Why Learning Code Benefits Kids

“An understanding of computer science is becoming increasingly essential in today’s world. Our national competitiveness depends upon our ability to educate our children—and that includes our girls—in this critical field.”
—Sheryl Sandberg


Sheryl Sandberg, the chief operating officer of Facebook, is one of many advocates of computer science education in our country. Educators, technology experts, business leaders, and even celebrities support a new movement with a clear purpose: to teach children to read and write code.
“Coding is the new literacy. To thrive in tomorrow’s society, young people must learn to design, create and express themselves with digital technologies,” says Mitchel Resnick, a media arts and sciences professor at the MIT Media Lab.

Click here for the full article

Coding is the new literacy. There is a big movement going on to teach kids to code and there is a lot of information and resources to start introducing your child to the world of coding. As we become more digital in all aspects of our lives, logic, math and science are becoming increasingly important in early education. Furthermore, encouraging girls to become active in coding is so important! Girls can code!

The logic behind coding can be taught at a very young age. Here is a great article about Coding for Kindergartners. And this kinesthetic learning idea is a fantastic way to introduce the logic of coding. http://leftbraincraftbrain.com/2015/03/18/if-then-backyard-coding-game-for-kids/

Scratch helps young people learn to think creatively, reason systematically, and work collaboratively — essential skills for life in the 21st century.
Scratch is a project of the Lifelong Kindergarten Group at the MIT Media Lab. It is provided free of charge. http://news.mit.edu/2014/scratchjr-coding-kindergarten

Here is a list of resources to get you started:
http://www.apartmenttherapy.com/20-resources-for-teaching-kids-how-to-program-code-200374

YSS Early Literacy Calendar

This project is brought to you by the Youth Services Section of the Wisconsin Library Association and awesome librarians from all over WI contributed to it.

The calendar offers caregivers 365 days of tips on how to raise a reader.

http://wla.wisconsinlibraries.org/images/yss/2016_Early_Literacy_Calendar.pdf

Libraries Outside the Box

In 2015, I was on an ILEAD USA- WI team which was a nationwide leadership immersion program utilizing web technologies. Our team wanted to bridge the gap between school and public libraries. We created a website with resources for librarians, but there are a lot of great resources for teachers and parents as well.

http://www.librariesoutsidethebox.com/

Early Literacy Apps in Storytime

I was on an ILEAD USA- WI team which was a nationwide leadership immersion program utilizing web technologies. One of the other teams of 2015 was the Early Literacy Innovators. Here is a short video offering tips and suggestions on how to incorporate apps into storytime and the value of including the.

Other apps for early literacy resources for librarians, parents and caregivers:

http://littleelit.com/

https://www.pinterest.com/clearwaterlib/early-literacy-apps-for-kids/

https://www.pinterest.com/carisakluver/apps-for-early-literacy/

20 Year Study on the Impact of Books in the Home

Whether you fill your home with books bought from a garage sale, from a bookstore or borrowed from the library, having books in the house for your children can have a major impact on their lives.

From Dr. Mariah Evans' 20-year study, she has formed some hypotheses:

• Reading with very small children -- and talking about the books as you read -- makes a big difference.
• Homes in which books are used to adjudicate questions of fact, rather than debating them as though they were matters of opinion, make an important contribution to childrens learning strategies.
• Children watch what their parents do, so reading at home is very important in a role-modeling sense.
• Children gain skills and culture/content from the books in the home. These skills and content help children perform better on standardized tests.
• Bookish homes help children like school and see their teachers as valuable coaches. Both performing well and liking school encourage youth to persist in education, even when the going gets tough.
  

http://www.educationworld.com/a_issues/chat/chat265.shtml

New Picture Books to Highlight

Moo! by David LaRochelle, is a one word book. I love this book because you can have a lot of fun with it as you read it out loud. One word, but many meanings and expressions!

When Cow gets her hooves on the farmer’s car, she takes it for a wild ride through the country. Moooo! But a bump in the road brings this joy ride to a troublesome end. Moo-moo. . . Has Cow learned her lesson about living life in the fast lane? Moo?
Like Banana! by Ed Vere, it really makes for a fun "read".

 

I am such a sucker for a sweet, loving picture book. The kind of book that makes you go "awwwww". I am a fan of Sam McBratney's books. They are very tender stories with warmth conveyed in the illustrations always (even though there are different illustrators!).
In this story, Little Hansie Bear loves to pretend, but walking like a duck can be hazardous, especially when he falls into a deep- down ditch and has to be helped out by his dad. With a "There, there" and a hug, Hansie is soon off to play again. So when Dad hurts his foot, Hansie knows just what to do — a "There, there," a big hug, and everything is all right again.

