Children's Event Organizer, 09/22/09

Children’s Event Organizer
Lakeshores Library System and
Mid-Wisconsin Federated Library System
Youth Services Update
Issue 333; September 22, 2009
http://www.west-bendlibrary.org/mwflskids.htm
http://www.llsmwflschildrens.blogspot.com/


In this issue:
Ruhama’s Review
Make a Splash – READ!
Banned Books Week Publicity Tips
Richard Peck at the Center for Children’s Literature
8th Annual International Children's &Young Adult Literature Celebration
Events This Week
Dates to Remember
Website Faves
And Finally……


RUHAMA’S REVIEW

3 Willows by Ann Brashares
http://tinyurl.com/d89drw

Meet Ama, Polly and Jo: three friends who are facing the first summer before high school as very changed individuals. Each became friends in elementary school and were immediately bonded when they weren't picked up by their parents after school. It was the day they were given tree seedlings, which gives us fodder throughout the book, as they are willow trees and several factoids about willows reflect what they are facing during the summer. But as they grow older, they begin to change and make different friends, based on what they perceive as important. Ama becomes obsessed with grades, Jo with the 'in' crowd and Polly isn't sure what she wants to become. Each is given a different set of circumstances during their separate summers that makes them realize what true friendship is and shapes how they look at themselves, life and the future.

Brashares certainly is growing as an author, as this was well executed and almost better than the Sisterhood. You do have to read the previous quartet first, as there are a few references to the foursome in this book (and one of them I *completely* missed and was surprised when it was spelled out for me at the end). These girls are similar to the original four and their growth is also similar. But I felt much more hopeful throughout this book and really appreciated being the omniscient reader (especially Ama's story) because it made me realize my life often happens for a reason, though you can't always see it at first. The three girls in this story have great character development and had real lives that many readers will be able to relate to. The book stands alone and I don't know if Brashares has plans for more in this vein. But there is a very cool website connected with the book at http://www.randomhouse.com/teens/sisterhoodcentral/3willows/home.html.


MAKE A SPLASH – READ!

Here are the links to the handouts for next month’s summer library program preconference at WLA in Appleton. Most of the handouts will only be available online so if you want hard copies, you’ll need to print these out.

Pre-conference program descriptions:
http://www.wla.lib.wi.us/yss/2009preconference.htm

Pre-conference handouts:
http://www.wla.lib.wi.us/yss/preconferencehandouts.htm

Pre-conference schedule-at-a-glance:
http://www.wla.lib.wi.us/yss/Documents/2009%20Preconference/Schedule%20at%20a%20Glance.pdf


WATER THEMED FOOD IDEAS FROM FAMILY FUN

Snail Snack
http://jas.familyfun.go.com/recipefinder/display?id=50266&cmp=NLC-NL_Recipe_080310_header

Lunch Ahoy!
http://jas.familyfun.go.com/recipefinder/display?id=50387&cmp=NLC-NL_Recipe_081409_ahoy

Sailboat Sandwiches
http://jas.familyfun.go.com/recipefinder/display?id=15319&cmp=NLC-NL_Recipe_081409_boat

Sailboat Lunch
http://jas.familyfun.go.com/recipefinder/display?id=52217

Fish Cake
http://jas.familyfun.go.com/recipefinder/display?id=50135

Mermaid Cake
http://jas.familyfun.go.com/recipefinder/display?id=50165

Pool Party Cake
http://jas.familyfun.go.com/recipefinder/display?id=50183

Pail of Sand Cake
http://jas.familyfun.go.com/recipefinder/display?id=50172

Pirate Ship Cake
http://jas.familyfun.go.com/recipefinder/display?id=50180


And finally, some interesting websites:

NOAA: Ocean, Great Lakes and Coastal Research
http://www.research.noaa.gov/oceans/

