Winter Delights with Family Literacy Night...Winter Delights with Family Literacy Night Keep ’em Reading • Grades K–2, 3–5 Further reading, reproducibles, and resources to

December 2012 Web Resources • LibrarySparks • 1

Winter Delights with Family Literacy Night

Keep ’em Reading •

Grades K–2, 3–5 Further reading, reproducibles, and

resources to make your Winter Family Literacy Night a success

ActivitiesIditaread: Race to Read Winter Delights (Science & Social Studies)• Kidsliketohearstaffmembersandtheircur-

rentandpastteachersreadaloud.Takeadvan-tageofthisbyholdingread-aloudsthroughouttheevening.Inadvance,selectandsetasideavarietyofwinterbooksforteacherstoreadtostudentsandtheirfamilies.Trytoincludesomeofthesehighlyreviewedtitles:1. Akiak: A Tale from the IditarodbyRobertJ.

Blake.2. How Do You Know When It’s Winter by

RuthOwen.3. Iditarod DreambyTedWood.4. It’s Snowing! It’s Snowing!WinterPoemsby

JackPrelutsky.*5. Kiana’s IditarodbyShelleyGill.6. Mouse and Mole: A Winter Wonderland by

WongHerbertYee.7. Rabbit’s Winter WalkbyLornaHussey.8. Snow Rabbit, Spring Rabbit: A Book of

Changing Seasons byIlSungNa.9. Snowy, Blowy WinterbyBobRaczka.10. The Twelve Days of Winter: A School

Counting BookbyDeborahLeeRose.11.When Winter Comes byNancyVanLaan.12.Winter bySianSmith.13.Winter: An Alphabet AcrosticbySteven

Schnur.14.Winter EyesbyDouglasFlorian.*15.Winter Is the Warmest SeasonbyLauren

Stringer.16.Winter Lights: A Season in Poems & Quilts

byAnnaGrossnickleHines.*17.Winter TreesbyCaroleGerber.

by | Aileen Kirkham

• Afteryou’vegatheredthebooksyouwishtobereadaloud,bookmarkthewebsitehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iditarod_Trail_Sled_Dog_Race

• Generateascheduleofstaffguestreadersfor15-minutereadalouds.

• Contactguestreaderstoletthemchoosewhichbooktheywanttoread.Remindthemtheyneedtobringtheirbookattheirassignedtime,thenreturnittothelibrary.

• Postthescheduleattheschool’sentranceonthenightoftheevent.Outsidethespecificareas/roomswherethereadingswillbeheld,postalistwiththetitleofthebook,thenameoftheguestreader,andthetimeofthereading.

Activity1. DisplaythebookmarkedWikipediaweb-

siteabouttheIditarod.SaythisrhymeandgiveabriefhistoryofthefirstIditarod.

Way off in Alaska, a long, long time ago, A team of dogs pulled on a sled to go and go

and go. It was an urgent job in terrible weather, But as a team they raced together To deliver medicine in time To those whose lives were on the line.

Keep ‘em Reading

2 • LibrarySparks • December 2012 Web Resources

2. Sharethefactthatgoodbooksarelikewonderfulmedicinetomakeourbrainshealthyandhappy,andthatgueststaffreaderswillracetoreadasmanygoodbooksastheycanaboutWinterWondersthisevening.

3. Introducetheguestreader.4. Iftimeallows,solicitquestionsandcom-

mentsfordiscussion.

Snowriffic Crafts: Make ‘n’ Take (Art & Science)Thisactivitycaneasilybemultipleactivities,witheachroomhavingadifferentcraft.Howmanyyoudodependsonyouraccesstomaterialsandthenumberofpeopleavailabletostafftherooms.• Inadvance,reviewthedirectionsforthevari-

ouswintercraftslistedbelow.1. Crafts to Make in the WinterbyKathy

Ross.BaggySnowman,p.28&29;JarSnowman,p.8&9;SnowmanPin,p.6&7.Recommendedreadaloud:The Biggest Snowman EverbyStevenKroll.

2. Step-by-Step Crafts for Winter byKathyRoss.ChangingFaceSnowman,p.30&31.Recommendedreadaloud:The Biggest Snowman Ever.

3. Kaboose.com,dokeywordsearchesforeachcraftandclickonthelinkfordirectionsthatincludeamaterials’list.

MittenandSnowflakeWallHanging.Recommendedreadaloud:The Mitten: a Ukrainian FolktalebyJanBrett.

MosaicPenguin.Recommendedreadaloud:Antarctic Antics: A Book of Penguin Poems byJudySierra.

