13
Aug
Back to School Storytime
The majority of the Lawrence area kids go back to school this Wednesday.
What?
School?
Already?!
To get into the shift of a academic state of mind, the Sunday storytimers and I read some (in my opinion) fantastic books about going to school, and also made radical pencil toppers for our craft. Why are they radical? Because when you make them they have a secret super power to make going to school fun!
Back to School Storytime Line-up:
Foxy by Emma Dodd
A brand new Emma Dodd book. We love Emma Dodd! A story of a fox with a magical tail who does his best to help a little girl prepare for her first day of school.
The Gingerbread Man Loose in the School by Laura Murry, illustrated by Mike Lowery
A fun spin on the classic gingerbread man tale about a class who leaves their gingerbread man behind and his journey to find them.
Pete the Cat Rocking in My School Shoes by Eric Litwin, illustrated by James Dean
Going back to school is all good with when you rock out with Pete the Cat.
First Day Jitters by Julie Danneberg, illustrated by Judy Love
My personal, all-time favorite back to school story with a twist about back to school jitters.
Radical Pencil Topper Craft:
A simple way to spice up a plain ol’ No. 2 to send the kids back to class in style.
Materials needed: pipe cleaners, scissors, foam stickers, and markers.
Cut a pipe cleaner in half.
Find two foam stickers the same shape and size.
Attach one to the end of a halved pipe cleaner.
Line up the other sticker with the sticker already attached to the pipe cleaner. Sandwich sticky sides together.
Line up pipe cleaner with a pencil…
…and curl around the pencil.
And that’s it! The kids asked me how you are supposed to erase with a pencil topper attached, (They were very concerned about their erasing), but all you have to do is slide it down.
I left markers out during the craft so kids could draw smiley faces or write their names on their totally awesome toppers.
Wishing everyone preparing to go back to school a great first day!
6
Aug
Wild West Storytime
Howdy, partner!
Had quite the fandango down at the local library yesterday… Cowboys, outlaws, ladies, and BOOKS! That’s right, books. Didn’t you know that cowboys love to read? Anyway, I’ve been awaiting to do this theme for quite sometime, especially since just south of Lawrence, Kansas is Dodge City, one of the most iconic cowboy towns in history. Yee-haw!!
Wild West Storytime Line-up:
How I Spent My Summer Vacation by Mark Teague
With summer almost over, this was the perfect intro into our storytime lineup. One boy thought he was going to be sent to his Aunt Ferns for a relaxing vacation when a band of cowboys kidnapped him. After that, his summer vacation was anything but ordinary.
Don’t Touch My Hat! by James Rumford
Sheriff John thought he could do anything with is 10-gallon hat, but he quickly learns that a hat is a hat. It’s the person who’s wearing it that saves the day.
She’ll Be Coming ‘Round the Mountain by Jonathan Emmett, illustrated by Deborah Allwright
This book was so fun to read aloud, especially since their is a hand-action guide that goes along with the traditional song. So, I encouraged the kids to chime in with the expressions and hand-motions. They were laughing throughout the story. A must-read for Wild West Stortyime.
The Day Dirk Yeller Came to Town by Mary Casanova, illustrated by Ard Hoyt
What do you give an outlaw who comes to town, itchin’ and a scratin’ for something to keep him still? A library (and sweet as pecan pie librarian) of course! The perfect remedy for the restless.
Sheriff Badge Craft:
For our wild wild west craft we made sheriff badges. Since our library’s summer kick-off theme was “Mustaches & Lawngames”, we own the accucut dye cut for various mustache shapes, so I cranked a few out for the kids to wear with their sheriff badges as well.
Materials needed: metallic gold and silver poster board (cheaper than metallic card stock), fake jewels, stickers, tape, sharpie, white school glue, scissors, and colored construction paper.
Pre-storytime, I traced out star badges from a left-over Oriental Trading Company craft. Not so great at drawing free-hand (like myself)? Print out these sheriff badge templates here or here to use as a guide.
Cut the badges out. Smaller scissors seemed to work well.
At storytime, the kids decorated their badges by gluing jewels with white school glue and also applying star stickers.
Sharpie markers we left out to write “Sheriff”, “Deputy”, “Cowboy”, “Best in the West”, a name, etc.
And that’s it. Short and sweet.
I left out masking tape in case the kids wanted to affix their badges to their shirts AND paper mustaches with a roll of double-stick tape for instant sheriff-appeal. Yippie-kay-yay!