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's (NOAA) research website on the coasts and the nation's lakes is committed to the proposition that "knowledge of the oceans, their resources and their relationship to human activities is vital to our society." The menu on the left side of the page has nine research areas to explore, including "Habitat Protection and Restoration", "Aquatic Invasive Species", and "Coastal Resource Management". Each area of research includes numerous links to other NOAA websites, as well as a list of NOAA Research Programs of relevance. Clicking on the orange "Education" tab in the middle of the page takes visitors to a page with over a dozen education resources for teachers and students. Just scroll down to the heading Ocean and Great Lakes Information for some fantastic opportunities, such as the "Teacher at Sea Program", "Biscayne Bubbles", and "Interactive Climate Analysis and Data Plotting". (From The Scout Report, Copyright Internet Scout Project 1994-2009. http://scout.wisc.edu/, 9/4/09)


Freshwater and Marine Image Bank
http://content.lib.washington.edu/fishweb/index.html

The University of Washington Libraries has digitized 21,000 images of freshwater and marine life taken from 1735-1924 that populated various publications about the topic. Some of the publications include 18th and 19th century books with hand-colored images, stereographs, and publications of the U.S. Bureau of Fisheries and related agencies that contain a slew of illustrations. On the far right hand side of the homepage is a list of 24 sample subject areas that the images fall into, including "aquaculture", "mollusks", "polar subjects", and "water birds". Visitors wishing to see the complete list of subjects should click on "Browse Subjects", in the top right of the homepage. The "Other Sources" link at the bottom right hand side of the page has links to over a dozen other websites that contain digitized freshwater and marine images, such as "Sea Lamprey Images", "Shoreline Aerial Photos", and "Reef Snapshots", just to name a few. (From The Scout Report, Copyright Internet Scout Project 1994-2009. http://scout.wisc.edu/, 8/28/09)


Waterlife
http://waterlife.nfb.ca/

A beautiful and dramatic website, Waterlife, addresses the dire state of the Great Lakes. Created by the National Film Board of Canada the site has high quality images, a rousing soundtrack, and different narrators. Visitors can choose to discover what part of life water affects from a menu on the left hand side of the page, and in this case, there are many. "Water is..." sits at the top of the left hand side menu, and below it are the almost two dozen topics related to water which can be selected. Rolling the cursor over the slightly transparent list of topics increases their visibility. Some of the topics include "evaporating", "waste", "chemicals", "shipping", "invasive species" and "political". Choose any of the topics, and eerie music accompanies the educational and sobering text that floats and moves about the chosen topic. In some cases, a narrator explains a bit more about the topic and the visitor can still click through the other text presented on the screen. (From The Scout Report, Copyright Internet Scout Project 1994-2009. http://scout.wisc.edu/, 8/28/09)


BANNED BOOKS WEEK PUBLICITY TIPS

Online resources to help local libraries publicize Banned Books Week activities can be found by visiting Visibility @ your library, http://www.pio.ala.org/visibility. Resources include free downloads, display ideas, activity ideas, PSA scripts, a letter to the editor and a proclamation. The American Library Association’s (ALA) Public Information Office (PIO) is gearing up to work with the Office of Intellectual Freedom (OIF) on the 28th annual Banned Books Week, held Sept. 26 – Oct. 3.

Observed since 1982, Banned Books Week is an annual event sponsored by ALA’s Office for Intellectual Freedom (OIF). It celebrates the freedom to read and reminds Americans not to take this precious democratic freedom for granted.

This year’s celebration will kick off on Sept. 26 with a “Read-Out!” event at historic Bughouse Square on Chicago’s North Side. Authors will perform readings from their banned or “challenged” books and will sign copies of their works. Visibility @ your library provides librarians and library supporters with news and information about important communications issues from ALA’s Public Information Office and the Campaign for America’s Libraries.


RICHARD PECK AT THE CENTER FOR CHILDREN’S LITERATURE

The Center for Children's Literature at Carthage College in Kenosha invites you invites you to a continental breakfast and presentation by author Richard Peck on Saturday, October 10th at 9 AM in the Johnson Center for the Fine Arts.

There is no charge to attend, but as space is limited please let RSVP if you plan to attend.
You can call (262) 552-5480 or email John Stewig at jstewig@carthage.edu.


8TH ANNUAL INTERNATIONAL CHILDREN'S &YOUNG ADULT LITERATURE CELEBRATION

“Open a Door... Open a Book... Open your Mind... to the World” will be held Saturday, November 21, 2009 at Tripp Commons, Memorial Union on the University of Wisconsin campus in Madison. The celebration begins at 8:30 and will end at 5. This year’s featured authors include: Sylviane Diouf, Rachna Gilmore, Kelly Herold, and James Rumford.

