All the puppets and dolls you see here may be borrowed from the Service Centers.  Click on the puppet you are interested in borrowing, note the name and barcode number of the item you wish to borrow.  Then contact one of the Service Center staff members below with your request to borrow.  Puppets and dolls may be booked ahead of time for specific programs in your library.

Project photographer:  Diane Stielau, MLSC.

To book and borrow puppets and dolls, contact:

• Middletown Library Service Center:Judy Crooks, phone (860)704-2205, or (800)437-2313, fax (860)704-2228.

• Willimantic Library Service Center:Susan Cormier, phone (860)456-1717 ext. 301, or (800)253-7944, fax (860)423-5874. You may use our online catalog to place holds on WLSC puppets.

Arthur’s Gang Dolls

Bears

Birds

Book Character Dolls

Cats

Circus and Zoo Animals

Dinosaurs

Dogs

Fantasy

Farm Animals

Hand Puppets

Human Characters

Insects & Spiders

Miscellaneous

Other

Primates

Reptiles and Amphibians

Sea Creatures

Discover the new books that you can recommend to children who use your library! Hear about books published in 2011, and upcoming Spring 2012 titles, that will be popular with children ages 0-12. These include picture books, easy readers, transitional fiction, genre fiction for middle grades, graphic novels, poetry, nonfiction, and more! Hear about books that will appeal to the “reluctant reader,” boys who may have drifted away from reading, and books that will have popularity with a wide audience of children.

At the end of this one-hour webinar, participants will:

• Be able to identify “read-alikes” – other books you can recommend to children after you find out their favorite book
• Discover books that will grab the attention of reluctant readers, including the newest graphic novels for kids, nonfiction including “gross” topics, and popular culture titles
• Hear a recap of the recent ALA awards (such as Newbery, Caldecott, etc.) and other recent children’s book awards, to make sure you have these available to recommend
• Take away a list of helpful websites to use when doing readers’ advisory, and sites that will help you keep up-to-date on the latest children’s books

This webinar will be of interest to any library staff or volunteer who serves children ages 0-12, in either public or school libraries.

Thursday, February 2, 2012
3:00 p.m. – 4:00 p.m.
Online

For additional details and registration information visit: InfoPeople: Children’s Literature Update 2012

Tuesday, October 25, 2011
2:00 p.m. – 3:00 p.m.
Online

*If you require Closed Captioning in order to attend this webinar, please contact Jennifer Peterson by October 14 petersoj@oclc.org.

For additional details and registration information visit: WJ: Teaming Up with Teens @ Your Library

The first 110 libraries to complete a survey will receive a free copy of the 2012 Collaborative Summer Library Program summer reading manual.  The 2012 themes are “Dream Big – Read!”, “Own the Night” and for adults, “Between the Covers”.

]]> http://webjunctionworks.org/ct/blog/index.php/2011/10/05/2011-summer-reading-survey-is-open/feed/ 0 http://webjunctionworks.org/ct/blog/index.php/2011/09/12/destination-college-savings-winners-announced-at-the-state-library/ http://webjunctionworks.org/ct/blog/index.php/2011/09/12/destination-college-savings-winners-announced-at-the-state-library/#comments Mon, 12 Sep 2011 14:39:27 +0000 Susan Cormier http://webjunctionworks.org/ct/blog/?p=1996

Charlotte Minnick made the East Hampton Library her reading destination this summer and arrived at a $1,000.00 college savings account as well. She was one of four Connecticut children to do so, as part of the “Destination College Savings” promotion sponsored by The Connecticut Higher Education Trust, Connecticut State Treasurer’s Office, TIAA-CREF Tuition Financing, Inc., and the Connecticut State Library. The goal was to motivate children to visit their local libraries and read over the summer, and to educate families about the CHET college savings plan. Over 1,500 entries were received; eight children were awarded $50.00 Barnes & Noble gift cards while the four grand prize winners received a $1,000.00 donation to a CHET 529 plan.  Libraries were winners as well; receiving either $50.00 or $500.00 checks for being a winning child’s home library.

The award ceremony was held at the Connecticut State Library in Hartford on Saturday September 10th. The children and their families received presentation checks and were congratulated for their efforts by Deputy State Treasurer Jonathan Harris.

It’s the kind of LSTA project that is scaleable to any size community and which is based on a foundation of solid, specific curricula developed by the State Department of Education.

Check out the best practices story and smiling kids on CT.WebJunction.

Back in 2007, Linda Slate from the Jonathan Trumbull Library in Lebanon applied for an LSTA grant and started up the Read, Rock & Rhyme program.

Some grant programs struggle from the start. Others go great guns for a few years before succumbing to the axe-du-jour.

But Read, Rock & Rhyme (RRR) is busier than ever. Based on Betsy Diamont-Cohen’s Mother Goose on the Loose (MGOL) program,  RRR’s programs showcase a wide range of early literacy elements and offer caregivers the tools to develop children’s early literacy skills.

So what’s the secret? Program director Linda Slate has some insights.

“Since our Library had just opened an additional day each week, I thought this program would be a perfect fit for the babies and their caregivers in our community who had previously been underserved.”

“After I was awarded the LSTA grant in 2007, Susan Cormier became my grant monitor. Her wealth of experience helped me ramp up the program and I was able to offer it in early 2008. Since then, RRR has served a total of 3,893 babies and their caregivers from Lebanon and surrounding towns. The babies who first attended RRR have transitioned to my Toddler Storytime, and now their younger siblings are attending RRR.

My advice to those of you who may be interested in offering a similar program would be:

• limit the program to 30 minutes;
• be flexible;
• have fun with it (most important)

Your enthusiasm will become contagious, and this will likely become one of the best attended programs at your library.”