SnowyHandprint.Recommendedreadaloud:Winter TreesbyCaroleGerber.

• Decidehowmanyroomsyouwant.• Gatherthematerialsandmakeasampleof

eachcraftitem.Placethesampleandthemate-rialsinatray/containerfordeliverytothatroom.Besuretoincludenewspaperstoprotecttables.

• Gatherwinterpoetryorsnowbooksincludingthoselistedwithcraftsand/ortheserecom-mendedtitles: It’s Snowing! It’s Snowing! Winter Poemsby

JackPrelutsky.

Winter EyesbyDouglasFlorian. Winter Lights: A Season in Poems & Quilts

byAnnaGrossnickleHines.• Whenitistimetomakethecraftswithstu-

dents:1. Saythislittlerhyme Snowriffic fun for everyone, a craft to make-

and-take, A winter poem, a crafting storm of snowy

little flakes.2. Displaythecraftsampleandreadaloud

thewinterpoemor“pictureread”asnowbook.

3. Givedirectionsformakingthecraft.4. Distributematerials.5. Monitorthetimetostopatfiveminutes

beforetheendofthesessiontoallowtimeforcrafterstocleantheirareasbeforethenextgrouparrives.

Winter Wishes: A Blizzard of Books Withbudgetcutsanear-constantproblemformosteducators,youmaywishtodothisactivitytosupplementyourbudget.Iwouldalsoadvertisethisinadvanceonanyflyersthatgohomeand/ortheschoolnewsletter.• Inadvance:

1. Makeavarietyofsnowflakeslargeenoughtoserveasabackingforabookcover.

2. Copy,cut,paste,andprintoutyourwishlistbookjacketcoversfromabookven-dor’swebsite.Useindividualsheetsofpaperforprintingeachoneseparatelyandgluethecoversindividuallyontothesnowflakes.Writethecostofthebooksomewhereonthesnowflake,too.

3. Writeabulletinboard-sizeblurbexplain-ingtheneedtopurchasemorebooksforthelibrarywithwinterthemes.Titleit,“WinterWishes:ABlizzardofBooks.”

4. Usethesnowflakesandblurbtomakeabulletinboarddisplayinoradjacenttothelibrary.

• Activity1. Whenmakingtheannouncementtosignal

theendofeach30-minuteactivity,alsotakeafewsecondstotellfamiliesaboutthelibrary’sneedforbookdonations.TellthemwheretheWinter Wishes: A Blizzard of Booksbulletinboardis,andletthem

Keep ‘em Reading


knowtheycanpickasnowflake,putamonetarydonationwithit,andgiveittoadesignatedpersonandlocationduringtheevening.Youmayalsowanttohavethemwritetheirkids’namesonthesnowflakesoyoucanannouncethedonationandputabookplateinsidethebooktorecognizetheirgenerosity.

2. Thankthemfortheirsupport.

Bibliography• Animal TracksbyArthurDorros.Scholastic,

Inc.,1991.• Animal Tracks and SignsbyJinnyJohnson.

NationalGeographicSociety,2008.• The Biggest Snowman Ever byStevenKroll.

Scholastic,2004.• Brown Bear: the Biggest Meat-eater on Landby

MeishGoldish.BearportPublishing,2010.• Antarctic Antics: A Book of Penguin Poems by

JudySierra.Harcourt,2003,c1998.• Chaucer’s First Winter byStephenKrensky.

Simon&SchusterforYoungReaders,2008.• Crafts to Make in the WinterbyKathyRoss.The

MillbrookPress,1999.• Do Polar Bears Snooze in Hollow Trees? A Book

about HibernationbyLauraPurdieSalas.PictureWindowBooks,2007.

• Grizzly Bears: Saving the SilvertipbyJacquelineDembarGreene.BearportPublishing,2008.

• Hibernation StationbyMichelleMeadows.Simon&SchusterforYoungReaders,2010.

• How Do You Know When Its Winter?byRuthOwen.BearportPublishing,2012.

• Iditarod Dream byTedWood.Walker,2002,c1996.

• It’s Snowing! It’s Snowing! Winter Poems byJackPrelutsky.HarperCollins,2006.

• Mouse and Mole: A Winter WonderlandbyWongHerbertYee.HoughtonMifflinBooksforChildren,2010.

• The Mitten: A Ukrainian FolktalebyJanBrett.G.P.Putnam,2009,c1989.

• Polar Bear Cubs byRuthOwen.BearportPublishing,2011.

• Polar Bear: Shrinking Ice byStephenPerson,2011.

• Polar Bears in DangerbyHelenOrme.BearportPublishing,2007.