Here, my lil’ pardner, Sheriff L, models the Wild West Storytime craft in true cowgirl style.
Stick ’em up! Don’t anybody move a muscle. This is a heist. I want to watch 10 hours of Elmo while eating strawberry icecream. Or else.
3
Aug
My Cyber Librarians
Lean in close, because I have a little secret to share…
Children’s librarians usually have gobs and gobs of reading recommendations, but we all get stumped every now and then. It’s the truth. Even librarians are human. When this happens, without even flinching, we turn to a tried and true friend— the internet.
Today I’m spilling three of our top secret (and not so top secret) book recommendation tools, for those dire circumstances when you or your child get stumped looking for that next great read. Because everyone needs a little cyber help every now and then…
Mid-Continent Public Library
Mid-Continent Public Library Juvenile Series and Sequels: A majority of kids these days read books that are grouped into series. Not only is the Mid-Continent Public Library website a great way to find the book order of a particular series, but it is also handy for searching for book series by subject. Fairies, pirates, pigs… whatever your child has an interest in, it’s probably been written in a book series and is searchable on this website.
Your Next Read
YourNextRead My new favorite toy! Flowcharts are all the rage lately and this nifty tool gives you reading suggestions in the format of a flowchart. Simply type in a book and for every one book, YourNextRead gives you eight other reading suggestions. When the flow chart pops, click any title on the chart, and it will take you to your next group of recommended reads. This site can be a little glitchy at times and also may have a couple not so great recommendations every so often, but when that happens, there is a “thumbs-up” and a “thumbs-down” option that you can select to display an alternate title.
Goodreads
Goodreads also is a great tool for instant book recommendations even if you don’t have an account set up. Search by the title, read the reviews, and browse the read-alikes. When you find the summary and reviews on a specific book, scroll down, and on the the right hand side will be similar book recommendations. More often than not, a book can also be found in reading lists created by Goodreads members. This feature is located above the reader reviews.
This is the second to last edition of the Summer Book Hook. (Can you believe summer is almost over?) I hope you find these websites invaluable not only over the remainder of the summer months, but throughout the year.
31
Jul
Shark Stroytime
“SHARK! Get out of the water and into the library!” With the much anticipated 25th anniversary of The Discovery Channel’s Shark Week on the horizon, and since kids love sharks, I thought it would be fun to have a storytime featuring these fun, yet fearsome creatures. For our after-stories craft we made “Deep Sea Panoramas” featuring The Sandbar certified sharks.
Shark Storytime Line-Up:
Meet a shark that’s not afraid of anything; well, almost anything. Bob Shea’s dinosaur books are a big hit at our house as well as at storytime. This title was no different.
After reading I’m a Shark, I showed the kids pictures of different types of sharks with a few facts before reading the next book…
Three Little Fish and the Big Bad Shark by Ken Geist, illustrated by Julia Gorton
A spin-off of the tale The Three Little Pigs for the ocean blue.
Next, the kids enjoyed a flannel board rhyme.
Five Little Fish, Teasing Mr. Shark Flannel Board
(Sung to the tune of 5 Little Monkeys Swinging in the Tree) Five little fish, swimming in the sea, Teasing Mr Shark “You Can’t Catch Me!” You Can’t Catch Me!” When along swam Mr. Shark, as quiet as can be… AND (clap hands) caught that fishy right out of the sea. (Repeat with four fish, three fish, two fish, and one fish…) So alone swam Mr. Shark as quiet as can be And he looked and he looked… “no more fishies for me.”
Smiley Shark by Ruth Galloway
A friendly shark that would do anything to be friends with the other sea animals. The kids loved this book.
Deep Sea Panorama Craft:
The kids had such a fun time with this craft. There was quite a bit of prep involved, but it was worth it – especially since The Sandbar donated toy sharks for the kids to keep. For those of you who don’t live in Lawrence, The Sandbar is a downtown staple. They’re famous for their “indoor hurricanes” and signature adult beverages including (make that especially) their “Shark Attack“. For this post, I amended their famous shark attack and made it kiddie friendly. More on that later.
Materials Needed: file folders, colored paper, tape, glue stick, clip art printed and cutout, stickers, scissors, and crayons.
To create the deep sea panorama, open a file folder and tape two pieces of blue paper on the inside of the folder.
Cut the exposed folder parts leaving only the blue paper showing.
It will look like so.
Using white or manilla colored paper, cut sand to line the bottom and glue on.
From green paper, cut squiggly lines, layer, and glue onto the panorama.
