Kent District Library (MI)'s Blog, page 117

Early Lit Bits: Learning with Crafts — Digging for Treasure Sensory Activity

Digging for Treasure Sensory Activity

Young children learn by seeing, hearing, touching and talking. Stimulate a child’s senses and help develop fine motor skills at the same time with this simple and fun activity.

Materials:

An empty wash basin or plastic bowl
Uncooked oatmeal or uncooked rice
Toddler toys, plastic letters, or natural objects such as pine cones
A plastic shovel, spoons or old paintbrushes

Directions:

Scatter the toys into the basin or bowl and add enough oatmeal  or rice to cover the toys. Have children dig in the rice with their hands, or a small shovel and try to find all of the toys in the basin.

Other Ideas:

Bury small toys in an outdoor sandbox and have children dig for the treasures. Have children count how many items they have found and name each item. Try using various materials with different textures in which to hide animal toys, letters, or shapes. You can try birdseed, dried lentils or beans.

 

 

This article originally appeared in our Early Lit Bits eNewsletter. Read the most recent issue online or sign up to receive this monthly update highlighting early literacy tips and resources for parents and caregivers.

 

Local Indie Spotlight: Patricia Kiyono

The Samurai’s Garden by Patricia Kiyono is set at the beginning of the Meiji Era in Japan, around 1875. The time of daimyo rule and the samurai class has come to an end, leaving hundreds of displaced samurai with skills no longer required by a nation recouping its losses. Ronin – rogue samurai – are now a plague to the nation that once revered them. This is the setting in which we find Hiro, an ex-samurai searching for peace, and Hanako, a farmer whose husband was killed by a band of ronin. Under the guise of pretending to be her husband-to-be, Hiro assists Hanako in the day-to-day labor on the farm, where he finally finds the peace he was craving, and more so. However, this tranquility is not destined to last if a shadow from Hiro’s past succeeds in his plot.

The Samurai’s Garden is a quick read, with the story lasting 206 pages, with a novella in the last pages of the novel. It is written in a straight-forward style, and at a quick pace that keeps the readers hooked. The storyline is interesting and readers will grow to care for Hiro and Hanako. A concern for interested readers would be that some general knowledge about the time period would be useful, as the book does not explain what a daimyo is, or the customs of etiquette appropriate for the time period. A read-alike for this novel would be Ron Rash’s The Cove, simply in the style of the writing, but for others set in historical Japan, the novels of Gail Tsukiyama and Memoirs of a Geisha by Andrew Golden are similar.

Kiyono is continuing the story of the Hanakas through their succeeding generations, in The Plum Blossom Covenant. No release date has been set as of this writing.

Kiyono’s book is part of the Local Indie @ KDL collection, housed at the Cascade Township and Kentwood (Richard L. Root) branches. It was created to give independent authors, filmmakers and musicians the opportunity to be added to our shelves and to be featured by staff in order to increase viewers, readers and listeners.

Click here to browse our Local Indie @ KDL collection.

 

(reviewed by Emily at the Cascade Township branch)

Le Havre: A New DVD

With a small pile of movies on hand at home, the Le Havre DVD was low on my list—there were simply more interesting things to watch. But with all the others finally out of the way, I sat down and watched Le Havre. I’m glad I did. Named after the French port city on the English Channel, the film is a wry, sometimes funny and sometimes serious depiction of what happens when an aging shoeshine crosses paths with a young African boy who has smuggled himself (along with many others) out of his west African country.

Lest that sound like a possibly too-serious and preachy topic, don’t worry: the director, Aki Kaurismaki, wisely uses a light touch on a subject that could easily become maudlin. He gives us a wonderful cross-section of a neighborhood, where Marcel (the shoeshine), lives with his wife and struggles to make ends meet, sometimes running a tab too high, but clearly loved by the various small shopkeepers and bar owners who see him every day. When his wife becomes ill and he meets Idrissa, the refugee, his previously placid life is upset, but he handles it so well one wonders if he was in some sense long prepared for such an emergency. Without giving away too much, the surprises of grace are clearly apparent by the end of the film,  but they are shown so subtly that it was only on reflecting on it afterward that I was made fully aware of the director’s intentions—which means the movie is easily worth a second watch. (This movie is unrated and subtitled. It would get a PG-rating if it were an American movie.)

 

Le Havre: a new DVD

 

With a small pile of movies on hand at home, the DVD of Le Havre was low on my list—there were simply more interesting things to watch.  But with all the other ones finally out of the way, I sat down and watched Le Havre.  I’m glad I did.  Named after the French port city on the English Channel, the film is a wry, sometimes funny and sometimes serious depiction of what happens when an aging shoeshine crosses paths with a young African boy who has smuggled himself (along with many others) out of his west African country.  Lest that sound like a possibly too-serious and preachy topic, don’t worry: the director, Aki Kaurismaki, wisely uses a light touch on a subject that could easily become maudlin.  He gives us a wonderful cross-section of a neighborhood, where Marcel (the shoeshine), lives with his wife and struggles to make ends meet, sometimes running a tab too high, but clearly loved by the various small shopkeepers and bar owners who see him every day.  When his wife becomes ill and he meets Idrissa, the refugee, his previously placid life is upset, but he handles it so well one wonders if he was in some sense long prepared for such an emergency.  Without giving away too much, the surprises of grace are clearly apparent by the end of the story,  but they are shown so subtly that it was only on reflecting on it afterwards that I was made fully aware of what the director’s intentions were—which means the movie is easily worth a second watch.  (This movie is unrated and subtitled. It would get a PG rating if it were an American movie.)

