Yantandou by Gloria Whelan

Thu, 10/18/2007 - 1:49pm by Tahira

Yatandou lives in a small village in Mali. She pounds Millet with her pounding stick for food with her mother and the women of the village. She can’t wait until the new contraption the women are saving money to buy comes to her village so that they never have to pound Millet again. Gloria Whelan gives the reader an intriguing look into the life of a little girl a world away.

Kid Bits - 4th/5th grade MYSTERY

Thu, 10/18/2007 - 11:07am by ryanikoglu

A NEW "Enola Holmes Mystery" just landed on the youth fiction shelves, The Case Of The Left-Handed Lady. Nancy Springer writes with a gift toward strong females characters, a good story, and settings in history. The "Enola Holmes" mysteries are written from the point of view of "Enola", Sherlock Holmes younger sister. The previous title is The Case Of The Missing Marquess. The setting is London in 1898. Nancy Springer is author of another strong series "Tales of Rowan Hood", placed in Sherwood Forest at the same time as the adventures of Robin Hood. Of course Rowan is a girl.

TweenSpace: PokeCRAZY!

Mon, 10/15/2007 - 5:10pm by lola

Spend your afternoon at the PokemonCon enjoying all aspects of the Pokemon craze. Watch Pokemon anime, play the trading card game, and make Pokemon to hang on your wall. Use your creative culinary skills to invent tasty candy sushi. Bring your trading cards if you have them.

Program is for 4th and 5th graders on Tuesday, October 16 at the Pittsfield Branch from 4:30-6 PM.

Homework Bits - "Electric Heroes" using RESEARCH databases

Mon, 10/15/2007 - 2:22pm by ryanikoglu

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A 4th/5th grade assignment is to find information on "Electric Heroes" and their inventions. To use the RESEARCH databases, Choose MY ACCOUNT and login. These databases are not on the internet. They are only on library websites through your AADL library card.
The articles provide the citations you need to prove your research.
1. Choose the RESEARCH tab along the top of the website.
2. Use the link to "browse databases by name".
3. Choose BIOGRAPHY RESOURCE CENTER.
4. If you know names, use the last name to search for articles on that person.
5. If you do not know names, go to "Biographical Facts Search" and choose your keywords to find names. You will come up with articles to read, or print. I looked for a term in "occupations" related to electricity. I chose "electronics engineer". Then I chose "female" for gender. I got a list of names. I chose some names, and followed the link to read about them. You can find names and why they are mentioned.
6. Now the challenge is finding articles long enough to explain their work.

Homework Bits - "Electric Heroes" using the CATALOG

Mon, 10/15/2007 - 2:06pm by ryanikoglu

A 4th/5th grade assignment is to find information on "Electric Heroes" and their inventions.
1. Choose CATALOG tab along the top of the website.
2. Use the link to "More SEARCH OPTIONS".
3. Enter "electricity", "AND", "inventors", then press SEARCH. You get a list that includes A Dangerous Engine: Benjamin Franklin; Nikola Tesla And The Taming Of Energy; Thomas Edison: Inventor Of The Age Of Electricity; and TV's Forgotten Hero: The Story of Philo Farnsworth.

Did you notice the Dewey Decimal Addresses are 921? This is the address for biographies. Then you look for the last name of your person.

Homework Bits - "Exploration" using RESEARCH databases

Mon, 10/15/2007 - 1:40pm by ryanikoglu

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A 4th/5th grade assignment is to find information on “exploration of north America”. To use the RESEARCH databases, Choose MY ACCOUNT and login. These databases are not on the internet. They are only on library websites through your AADL library card.
The articles provide the citations you need to prove your research.
1. Choose the RESEARCH tab along the top of the website.
2. Use the link to "browse databases by subject".
3. Choose “Kid’s and Teens”.
4. Choose “Kid’s INFOBITS”.
5. Choose” Advanced Search” and enter keywords.
I used “discovery”, “OR”, “exploration”, “AND”, “north America”. You will come up with articles to read, or print.
6. Now the challenge is finding "historical" exploration, and "keywords" for further research.

Smiles and Other Big Mouth Storytime Fun

Fri, 10/12/2007 - 7:44pm by StoryLaura

The Thursday evening Pittsfield storytime will feature How Do You Make a Baby Smile? by Philemon Sturges as well as the old favorite, Monkey Face, and the very silly, noisy Mortimer. Get ready for a rowdy last storytime of the session!

TweenSpace: Wacky Olympics @ Malletts Creek, Tuesday, October 9

Thu, 10/04/2007 - 6:43pm by Sarah T

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Attention all 4th and 5th graders! Do you have what it takes to lead your team to victory in a marshmallow relay race? Can you build the ultimate obstacle course? Join us Tuesday, October 9th (4:30-6:00), to show off your athletic skills at the Malletts Creek Branch.

Kid Bit 740s - Discover Dewey addresses

Tue, 10/02/2007 - 11:56am by ryanikoglu

Think of the Dewey Decimal system as addresses in a neighborhood.
Have you ever had a rainy day with nothing to do? Do you like to make stuff? When you browse "The 740s" in the non-fiction collection, you find art and craft books. You can find Cartooning Basics; Crafts For Kids Who Are Wild About Dinosaurs; The Rainy Day Book. If you keep on going you may pass "knitting and "stitchery" and discover books about "Famous Artists" like Leonardo da Vinci For Kids: His Life And Ideas including 21 activities that help learn about him.
AND one more thing! Craft DVDs (and Craft books for Teens and Adults), have the same addresses. They are in "The 740s" too !! You can find a video on Origami with Leonor featuring "1 and 2 minute learning vignettes for children"!

TweenSpace: Mystery Quest @ Malletts Creek, Tuesday, October 2

Mon, 10/01/2007 - 9:10am by joy k

Calling all gumshoes! Join us Tuesday afternoon (4:30-6:00 pm) at the Malletts Creek branch to practice your detective skills. Look for clues to solve a mystery, test your observational skills, and hang out with other kids. If you've loved mystery/detective books like The Westing Game, Harriet the Spy, and Sammy Keyes and the Hotel Thief, you won't want to miss this! For 4th and 5th graders.