Halloween

Looking for information on what is going on this Halloween?  Look here for information from the City of Des Plaines, their rules and regulations for trick-or-treating, and safety tips.  Don't forget to head to downtown Des Plaines this Saturday to check out the annual Halloween Hooplah celebration.  Not only will there be festivities and trick-or-treating with the businesses, the Des Plaines Park District is hosting a craft on the 2nd floor of the library from 1-3pm, and the library will finish off the entire celebration with Wild and Wacky Magic by Randy at 3pm in our first floor meeting rooms.

Don't miss out on all of the fun!

Meet Author Kevin Henkes

Autumn is upon us and so is a season of reading. Summer offers outdoor activities, travels, and many more fun sports. Now, days are getting shorter and the weather gets cooler, so you tend to stay inside longer. It is a perfect time to restart good reading habit. Kevin Henkes is one of the most popular children's authors and illustrators. His books are known for their emotions that resonate with readers of all ages, as well as for their expressive and lively illustrations. Many of Kevin Henkes' characters are mice. They have loving, supportive, understanding parents, teachers, and other adults. They face common childhood problems, and emotions ----being bullied, feeling not secure, giving up blankets, getting lost---- Kevin Henkes was a junior in high school when he decided to write and illustrate children's books. He said "I remember drawing at a very early age. I loved it. And my parents and teachers told me I was good at it --that made me love it all the more." His first book was published when he was nineteen years old. He has won numerous awards, including the Caldecott Medal and the Newbery Honor.

In his first book, Little White Rabbit is always wondering about everything: what would it be like to be tall, or green, or to flutter through the air.  Kitten's First Full Moon won the Caldecott Medal, Olive's Ocean won the Newbery Honor.

Some of other titles are:

Lily's Big Day, Wemberly Worried, Julius the Baby of the World, Chester's Way, and Lily's Purple Plastic Purse.

Moving

As a person who moved just last month, I know that moving is a hard process both physically and mentally. Moves just down the street or to a nearby town are equally as difficult and tiring as moves across the country. I’ve done both in the last two years and it was and still is hectic trying to adjust to new surroundings and new routines. What makes a move many times more difficult is moving with children. Children need routines and familiar surroundings much more than adults do. Having a cozy surrounding with familiar toys and the same routine throughout the move is a great at helping children adapt to their new surroundings. You can also help your child adapt more quickly by reading books or watching DVDs about moving and new places before, during, and after the move:

Picture Books:

Lauren’s Moving Day by Sarah, Duchess of York

Even though Lauren is excited about her family's new house and having her own bedroom for the first time, she is anxious about the move and worried about changes. Includes ten hints for parents to help children move to a new home.

The Berenstain Bears' Moving Day by Stan Berenstain

The Bear family decides it is time to move to a larger house.

Big Ernie’s New Home by Teresa Martin

A cat named Big Ernie wakes up one day to find his boy, Little Henry, packing boxes and preparing them for a move from the big city to Sante Fe, Arizona. Big Ernie is confused, misses familiar smells and weather, and feels sad. With gentle assurances and understanding from Little Henry and by engaging in familiar routines, Big Ernie learns to deal with being worried, mad, and a little sad about being uprooted and moved. He begins to feel at home in his new house, and soon he is ready for any new adventure.

Chapter Books:

Jack Adrift: Fourth Grade without A Clue by Jack Gantos

When his father rejoins the Navy and moves the family to Cape Hatteras, North Carolina, ten-year-old Jack becomes confused by a crush on his teacher, contradictory advice from his parents, and a very strange neighbor.

Piper Reed, Navy Brat by Kimberly Willis Holt

Piper is sad about leaving her home and friends behind when her father, a Navy aircraft mechanic, is transferred yet again, but with help from her often-annoying sisters and a surprise from their parents, she finds happiness in their new home in Pensacola, Florida.

Moving Day by Meg Cabot

Nine-year-old Allie Finkle has rules for everything and is even writing her own rule book, but her world is turned upside-down when she learns that her family is moving across town, which will mean a new house, school, best friend, and plenty of new rules.

For Parents:

Moving with Kids by Lori Collins Burgan

Thirteen million children in the U.S. each year leave behind familiar people and places to move to new homes across town and across the country. Moving can be hard for parents too, as they not must not only prepare themselves but also help their children cope with the changes. In Moving with Kids, social worker and mother of three Lori Collins Burgan offers 25 practical, action-oriented tips for parents before, during, and after a move.

DVDs:

Berenstain Bears Always Look on the Bright Side

Let’s Get A Move On!

2 Weeks Till Halloween!

Halloween is only two weeks away! It's exciting to think that soon kids will be getting dressed up in their costumes, going trick or treat around the neighborhood, and telling each other spooky stories.

What if your child doesn't have a costume yet? Never fear, the library is here to rescue you! We have lots of good books to get your creative juices going and help you create an amazing costume for your child.

Ecocrafts: Creative Costumes had lots of great ideas and uses materials that most likely you have around the house. For instance you can make a mermaid costume out of plastic bags! Other cool creative ideas include a knight, dragon, and pirate.

Disney's Face-Painting and Costume Book has many different costume ideas. What I loved about a lot of these costumes was that they incorporated sweatshirts and sweatpants or a long t-shirt as the base of the costume. There are many cute ideas like Tiger, Cinderella, and Captain Hook. The book also gives detailed information about how to do the face painting for each costume as well as a close up picture of the face so you can clearly see what the final image is supposed to look like.

If your child thinks they just want their face painted for Halloween we have several videos for you to check out! The series Create Faces has several titles: Animal Faces, Halloween Horror, and Halloween Classics. Some face painting examples are vampire, mummy, zombie, alien, superhero, cat, monkey, and dog.

I've got some ideas for my Halloween costume! Come in to the library today and look for these books and movies, as well as others that we have on this topic.

Ecocrafts: Creative Costumes
Disney's Face-Painting and Costume Book
Create Faces: Animal Faces
Create Faces: Halloween Classics
Create Faces: Halloween Horror

Teaching Children about Holidays

The holiday season is upon us...Whether you celebrate or not it's impossible to avoid songs, decorations, and "season's greeting" that appear around this time of year.  Learning the stories and customs behind various holidays is an excellent activity for you and your children.  For holidays you do celebrate, this will strengthen your children's connection to their cultural or religious heritage.  For those you don't celebrate, it will help both you and your children to gain a better appreciation for the world we live in.

In addition to learning about diverse holidays, it's important for families to create their own rituals (whether they are religious in nature or not). If you would like to learn more about holidays and rituals we recommend checking out books in our diverse Holiday collection. Each book there has a sticker to correspond with the holiday.

Happy holidays to all of you!

Fall Drop-In Storytimes

Many of us eagerly wait for the fall lineup of our favorite television programs. Why not check out our exciting new fall storytime listings instead? All sessions will be presented the first three weeks of October and November, and will not be held the fourth week of each month.

In addition to the Tuesday and Thursday morning programs at 10:30 am for 2 year olds with parent or caregiver, and the Wednesday afternoon 2:00 and Thursday morning 9:30 for 3-5 year olds, we are now offering three evening family storytimes, Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday nights at 7 pm.

Monday night highlights our new Spanish-English language program, Tuesday night (formerly Monday) continues our themed storytimes, and Wednesday evening explores Polish-English language stories. Please pick up a flyer on the second floor of the library for a more complete listing of all these wonderful opportunities. No registration is necessary, just join us in the Storytime Room for the fun!