• Rabbit’s Winter WalkbyLornaHussey.Sterling,2008.

• Snow Rabbit, Spring Rabbit: A Book of Changing SeasonsbyIlSunNa.AlfredA.Knopf,2010.

• Snowy, Blowy WinterbyBobRaczka.AlbertWhitman&Company,2008.

• Someone Walks By: The Wonders of Winter WildlifebyPollyCarlson-Voiles.RavenProductions,2008.

• Step-by-Step Crafts for WinterbyKathyRoss.BoydsMillPress,2006.

• The Twelve Days of Winter: A School Counting BookbyDeborahLeeRose.AbramsBooksforYoungReaders,2006.

• When Winter ComesbyNancyVanLaan.AtheneumBooksforYoungReaders,2000.

• Why Do Bears Sleep All Winter? A Book about HibernationbyMaryEnglar.CapstonePress,2007.

• WinterbySianSmith.HeinemannLibrary,2009.

• Winter: An Alphabet AcrosticbyStevenSchnur.ClarionBooks,2002.

• Winter Eyes byDouglasFlorian.GreenwillowBooks,1999.

• Winter Is the Warmest SeasonbyLaurenStringer.Harcourt,2006.

• Winter Lights: A Season in Poems & QuiltsbyAnnaGrossnickleHines.GreenwillowBooks,2005.

• Winter Trees byCaroleGerber.Charlesbridge,2009,c2008.

❖ ❖ ❖

Aileen Kirkham is the author of LibraryLessonsforLittleOnes and the intermediate Collaborative Bridges series (both from UpstartBooks); and articles for LibraryMediaConnection and LibrarySparks.After 30 years as a school librarian and classroom teacher, she’s now a full-time educational consultant for staff development; professional storyteller; and program chair for the Houston chapter of the Society for Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators. She would like to dedicate this article to the memory of author and educator Bill Wallace, who knew the secret to writing for even the most reluctant readers. Visit Aileen at www.aileenkirkham.com or email [email protected] with the subject heading “LibrarySparks Reader.”


Black Bear Tracks


Beaver Tracks


Coyote Tracks


Bobcat Tracks


Mountain Lion Tracks


Gray Squirrel Tracks


Moose Tracks


Racoon Tracks


HabitatIliveinwoodlandareasnearlakesandrivers.

Body

Someofmynotablebodyfeaturesarethickfur;shortclawsforclimbinganddigging;andashort,stubbytail.

Food

IamcalledanomnivoresinceIeatanimals,insects,andpartsofplants.

Babies

Mybabiesarecalledcubs.

Interesting factsIfishwithmyclawsandteeth.Iteachmycubstoclimbtreestoescapedanger.

Name of Animal: Black Bear


HabitatIliveinlakesandriversinwoodlandareas.

Body

Someofmynotablebodyfeaturesarewebbedfeet,aflattail,andlargefrontteeth.

Food

IamcalledanherbivoresinceIeatpartsofplants—includingtreebark!

Babies

Mybabiesarecalledkits.

Interesting factsIcanholdmybreathforupto15minutes.Ibuildalodgeofsticksinthewaterformyhome.

Name of Animal: Beaver


HabitatIliveingrasslands,woodlands,deserts,andnearcities,too.

Body

Mybodysize,shape,andcharacteristicsarelikeaGermanShepherd.

Food

IamcalledanomnivoresinceIeatanimals,insects,andpartsofplants.

Babies

Mybabiesarecalledpups.

Interesting factsIsometimestravelinpackslikewolvesdo.Iammostfamousforhowling.

Name of Animal: Coyote


HabitatIliveindeserts,prairies,andwoodlands,andhavebeenseennearsomecities.

Body

Iamtwicethesizeofahousecat.Myfurisgrayishbrownwithblackstreaks.Mytailhasablacktip.IlooklikeIhaveabeardonthebottompartofmyface.

Food

IamclassifiedasacarnivoresinceIeatanimalsandinsects.

Babies

Mybabiesarecalledkittens.

Interesting factsEventhoughIaminthewildcatfamily,themountainlion(cougar,puma)cankillandeatme.Mytailistheshortestinallthewildcatfamilies.

Name of Animal: Bobcat


HabitatIliveindeserts,mountains,woodlands,andhavebeenseennearsomecities.

Body

MybodyissimilartothatofafemaleAfricanlion,andmycoloringrangesfromtantoreddish-brown,andevensilvery-grey.Iamnearlyasbigasajaguar.

Food

IamcalledacarnivoresinceIeatanimalsandinsects.

Babies

Mybabiesarecalledkittens.

