What We Read at Morris Arboretum on Decemeber 2

It has been busy the last few weeks! Here we are at December and the end of the year. Wow!

On December 2, I went to Morris Arboretum to share stories about winter! We had a great group and lots of fun. Want to hear stories at the Arboretum? Learn more here!

What We Read

• Snow by Manya Stojic. - JJ STO
• Snow is coming! The animals sense it. What changes happen when snow comes?
•  Snowy, Blowy Winter by Bob Raczka ; illustrated by Judy Stead. - JJ RAC
• What fun things can you do in the winter? This book has it all!
•  Bear Snores On by Karma Wilson - JJ WIL
• Bear is sleeping soundly in his cave when some animal friends come in. Will bear wake up as they warm up?

What We Did

• Sang my favorite opening and closing songs: "If You Want To Hear a Story..." and "The More We Read Together."
• Recited and acted "Snow Man, Snow Man" (similar to Teddy Bear, Teddy Bear)
• Recited a rhyme called "The Wind."
• Sang "There's Snowflake on My Shoulder."

If you'd like the words to the rhymes or songs, please contact me here (select Youth).

What We Read at Morris Arboretum on October 14

Can you believe that just yesterday it was sunny and warm? With the weather, it was fun pretending we were in the jungle at Morris Arboretum.


Join us for Story Times a Morris Arboretum twice a month. Learn more here.

Our Theme: Fall!

What We Read

• Leaf Jumpers by Carole Gerber ; illustrated by Leslie Evans.:- JJ GER
• Learn about different leaves in this fall story.
• Autumn Orange by Christianne C. Jones ; illustrated by Todd Ouren.: - JJ JON
• Orange is a color we see a lot of in fall. Read about the different ways we find orange in fall.
• Scarecrows by Calvin Harris.: - JJ HAR
• When do we scarecrows? Why do we see scarecrows?

What We Did

• Sang  my favorite opening and closings songs: "If You'd Like to Hear a Story" and "The More We Read Together."
• Sang "Autumn Leaves are falling down."
• Recited "5 Little Pumpkins."

I'll be back in November!

What We Read at Morris Arboretum on September 9

Back to school time is here, but Story Time at Morris Arboretum continues! I made my way over there on September 9 to read stories about fall! The leaves haven't changed colors quite yet, but they will soon.

What We Read

• Who Loves the Fall?  by Bob Raczka ; illustrated by Judy Stead. - JJ RAC
• Lovely full page spreads with one word or small phrase illustrate reasons to love fall from apples to Thanksgiving!
•  Apple Harvest  by Calvin Harris. - JJ HAR
• Full page photographs and simple text illustrate how apples are harvested and what lovely treats they can become.
•  Leaf Man by Lois Ehlert.- JJ EHL
• Leaf Man goes where ever the wind goes. He travels North, South, East, and West past birds and animals and fields. This is a great book to read and then make leaf designs with the fall leaves. What can you make?

What We Did

• Sang my favorite opening and closing songs "If You'd Like to Hear a Story" and "The More We Read Together."
• Sang "Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star."
• Recited a rhyme called "Little Apple."
• Sang "Autumn Leaves Are Falling Down."

Want to know what the words to the rhymes were? Send me a note through our "Contact Form" and select "Youth."

Want to learn more about Morris Arboretum Story Times? Visit here (book mark the site as they update it with the most current story times)!

What We Read at Stories in the Parks on July 29 & 30

This was the last week for Stories in the Park! We had great weather all summer and had a great time every session. I hope I'll see you in the library throughout the year.

Don't forget, if you joined our Summer Reading Club the last day to log your books into the log is August 5. You can still join and record all of your summer reading. The club opened on June 9 and goes until August 5. We're having our celebrations next week!

What We Read

•  Panda Bear, Panda Bear, What Do You See? by Bill Martin Jr. ; pictures by Eric Carle.- JJ MAR
• All the different animals see something near them until it all comes together at the end.
• Can You See Me?  by Ted Lewin.- JJ LEW
• Animals of the rainforest have different ways to hide. Can you see them?
• Stripes of All Types / written and illustrated by Susan Stockdale.: - JJ STO
• Read about animals that have stripes and where they live. A great book for building vocabulary.