This celebration is an annual workshop for educators, librarians, student teachers and children’s literature enthusiasts, with an aim to internationalize statewide reading curriculum. Each author will discuss the stories that they have written and highlight the work they feel is most suitable for classroom discussion. Two authors will speak in the morning and two following lunch. There is a reception and book signing to conclude the day.

This event is sponsored by the Wisconsin International Outreach Consortium (WIOC) in observance of International Education Week 2009. International Education Week is a joint initiative of the U.S. Department of State and the U.S. Department of Education to promote programs that prepare Americans for a global environment and attract future leaders from abroad to study, learn, and exchange experiences in the United States. For more information and to register, please go to: http://www.wioc.wisc.edu/childlit/2009/registration09.htm. Registration and payment are due by Monday, Monday, November 13, 2009. They are not able to accept payments on location at the Memorial Union. For more information call (608) 262-9224, or e-mail Rachel Weiss at rweiss@wisc.edu.


EVENTS THIS WEEK

Tuesday, September 22
Dear Diary Day
Elephant Appreciation Day
Ice Cream Cone Day
American Business Women's Day

Wednesday, September 23
Teacher's Day
Checkers Day
Gall Bladder Health Day

Thursday, September 24
National Bluebird of Happiness Day
Jim Henson's Birthday

Friday, September 25
One Hit Wonder Day
Comic Book Day

Saturday, September 26
Rocky Horror Picture Show debuted in 1975
Record Player Day
National Pancake Day
Shamu's Birthday

Sunday, September 27
Fun and Fancy Free Day
Crush a Can Day
Ancestor Appreciation Day

Monday, September 28
Marshmallow Twisters Day
Read a Child a Book You Like Day
Family Health and Fitness Day

Tuesday, September 29
Blackberries Day
Broadway Musicals Day
Happy Goose Day

Wednesday, September 30
Ask a Stupid Question Day
Chewing Gum Day
Safety Pin Invented


DATES TO REMEMBER

September 24 State CE Coordinators meeting, Madison
September 25 State Youth Services Liaisons meeting, Madison
September 26 Wisconsin Storytellers’ Get Together, Ripon
October 2-4 IBBY Regional Conference, St. Charles, IL
October 3 “Listening for Literacy” workshop, Janesville
October 6-9 Rhonda at workshops in Kansas
October 10 Richard Peck breakfast, Carthage College, Kenosha
October 20 SLP Preconference, Appleton
October 21-23 WLA Conference, Appleton
October 22-24 ALSC board meeting, Chicago
November 7-14 Rhonda vacation
November 21 International Children’s Literature Celebration, Madison


WEBSITE FAVES

Ology
http://www.amnh.org/ology/

Ology means "the study of" and this interactive science site was created especially for kids to explore fossils, the universe, animals, and much more. Students can move through time meeting extinct dinosaurs, tour the solar system and the Milky Way galaxy, explore DNA that can't be seen by the human eye, read interviews with museum scientists and student scientists like themselves, play games, collect Ology cards and create projects with them, learn about expeditions, take quizzes, and more. There are several Ologies to be explored, including archeology, astronomy, biodiversity, earth, Einstein, genetics, and marine biology. Each Ology section is filled with interactive activities for students to enjoy as they learn. (Education World Site Reviews, 9/15/09)


Paper Plate Education
http://analyzer.depaul.edu/paperplate/

This site was designed by Chuck Bueter at DePaul University and offers teachers, parents and students creative hands-on activities that "reduce complex notions to simple paper plate explanations." Activities are created for a variety of science topics and for a range of ability levels using only paper plates and a few other easily found items. Activity topics include everything from practicing addition and multiplication to altitude and co-altitude to galaxy models and much more. The activities were contributed by practicing educators and more are being added regularly. The "What's New?" area keeps regular users up to date on the latest projects being added. (Education World Site Reviews, 9/15/09)


AND FINALLY……

There’s a new baby at the San Diego Zoo! He was born August 5th and is VERY CUTE! He’s getting a lot of air time on Panda Cam. http://www.sandiegozoo.org/pandacam/index.html