The Mother Goose on the Loose Blog

Puppet Kisses

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A librarian in Virginia recently sent an email asking the following question:

“I attended the mgol workshop at the Library of Virginia in September of 2010 and am doing the 10 part program a tmy Public Library.  It is going very well.  I have one question: Do you circle around the room giving everyone a stuffed animal kiss?  If so, at what point in the program do you do that?  I seem to remember that from the workshop, but couldn’f find it in the workshop materials.”

The answer:  You are right, the puppet gives the kiss towards the beginning of the program but not at the very start. If  we sing “The Eency Weency Spider” followed by”The Great Big Spider”, then the spider puppet will give everyone a kiss for singing his song. If we sing “Good morning, Mrs. Perky Bird,” then Mrs. Perky Bird will go around giving the kiss.  It’s best if the puppet kiss is somewhat related to an activity, and that it occurs sometime during the Rhymes and Reads section to set a nice tone for the rest of the program.

Summer Reading for Babies and Toddlers AND a great program at ALA

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On the public library listserv (pubyac), there is a link to a blog with wonderful information about a Summer Reading Club for babies and toddlers called Rubber Ducky Club. Check it out here:  http://tinytipsforlibraryfun.blogspot.com/2011/06/doing-summer-thing.html

Also, don’t forget to stop by the Mother Goose on the Loose booth at ALA to say hi, or to attend “The Power of Play” program on Saturday, June 25, 2011 – 4:00pm – 5:30pm, in room 344 of the conference center. For more information, click on this link! http://connect.ala.org/node/137403

The Power of Play

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I would like to tell you about an exciting program that I am involved with at the upcoming ALA conference in New Orleans. It is called “The Power of Play” and will be taking place on Saturday, June 25, 2011 from 4:00pm – 5:30pm in Convention Center Room 344.

This program is sponsored by ALSC. The description reads: “Play is a powerful learning tool, yet today’s children get significantly less play time than their parents had. Although research supports the value of play, schools have been cutting recess from their schedules and parents seem to prefer programmed time rather than free time for their children. Hear about research that supports therapeutic and developmental opportunities offered through play and learn ways to integrate play into library programs for children of all ages. In addition, hear about the value of inclusive play for children with and without disabilities.”

The presenters are:

Carrie Banks, Director, The Child’s Place for Children with Special Needs at the Brooklyn Public Library
Christy Burgess Estrovitz, Early Literacy Specialist, San Francisco Public Library
Dr. Betsy Diamant-Cohen, Library Programming Consultant, Mother Goose on the Loose, LLC
Tess Prendergast, Children’s Librarian, Early Years Community Program, Vancouver Public Library

Please join us for this program!
Betsy

Great Workshops

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I’ve just returned from some exhilarating workshops!  Last week, there were full-day MGOL workshops in Western Maryland and Michigan; this week I presented a 2-day Early Literacy Workshop with my colleague, Saroj Ghoting, in Wisconsin.  Now I’m getting ready for ALA and starting to plan my calendar for the coming year.

If you’d like to book a workshop, either Mother Goose on the Loose, Playing Around with Books, Storytelling, or on other topics, please contact me!

Back in action!

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A NEW RESOURCE:  Check out the nursery rhyme videos created by librarians on the MGOL Website, in the Resources section, under “Nursery Rhymes”.  If you’d like to post some nursery rhymes, please send the Web link information and name of the library to be credited via the contact form. Thanks!

Three months have almost passed since my double knee replacement.  I have been taking it easy and am now ready to spring back into action!