Branch Manager Rocks EGR Schools

East Grand Rapids branch Manager Dawn Lewis was honored by the school district’s Parent Teacher Association Council recently with the group’s annual Distinguished Service award. Dawn was recognized for her work to help switch three of the district’s elementary school libraries to a “learning commons” model, which reflects that a library is more than materials – also a place to meet, to study together or separately, to work on a project with an iPad or a laptop.  Way to be yet another resource for your community, Dawn!

Dawn Lewis, at left, is surprised by Kim Rossi, who presented her with

the Distinguished Service award from the PTAC. (photo: mLive)

Be Amazed by the Magic!

Libraries can be magical places, especially when you make room amongst the stacks for a magic show that’s fun, funny, educational and entertaining! Families with children of all ages are invited to Magic: Can You Dig It? taking place at every KDL branch this summer. The incredible Tom Plunkard will present an amazing program filled with live animals and loads of audience participation. Come see flowers appear on your head and garden utensils vanish and reappear in the craziest of places. This program is sure to leave you feeling happy and amazed!

Schedule:

Tuesday, June 11, 10:00 AM – Kentwood (Richard L. Root) branch

Tuesday, June 11, 4:00 PM – Spencer Township branch

Thursday, June 13, 2:00 PM – Comstock Park branch

Thursday, June 13, 6:30 PM – Plainfield Township branch

Wednesday, June 19, 6:30 PM – Sand Lake / Nelson Township branch

Thursday, June 20, 6:30 PM – Wyoming branch

Monday, July 8, 6:30 PM – Krause Memorial branch

Thursday, July 11, 7:00 PM – Grandville branch

Tuesday, July 16, 6:30 PM – Englehardt branch

Wednesday, July 17, 2:00 PM – Gaines Township branch

Wednesday, July 17, 6:30 PM – Alpine Township branch

Thursday, July 18, 1:30 PM – Alto branch

Thursday, July 18, 6:30 PM – Byron Township branch (Held at the Byron Township offices)

Thursday, July 25, 2:00 PM – Caledonia Township branch

Thursday, July 25, 6:30 PM – Tyrone Township branch (Held in the Tyrone Township community room)

Thursday, August 1, 2:00 PM – East Grand Rapids branch (Held at John Collins Park)

Thursday, August 1, 7:00 PM – Cascade Township branch

Thursday, August 8, 1:00 PM – Walker branch

KDL on WGVU Radio

Each month KDL staff join Shelley Irwin on the WGVU Morning Show to talk about what’s going on at the library. This month, listen to Kip Odell, Librarian at the Grandville branch, talk about Summer Reading @ KDL and all the great events happening at the library this summer.

Enjoy!

Download WGVU6-6-13.mp3

(photo courtesy of Shelley Irwin)

 

Local Indie Spotlight: Tricia L. McDonald

Life With Sally: Little White Dog Tails is a collection of stories about Sally, a miniature white bull terrier. Sally’s “mom” was never a dog person, but when she picks her up at the airport they form a bond that only a dog lover would understand. Sally is funny and sweet with a bit of OCD. Dog lovers will chuckle and see themselves in the way the owner Tricia interacts not only with Sally, but all her lovable pets –three dogs and three cats. More adventures can be found in Life with Sally: Still Spinnin’ Tails.

McDonald’s book is part of the Local Indie @ KDL collection, housed at the Cascade Township and Kentwood (Richard L. Root) branches. It was created to give independent authors, filmmakers and musicians the opportunity to be added to our shelves and to be featured by staff in order to increase viewers, readers and listeners.

Click here to browse our Local Indie @ KDL collection.

Reviewed by Helen at Kent District Library’s Kentwood (Richard L. Root) branch

 

Hungry for More Dystopian Thrillers?

Loved the Hunger Games trilogy and can’t find anything else to quench your thirst for dystopian worlds? Here are some other books that might satisfy your need for even more gripping stories of nightmare worlds and the fight for survival:

Partials by Dan Wells — In a post-apocalyptic eastern seaboard ravaged by disease and war with a man-made race of people called Partials, the chance at a future rests in the hands of Kira Walker, a 16-year-old medic in training.

Never Let Me Go by Kazuo Ishiguro — Kathy, Ruth and Tommy are special; at least that’s what they are told at the prestigious preparatory school they attend. As they come of age, these friends learn their role in society is not determined by their own dreams, but by others in the quest for the perfect world.

The 5th Wave by Rick Yancey — Cassie Sullivan, the survivor of an alien invasion, must rescue her young brother from the enemy with help from a boy who may be one of them.

Check out our online booklist for even more Hunger Games readalikes!

 

KDL Top Ten – 6/7/2013

To see 10 of the most popular Juvenile Audiobooks at KDL this week, click on the link to the KDL Top Ten List!