feathered friends. We spread peanut butter all over a cardboard tube then rolled it in birdseed. We attached a string for a hanger and it was ready to go! 

Dinner for the birds!

January Drop-in Craft

Isn't this penguin that Melanie made the cutest one you've ever seen? Drop in to the Children's Room this month to make one of your own to take home!