Monday, February 10, 2025

Melody: An American Girl Party

I hosted this event in February 2023 in honor of Black History Month. The setting of the Melody books is 1964 Detroit, Michigan.


I shared information about the setting in the following categories:
  • 1964 Cost of Living (image from reddit)
  • About Melody's Time from Music in My Heart: My Journey with Melody by Erin Falligant
  • Inside Melody's World from Never Stop Singing by Denise Lewis Patrick
  • Food
    • Pop-Tarts (1964)
    • Doritos (1964)
    • Sprite (1961)

  • Music
    • Do You Love Me by the Contours
    • I Can’t Help Myself (Sugar Pie, Honey Bunch) by The Four Tops
    • The Way You Do the Things You Do by The Temptations
    • (Love is Like A) Heat Wave by Martha Reeves & the Vandelles
    • How Sweet It Is (To Be Loved by You) by Marvin Gaye
    • You’ve Really Got a Hold On Me by the Miracles 
  • Books
    • The Giving Tree by Shel Silverstein
    • Charlie and the Chocolate Factory by Roald Dahl
    • Harriet the Spy by Louise Fitzhugh
  • Board & Card Games
    • Hi Ho! Cherry-O
    • The Game of Life
    • Skip-Bo
 
We played hopscotch and Simon says and enjoyed Pop-Tarts, Doritos, and Sprite. 




For a craft we made Melody's Pennant Craft from the Lift Your Voice: A Melody Event Planner which was once available on the American Girls website. 

Friday, February 7, 2025

Claudie: An American Girl Party

Planning this event was a new experience for me. Claudie Wells is a relatively new Historical Character from American Girl. She was introduced in 2022. At the time I hosted this event (February 2023), there was only one book out. As a newer character, she didn't have a party kit, craft book, cook book, or welcome to her world book. To plan the event, I did a close reading of Meet Claudie: An American Girl by Brit Bennett. The book was both well written and well researched and featured a committee of historical reviewers. 


I had the following books on display and referred to them during the event 
  • Meet Claudie: An American Girl by Brit Bennett
  • One Last Word: Wisdom from the Harlem Renaissance by Nikki Grimes
  • Legacy: Women Poets of the Harlen Renaissance by Nikki Grimes
  • Harlem Renaissance: Art of Black America introduction by Mary Schmidt Campbell, essays by David Driskell, David Levering Lewis, and Deborah Willis Ryan

I always start my American Girl Parties by sharing information about the time. Here's what I shared: 
  • Harlem and Harlem Renaissance (see Inside Claudie’s World section on pages 74-81 of Meet Claudie)
  • Poems from books by Nikki Grimes
  • Art from Harlem Renaissance: Art of Black America
  • Selections from The Brownies’ Book
    • Miss Kitty Cat and Her New Hat by Minna B. Noyes (August 1921, p. 235)
    • The Lament of a Vanquished Beau by Langston Hughes ((August 1921, p. 229)


  • Music
    • Original Jelly-Roll Blues - Jelly Roll Morton - 1924 (written/published 1915)
    • Black and Tan Fantasy - Duke Ellington - 1927


  • Books
    • The Brownies’ Book (The Brownies’ Book is mentioned on page 4 of Meet Claudie. Archives are available here. Note: The New Brownies' Book: A Love Letter to Black Families inspired by W. E. B. DuBois and the original Brownies' Book periodical published in October 2023)


    • Cecily Parsley's Nursery Rhymes by Beatrix Potter
    • The Voyages of Doctor Dolittle by Hugh Lofting
    • Rootabaga Stories by Carl Sandburg
    • The Velveteen Rabbit by Margery Williams
  • Food
    • Baby Ruth (1921)
    • Zero (1920)
    • Cheez-Its (1921)

Game: Poor Kitty (The Brownies' Book, PLAYTIME, Games Arranged by Annette C. Browne, July 1921, p. 200)




Craft: Farm Animal Finger Puppets (Printable from KizClubPuppets are mentioned on page 11 of Meet Claudie.)

Refreshments: Cheez-It crackers and Baby Ruth bars


Wednesday, February 5, 2025

Addy: An American Girl Party

I hosted this event in February 2023 in honor of Black History Month. 

I took inspiration from Kelly's American Girl Club: Meet Addy event

I shared the following information:

  • Addy Walker section from The American Girl Club Handbook (pp.72-75)
  • Clothes section from The American Girl Club Handbook (p. 79)
  • Spirituals section from The American Girl Club Handbook (pp.86-87)

We listened to This Little Light of Mine.

We played Ribbon’s End, a game from The American Girls Party Book (p. 46). 

For crafts we played string games. I taught the girls to make Jacob's Ladder and a Button Whirligig. I shared the Cat’s Cradle information on page 40 of Addy’s Craft Book. 

Refreshments: peppermint sticks, Nonpareils (Sno-Caps), jelly beans, licorice, lemonade

Monday, February 3, 2025

Cécile and Marie-Grace: An American Girl Party


I hosted this event in February 2023 in honor of Black History Month. 

I took inspiration from Kelly's American Girl Club: Meet Cécile and Marie-Grace event

I always start my American Girl Parties off by sharing information about the time period. Here's what I shared: 

  • New Orleans in 1853 from Meet Cécile by Denise Lewis Patrick and Meet Marie-Grace by Sarah Masters Buckey (especially Carnival and Mardi Gras)
  • President in 1853
  • Yellow Fever 
  • Potato Chips 
  • Facts about Cécile and Marie-Grace from American Girl Character Encyclopedia

Game: There's a Parrot in the Parlor (from Cécile & Marie-Grace Just for Fun: The Make-It, Play-It, Solve-It Book of Fun!)


