Programming Ideas 

Ellison Die Cuts at East Liberty - District Services  Ellison Machine Dies.doc

Babies

• Searchable programs for infants

•  123 Fingerplays 123 fingerplays songs poems.doc 

Toddler/Preschool

• After reading the picture book version of Flat Stanley to your preschool storytime have the children make their own Flat Stanleys. Then send these Stanleys to other libraries so he can visit their storytime! This program idea was posted on the PUBYAC (Public Libraries, Young Adults, and Children) list serve by a librarian at the Lane Public Library in Hamilton, Ohio.

• Peep and the Big Wide World Event Kit  This WGBH/Boston cartoon teaches preschoolers about science. It doesn't look they they show it on our PBS station, WQED, however this event kit, which is being offered for free to all Association for Library Service to Children (ALSC) members seems like an awesome resource. It provides agendas for 1 hour science experiments, customizable flyers (in English & Spanish), and family handouts (in English & Spanish)!  Librarians interested in getting a kit should contact Gay Mohrbacher at gay_mohrbacher@wgbh.org
•  Visual Literacy (Picture Book) Titles for Toddlers recommended by librarians across the country.  The illustrations in these books mimic the text (reinforcing concepts), make children guess what's happening in the story, or require readers to find things in the pictures...among others!  Multiple titles by the same author are grouped together. Toddlers Visual Literacy.doc
• Searchable Programs for toddler/preschool

Grades K-2

• Bookmaking @ your library!  Check out this brochure in color or black and white for ideas and resources to plan a bookmaking program.
• The Felt Book: Easy to Make Projects for All Ages by Clare Beaton seems like it will have simple (i.e. only glue & felt needed) crafts suitable for all types of storytimes!

• List of picture books that exemplify literary elements  bks_literary_elements1.doc
• retrievr  "retrievr is an experimental service which lets you search and explore in a selection of flickr images by drawing a rough sketch."  It'd be really interesting to have one child draw and see what the others think the image is.  Then see if flickr returns images that match any of these suggestions.  It could be neat to pair this with a specific book, whether it's to have your program participants draw picture from the book, or use it another  way!
• Searchable Programs for K-2 

Grades 3-5

• Want to start showing Anime at your library?  Check out Anime for Libraries a site where librarians review different movies and recommend what age they're appropriate for and whether or not they should be shelved in the children's, YA, or adult sections of your library. 

• Bookmaking @ your library! Check out this brochure in color or black and white for ideas and resources to plan a bookmaking program.

• Great idea for a book club
• DDR at your library! Everything you need to know!
• Picnik  Picnik is an online photo editing service.  It lets you add fonts, frames, shapes and effects.  The great thing about it is that you can edit photos that are already online (like in flickr, facebook, photobucket, etc).  Not having to deal with cameras or flashdrives could make a program using this much easier.  Also, you don't need to register to use Picnik!
• Roald Dahl Day, September 13.  Plan a program using two books of recipes that relate to Dahl's works: Roald Dahl's Revolting Recipes and Roald Dahl's Even More Revolting Recipes! Also check out The Roald Dahl Website for ideas or Activity Village for craft activities!  (I know this is past, but I think it's worthwhile to leave up for next year!)
• The Spiderwick Chronicles has been made into a movie by Nickolodeon.  It's coming out in February 2008.  To plan a Spiderwick program for your library check out these resources: The Official Site, activities at the Simon & Schuster site, Movie Site, and the Fan Club site.
• Searchable Programs for School age
• slimy science.doc
• Mother Daughter Book Club title suggestions MotherDaughter.doc 

Tweens

• Life-Size Clue
• Kids and their Camera-Phones!  So many teens and tweens have camera-phones these days, why not engage the tweens and their phones with some photography games!
• Spa Day! So maybe this one's just for the girls, but bring on the nail polish, hand cream, even go crazy with facials and cucumbers! To save money, have the girls bring some of their own beauty supplies. Slip the books in by booktalking some fun books with rocking female characters and a positive portrayal of girl togetherness.
• Yuck in the Library  Everyone loves the gross stuff! This program can include doing your own yucky science experiments--make your own slime, vampire soap, and even fake snot. If you're really brave, try making your own gross-yet-edible snack! Pair the program with some fun books like Hands-on Grossology by Sylvia Branzei and Oh Yuck! The Encyclopedia of Everything Nasty by Joy Masoff.
• Host a Mystery Party With a mystery party, the children will play act from a script or character clues, gather other clues, and attempt to solve a mystery.  This page from about.com lists resources for kits and offers suggestions for pulling off a great party.  Alternatively, you could have the tweens write and act out their own mystery game for an audience, the audience having to solve the case!
• High Tech recycling Here are a few craft ideas that reuse computer and other electronics to create something new, saving them from the trash!  MP3s are now in so use your old CDs to create a CD Clock , use up the last of your 3 1/2" diskettes and floppy disks to create mini-notebooks (using recylced paper of course!)  Not so high tech, but pretty inexpensive to make (everyone gets junk mail) are these paper stars made from junk mail and catalogs
• Operation Facelift (Bookcover Rejuvenation) From the Mid-Hudson Library System: Children adopt a book which the library wishes to keep that has no cover. Children read the book, then illustrate a new cover. Hold special artists' reception where children receive Certificates of Appreciation and gift.  This idea can be tweaked in all sorts of ways.  Don't want to sacrifice library books?  Have the kids bring one from home!
• T-Shirt Surgery  Using inspiriation from DIY fashion sites or books, help tweens transform a boring t-shirt into a wearable work of art.  Some ideas include using Clorox bleach pens to draw and write on the shirts, freezer paper stencils,  Check out some of these titles for ideas and have them on hand:

Generation T : 108 ways to transform a T-shirt

99 ways to cut, sew, trim & tie your t-shirt into something special

Rip it! : how to deconstruct and reconstruct the clothes of your dreams

Tips to make it boy friendly: Buy a bunch of iron-on transfers and just print out images from the Internet--like skull and crossbones, sports memorabilia, etc. They can also add big safety pins, chains, anything tough looking.

• A book swap and mini-party

All Ages

• Banks, Carrie.  "All Kinds of Flowers Grow Here: The Child's Place for Children with Special Needs at Brooklyn Public Library." Children & Libraries, vol. 2, No. 1, Spring 2004, pp. 5-10.  This article provides suggestions on ways to include children with special needs in your programming, whether it's by passing around representations of the book's characters or doing crafts. There are also plenty of recommended additional resources.
• Check out Scholastic's Celebrate Hispanic Heritage site to "Meet Famous Latinos" and get inspired.  Or look at the Mexico for Kids site.
• Crayola has a super site with lots of craft ideas
• Dave Crawley can visit your library!  davecrawley.pdf

• Culture Crossing. This program, which was listed on the Chicago Public Library's Children's Page  Calendar of Events, is an opportunity for patrons to learn about their neighbors and people around the world. Attendees are  encouraged to bring an item that represents their cultural heritage to share with others. This brief description allows you the freedom to modify the program to best suit your neighborhood.