Happy New Year!

The staff of the Children's Room wishes you a Happy New Year.

Take a look back at some of the fun we had in 2010!

Posted by: Amy

Not Home for the Holidays

by guest blogger, and library fish extraordinaire, Gordon Bob Splash

Some people like to stay home for the holidays. Not me! I am looking forward to some R & R along with some TLC at Miss Amy's house this week. I plan to just kick back and relax and read some favorite books. You can bet that I will miss my many library friends (especially the little smiley ones). There are some terrific events going on while I'm gone, such as the Snowman Clock Craft and a showing of Toy Story 3 in our theater. I'll be back after the New Year and you can bet I'll be ready for our great programs starting up again such as our weekly storytimes and Lego club.

While I'm away, please be sure to stop in and say hi to my favorite librarians. I know they are going to miss me terribly. Happy Holidays!

Posted by the now vacationing, G.B. Splash

Snowmen

Snowmen are one of winter's highlights. Always a favorite of mine, they are by far the most frequent ornament on my Christmas tree. A snowman sits on top of my desk and smiles at me all year round. As I look at him, I began to wonder about the origins of these creatures. In a fit of curiosity, I went to my computer and began to search: Who made the first snowman? Where? How did the classic shape come to be? Why a carrot for a nose? and other equally significant questions. I found-----not much. However, I did come across an interesting book--The History of the Snowman by Bob Eckstein. It is not a children's book nor does our library own it, but despite these two drawbacks, we can still appreciate the delightful cover:



We do, of course, have many books about snowmen. Here are just a few:

And here's a snowman joke:

Why was the snowman's dog called Frost?
Because Frost bites.....

Posted by Sue Ann

Winter Fun

Winter flurries, windy days, hats, scarves and gloves, all mean old man winter and the holidays are here! So lets celebrate these upcoming winter months with fun indoor activities. You can find crafts and baking recipes in books or on websites that can be made with materials found laying around the house.

One simple craft you can make together with friends or family is: Salt Crystal Snowflake.

Material needed:
*Hot Water
*A cup or mug
*Salt
*Thick black paper
*Paintbrush

Boil water and pour it into a mug. Add a couple of teaspoons of salt and stir with the paintbrush until it dissolves. Keep adding a teaspoon of salt until you start to notice it no longer disolves and the salt crystals are on the bottom of your mug.

Paint your snowflake.

(Tip: Each time you dip your paintbrush in the salt water be sure to stir that way your salt crystals don't sink to the bottom of the cup.)

Leave your artwork to dry overnight.

If you would like to follow a snowflake template or these instructions you can check out http://www.dltk-holidays.com/.

After having fun making the Salt Crystal Snowflake craft why not ask an adult to help you make a: Snowy Cupcake Cabin.

Click on the link below to follow the recipe or maybe find other yummy treats to bake at home. Let us know how your baking turns out!!
http://familyfun.go.com/recipes/snowy-cupcake-cabins-806655/

One last craft that I came upon:

I found this easy and neat idea for gift giving to teachers, family members or friends:
A Hot Chocolate Cone.

Click on the link for ingredients and instructions.

http://familyfun.go.com/recipes/hot-chocolate-cones-687223/

Happy Holidays!!

posted by: Josephine

3D or not 3D?

3D or not 3D. This is the question we have faced when going to the movies.

For nearly a year almost every movie, especially children's films have been released with the 3D option.

Now 3D isn't for everyone. Personally I am not a fan of the recent fad. It gives me a headache and the glasses are uncomfortable! However, I can see the appeal to the masses, especially to younger movie goers who are enchanted by the images that seem to pop off the screens right before their eyes!

What many of todays newborn 3D enthusiasts may not realize is that filmmakers have been experimenting with 3D technology for over 100 years!

Now as we all know, 3D is a sophisticated optical illusion in which the images on the screen specially prepared to be used with special specs trick us into thinking we see images coming off the screen. However, as long as photography has existed the urge to perfect this trick of the eye has been close behind.

By the end of the 1840's a British gentleman by the name of Sir David Brewster perfected a technique called, "stereoscopy" which had been coined by a British physicist Sir Charles Wheatstone. This technique allowed photographs to appear three dimensional to the naked eye.

Let it be known that Sir David Brewster also invented the kaleidoscope.

The 3D glasses appeared on the movie scene in 1915 with the invention of something called, "anaglyph technology". In 1922, "The Power of Love" was the very first 3D film to be shown to a public audience.

The 1950's and were also a very popular time for 3D movies, however the majority of the films shown during this time period, however most of these films were scary movies or monster movies! Who would want to see a big scary monster coming at them? Unless of course this was a monster from Pixar's Monster's Inc.

The popularity of 3D seemed to fade in the 1960's when a new technology called, "Space Vision 3D" was released. Although many audiences flocked to the theaters to experience Space Vision, it did not live up to its name with the critics who gave it a big thumbs down. Still, Space Vision prevailed with a few movies here and there throughout the 70's and 80's, once again, these were mainly scary movies.

The 1990's brought about the IMAX 3D films that are similar to what we see today. Until the mid 2000's though, the majority of these movies were nature documentaries only shown in special theaters equipped to play them. Nowadays this is no longer necesary and 3D films can be seen at any theater.

Looking ahead, it appears that 3D will be available even closer than your local movie theater. 3D televisions are already available in stores. While I doubt everyone will be interested in this form of entertainment (you would still have to wear the glasses at home) it appears that the long history of 3D has quite a few chapters left before we close the book.


-Posted by Miss Jessikah