What We Did

• Sang my favorite opening and closing songs: "If you'd like to hear a story" and "The more we read together."
• Recited "Five little monkeys"
• Sang "Old MacDonald Had a Farm."
• Made animal noises!
• Read Monday the Bullfrog.

What We Read at Stories in the Park on July 15 & 16

Stories in the Park is where I bring the story time to you at the park. We'll read stories, sing songs, and even act a few things out. I'm at Wentz Run on Tuesdays at 10:30 AM and Oxford Park on  Wednesdays at 10:30 AM. Hope you'll join us!

What We Read

• Birds by Kevin Henkes ; illustrated by Laura Dronzek. - JJ HEN
• There are birds all around us! What would you ask a bird? What do you see?
•  Birds by Tracey Crawford. - J 598 CRA
• Did you know we have simple non-fiction books? This book talks about birds in a basic and easy to understand way for children as young as preschool. They'll enjoy point out the birds.
•  An Egg is Quiet by Diana Aston ; illustrated by Sylvia Long. - J 591.4 AST
• Similar to the book from last week, this one is another one to pick up and browse. You'll learn a lot about eggs just from this simple work.  

 
What We Did

• Sang my favorite opening and closing songs "If You'd like to Hear a Story" and "The More We Read Together."
• Recited "Two Little Black Birds" finger rhyme
• Acted out "Little Bird, Little Bird" actions (similar to Teddy Bear, Teddy Bear).
• Guessed what Monday the Bull Frog ate.

I hope you'll join us next week for more stories!

What We Read at Stories in the Park - July 8 & 9

We had a great week for Stories in the Park (maybe a little warm though) at Wentz Run (Tuesday at 10:30 AM) and Oxford Park (Wednesday at 10:30 AM). Here's what we read!

 What We Read

•  Up, Down and Around by Katherine Ayres ; illustrated by Nadine Bernard Westcott. - JJ AYR
• What grows in a garden? What goes up, what goes down, and what goes around and around? Learn about a veggie garden in this story!
• Little Mouse's Big Secret by Éric Battut. - JJ BAT
• Little Mouse has a perfect little secret, so he hides it. As his friends come to visit, they ask about his secret that has its own secret behind Little Mouse!
•  A Seed is Sleepy by Dianna Hutts Aston ; illustrated by Sylvia Long. - JJ AST
• This informative picture book is one that is worth spending time reading. I only read one line of text, but there is a lot more to read in this book all about seeds.
• Monday the Bull Frog

What We Did

• Sang my favorite opening and closing songs: "If You'd Like to Hear a Story" and "The More We Read Together."
• Sang "Itsy Witsy Spider" three ways: Normal, small, and big.
• Recited/Acted "The Garden in the Yard."

What We Read at Morris Arboretum on July 1

The circus is in town at Morris Arboretum! It is Circus Week at the Garden Railway. If you have not see the Garden Railway, check it out. It's a small garden with a variety of model trains making their way around the tracks. For train lovers, this is an absolute delight, especially when you're trying to follow the train. I've had the chance to visit it twice so far and I'm just as excited about the different trains as the children you see there.

Our Theme: Circus and trains!

What We Read

• Circus by Lois Ehlert. - JJ EHL
• Take a trip to the circus and watch daring acts and enjoy snacks!
•  And The Train Goes-- by William Bee- JJ BEE
• The train makes a variety of noises as it travels down the tracks. This is a fun one to recite as you read it!
•  Mice Mischief : Math Facts in Action by Caroline Stills ; illustrated by Judith Rossell. - JJ STI
• 10 mice clean up and practice until it is time to play!

What We Did

• Sang my favorite opening and closing songs "If you'd like to hear a story" and "The more we read together." 
• Sang "Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star."
• Sang "The Alphabet Song."
• Acted out "Circus Clown," a rhyme similar to "Teddy Bear, Teddy Bear."