I pre-cut the sand, seaweed, and also cut out some clip-art I found on the interweb that the kids glued on. They also used foam stickers. (They love their foam stickers!)
I also left crayons out to color their panoramas with.
The finishing touch… each kid received their very own shark! To keep!
And to play with in their homemade deep sea home forever and ever!
We also took diorama pictures that were posted on the library’s facebook page. You can view those here.
Now for the bonus round…
How to make a Shark Attack drink for kids (without the bite).
Here we go!
*BONUS* Shark Attack Fun!
Since The Sandbar serves adult-only Shark Attack drinks, my co-worker (who has two shark-loving boys) came up a kid-friendly version. Here is my take on her idea to make a kiddie concoction for refreshment fun at home.
Materials needed: light blue sports drink (I used Powerade Mixed Berry), grenadine, clear drinking glass, ice, and a hollow plastic toy shark.
To make, put a few ice cubes in a glass and fill 3/4 full of blue sports drink.
Holding shark nose up, pour grenadine into the shark until almost full.
Serve by setting shark in the glass facing up.
Now for the fun part… Allow the child/children pour the grenadine into the cup while yelling, “SHARK ATTACK!!!!”
Make sure you bob your shark up and down to mix it well. Saying, “shark attack” a few more times helps as well.
Drink and enjoy .
A BIG THANK YOU to The Sandbar for donating the sharks!
Looking for more kid-friendly ways to celebrate Shark Week?
Check out Discovery Kids Shark Week’s Shark Facts, Shark Yourself by uploading a picture of yourself or anyone to become a shark, and these free shark coloring sheets. Know a game nut? Try Shark Dash ($.99) or Shark Munch (free) kid-appropriate computer games.
23
Jul
Olympics Storytime
The opening of the Olympic Games is this Friday! To celebrate we had our own Olympics celebration at storytime yesterday. We read books about competition, good sportsmanship, and London, where the 2012 Olympics are being held.
First I held up a picture similar to the above image and I asked the kids if they knew how many athletes were competing in this year’s Olympic Games (14,000 athletes) and how many nations were being represented (205 nations). I also said what the Olympic motto is (“Higher. Faster. Stronger.”) and explained the symbolism behind the Olympic rings.
Next, I showed the kids this picture of the this year’s Olympic Gold Medal and asked them to guess who the woman with the wings is (Nike, the Goddess of Victory… not the shoe brand). Which lead me to briefly explain that the Olympics started many, many years ago by the ancient Greeks. I kept things very simple and brief and the books where chosen so that the youngest storytimers could get excited and be aware of the the festivities ahead.
Olympics Storytime Line-Up:
A Walk in London by Salvatore Rubbino
This book is a little on the long side, so I abbreviated parts. It’s a wonderful way to learn about London’s famous landmarks through a mother and daughters afternoon in a city full of history. Since the TV networks will be flashing scenes of the city, I thought it would be fun for kids to be able to recognize a few of the key monuments.
The Tortoise and the Hare, an Aesop Fable adapted and illustrated by Janet Stevens
The classic tale of hard work, perseverance, and a lesson in good sportsmanship.
Make the Team, Baby Duck! by Amy Hest, illustrated by Jill Barton
You’ll never know the champion within, if you don’t try.
Clifford The Champion by Norman Birdwell
Everyone’s favorite red dog learns that winning isn’t always everything.
Olympic Crafts:
The kids really enjoyed making their very own star-spangled flags and gold medals fit for champions. Here’s how we made our Olympic crafts…
Materials needed: Straws, aluminum lids from glass jars (jelly, spaghetti, mason jars), ribbon, tape, sharpie, scissors, paper, and whatever you’d like to use to decorate the flag (colored pencils, crayons, markers, etc.)
For the flag, I printed and cut out flags using this template.
We used markers to color our flags, but you can use whichever coloring tool you’d prefer.
Once finished coloring, the straws were taped to the back of the flag.
Easy peasy craft to cheer on your favorite US athletes.
For the medals, I used the lids I had leftover from the Mother’s Day Storytime craft.
I spray painted them using leftover spray paint from this Magic Tree House Adventures craft. Both sides, two coats. I did this all the day before storytime.
At storytime, I pre-cut ribbon into 14-inch strips and had tape, stickers, and sharpies available for the kids to use.
On the back of the lid, tape the ends of your ribbon.
For the younger kids, I encouraged parents to be the sharpie user. They could write their name, or “USA”, or “#1”, or really, whatever they’d like.
