This year we had a large poster of all the nominees displayed in the department along with ballots for the kids to vote for their favorite. I also decided to host a voting party in December, the month all the votes are due. I set up our storyhour room with activities and stations as well as displayed all the nominated titles and encouraged patrons to come and go throughout the day, read the books, do some crafts, and vote on the book they liked most. It was lots of fun and I hope to repeat the program with next years list. Here's what I did for the 2012 list:
Station 6: If You're Hoppy and You Know It by April Pulley Sayre, illustrated by Jackie Urbanovic
-Act like animals. I found this rhyme (and I'm a terrible librarian and did not site my source on my notes!) and had the kids say the rhyme and act it out:
”Hop Like a Bunny Rhyme”
Hop like a bunny (hop)
Run like a dog (run in place)
Walk like an elephant (hold one arm in front like a trunk and sway back and forth)
Jump like a frog (squat down with hands on floor and hop)
Swim like a goldfish (hold palms together and move hands in swimming motion)
Fly like a bird (flap arms up and down at your side)
Then sit right down and don’t say a word (sit down)
-What other animals can you pretend to be?
Station 7: Do You Know Which Ones Will Grow by Susan A. Shea, illustrated by Tom Slaughter
-Grow or not grow? I printed out pictures from clipart half of things that grow (children, flowers, animals, etc) and half of things that don't (telephone, couch, bed, chair, etc) The kids got to guess which ones would grow and which ones wouldn't just like the book. If I had had more time, I might have written our rhymes to along with each picture.
Station 8: Is Everyone Ready for Fun by Jan Thomas
-Finger puppets Jan Thomas has an awesome website with lots of activities for librarians and teachers. I used the finger puppets that go with the book so the kids could make finger puppets and act out the story.
Station 9: Press Here by Herve Tullet
-Make your own Press Here book. We have a large stash of dot stickers, so I put those out along with paper and crayons so kids could make their own version of Press Here. This was the most popular book (and had the most votes in the end from my Library!) and this was the favorite activity of the day.
Overall the event was a success, easy to run, and worked well as a drop in program. I can't wait to see what books the committee chooses so I can start planning this years event.
Press Here is a great book and I love the idea of kids making their own versions. Another option for the dots would be "Do-A-Dot" paint dobbers (similar to bingo dobbers). We have these at my library and they are very popular with young artists. Thanks for all of the great ideas, Sarah!
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