I'll be back at Morris Arboretum on August 5th at 10:30 AM! Sign up!

What We Read for Stories in the Park

This week marks the first week of our Summer Events for kids! Our Summer Reading Club is still going strong. If you haven't logged your books, do! If you haven't signed up, what are you waiting for? Find our log here.

Did you know that if your child participated in Stories in the Park this week you can count these stories? Yes! Your child was being read to and heard three new stories this week! (The titles are linked to our catalog if you want to read a favorite again!)

What We Read

• Mouse Paint by Ellen Stoll Walsh. - JJ WAL
• Three little white mice change colors and find out what happens when you dance in color puddles. What color will it be?
• Big Red Farm by Christianne C. Jones ; illustrated by Todd Ouren. - JJ JON
• The color red is everywhere on a farm. See how this story highlights just some of the red you might see.
• Splish, Splash, and Blue by Christianne C. Jones ; illustrated by Todd Ouren. - JJ JON
• Blue is everywhere at this water park. Cool down and enjoy the fun!
• Monday the Bullfrog by Matthew Van Fleet - Book/Puppet Combo.

What We Did

• Sang  my favorite opening and closing songs: "If You'd Like to Hear a Story" and "The More We Read Together."
• Sang "Old MacDonald Had a Farm."
• Acted like little mice with a rhyme.
• At Wentz Run: Recited "Two Little Black Birds."
• At Oxford Park: Sang the Alphabet Song

I hope to see you at Wentz Run or Oxford Park next week!

Morris Aroboretum - What Was Read - June 3

We had a lovely day on June 3! Story Time was held outside at the Arboretum.

Curious what it's all about? Want to know when I'm back? Learn more here.

What Was Read

• Whooo, whooo ... here come the trains / Molly Carroll. - J 625.1 Car
• Simple text and full color photos show different trains and different train cars. Have you ever seen a double decker train car before?
• Terrific trains / Tony Mitton and Ant Parker. - JJ MIT
• This cartoon illustrated book shows readers even more different trains and a train traveling down the tracks.
• Trouble on the tracks / Kathy Mallat. - JJ MAL
• The train is on its way but Trouble is just around the bend! What is that Trouble?
• Rattle and rap / illustrated by Susan Steggall. - JJ STE
• Rhyming text. A traveling train. This simple text illustrates the sounds trains make.

What We Did

• Sang my favorite opening and closing songs: "If you'd like to hear a story" and "The More We Read Together."
• Recited a counting rhyme titled "Clickety-Clack, Clickety-Clack."
• Recited and acted out "I'm a Little Choo-Choo Train."
• Recited "Down By the Station." 
• Sang The Alphabet Song.

I'll be back on July 1. Hope to see you then!

Children's Events - Week of June 2

Here's what we have happening this week:


Monday, June 2

• Story-Guitar Time with Miss Michelle at Blue Bell at 10:30 AM. 

Tuesday, June 3

• Story Time with Ms. Tegan at Morris Arboretum at 10:30 AM. Learn more here.
• Story-Guitar Time with Miss Michelle at Ambler at 10:30 AM.

Wednesday, June 4

• Story-Guitar Time with Miss Michelle at Blue Bell at 4:30 PM

Thursday, June 5

• Story-Guitar Time at 4:30 PM with Miss Michelle at Ambler.
• Wissahickon Middle School Traveling Strings Concert at Blue Bell at 7:00 PM.

Friday, June 6

• Story-Guitar Time with Miss Michelle at Blue Bell at 10:30 AM.

 Saturday, June 7

• Story Time with Ms. Tegan at the Ambler Farmers Market at 10:30 AM.

For these events and more, visit our Kids Page here! Or follow on Twitter @WVPLYouth

What Was Read - Morris Arboretum Story Time - April 29

The renovations at Morris Arboretum are done and we returned for Story Time! Sadly, the weather wasn't nice enough for us to go outside, so we were inside yet again. That didn't stop us though from having a good time!

Curious as to what "Morris Arboretum Story Time" is about? Check out this link for more.