Star stickers were used to decorate the medals.
Everyone left Olympics Storytime a champion.
image source: Olympics London, Olympic medal 2012
16
Jul
Turtle Storytime
You’ve gotta admit it, turtles are pretty awesome. They’re pretty famous too…there’s Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, Crush and Squirt from Finding Nemo, and get this… the Kansas state reptile is the ornate box turtle. They’re also a boat load of fantastic children’s picture books about turtles.
Since turtles are too cool for school, for this week’s Sunday Storytime we read books starring, you guessed it, TURTLES. And, we created our very own pet turtles for the craft.
Turtle Storytime Line-up:
Scoot! by Cathryn Falwell
Cathryn Falwell, a storytime readers dream author. She has also has written a couple of other books, Turtle Splash and Pond Babies, that fit the turtle theme.
Franklin in the Dark by Paulette Bourgeois, illustrated by Brenda Clark
Dear Mom, if you are reading this you will remember that this was a favorite bedtime story in our house. You read it a gazillion times. Today, I introduced it to the storytime kids and it won them over in no time.
Hi, Harry! by Martin Waddell, illustrated by Barbara Firth
It’s always nice to find friends that move at the same speed. This is a funny and heartwarming story of just that.
Melvin and the Boy by Lauren Castillo
L and I read this one quite a bit back in January. It’s a story of a boy who quickly learns a wild turtle might not be the type of pet he’d hoped for.
Turtle Day by Douglas Florian
Very simple story about the day in the life of a turtle. I introduced Turtle Day by saying, “Since the storytime theme today is turtles, it’s unofficially Turtle Day in the library!” For some reason, the kids thought that was hilarious. I don’t know why. Kids are kinda weird.
Pet Turtle Craft:
I think it’s safe to say that the majority of the adults in the library were cracking up watching all the storytimers pull their pet turtles around behind them all over the library. It was like a turtle parade. This was such a fun craft to make!
Materials needed: Plastic green plate, colored cardstock or construction, scissors, glue stick, markers, and thick string or yarn.
First, I cut out a turtle head, feet, and a tail proportional to the plastic plate. They don’t have to be super crafty. I cut out a bunch of these beforehand.
For the shell, I photocopied this template onto various colors of cardstock. No photocopier? A great and simple alternative would be to buy large foam stickers (like these) to decorate the shell instead. Paper is the cheaper route. These were also precut for the kids.
I cut out the shell shapes (technically called scutes) on the bold lines of the template. Once again… they don’t have to be perfect.
The kids decorated their turtle faces (and feet and tails).
And then taped them to the plastic plate right side up.
Turning the plate upside-down, they glued on the scutes (sections of a turtle’s upper shell) on the back of their turtle. For my example, I chose to keep the shape of the shell template. When the kids decorated their shells, they didn’t match up the shapes. Actually, I persuaded them to either make their own designs or for the older kids, to try and match the scutes on their turtle’s shell as I did.
I punctured the plate above the turtle head with the tip of a pair of scissors (a hole punch would be preferable). Then I cut a piece of yarn about a yard in length and double-knoted the end. This is another part I did beforehand and I suggest parents assist with this if you do not have a hole-punch on hand.
Flip the turtle over and thread the yarn through the hole from the inside of the shell to the outside.
And there you have it. A turtle to follow you wherever, whenever.
Because after all… turtles make excellent friends.
image source: skating turtle
9
Jul
Happy Birthday Storytime
Since L’s birthday was yesterday, to celebrate her birthday, and the past and upcoming birthdays of the storytime clan, we threw a big HAPPY BIRTHDAY STORYTIME bash with books, songs, crafts, and cupcakes!
Happy Birthday Storytime Lineup:
Today Is Your Birthday
Traditional
(Fill in the blank with child’s name. Steady clap throughout rhyme.) Today is ________’s birthday. Birthday, birthday! Today is ________’s birthday. Let’s count the years away. (Count to how old the child is or will be.) 1, 2, 3, 4, 5… (Hold up number of fingers for candles as you count, then blow them out.) Today is _______’s birthday, (S)he is 5 years old today! Horray!! (Everyone claps.)
A Birthday for Cow! by Jan Thomas
Read this one back in January for Sugary Sweet Storytime. Once again, it was a hit.
Mouse’s Birthday by Jane Yolen, illustrated by Bruce Degen
The kids really enjoyed this story of a mouse hosting a birthday party celebration in a house a little too small for his guests.