Interesting factsIholdtheGuinnessrecordforhavingthemostnamesforoneanimal.Therearemorethan40namesformeintheEnglishlanguage,alone.

Name of Animal: Mountain Lion (Cougar, Panther, Puma)


HabitatIliveinwoodlandsareas,includingthoseinandnearcities.

Body

Someofmybodyfeaturesincludetinyclaws,shortlegs,andabushytail.I’maboutthesizeofaratandhavesharpteethlikearat,too.

Food

IamclassifiedasanherbivoresinceIeatcertainpartsofplantsincludingtreebark,andaninsectivoresincealsoIeatbugs.

Babies

Mybabiesarecalledpups.

Interesting factsIliveinanest,highupinthetrees.Ignawandchewalmostanything—includingpartsofhouses,metal,wiresandnuts.Iampartoftherodentfamily,whichincludesmiceandrats.

Name of Animal: Gray Squirrel


HabitatIliveinwoodlandandgrasslandareaswithlakesandrivers.

Body

Ihaveantlers,andthelargestpartofmyantlersiscalledthepalm.Iwalkonhooves.

Food

IamclassifiedasanherbivoresinceIeatpartsofplants.

Babies

Mybabiesarecalledcalves.

Interesting factsOnce,anauthornamedBillWallacesawmefishingforplantstoeatwithmybottomstuckupintheairandmyheadunderwater.HesaidwhenIcameup,Ihadplantshangingbetweenmyantlersandlookedprettysilly!Hiswife,CarolWallace,wastheninspiredtowritethebookBub Moose.

Name of Animal: Moose


HabitatIlivegrasslandsandfields,andIcanbenearcities,too.

Body

IlooklikeIamwearingamaskonmyface.Ihavealong,bushytailwithblackandwhiteringsaroundit.

Food

IamclassifiedasanomnivoresinceIeatanimals,insects,andpartsofplants.

Babies

Mybabiesarecalledkits.

Interesting factsSinceIamanocturnalanimal,donotbesurprisedifyoufindmedigginginyouroutsidegarbagecanatnight.Oneofmy“sometimes”habitsisdippingmyfoodinwaterbeforeIeatit.

Name of Animal: Raccoon


Animal Track Challenge: What’s Stepping in the Snow?

Find out with these books!

Animal TracksbyArthurDorros.Scholastic,1991.Animal TracksandSignsbyJinnyJohnson.NationalGeographic,2008.

BeaversBeau Beaver Goes to Town byFrancesBloxam.DownEast,2009.Beaver Kits byRuthOwen.BearportPublishing,2011.The Beaver’s Lodge: Building with Leftovers byAdamReingold.BearportPublishing,2010.

Black Bears

Baby Black BearbyAudreyLang.Fitzhenry&Whiteside,2008.Black Bear: North American Bear byStephenSwinburne.BoydsMillPress,2003.Night of the Black Bear: a Mystery in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park byGloriaSkurzynki.NationalGeographic,2007.


BobcatsBobcats byJenniferMarks.CapstonePress,2011.Pouncing Bobcats byJoelleRiley,2003.

CoyotesCoyote: The Barking Dog byNatalieLunis.BearportPublishing,2012.Coyotes byChristineWebster.WeiglPublishers,2008.Watchdog and the Coyotes byBillWallace.AladdinPaperbacks,2002.

Gray Squirrel Gray Squirrel byBarbaraSomervil.CherryLakePublishers,2008.Squirrel KitsbyRuthOwen.BearportPublishing,2011.Squirrel’s New Year’s Resolution byPatMiller.AlbertWhitman,2010.

MooseBub Moose byCarolWallace.Simon&Schuster,2002.The Invisible Moose byDennisHaseley.Dial,2006.Moose byDianaEstigarribia.MarshallCavendish,2006.Moose Tracks!byKarmaWilson.MargaretK.McElderryBooks,2006.


Mountain LionDanger on Panther Peak byBillWallace.AladdinPaperbacks,2008.Florida Panther byWilliamCaper.BearportPublishing,2008.The Mountain LionbyJamesV.Bradley.ChelseaClubhouse,2006.

RaccoonRaccoon Cubs byRuthOwen.BearportPublishing,2011.Raccoon’s Last Race: a Traditional Abenaki Story byJosephBruchac.Dial,2004.RaccoonsbyJenniferHurtig.WeiglPublishing,2008.

Documents

Winter Delights with Family Literacy Night...Winter Delights with Family Literacy Night Keep ’em Reading • Grades K–2, 3–5 Further reading, reproducibles, and resources to