Reminder

There will be no Activity Wednesday on June 1, 2009.

This is a great chance to catch up on your summer reading!

I know many of you are going out of town, so please enjoy your holiday and be safe!

Classes will resume on June 8, and we have something really exciting planned!

Celebrate a Summer of Reading

Remember, it is not too late to sign up for the Clinton District Public Library’s Summer Reading Program. Children up to the fifth grade can register to win prizes for reading and participate in exciting weekly activities!

Once they are registered for the Summer Reading Program, children can sign up for our “Celebrate a Summer of Reading @ the Clinton Library” end-of-summer party to honor everyone who took part in the 2009 Summer Reading Program. The celebration will be held on August 12 at 10:30am. We will have snacks, give out reading certificates, and announce the winners of the 40-book prizes. Whether you’ve read four books or 40 books, join us for the food and fun! For more information, contact the Clinton District Public Library. 2005 Grafton Road, Morgantown. (304) 291-0703.

Activity Wednesday Theme for June 24: "Painting with Scissors - Picasso and Matisse"

This Wednesday, we are going to learn about two artists who liked the idea of painting shapes: Pablo Picasso and Henri Matisse.

We will experiment with "painting with scissors," or using cut outs of shapes and pictures to create our own works of art.

We will look at the book When Pigasso Met Mootisse by Nina Laden for inspiration.

Join us!

Wednesday, June 25 @ 10:30am

Clinton District Public Library

Upcoming Schedule

Just wanted to remind everyone of the upcoming schedule for the next few weeks:

Wednesday, June 24: Painting with Scissors

Wednesday, July 1: No Class (a perfect chance to catch up on your reading!)

Wednesday, July 8: Action Jackson

Summer Reading Program Activity Wednesday Theme: Monet

Well, Claude Monet was certainly creative! He was a french painter who pioneered the Impressionist movement (meaning he liked to paint his own impression, or idea, of what he saw). Therefore, we are taking the opportunity to learn about him and experiment in painting in his style.

His favorite thing to paint was his pond in Giverny where he had a bridge and beautiful water-lilies. He painted more than 250 pictures of his water-lilies in his time....now that is love! And that is what we'll focus on during our Activity Wednesday, June 17!

We will also give back the tie-dyed t-shirts the children made last week.

Join us for this educational and super-fun event! Be sure to wear play clothes, as we will be playing with paint!

Wednesday, June 17

10:30am

Clinton District Public Library

Tie-Dye Recap

Thank you to everyone who came to our super fun Sharpie Tie-Dye kick-off! We are so happy there was such an interest in our program and sorry that we had to turn a few of you away. If there is a large enough interest, we'd be happy to run the program again. Please contact the library and let us know if this is something you'd be interested in.

Anyway, the kids had a great time! Check out the cool creations.

First, kids used markers to draw lines and dots, then watched them "bloom" into unique designs.

Children show off their finished products.

Even some of the adults joined the fun!

Join us next week for more fun and mayhem at the Clinton District Public Library Summer Reading Program Activity Wednesdays! We'll get started at around 10:15am.

Summer Reading Program Kick-Off

We are thrilled that registration is now closed for our Summer Reading Program T-Shirt Design Kick-Off! Glad to know people are as excited as we are about this super fun event. On Wednesday, June 10, 10:30am, we will use Sharpie markers and rubbing alcohol to create our own unique t-shirt designs.

Please remember to bring a pre-washed t-shirt from home for each participating child. Also, this might be a little on the messy side, so be sure to wear "play clothes" (that goes for the rest of the summer, too! Lots of painting!). We have all colors of Sharpies, so this is all about making it your own and being Creative at the Clinton District Library!

Just so you know what to expect, here are general instructions:

1) we will first write our names on the tag of the shirt (if you'd like to do this step beforehand at home, that's great!)

2) we use plastic cups and rubber bands to select portions of our "canvas" (t-shirt) for decoration. The cups go on the inside of the shirt, and then the rubber bands secure them in place on the outside.

3) we select 3 markers at a time to experiment with a series of dots and lines in interesting patterns or abstract scribbles within the boundaries of the opening of the cups.

4) we use droppers to drip 20 drops of rubbing alcohol on each colored surface. Then watch the colors expand, change, and bloom into interesting tie-dyed patterns!

5) I will take all of the t-shirts to the downtown branch to apply the Summer Reading Program @ the Clinton Public Library 2009 logo and I will stick them in the drier to help the colors set. Then, each child can pick up and put on their cool creation the following Wednesday at our regularly scheduled event.

This is sure to be tons of fun!

Summer Reading Program @ the Clinton Library

On June 10, our regular story time will transform into the Summer Reading Program Activity Wednesdays! We will welcome all children, up to 5th grade. But don't fear: your pre-schoolers are still very much a focus! Things might get a little more advanced, but I'm working hard to design the crafts so that all levels will be engaged.

You do need to sign your children up for the Summer Reading Program, though. Please see the front desk for more details on how your children can spend the summer reading books, winning prizes, and participating in the Wednesday activities. While you're at it, have your child enter our "design a mug" contest. Pick up a mug at the library, decorate it, and bring it back the week of June 15 for judging.

Our first Activity Wednesday meeting will be our Summer Reading Program Kick-off Event and we will be doing "Sharpie Tie-Dye." Please make sure to sign up separately for this special event: space is limited, as this is a very hands-on event. Please note that each child should bring their own pre-washed white t-shirt from home. We encourage kids to wear their Summer Reading Program shirts each Wednesday.

From then on, we will open the Activity Wednesdays to all interested kids, 5th grade and under, who are participating in the Summer Reading Program. This year's theme is "Be Creative at Your Library" and we plan on doing just that. Each week, we will look at a book or books on the theme-of-the-week to help us explore our theme. We will focus on all things creative, including introductions to various famous artists and creating our very own masterpieces.

Our objective for this program is to encourage children to be excited about books and reading through crafts, art, games, songs, and the occasional snack. Please let us know if your child has any allergies we should be aware of.

If you are interested in volunteering to help, please contact the Clinton Library at (304) 291-0703 or inform library staff.

Summer Reading Program Activity Wednesdays start June 10.

June 3: The Grouchy Ladybug

This Wednesday, we will read Eric Carle's The Grouchy Ladybug and make cool ladybug necklaces. It is the last week before our Summer Reading Program starts, so if you haven't signed up your child, make sure to do so at the front desk. I will post a separate blog entry on all of our Summer Reading Program activities.

Join us!
Wednesday, June 3 at 10:15am
at the Clinton District Public Library