The Birthday Pet by Ellen Javernick, illustrated by Kevin O’Malley
All Danny wanted for his birthday was a pet turtle. Instead, his family persuades him with other pets that don’t seem to work out as planned.
If You Give a Pig a Party by Laura Numeroff, illustrated by Felicia Bond
Most of the kids were familiar with this favorite Numeroff/Bond edition of the If You Give a Mouse a Cookie family.
The Fairytale Cake by Mark Sperring, illustrated by Jonathan Langley
A short and sweet story with appearances from everyone’s favorite fairy tales and nursery rhymes.
Happy Birthday Song
Traditional
Happy Birthday to you, Happy Birthday to you, Happy Birthday dear everyone, Happy Birthday to you!Pipe Cleaner Crown Craft:
For our Happy Birthday Storytime craft we made birthday crowns fit for kings and queens. The kids had a great time making them and had a few parents confessed that they enjoyed making too.
Materials needed: Pipe cleaners and scissors.
To start, twist 2 or 3 pipe cleaners together for desired length of headband or crown. I made headbands (tiaras) for my examples, but most of the kids twisted their pipe cleaners into circles to make crowns.
Once you’ve figured out the length of your crown, it’s time to decorate. For a pointed crown, fold one pipe cleaner in half to make an upsidedown “V”.
Twist the top of the “V” into a loop.
Attach the end of the “V” to the base of the crown by twisting the ends.
Using different lengths, assemble and attach the same way.
Bend the crown into the shape of the king or queen’s head and there you have it… Instant royalty!
For the silver crown in the background, all I did was shape 3 pipe cleaners into arches and attached them to the base of the crown by twisting.
We also enjoyed cupcakes after crafting. Courtesy of my husband and our favorite bakery’s cupcake recipe.
Her Majesty.
image source: spectacular attractions
2
Jul
Fourth of July Storytime
Nothing says summertime like the 4th of July. As I type this blog post, people are already testing out their firecracker stash in the evening twilight. I’m seeing more and more patrons at the library outfitted in red, white, and blue.
Fourth of July Storytime Lineup:
Apple Pie Fourth of July by Janet S. Wong, illustrated by Margaret Chodos-Irvine
Who says you can’t have Chinese food on the 4th of July? One girl learns that America’s favorite holiday is celebrated by others in more ways than one.
Scrambled States of America by Laurie Keller
Had to use this one, especially since the star of the story is our very own home-state, Kansas.
Yankee Doodle by Mary Ann Hoberman and Nadine Bernard Westcott
A song from Pre-Revolutionary times gets a Fourth of July spin.
You’re a Grand Old Flag by George M. Cohan, illustrations by Warren Kimble
A favorite American song about the good ol’ red, white, and blue.
Olivia Forms a Band by Ian Falconer
This book is not about the Fourth of July per se, but it has a couple Fourth of July staples like fireworks, family-time, and a band (even if it was only a one-man band).
Fourth of July Firecracker Craft:
Our firecracker streamer craft is adapted from Babycenter’s Paper Tube Rockets. They weren’t the easiest craft for the kids, but with a little grown-up help they were definitely a lot of fun after they were finished. A great to end Sunday’s storytime and a festive start to the week’s patriotic festivities.
Materials Needed: toilet paper tubes, patriotic paper, colored paper, ribbon, tape, glue stick, scissors, and chopsticks.
Cut to size and wrap a toilet paper tube with patriotic paper. Seal with a glue stick or tape.
Cut a circle from a piece of colored paper. I traced a glass which was a good size to work from.
Cut a slit along the radius of the circle, outer edge to the center.
Fold into a cone, tape or glue, and trim edges if needed.
Tape or glue your cone top to the top of your toilet paper tube.
Cut ribbon into strips and tape to the inside of the bottom of the tube. Have any left over chopsticks from takeout? Tape one chopstick to the inside of the tube as well to create a handle.
L thoroughly enjoyed testing out the examples pre-storytime.
Have a wonderful and safe 4th of July!
26
Jun
A Very Special Storytime
Sunday’s storytime was a bit different from our regular storytime. This week’s Sunday storytime was very special because it was in honor of Edwyna Gilbert, a children’s literature professor at the University of Kansas for 26 years as well as was president of Friends in Council; the KU Friends of the Library, and also at one time conducted storytimes at the Lawrence Public Library. Edwyna’s niece donated the above painting, “Tomorrow Will Be Saturday” in honor of Edywna to be hung in the children’s room of the Lawrence Public Library. So to celebrate Edwyna and the induction of the painting to the library’s children’s room, I was asked to create a storytime in her memory.