What We Read

• Birds / by Kevin Henkes ; illustrated by Laura Dronzek.: - JJ HEN
• Birds come in all shapes and sizes. A child recounts the types of birds and muses on what might happen if birds left trails and more.
• Feathers / Cassie Mayer. - J 598.147 MAY
• A factual book about body coverings. This one focuses on feathers and features a guessing game!
• Up, Tall and High! : [but not necessarily in that order] by Ethan Long.:- JJ LON
• Short chapters that feature birds who illustrate concepts for kids. There are awesome flaps that add to the story! 
• Look Whooo's Counting by Suse MacDonald. - Request
• A little owl learns to count up to 10.

What We Did

• Sang my favorite opening and closing songs: "If you'd like to hear a story" and "The more we read together."
• Recited "Two Little Black Birds."
• Recited "Little Bird, Little Bird" to the tune of "Teddy Bear, Teddy Bear."
• Recited a rhyme that starts "I saw a little bird go hop, hop, hop"

I hope to see you June 3rd at Morris Arboretum! That's the next time I'll be there!

Book Trail 2014 Pictures!

Did you check out our Book Trail this year? Did you miss it? Here are some awesome pictures from our Book Trail. I was invited to check out the trucks this year which was loads of fun! What was your favorite truck there?

Thanks again to Lower Gwynedd Township's Department of Parks & Recreation for partnering with us again for another awesome Book Trail and Touch-a-Truck Event.

Children's Events - Week of April 7

Here's what we have happening this week:

Wednesday, April 9

• Story-Guitar Time with Miss Michelle at Blue Bell at 4:30 PM

Thursday, April 10

• Baby Story Time at 10:15 AM with a special guest speaker on "Learning Through Play."
• Story-Guitar Time at 4:30 PM with Miss Michelle at Ambler.
• Blue Bell Lego Club at 4:30 PM. Learn more here.

Friday, April 11

• Story-Guitar Time with Miss Michelle at Blue Bell at 10:30 AM.

Saturday, April 12

• Stripes of All Types Book Trail and Touch-a-Truck at Lower Gwynedd Township Building at 10 AM to 11 AM! Learn more here.
• Art with Benita at 10:30 AM at Ambler. Please call Ambler for details and sign-up.
• 2nd Family Movie Matinee at 1:30 PM at Blue Bell. Check out movie details here.
• Egg Hunt int he Library at 3:15 PM at Blue Bell. Bring a basket! Learn more here.

For these events and more, visit our Kids Page here! Or follow on Twitter @WVPLYouth

What Was Read - Morris Arboretum Story Time - April 1

Story Time at the library was no joke for April 1st! We had a small group meet at WVPL for stories and songs and rhymes about birds! This is the last Morris Arboretum Story Time at a library. We'll be back at Morris Arboretum on April 29 at 10:30 AM.

Curious as to what "Morris Arboretum Story Time" is about? Check out this link for more.

What Was Read

• Feathers For Lunch by Lois Ehlert.:- JJ EHL
• The cat is bored of his regular food so when the door is accidentally left open, the cat sneaks out for a feathered treat, only to find that those birds can outsmart him for a few reasons!
•  Birds by Tracey Crawford. - J 598 CRA (Creature Comparisons series)
• This is actually a very simple nonfiction book that explains birds to young children.
•  An Egg is Quiet  by Diana Aston ; illustrated by Sylvia Long. - J 594.4 AST
• Do you know about eggs? In this special book, readers learn about eggs. A highlight for this one was the chance for children to find the egg in one spread (it isn't as easy as it looks)!

What We Did

• Sang my favorite opening and closing songs: "If you'd like to hear a story" and "The more we read together."
• Sang "Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star."
• Recited: "I saw a little bird go hop, hop, hop..."
• Recited: "Two Little Black Birds."

I hope you'll join me next time!

What Was Read - Morris Arboretum - December 3

Welcome December! What that means for the Morris Arboretum is lights and trains! (I took a small walk after Story Time this week). You know December also means? The beginning of winter! We read stories about snowmen and doing snow things!