How do you hide an elephant?!?In this story, three siblings come upon an elephant named Phil and decide to bring him home. "Our parents will love Phil!" they cry out excitedly. Until it dawns on them: "Uh, oh . . ." No they won't! Hiding Phil by Eric Barclay is adorable!

Great Letter Activity for Boys!

The entire alphabet of "highway abc cards" is available from the Making Learning Fun website.

What a fantastic way for boys to have fun learning the letters of the alphabet. PLAY with them, sound out the letters, talk about the shapes and identify things around the house for that particular letter. Get out the matchbox cards and get those boys MOVING and LEARNING at the same time.

Alphabet Ideas

Anytime a child can take an 'active' role in their learning, it is better. I love learning that includes movement and uses all the senses! Not only does it make learning more fun, but the child will retain the information better!

Wikki stix are a great little tactile learning tool. Check out this link to the Wikki Blog to learn about tactile learners! http://www.wikkistix.com/blog/educational-ideas-teaching-tools/using-wikki-stix-for-kinesthetic-learners/

BUT, I also think about how can I do the SAME thing at little OR no cost!

Print out your own letters and use pipe cleaners! Easy Peasy!

Also, pipe cleaners make a neat "I SPY A LETTER" tool...when reading a book, have your child use the tool when the SPY the letter you are concentrating on for the day! Like the letter B!

How Does Your Garden Grow?

For Tales for Twos, we read Lunch by Denise Fleming. The children had props of the food the mouse ate and brought them up to me. We also read I Have a Garden by Bob Barner which is a FANTASTIC book to get these little ones up and moving- lots of action.




For Preschool Pretend and Play, we read My Garden by Kevin Henkes, What Does Bunny See? by Linda Sue Park and Up, Down and Around by Katherine Ayres.

The Letter of the Week was G:

Songs: Tooty-Ta, a favorite and Super Silly Tango by Eric Litwin, yep, Pete the Cat author!

Wet Dirt is Mud- Ages 3-5

Songs: Go Bananas and Root Chy Cha by The Learning Station

Books: Stuck in the Mud, Mrs. Wishy Washy, Pete the Cat

The Letter of the week was D:

We did the 5 Clean and Squeaky Pigs flannelboard and had the same edible craft.

Craft: Mrs. Wishy Washy animals:

We were going to go outside and play in the dirt and do some dirt fingerpainting, but the weather did not cooperate!

Wet Dirt is Mud

Tales for Twos - Week 2 Summer 2013

As usual, we did our 5 Little Hot Dogs and our This is Big, Big, Big rhyme.

The two songs we use is the same this session- Shake Your Sillies Out and Octopus Song.

Books: Pete the Cat and Harry the Dirty Dog

I used this site to make a color activity to go along with the book.

I also made a large outline of Harry the Dirty Dog and as I read the story and Harry gets dirtier and dirtier, the children came up and put dirt spots on him.

Flannelboard:

Edible Craft: pudding and oreo cookie dirt cup with gummy worms

Crafts:

And Harry the Dirty Dog picture that they could make "dirty".

Worms and Ants- Ages 3-5

In Preschool Pretend & Play, we concentrate on the number 10, letters and sounds and rhyming words.

For this session, I used this "10" Rhyme:

I have 10 fingers
And they belong to me
I can make them do things
Just watch and see
I can shut them up tight
I can open them up wide
I can put them together
I can make then hide
I can make them jump high
I can make them go low
I can fold them quietly
And hold them just so!

The letter of the week was A for Ant:

Our songs were: Let Me See You Boogaloo by The Learning Station and Wiggle Waggle Sneeze from the Kids on the Move.

Books: Ned's New Home, Bob & Otto, Ants and I Saw an Ant in the Parking Lot.

Flannelboard: 5 Hungry Ants

We used brown pipe cleaners to shape the letter W and then make worms.

Flannelboard: 5 Worms Went Out to Play

Five little worms went out to play
On a bright and sunny day,
A banana peel is what one found
And he brought it home into the ground.

Four little worms ...
a cracked eggshell
Three little worms ...
some rotten leaves
Two little worms ...
a old newspaper
One little worm ...
a used tea bag

Those five little worms dug deep in the ground,
They wiggled their bodies around and around,
They ate those kitchen scraps, munch! munch! munch!
And made some DIRT from their garbage lunch!

Here's where I found it but I am not sure that is the original author.