Storytime Lineup:
Edwina, The Dinosaur Who Didn’t Know She Was Extinct by Mo Willems
This book and the next are both books donated to the library by the P.E.O sisterhood in honor of Edwyna. Edwyna went by both Edwyna and Edwina.
The Little Engine That Could by Watty Piper
Also a book donated to the library in honor of Edywna Gilbert, this is a classic that not only the kids were familiar with, but that the majority of the audience had read with their children and grandchildren.
Where the Wild Things Are by Maurice Sendak
Edwyna loved the Caldecott Medal Winners, so I thought reading the 1964 Caldecott winner Where the Wild Things Are would make a nice addition to the lineup.
Otto the Book Bear by Katie Cleminson
This book was published after Edwyna’s death, but I thought it would be the perfect representation of Edwyna’s love of children’s literature and her love of the library.
Suncatcher Craft:
I had a hard time coming up with what craft to do for this storytime. I didn’t want to use paints with such a large group, but I wanted the craft to represent the painting “Tomorrow Will Be Saturday”. I finally came up with an alteration of this suncatcher craft from Squidoo.
I made mine to reflect the painting, but of course the kids were free to do any interpretation they wished. We only used tissue paper colors that were in the painting and the majority of the frames were the same teal the painting was matted in.
I apologize from not taking step-by-step pictures for this craft. It’s been a little nuts this summer. But it’s so easy I don’t even think you’ll need it.
Materials needed: Clear contact paper, cardstock, tissue paper, and scissors.
How To:
1. Cut a frame out of card stock. It doesn’t have to be a rectangle like the one above. It can be a heart, circle, pumpkin, sun, anything you can imagine.
2. Cut tissue paper into small 1/2-1 inch squares.
3. Cut out two pieces of clear contact paper. The pieces need to be larger than the cardstock frame.
4. Peel one sheet of the contact paper and lay it sticky side up. Place the cardstock frame in the center.
5. Stick pieces of tissue paper on the sticky contact paper within the frame.
6. Once your finished with your suncatcher design, peel the back of the other piece of contact paper and lay it stick side down onto the suncatcher so that each side is covered in contact paper. Smooth out air bubbles.
7. Trim off remaining contact paper around the outside of the frame.
Was so wonderful meeting friends of Edwyna and learning about her legacy.
It was truly a very special day at the library.
19
Jun
Father’s Day Storytime
Hope everyone had a wonderful dad day Sunday! We had a great time at storytime reading a few newbies and an oldie followed by a craft for the kids and a gift for dad.
Here’s what we read for Sunday’s Storytime…
Father’s Day Storytime Line-up:
Oh, Daddy! by Bob Shea
A daddy who is always up to silly tricks in attempt to convince his young son to do what he’s supposed to be doing.
Just Like Daddy by Frank Asch
A short and sweet story about a boy who is just like his daddy… well almost.
Mitchell’s License by Hallie Durand, illustrated by Tony Fucile
Mitchell never wanted to go to bed until his father gave him a license to drive the dad-mobile piggyback.
When Dads Don’t Grow Up by Marjorie Blain Parker, illustrated by R.W. Alley
Some dads are grownups and some dads are more like kids. Here’s a tribute to the young at heart.
Father’s Day Crafts:
For our Father’s Day craft, we made a portrait of dad from this fun free printable by way of Design Editor, as well as snazzy paper ties that the kids ended up wearing around afterwards.
Materials needed for the Portrait of Dad: this free template printed on regular paper, colorful cardstock, scissors, glue stick, and markers.
Before storytime, I cut the printable portraits with scrapbooking scissors from the library’s craft supplies and that was all the prep required for this craft. First the kids drew their portraits with markers.
Then they used a glue stick to glue the back of the portrait. Tip: only glue the boarders. I don’t know why I didn’t do that originally because it looks all bumpy.
And that’s it. Instant and personal gift for dad.
Now for the ties…
Materials needed: colored paper, scissors, hole-punch, ribbon, stickers, and markers.
I drew two ties on one sheet of paper and then photocopied that sheet onto colored paper.
I cut the ties from the color paper and hole punched the top ends. I also cut strands of ribbon beforehand.
The only thing the kids had to do was decorate their tie and slide the ribbon through the top holes. Like they say in Oh, Daddy… “Easy peasy mac and cheesey”.
Hope everyone had a wonderful Father’s Day!
