Wednesday, January 28, 2009

If you like "If you likes"



We have added a few more If You Like... to Tales Treehouse.



Some of the new ones include If you like Percy Jackson, Matilda, or Fancy Nancy. (Thanks to Amie at SM for some of the Fancy Nancy titles).


I have a few questions:


What other popular books, series or authors would you like to see added to the "if you like .." page?


Take a look at some of these lists and let me know of some titles that could get added to the lists.- Double credit here - they would be staff picks and contributing web content!

If not readalikes, what other kinds of reading lists would you like to see added to the Treehouse?

Monday, January 26, 2009

Do you know this book?

I just finished listening to a great book! Then I went out and bought two paperback copies so that I could give it to others! This is a book the whole family would enjoy reading together when the youngest is about 7 or 8. It has love, friendship and fun, and I found myself laughing out loud at some of the situations. It also includes greed, intolerance and death that made me cry. The characters are very real and memorable as is the entire story built around an historical occurence that took place in 1912 in Maine. Lizzie Bright and the Buckminster Boy by Gary Schmidt was a Newbery Runner Up and a 2005 Prinz Award Honor Book. Try it and let me know your opinion!

PreSchool Fair Was A Success Again!

Thanks to the excellent planning and preparations Dee Requa made, and the timely help of Wincy Martin, Lori Romero and Debby Ridgell on Saturday morning, January 24, the 8th Annual January Preschool Fair was held at Koelbel Library with many positive compliments and much gratitude from the participating preschool representatives and the parents who dropped in that morning between 10 and 12!
The Discovery Toy representative had a good day too!
This is an event that actually begins months ahead when the list of preschools located around the Koelbel Library is updated and the letters and registration forms are mailed out to about 40 preschools. This year there were 18 schools represented, and that made a perfect number in Meeting Room A. Meeting Room B is where the babies and toddlers were entertained by Wincy Martin and the excellent teen volunteers lined up in advance by Amy Gonzales.
Since the only other kinds of events where the preschools can contact as many prospective students cost participating schools hundreds of dollars and are not specifically for prospects in the vicinity of their schools, everyone really appreciates the Arapahoe Library District's willingness to host this event each year.

Happy Awards Day!

The ALA Youth Media Awards were announced this morning!

The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman, won the Newbery.

There were four Newbery Honors: The Underneath, The Surrender Tree, Savvy, and After Tupac and D Foster.

The House in the Night, illustrated by Beth Krommes and written by Susan Marie Swanson, won the Caldecott.

Of the 3 Caldecott Honors and 1 Medal winner, three of those titles were on our online Caldecott Hopeful poll! (How I Learned Geography and A Couple of Boys Have the Best Week Ever were the other honors on our poll, plus A River of Words, which we didn't pick.)

Full award info:

ALSC award list

Coretta Scott King awards

Ooops, forgot YALSA (including the new Morris award, for first-time YA author)

Horn Book has a nice round up.

Thursday, January 22, 2009

Off the Cuff

The Cuffies were announced! Every year Publishers Weekly asks booksellers for their top picks in a number of categories. So...who won "Favorite Book Jacket"? What was the "Book You Couldn't Shut Up About?" or the "Book You Wish Everyone Would Shut Up About"? Follow this link to find out!

Friday, January 16, 2009

Preschool Fair January 24

Hi,

The annual Preschool Fair will be at Koelbel on January 24th (Saturday) from 10-12.
So far we have 14 schools coming with a few more that are interested. We have received publicity in Colorado Parent, Tales Treehouse, the Dewey, and yourhub.com. Please promote this at your libraries for this last week. It has been a popular event and helps parents find the right school for their little ones. There will be teen volunteers and adults in an adjoining room to help children of attendees with crafts and activities. If you have any questions please call me ext. 16102.

Thanks so much!

Monday, January 12, 2009

Computer-esque books to lure boys to reading

Here's an interesting BBC article on books with computer-generated images that strive for "truly boy-friendly" content for boys uup to the age of 9. Some are critical of the graphics and the attempt to mimic computer games which is a totally different experience than reading. I don't believe the books are out in the mainstream yet because the article states that the books, authored by Charlie Higson, have been tested in 2000 schools, and I see none are available through ALD, Prospector, or Amazon.

Saturday, January 10, 2009

New Class! Short Notice!

Lori Romero and I are excited to announce a new storytime workshop at ALD! This new class is designed as "continuing education" for storytime providers. Please help us spread the word!

Each class will be organized as follows:
· A 45-minute training session on one aspect of storytime (some initial ideas are: puppetry tips; choosing age-appropriate books; managing personal storytime files and resources; storytime management tips; baby sign language; Spanish language tips)
· A 10-minute break
· A 5-minute book talk of new picture books ideal for storytime
· A 30-minute “storytime swap” during which staff share ideas, best practices, books, resources, activities, songs, rhymes, and so forth with each other

Since the content of the class will change from session to session, you may repeat the class, at the permission of your supervisors, as often as your time, schedules, and interest allow.

The first session is scheduled for Friday, January 30, at Castlewood, from 8-9:30 am. The training session will be on tips for using and manipulating Microsoft Word clip art images to create your own storytime flannels. You will also be invited to bring a story, song, flannel, or other activity that you enjoy using, to share with your colleagues.

If you can't make this session, watch for future sessions in April and August. We are planning on holding this class three times each year.

Friday, January 9, 2009


Don't forget to vote in the Caldecott Hopefuls Poll! You can't see the results after you have voted because ALD's "winner" will be announced on January 26th along with ALA's "real" winner.

Science Fair Frenzy

Are we all back from vacation and our holidays? Rested?

Ready for the Science Fair Season?

Many schools have their Science Fairs in the winter or spring, and children and their families come in to the library with a variety of information needs.

  • Choosing the right type of project.
    Lots of kids have no idea what they'd like to work on. A great place to start is to ask if their teacher is asking them to do a project, an experiment, or an invention. What's the difference?

    A project is a demonstration of a concept: the classic exploding volcano, for instance, or how seeds grow.

    An experiment starts with a question, then uses the scientific method to investigate the answer. Instead of just using charts and photos to show how a bean seed grows (project), an experiment might ask: "Which brand of fertilizer helps bean seeds grow fastest?"

    An invention, on the other hand, designs a solution to a particular problem. There are some sample invention ideas here, at Science Fair Central.


  • Developing ideas.
    With the type of project in mind, then you can help them figure out what idea they'd like to develop for the Science Fair. They may know exactly what their topic is and what their project will be; they may know their topic but not have a research question yet; they may have no clue about anything.

    Spend a few minutes now in your science section, at 507.8! There are lots of resources there! Look for books that run you through the whole process--types of projects, choosing ideas, presenting results--and books that just provide lots of experiments and projects to reproduce. Don't forget to browse your whole 500 section, as experiment books are also listed by discipline: 520.78 for astronomy, and 550.78 for earth science, for example. The more you are familiar with that section now, the easier it will be when you catch that question later, on the floor.

    After you've looked at the shelves, take a look at the Science Fair Projects page on Tales' Treehouse. There are great experiment idea sites here, plus general sites as well.


  • Background research.
    Kids often will need to add additional information about their topic to their presentations or reports. Ask if they need to get their information from a book, or if we can use encyclopedias or databases.

    Don't forget to check science encyclopedias or even the World Book for articles. Look through the kids databases, and if you can't find anything in kids, try the Science Reference Center database on the adult site.


What tips or resources help you out with Science Fair questions?