What Was Read

• Snowmen All Year by Caralyn Buehner ; pictures by Mark Buehner. - JJ BUE
• What would you do if you could have a snowman all year? One boy talks about all of his plans if only his snowman would be made of some magic snow...
• Snowballs by Lois Ehlert. - JJ EHL
• Collect things and when snow falls, make a snow family!
• Frozen Noses by Jan Carr ; illustrated by Dorothy Donohue - JJ DON
• What do you do on a winter day? These frozen noses go through their snow day.

What We Did

• Sang my favorite opening and closing songs: "If You'd Like to Hear a Story" and "The More We Read Together."
• Recited "Five Little Snowmen."
• Sang "Make a Snowball" with actions.
• Sand and danced the "Snowkey Pokey."

What Was Read - Morris Arboretum - November 5

Can you believe it is November all ready? The clocks have been set back, the leaves have turned brilliant colors, and I'm sharing Thanksgiving stories! We had a small group at Morris Arboretum's Story Time, but we had fun nonetheless!

What Was Read

•  Ten Turkeys In the Road by Brenda Reeves Sturgis - JJ STU
• Ten crazy turkeys disappear one by one as a farmer watches.

• The Firefighters' Thanksgiving by Maribeth Boelts - JJ BOE
• The firefighters are getting ready to make a feast, but just as they get ready, a call comes in. When a fellow firefighter is hurt, what happens to Thanksgiving?
• Thank You Thanksgiving by David Milgrim - JJ MIL
• A little girl is sent out to pick up some last minute supplies and says thank you to things she passes by.

 What We Did

• Sang my favorite opening and closing songs: "If You'd Like to Hear a Story" and "The More We Read Together."
• Recited  The Turkey (Rhyme found here)
• " The turkey is a funny bird.
  Its head goes wobble, wobble.
  And all it knows is just one word:
  "Gobble, gobble, gobble." "
  
• Sang and danced the Turkey Trot! (To the tune of the Hokey Pokey)

What Was Read - Morris Arboretum - September 10

Ah fall! School has started. The leaves are starting to change colors and we have a very hot and humid day! That didn't stop families from enjoying some stories at Morris Arboretum today! Today's special theme was farms, in honor of all the farm festivals and harvesting that will be coming up soon.

What was Read

• Giggle, Giggle, Quack / by Doreen Cronin ; pictures by Betsy Lewin.:Farmer Brown and Duck are back (of Click, Clack, Moo fame!). This time, Farmer Brown is taking a well-deserved vacation. He left notes for his brother and Duck, so far, hasn't done anything. Why is Duck looking at that pencil?
• Chickens to the Rescue / John Himmelman.:There is trouble at the farm! A watch down the well? Dog ate homework? A cow in a tree? The chickens are here to save the day!
• Barnyard Banter / Denise Fleming.:Animals on the farm make different noises. Through out the farm, there is a goose chasing something.

What We Did

• Sang my favorite opening and closing songs: "If You'd Like to Hear a Story" and "The More We Read Together."
• Performed the rhyme "5 Squeaky Clean Pigs"
• Sang "Old MacDonald"

I'll be at Morris Arboretum again on October 8. at 10:30 AM*

*Please note if you want to attend this story time, you must register in advance and you may need to pay an admission fee (unless you are a member). We do have a Morris Arboretum pass available to check out of the library.  I am there once a month and another librarian from Montgomery County is there on the other Tuesday.
 

What Was Read - Morris Arboretum & Stories In the Park - Week of August 5

Summer Reading is winding down at the library! Last week saw our last meeting of stories at Wentz Run and this week, we had our last Stories in the Park at Oxford.

I also had my monthly story time at Morris Arboretum* (that will still continue during the year).

The weather was nice for both sessions and we had a great theme: TREASURES. The library is a treasure, family is a treasure, and our friends are treasures. Thank you for joining me this summer and I hope to see our Stories in the Park listeners around the library!

