We've been having some different discussions about the summer reading club prizes we give out. Children who finish their summer reading goal of 50 books or 600 minutes of reading get a packet of coupons (pizza, ice cream, passes to the zoo, etc.), a little prize (a rubber ducky or eraser), and an entry to win one of the bigger, "grand" prizes.
One thing I always notice with the little prizes is the segregation between what are "girl" and what are "boy" prizes, according to that patron. I've seen little boys pick out a princess ducky only to have their moms pull it out of their hands and pick something else that's "for boys." I had one girl and her mom complain that there weren't enough "girl prizes" - because according to them, dinosaurs and trucks are only for boys. I wish we wouldn't draw such hard-and-fast lines because I think sometimes it prevents kids from pursuing what they actually like, instead of what society says they're supposed to like.
We've also been talking about how many of our coupons are for chains owned by big corporations. Do we really want the library to promote specific corporations? Or promote any companies marketing to kids?
To go even further, why do we need prizes at all? The point of summer reading club is to keep kids reading during the summer. The point is not the prizes, and I wouldn't want kids to think it is. The prizes may be an effective bribe in some cases, but I also wonder if the kids who do the reading club only for the prizes actually get anything out of it. Maybe they just skim through a bunch of books they don't like until they reach the minimum and then stop reading by July 1st. Maybe the prizes aren't necessary at all.
In any case, there are definitely a lot of things to think about when it comes to summer reading club prizes.
Thursday, July 11, 2013
Tuesday, July 2, 2013
Summer Programs
I know, I know, it's been too long! Summer is of course the busy season for a children's librarian in a public library. Here are a couple programs that I've been in charge of this summer.
Food Under Our Feet: Dig Into Root Veggies
With this year's summer reading theme of Dig Into Reading, I thought a program on root vegetables would teach kids a bit about new foods that are good for them. I set the room up in four stations and then set up a little area for kids to sit and listen to a couple of books. The books I read were Carrot Soup by John Segal and Grandma Lena's Big Ol' Turnip by Denia Hester (one of many versions of this Russian folktale - I liked the diverse characters of this one). Then the children were free to do the four stations. One station was a "Veggie Petting Zoo" where I had some of the actual root vegetables available for kids to touch and pick up, along with some fun facts about them. Another station was for a stamping craft, where I had carrots, potatoes, and radishes cut in half to stamp in ink pads and onto paper. For the potatoes I had also pressed small cookie cutters into them and cut around the shapes, so I had a star, diamond, etc. The third station was a tasting station, and I had veggie chips and tapioca pudding available. Did you know tapioca is made from cassava? The last station was the messiest - I had collected clear 2 liter bottles to make visible root planters so the kids could plant carrot seeds and take their planters home. The potting soil was a bit messy, but we mostly kept it under control.
Pet Rocks
This was a fun and pretty easy craft that also fit in with the Dig Into Reading theme. I asked kids to bring their own rock, but some forgot so I had extras. Really the best place to get rocks was the library parking lot! The kids used googely eyes (a hit!), pipe cleaners, yarn and string, puffballs, feathers, mini popsicle sticks, and markers that showed up nicely on the rocks. I set out scissors and glue, plus I also had packing tape if anyone wanted it. Each kid also got a little paper plate to bring their pet rock home on, and some of them decorated their plate as well. The kids were so creative, and the program required minimal setup!
Food Under Our Feet: Dig Into Root Veggies
With this year's summer reading theme of Dig Into Reading, I thought a program on root vegetables would teach kids a bit about new foods that are good for them. I set the room up in four stations and then set up a little area for kids to sit and listen to a couple of books. The books I read were Carrot Soup by John Segal and Grandma Lena's Big Ol' Turnip by Denia Hester (one of many versions of this Russian folktale - I liked the diverse characters of this one). Then the children were free to do the four stations. One station was a "Veggie Petting Zoo" where I had some of the actual root vegetables available for kids to touch and pick up, along with some fun facts about them. Another station was for a stamping craft, where I had carrots, potatoes, and radishes cut in half to stamp in ink pads and onto paper. For the potatoes I had also pressed small cookie cutters into them and cut around the shapes, so I had a star, diamond, etc. The third station was a tasting station, and I had veggie chips and tapioca pudding available. Did you know tapioca is made from cassava? The last station was the messiest - I had collected clear 2 liter bottles to make visible root planters so the kids could plant carrot seeds and take their planters home. The potting soil was a bit messy, but we mostly kept it under control.
Pet Rocks
This was a fun and pretty easy craft that also fit in with the Dig Into Reading theme. I asked kids to bring their own rock, but some forgot so I had extras. Really the best place to get rocks was the library parking lot! The kids used googely eyes (a hit!), pipe cleaners, yarn and string, puffballs, feathers, mini popsicle sticks, and markers that showed up nicely on the rocks. I set out scissors and glue, plus I also had packing tape if anyone wanted it. Each kid also got a little paper plate to bring their pet rock home on, and some of them decorated their plate as well. The kids were so creative, and the program required minimal setup!
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