Kids
Take Your Child to the Library Day
Written by childrens library on 02/02/2012
Join us this Saturday, February 4, in the Children's Library for Take Your Child to the Library Day. Families are encouraged to bring their children to get their very first library cards. There will also be other special events throughout the day, so stop on by and have your family photo taken in the Children's Library!
Family Storytime: 11 to 11:30am
Families are invited to spend time together for stories, rhymes, and songs. All ages.
Lego Club: 1 to 2 pm
Are you a Lego fan? Let’s build something together. Stop by every other Saturday this fall to participate in collaborative Lego-building with other kids. Ages 5 and up.
Storytubes Lab: 2 to 4 pm
Calling all kid filmmakers and book lovers! Storytubes 2012 is a national competition in which children ages 5 to 18 can combine their love of reading with savvy tech skills to create unique book trailers. Darien Library is proud to be a partner library for this year’s competition. Bring your scripts and use the Library's gadgets to record and edit. Find out more info about Storytubes competition on the contest's website.
R.E.A.D. Program Sign-ups
Written by claire on 10/12/2010There is still space for the R.E.A.D. program for this Thursday, February 2 at 4:15pm.
Kids can sign up for individual reading sessions with Darien Library's R.E.A.D.er dog Brasil and his friends.
Winter R.E.A.D. sessions*. Register by selecting the date.
March 1
April 5
May 3
*All sessions begin at 4:15pm, and are 15 minutes each
*Sessions are for kids reading on their own, or with help. Ages 4 and up recommended.
To find out more about the R.E.A.D. program at Darien Library click here.
Book Review of The Dead Gentleman
Written by claire on 02/02/2012
2013 Nutmeg Nominee author Matthew Cody has a brand new book on the shelves. One of the Kids Galley Bloggers decided to share their thoughts.
The Dead Gentleman is a great book. There are many things I like about this book. One is that the author always keeps you on the edge of your seat. There is a ton of action. the main characters are Tommy and Jezebel. Tommy is a 20th century homeless kid who gets involved in the secret explorers society. The explorers travel through portals to different worlds and times. Jezebel lives in the apartment complex that Tommy got trapped in a hundred years earlier. There she gets a message from Tommy. The message is: to beware of the dead gentleman. That is when the adventure starts for both Tommy and Jezebel. This book is very well written. Not too much action, but just enough to keep you reading.
Jonathan
Crow by Barbara Wright
Written by claire on 02/02/2012
The Darien Kid Bloggers bring you two new book reviews this month.
This historical fiction book is about a boy named Moses around the year of 1900. His father works at the local newspaper company, and he makes a decent living. Moses is teaching his grandmother named Boo Nanny to read. She is also finally telling the stories of when she was a slave. African Americans are finally somewhat getting the respect and positions of power in Wilmington, North Carolina. But not everyone is happy with the situation. Some of them will do anything, including a violent plot, to maintain what they are comfortable with.
I, personally, like the style of Christopher Paul Curtis better about the same topics. With grandma’s stories jumping back and forth, it is hard to keep track and easy to get confused for me. But I do think it is a good book and most kids will enjoy this story.
John
If you are interested in becoming a Darien Kid Blogger, ask one of the children's librarians for details. Kid Bloggers are given ARCs (advanced reader's copies) of soon to be published books and asked to write a review for the Library's website.
UnBEARably Cute Books
Written by KieraP on 01/30/2012
The New York Times Book Review recently profiled three new picture books about bears including Otto the Book Bear and Maudie and Bear. Whether they are of the grizzly, polar, or teddy variety, we love picture books about bears! Here are a few of our very favorite bear stories:
Make Your Own Zine!
Written by claire on 01/25/2012
Saturday, January 28
2 to 3:30 pm
RSVP Online
A zine is a mini magazine where you can write about whatever you want. Do you have a story, idea, or comic that you would like to share? Do you ever wish you could be a published author?
In this hands-on workshop, taught by zine artist Eleanor Whitney, participants will look at other zines for inspiration and learn how to write and layout a zine. Ages 9 to 12.
Photo by Flickr user squeezomatic.
Did you know...? Snow!
Written by missmarian on 01/21/2012
All this snow might have you wondering more about the white stuff, so here are some interesting snow facts to satisfy that curiosity.
Every winter one SEPTILLION (1,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000!) snowflakes fall! Each snowflake is made up of 180 billion molecules of water. That's a lot of zeroes.
The biggest snowball fight took place in Korea and 5,387 people participated. Hmm, maybe it's time for that record to be broken...
New York State has the snowiest cities: Rochester averages 93 inches of snow a year, and Syracuse averages 115 inches!
The average winter snowfall along the Connecticut coastline is 30-35 inches.
Check out the Guinness Book of World Records website for more snow facts.
New DVD Series Alert!
Written by egattullo on 01/17/2012
The Children's Library just received its copies of Seasons 1 and 2 of Avatar: The Last Airbender.
Avatar was on Nickelodeon from 2005 to 2008, and features a boy named Aang who is destined to save the world. It was a huge commerical success (at one point it was the most-watched show in Nickelodeon's line-up) and in 2008 it won a Peabody Award.
It's an exciting, fast-paced romp through a world that desperately needs saving. Featuring adventures, betrayals, friendships, and plenty of comic hijinx in addition to great battle scenes, this is an excellent cartoon to bring home to boys and girls ages 7-12.
Come check it out today!
Classic 80's Cartoons in the Children's Library!
Written by egattullo on 01/17/2012
Pssst, parents! Remember your favorite cartoons from the eighties? They're back!
The Children's Library is now the proud owner of such classics as Jem, Strawberry Shortcake, She-Ra, The Get Along Gang, and Thundercats!
So come to the Children's Library today and introduce your children to the cartoons you loved as a child!
Celebrate Martin Luther King, Jr. Day
Written by KieraP on 01/15/2012
This Monday, January 16th is Martin Luther King, Jr. Day, which celebrates the birthday of Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Dr. King was one of the most famous and respected civil rights leaders in the 1960s. He fought against racial discrimination using non-violent methods such as sit-ins, marches, and boycotts. Whether you're working on a school assignment or interested in learning more about Dr. King, check out the links and booklist below.
Martin Luther King, Jr. - Life in Pictures by National Geographic Kids
Video of Dr. King's "I Have a Dream" speech via Teacher Tube
Civil Rights Primary Sources for Students via Library of Congress
Celebrating MLK Day- Selected New York Times Articles and Front Pages via NYTimes Learning Network
The Martin Luther King National Memorial
For Teachers: Lesson Plans and Activities via Thinkfinity (use the search term "Martin Luther King, Jr.")
And don't forget the amazing online resources available through Darien Library:
And more!
Darien Library, 1441 Post Road, Darien, Connecticut, 06820-5419 · 203-655-1234Directions and Contact Information. Twitter: darienlibrary. AIM & Y!M: deweydarien.