Harvest Around the World

It’s that time of year again—the leaves are beginning to turn gold, red, and brown as they fall, the pumpkins are fat and round, and the farmers are beginning the rush of work to end the season. Autumn means a lot of things to a lot of people, but across the world it indicates harvest time.

Here in the United States we celebrate Halloween and Thanksgiving, rake up piles of leaves (and jump into them!), and drink warm cider, but what about in other parts of the world?

In Québec, well-known as one of the French-speaking provinces of Canada, everyone gathers together on October 9^th to celebrate Canadian Thanksgiving day. Due to their French background, foods like French apple tart and French bread are served alongside the turkey and seasonal vegetables that Americans also serve at their Thanksgiving.

A cailleac/corn husk doll

Even across “the Pond,” the harvest is celebrated! In (mostly) rural parts of Britain, people celebrate the last harvest by singing, dancing, and decorating the village with harvested materials like dried flowers, fruits, and vegetables. As part of the festival, they take the last sheaf of corn, called the cailleac, and form it into a doll. This doll is meant to represent the spirit of the field and so the harvesters soak the doll with water as a rain charm to bring good luck. The cailleac is saved until the spring planting.

 

Our final stop in our whirlwind tour takes us to India and the rice harvest festival. In the state of Tamilnad in particular, the traditional south Indian sweet made of rice, sugar, fruits, and butter used to celebrate the harvest is called pongal, which is also the name of their festival. Before Pongal, everyone cleans their homes—either whitewashing the walls or covering them with red clay before painting designs on the walls and even the floors. Pongal is celebrated over the course of three days: on the first day, the people thank the gods for the rain that made a good harvest, on the second day, they express their gratitude for the sun, then on the third day, everyone honors the cattle who have helped to both plow the fields and gather the harvest. The families take their water buffalo, wash it, then they paint its horns and hang garlands of flowers around its neck.

Want to learn more about festivals and events in other countries? Ask our librarian to show you our intercultural celebrations section. For books, stories, and information on the harvest and autumn—we have a display right behind the Children’s Room desk; any book that you see is yours to check out and take home!

Old-fashioned games @ your library!

We have a new DIY program for October - a variety of old-fashioned (low tech!) games.  From simple wooden toys to puzzles and games, there is something for all ages. Try your hand at tangrams or solitaire, play with one of the shape puzzles, or test your aim with marbles. Play Shut the Box or Nine Mens Morris, and take a look at some of our books for outside game ideas.  Fill out a raffle ticket for a chance to win a prize!

Try Shut the Box -  roll the dice, "shut" the number rolled, OR any combination of numbers adding up to that number, and see if you can shut the doors on all the boxes.  Challenge yourself, your friends, and your family.
We have scoresheets so you can keep track.

New Movies

We've added two new movies to the DVD collection:

Gulliver's Travels starring Jack Black is a comedy-adventure based on the classic story by Jonathan Swift. After a shipwreck Gulliver finds safety on the island of Lilliput where everyone is tiny! He is a giant there and has many adventures with the Lilliputians. Rated: PG

Not sure if this movie is right for your kids? Check out the website Common Sense Media. Its mission is to improve the lives of kids and families by providing trustworthy information about books, movies, and music. Here's a link to their review of Gulliver's Travels.

First Dog is about a boy named Danny who finds a friend in a lost dog. Danny soon discovers that this dog just happens to be Teddy--the President's pup. The two head out on a cross-country adventure to get Teddy home to the White House. This film features original songs by Dolly Parton.


RFPL cardholders can check out 2 free movies on Wednesdays!

October is Bullying Prevention Awareness Month

StopBullying.gov defines bullying as:  unwanted, aggressive behavior among school aged children that involves a real or perceived power imbalance. The behavior is repeated, or has the potential to be repeated, over time. Bullying includes actions such as making threats, spreading rumors, attacking someone physically or verbally, and excluding someone from a group on purpose.

Parents, school staff, and other caring adults have a role to play in preventing bullying. We can help kids understand bullying by talking about what bullying is and how to stand up to it safely. Kids need to know that bullying is unacceptable and they need to know how to get help if it is happening to them or if they see it happening to someone else. 

Sharing books is a great way to start the discussion with kids.  Check out some of these titles from our collection:

Bully by Patricia Polacco

My Secret Bully by Trudy Ludwig

I am Jack by Susanne Gervay

Chrissa by Mary Casanova

We Want You to Know:  Kids Talk About Bullying by Deborah Ellis

Mother Goose

The RFPL has long offered a Mother Goose Storytime, which currently meets on the first three Tuesdays of the month at 10AM.  This storytime is designed for our youngest patrons from birth to 18 months and their caregivers.  Our time together offers an opportunity to sit on the floor with your child and sing, read books, play finger games, make music, and dance.  It is often the highlight of my week!  All of our work is really play and is closely aligned with the Every Child Ready to Read @ your Library initiative that some of our previous blog posts have highlighted.
The character, Mother Goose, is synonymous with childhood rhymes and songs, often called nursery rhymes.  Building familiarity with these nursery rhymes is a great starting point for developing strong pre-reading skills.  Many of them offer a bit of nonsense, animal fun, and most importantly a strong rhyme scheme which catches the ears of little ones.  Most of us can quickly recite a few nursery rhymes without too much thought since they are also brief.  During Mother Goose Storytime we incorporate these traditional rhymes with new favorites.  The library has a variety of Mother Goose books for families to enjoy.  Check out one today and rhyme and sing with your child!

September App Spotlight

We’ve added some great apps to our Early Literacy iPads since our last App Spotlight. Many are enhanced eBooks. Enhanced eBooks typically feel less like games and act more like interactive books.  These books often include a “read to me" feature but can also be read independently. Children can also interact with illustrations to reinforce themes or learning objectives. Stop by the RFPL Children’s Room to give the Early Literacy iPads and enhanced eBooks a try.

 

New Enhanced eBooks at RFPL:  

One Fish, Two Fish, Red Fish, Blue Fish

This enhanced eBook reads one of Dr. Seuss’ most famous titles to readers. Children have the option to touch the “page” and learn more about the illustrations.

Moo, Baa, La La La!

Based on the book by Sandra Boynton, this silly story will have the youngest readers laughing and practicing animal sounds. This app has the feel of a pop-up board book. The illustrations are fun to interact with and help to reinforce animal sounds for young readers.

Press Here

This app is a playful adaptation of Hervé Tullet’s playful book about dots. Each dot on the home screen leads to a different game or scenario that children can interact with. Some games can even be played with a companion (a great option for siblings or friends sharing the iPad).

The 5 Early Literacy Practices: Playing

This fifth and final post in a series about the Every Child Ready to Read @ your library initiative focuses on the importance of play. Playing is one of the ways your child builds early literacy skills. Every Child Ready to Read outlines four additional early literacy practices--talking, singing, reading, and writing--for parents and caregivers to do with young children (0-5 years) on a regular basis.  

Children explore language and learn about the world through imaginative play. They practice putting their thoughts into words and begin to think symbolically. For example, a cardboard tube stands for a telescope or a box becomes a robot when a child is engaged in play. This is a key developmental step for reading readiness. Literacy research shows that knowing how to think symbolically is important for also understanding that words on the page stand for real objects or experiences in the world. Imaginative play narratives also help children understand and explore the building blocks of stories. When children play "house" or "doctor" or build towns with blocks, they are creating their own stories and they are also getting ready to read! You can add "literacy-rich" items to your child's playtime such as a dress-up box, puppets, and items that can be used in play narratives, like takeout menus and a notepad for taking orders when playing "restaurant."