The Mother Goose on the Loose Blog

“Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star” in Ute

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This week, I travelled to Cortez, Colorado to present a Mother Goose on the Loose workshop at the library. Some of the participants were women who worked at the Early Childhood Center on the nearby Ute reservation.  

Typically, at the end of a workshop, each person chooses a rhyme or song, thinks of an accompanying activity, decides in which of the 10 sections it should appear, makes a felt piece to go along with it, and then presents their song/rhyme/activity to the group while using the flannel board.

One of the women told us how she sings “Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star” in Ute to her nephew and then presented it to us. Listening to her was a privilege. She gave me permission to record it and post it for other librarians, so here it is:  https://photos.app.goo.gl/fJy1cA919MBZri7v9  

Her singing was so magnificent, that I asked her to sing it again, and she did!  This time, she did some hand movements to go along with it. https://photos.app.goo.gl/33nR2rTWeMtYPuvk9

Shortly, I will ask my daughter Maya to the link the two videos together, add a title page and a credits page, and I will add it to the MGOL YouTube page with playlists of all the other videos of rhymes and songs that participants have shared during MGOL workshops. But I felt this was so moving, I wanted to share it on my blog even before it was ready to post on YouTube. Enjoy!

 

Register for the MGOL Workshop on Sept. 30!

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On Friday, September 30, from 9 am – 4 pm (with an hour for lunch on your own) I will offering a full-day MGOL workshop at Port Discovery Children’s Museum in Baltimore. For just $300, you can learn all about the research supporting MGOL, participate in an actual MGOL session, learn how to plan and present programs, have the opportunity to create a felt piece and use it with the group, sample developmental tips for adults, and more.

Join us for the fun and skill-building day. To register, please call Betsy at 443-928-3915 or send a email to info@mgol.org.

 

Childcare providers in Maryland can get 6 credit hours from the  Maryland State Department of Education. For more information, check out this link!

 

Librarians dancing at a MGOL workshop in Washington DC
Librarians dancing at a MGOL workshop in Washington DC
Teachers creating felt characters at an MGOL workshop in Maryland
Teachers creating felt characters at an MGOL workshop in Maryland
Librarians at a MGOL Workshop in Montana, pretending their hands are neurons.
Librarians at a MGOL Workshop in Montana, pretending their hands are neurons.

The importance of smiling at your children

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I just read a fascinating article by Lisa Scott, Associate Professor of Psychology and Director of the Brain, Cognition and Development Research Lab at the University of Florida, that reinforces earlier research which says that babies love looking at faces, will look at a face longer than anything else, and thus faces are important educational tools for babies.

The importance of faces for infants’ learning

Smiling at people puts them at ease and creates connection.  Image how much more powerful it is, then, to smile at your baby!

Bookstore

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After speaking with a few people about ways to share my favorite books with others, I’ve decided to create an online bookstore.  I spent a fair amount of the day choosing which books to put in there, so please feel free to have a look and see if there is something you’d like to own.  A fair amount of these are oldies but goodies that I feel are too rich to be ignored simply because they were published more than 5 years ago!  As this is a new venture, any feedback you have for me will be greatly appreciated!

 

Here’s the link:  https://bookshop.org/shop/MGOL