Keepin' it Crafty

Tweensters got crafty at the Nesconset Branch on Friday, September 28 during the program Button Up!. Third through fifth graders designed their own button and badges to decorate their backpacks or give to their besties.  Check out their original creations!

Looking for more craftspiration? Check out these books!

Art for Kids: Comic Strips Create your own Comics from Startto Finish

Art Panels, BAM! Speech Bubbles, POW!: Writing your ownGraphic Novel

Beading: Bracelets, Barrettes, and Beyond

Make your own Purses and Bags

Pet Crafts: Everything You Need to Become Your Pet’s CraftStar

Start to Felt

Apple Stamping!

On Tuesday, September 25th we celebrated the start of the fall season with apple stamping! Not only are apples delicious to eat, they are fun to paint with too! We started our morning with the story of The Apple Pie Tree by Zoe Hall and then got right into paitning! It was a great way for families to have fun and leave the mess behind!

If you are hungry for some more apple stories, try these titles:

Odd Dog by Claudia Boldt

Dappled Apples by Jan Carr

A New House for Mouse by Petr Horacek

Apple Pie ABC by Alison Murray

Amelia Bedelia's First Apple Pie by Herman Parish

The Apple Pie that Papa Baked by Lauren Thompson

Apples, Apples, Apples by Nancy Wallace

Good-bye Summer, Hello Fall!

Are you already missing summer? We are too, but the beautiful weather and colors of fall are exciting!

Here are some great books about fall to get you in the mood for spending it outdoors, whether it's apple picking, visiting the pumpkin patch or just hanging out in the backyard in the garden!

The Little Yellow Leaf by Carin Berger

Leaf Man by Lois Ehlert

Amelia Bedelia's First Apple Pie by Herman Parish

Fletcher and the Falling Leaves by Julia Rawlson

The Busy Little Squirrel by Nancy Tafuri

Mouse's First Fall by Lauren Thompson

Sneeze Big Bear, Sneeze! by Maureen Wright

Pumpkins by Ken Robbins

Ain’t No Party Like a Pirate Party! (‘Cause a Pirate Party Don’t Stop)

Ahoy Mateys!

Arrrrr! Pirates in grades K-2 climbed aboard the Nesconset Branch for stories of the seven seas in our Pirate Party! All members of this pirate crew decorated their own pirate hats with treasure and gems.

Looking for some pirate treasure?

Try some of these books!

Captain Flinn and the Pirate Dinosaurs

How I Became a Pirate

Pirate Pete

Pirate vs. Pirate: the Terrific Tale of a Big, Blustery,Maritime Match

Pirates Drive Buses

Shiver Me Letters: A Pirate ABC

Have you Heard? – Bari Koral

Have you shaken your last silly out? Need some new family friendly music for rides around town with the kids? Our Have you Heard feature spot lights children’s music that will make kids and grown ups want to crank the volume up to eleven.

Bari Koral and the Family Rock Band

Anna and the Cupcakes

Loopytunes

The New York Post has called Bari Koral “Sheryl Crow for kids”. Her lyrics are fun, fresh accompanied by upbeat rock guitars, drums and bass. Her albums include songs that little ones can sing and play along to, while the instrumentals are pop rock enough to allow the early elementary set to jam. Be sure to check out her website, filled with videos of her live performances.

Can't get enough Bari? Check out her other albums Rock and Roll Garden and Bari Koral Family Rock Band.

Hungry Mommies & Daddies

Busy, tired and hungry? We parents know how you feel and for those of you with infants and toddlers, you may feel like you will never eat again even if most of the time you just forget to eat! Don't despair, here are a few cookbooks designed with you in mind. Easy, quick recipes to get you back on track!

Double Delicious: Good, Simple Food for Busy, Complicated Lives

The Naptime Chef: Fitting Great Food into Family Life

Parents Need to Eat Too: Nap-Friendly Cooking, One-Handed Meals, and Time-Saving Tricks for New Parents

Mother Goose...ON THE LOOSE!

What do Humpty Dumpty, the Man in the Moon, and Jack Sprat all have in common? They are the stars of some of our favorite nursery rhymes! Those silly songs and rhymes never go out of style, and are essential to a young child’s understanding of language and literacy.

Need to brush up on your nursery rhymes? Bring your little one to a session of Mother Goose Rhyme Time, a half hour filled with songs, rhymes and finger plays for babies up to 35 months old with their parent or caregiver.

Some of our favorite children’s book authors and illustrators have worked on collections of Mother Goose Rhymes, check out some of these collections of classic rhymes with a modern twist!

Dan Yaccarino’s Mother Goose– Dan Yaccarino

Here Comes Mother Goose –Rosemary Wells

Mary Engelbreit’s Mother Goose: One Hundred Best-Loved Verses – Mary Engelbreit

Mother Goose Remembers –Clare Beaton

Nursery Rhyme Comics: 50 TimelessRhymes from 50 Celebrated Cartoonists

Tomie dePaola’s Mother Goose– Tome dePaola

Truckery Rhymes – Jon Scieszka

Check out www.bussongs.com for more rhymes, songs and lullabies!

Have you Heard? – Sing me to Sleep Indie Lullabies

 Have you shaken your last silly out? Need some new family friendly music for rides around town with the kids? Our Have you Heard feature spot lights children’s music that will make kids and grown ups want to crank the volume up to eleven.

 Sing me to Sleep Indie Lullabies

American Laundromat Records

Sing me to Sleep Indie Lullabies, is a melodic compilation of new and classic songs revisited and reamped for hipster kids and parents alike, by familiar artists. Jenny Owens Young covers the Red House Painters’ Have you Forgotten (with a kid friendly twist), Casey Mecija introduces the younger set to the Beatles while covering Dear Prudence. Songs by Neil Halstead, Stars, and Trespassers William are warm, and mellow, perfect for nap time, long car rides and chillaxing reading sessions at home.

Read More and Write On: Diary of a Wimpy Kid: The Ugly Truth and Cam Jansen and the Mystery of the Circus Clown

Read More and Write On is a feature on the Smithtown Library’s Book Bites Blog. Children may submit a book review and it will appear on our blog! This allows kids to discover what their peers are reading and try new books recommended by experts on what kids like - other kids! Want to submit a book review? Pick up a form at your local branch’s Children’s Reference Desk!

Diary of a Wimpy Kid: The Ugly Truth

By Jeff Kinney

Rating 5 out of 5 stars

This book was awesome because: Greg and Rowley had to decide if they were going to stay friends. My favorite scene in the story is when Rowley acts like a dog!

Cam Jansen and the Mystery of the Circus Clown

By David Adler

Rating 5 out of 5 stars

This book was awesome because: Cam used her photographic memory to catch a thief at the circus. Cam and Eric also got to meet the Bailor Brothers!

- Jacob, Smithtown Elementary, Grade 3