What Was Read

• Max & Ruby's Treasure Hunt by Rosemary Wells - JJ WEL - What a lovely day for a tea party! Until it rains! The kids are bored and Grandma has just the solution: a treasure hunt!
• What a Treasure! by Jane and Will Hillenbrand - JJ HIL - Mole gets a brand new shovel and starts digging. Things he finds are treasures to others until he finds the perfect treasure.
• Treasure by Suzanne Bloom. - JJ BLO - Goose thinks Bear is getting ready for a treasure hunt! Off they go, but will they find treasure?

What We Did

• Sang my favorite opening and closing songs: "If You'd Like to Hear a Story" and "The More We Read Together."
• We recited and acted "We're Going on a Treasure Hunt."
• At Morris Arboretum, we sang "Row, Row, Row Your Boat."
• Read and guessed Monday the Bull Frog. 

I'll be at Morris Arboretum again on September 10 at 10:30 AM.

*Please note if you want to attend this story time, you must register in advance and you may need to pay an admission fee (unless you are a member). We do have a Morris Arboretum pass available to check out of the library.  I am there once a month and another librarian from Montgomery County is there on the other Tuesday.

What Was Read: Stories in the Park - Week of July 15

We met at both Wentz Run and Oxford Park this week and read fun books and sang songs! We continued with our theme of "Dig Into Reading" by reading about construction stories!

What We Read 

• Construction Kitties by Judy Sue Goodwin Sturges ; illustrated by Shari Halpern.- JJ GOO - Four friendly kitties get to work at the construction site. What do you think they'll build?
• B is for Bulldozer : a Construction ABC / June Sobel ; illustrated by Melissa Iwai. - JJ SOB - We work through the alphabet as we watch construction workers build a new, fun place!
• Dazzling Diggers / Tony Mitton and Ant Parker. - JJ MIT - Construction vehicles do a lot. Learn about the different things they do.

 What We Did

• Sang "The Alphabet Song."
• Performed "I'm a Little Dump Truck" (similar to "I'm a Little Teapot")
• Sang my favorite opening song: "If You'd Like to Hear a Story" and closing song "The More We Read Together."

Join us next week at Wentz Run at 10:30 AM on Tuesday and Oxford Park at 10:30 AM on Thursday. Keep on reading! 

What Was Read - Morris Arboretum - July 9

On Tuesday, July 9, I made my way down to Morris Arboretum for story time. What was really special about this particular session is that we were finally outside! I know for me, the last two times were indoors and I was told that the story times have been indoor for a while. Despite the slight humidity, the trees kept us cool and we have a great time.

What We Read

• Oh, No! by Candace Fleming and Pictures by Eric Rohmann. -  JJ FLE - One little animal falls into the "deep, deep hole," then another, then another until the tiger is prepared to make a feast of them. Will anyone save them? This fun story has a great refrain that a child can join in on and everyone shouted out "Oh, No!" as I read the story.
•  Picture a Tree by Barbara Reid. - JJ REI -Trees have different shapes during the year. We explore the many sides of trees in this work.
• The World is Waiting for You by Barbara Kerley. - JJ KER -With photographs, this book challenges the reader to explore his or her world.
• Monday The Bullfrog - This puppet is a book! The book is in his mouth! Monday the Bullfrog is a hungry frog and he eats lots of yummy-to-him things.

What We Did

• Sang my favorite opening and closing songs: "If You'd Like to Hear a Story" and "The More We Read Together" 
• Recited "Plant a Little Seed" which I acted out by making a plant grow on my flannel board.
• Acted out a rhyme called "Little Mouse" from The Complete Book of Rhymes, Songs, Poems, Fingerplays, and Chants / [compiled by] Jackie Silberg, Pam Schiller ; illustrated by Deborah C. Wright.

I'll be at Morris Arboretum again on August 6. at 10:30 AM*

*Please note if you want to attend this story time, you must register in advance and you may need to pay an admission fee (unless you are a member). We do have a Morris Arboretum pass available to check out of the library.  I am there once a month and another librarian from Montgomery County is there on the other Tuesday.