Summer Storytime Themes- Worms and Ants

At the Franklin Public Library, we have our Tales for Twos program (age 2 with an adult) and our Preschool Pretend & Play program (age 3-5 with an adult). This summer, I used the same themes each week for both programs and just changed the books and activities.

TT
In Tales for Twos, we concentrate on the number 5. So, we begin with a "5" song. In the past, we have used Alice the Camel, 5 Green & Speckled Frogs, 5 Little Ducks, etc. This session, we are using 5 Little Hot Dogs.

I use the rhyme "This is Big, Big, Big" from Mel's Desk.
Books: Ants and Bob and Otto

Listening Station

We have a new listening station in the children's area.

"Hearing a book read on tape helps her see how the words on the page can come alive in a fluid, expressive way. It helps her focus on the sounds of words read without interruption and provides a model of fluent reading. Audio books also give her an important introduction to listening — a skill that she must master in order to learn to read."

Here's a great SHORT article on the benefits of listening to books...
http://www.scholastic.com/parents/resources/article/developing-reading-skills/literacy-benefits-listening




Puzzle Table

We provide new puzzles on our puzzle table 3 times a year. Although the puzzles provides enjoyment and entertainment for our families when they visit, the puzzles also provide an important educational opportunity.





These skills are enhanced by playing with puzzles:

Cognitive skills:

•  they help improve problem-solving and reasoning
• they help a child see whole-part relationships
• they help increase a child's visual spatial awareness
• depending on the subject matter, can teach a variety of subjects like shape, letter and color recognition

Fine Motor skills:

• fine motor manipulation is the key to writing which begins long before a child holds a pencil

Hand-Eye Coordination:

• through the trial and error process of manipulating puzzle pieces into the proper spot, a child is strengthening their hand-eye coordination

Social Skills:

• these are great tools for fostering cooperative play- discussing where the next piece will go or asking for a piece to be passed to them
• it also can help a child learn to handle the frustration when a piece does not fit

http://sensoryedge.hubpages.com/hub/Educational-Toys-for-Kids-The-Benefits-of-Puzzles

2013 Summer Highlights

Zoophonics

Using an animal alphabet helps children remember the shapes and sounds of the letters which are aspects of letter knowledge, one of the six skills of early literacy.

Letter sounds are taught before letter names. Lowercase letters are taught before capital letters. And including body movement for each animal letter helps to reinforce the connection between letter sounds and letter shapes. Learning is greatly enhanced when movement is involved.

Zoophonics helps close the gender gap when it comes to learning language. Boy's brains are wired in a way that makes language a more difficult skill to acquire and use effectively. Studies show that early childhood language and learning activities must be paired with movement and the use of manipulatives.

The Zoophonics materials will be available for checkout at the library soon!


http://www.zoo-phonics.com/ Visit the Zoophonics website to learn more about their products!

New Board Books

Wow, I can't believe how I have lost my blogging mojo! I think because I didn't do any preschool programming this year, I haven't been on top of my blogging. Time goes by so fast and it is already June soon! Summer is coming and, of course, that means the Summer Reading Program! So, I am getting back into the swing of things! I will be doing the preschool programming for summer, so hopefully that will keep me in the groove!

We have a ton of new board books come in to support our new 6 Skills of Early Literacy handouts that we created. They are available in the library near the kid's desk.

I would like to highlight a few...

These new "You Are My Baby" books are just adorable. It is a book within a book! The mama or papa animal is the larger book and inside there is a smaller book with the baby animal!

These new books are meant to tackle the difficult lessons to learn of not hitting or biting or pushing...

And finally, these cute books feature the most adorable monsters to teach shapes, colors, abcs and more!

 

Check out ALL these new board books and so many more at the Franklin Public Library!

 

Soup for One by Ethan Long

Shoo, fly, shoo! One little fly thinks he’s getting a big bowl of hot soup all to himself. Little does he know, interlopers wait around every corner. Help him to count the unwelcome pals that join him for lunch—one after another after another—up to ten! Who will get the last slurp of soup? Does the ravenous chef have a chance against ten hungry flies? Or will the sneaky spider hiding on every page be the one to triumph?

This is a very cute concept book. We have it in the NEW Picture Book section at the library! So, check it out!

Cool New Board Books to Share!

These are the perfect concept board books for your little guy! Large, colorful, simple pictures cover concepts like shapes, colors and counting! These have just been cataloged and will be out on the shelves soon! The author is Megan Bryant.

This new board book from Salina Yoon is adorable!

Large, simple and colorful pictures encourage participation from your child in the form of animal sounds! Rhyming text makes this a must-read book of fun for your little one!