Craft: Mardi Gras Masks (Printable from Mommy Made That. I provided scissors, glue sticks, markers, glitter glue, and gem stickers.)

Refreshments: licorice, peppermint sticks, Nonpareils (Sno-Caps), potato chips, lemonade (I would have liked to have Necco wafers but couldn't find any at the time. French bread or a baguette would have been good as well as something with pecans if there weren't any allergies. 


Take Home Activity Packet: 

  • Draw Argos (p.22)
  • Masquerade (p.30)
  • Draw Cochon (p.37)
  • There’s a Parrot in the Parlor! (p.49)

(all from Cécile & Marie-Grace Just for Fun: The Make-It, Play-It, Solve-It Book of Fun!)


Friday, January 31, 2025

Ordinary People Change the World Book Chats and Xavier Riddle Celebration

I serve as the PBS NC Rootle Ambassador for one of the counties I serve. My role as a Rootle Ambassador is to promote PBS resources to parents and children through engagement events twice a year. 

I like to focus on PBS Kids shows that are book based (see Dinosaur Party and Clifford the Big Red Dog Party) or that fit in well with the library's collections (see Party Like the Kratts and Cat). Given that I decided to host a series of book chats that focused on the Ordinary People Change the World book series by Brad Meltzer and wrap up with an Xavier Riddle Celebration. The PBS Kids show Xavier Riddle and the Secret Museum was inspired by the book series. 


I pulled resources from PBS Kids, PBS Kids for Parents, PBS Learning Media, and the Book series website

I chose a book chat format as opposed to a book club format so the kids could read any more in the series and talk about it. At the time of the book chats, there were 32 books in the series. 


At the first book chat, we talked about the following books: Amelia Earhart, Helen Keller, Harriet Tubman, Sacajawea, Marie Curie, Neil Armstrong, and I. M. Pei. I pointed out the comic book style of the illustrations and the timeline and real photos at the end of the books. 

Together we looked at the Harry Houdini Biosketch and the Anna Pavlova Biosketch from PBS Learning Media. The kids took home the following in addition to the Biosketches: 

At the second book chat, we talked about the following books: Jane Goodall, Harry Houdini, Albert Einstein, Gandhi, and Temple Grandin. Together we looked at the Cleopatra Biosketch and the Theodore Roosevelt Biosketch from PBS Learning Media. The kids took the following home in addition to the biosketches: 
At the third event which was a celebration of the TV show, we went over the Leonardo da Vinci Biosketch from PBS Learning Media and the kids took the following home:
  • Leonardo da Vinci Sentence Starter
  • Leonardo da Vinci Venn Diagram 
  • Activity Page (PBS Kids)
We ended the event with a character scavenger hunt. I got the images from the printables and coloring pages on PBS Kids for Parents


Friday, January 24, 2025

Teddy Bear Picnic 2023

I've hosted Teddy Bear Picnics in 2013 and 2015. The last time I blogged about it was in 2013. It was so interesting to see how my event planning style had changed in 10 years. 

We started off with music and a craft. The kids danced and/or listened to "The Teddy Bears' Picnic" sung by Bing Crosby. Then we made Teddy Bear Ears. The template came from Twinkl.  


We then had snacks, facts, books, and more music. The snacks were teddy grahams or animal crackers and fruit snacks. Here are the facts I shared with the kids: 


  • The first teddy bear was made in 1903
  • Teddy bears are named after US President Theodore Roosevelt, whose nickname was Teddy
  • The music for the song “The Teddy Bears’ Picnic” dates back to 1907 [lyrics added in 1932]
  • July 10 is The Teddy Bear’s Picnic Day in the United States
  • Teddy Bear Day is September 9.
  • Winnie the Pooh Day is January 18.
  • Have a Party with Your Bear Day is November 16. 

Note: The first 4 facts came from Teatime Monkeys. The rest came from Brownielocks


We read Louis by Tom Lichtenheld and Bear Is a Bear by Jonathan Stutzman. The kids danced with their stuffed animal friends to "Rock A Bye Your Bear" by The Wiggles and "Waltzing with Bears" by Priscilla Herdman. 

We moved on to some games. We played Food Toss and Ant Toss. For Food Toss, the kids tossed crocheted food into a picnic basket. For Ant Toss, the kids tossed rubber ants onto a picnic tablecloth. 



We ended our picnic with a Teddy Bear Shapes Scavenger Hunt and a take home activity packet. The clipart for the scavenger hunt came from Teachers Pay Teachers.


The take home packet included the following: 

I also had a little photo op with a picnic blanket, basket, and bears. 


Wednesday, January 22, 2025

Poetry Picnic

Description: Families and children of all ages are invited to celebrate National Poetry Month by listening to food themed poetry and playing a few games. Feel free to bring a picnic blanket to sit on in the meeting room.

 


Share poems from the following: 

The Popcorn Astronauts and Other Bitable Rhymes by Deborah Ruddell

·         Lickety-Split Picnic

·         Your Choices at the Totally Toast Café

·         21 Things to Do with an Apple

·         Menu for a Gray Day

 The 20th Century Children’s Poetry Treasury selected by jack Prelutsky

·         Alligator Pie by Dennis Lee

·         Noodles by Janet S. Wong

 Where the Sidewalk Ends by Shel Silverstein

·         Spaghetti

·         Alice

·         Recipe for a Hippopotamus Sandwich

·         Eighteen Flavors

 The New Kid on the Block by Jack Prelutsky

·         Bleezer’s Ice Cream

 Hard-Boiled Bugs for Breakfast and Other Tasty Poems by Jack Prelutsky

·         My Family’s Last Picnic

·         The Stir-Frying Pandas

·         Bananas

 Read-Aloud Rhymes for the Very Young selected by Jack Prelutsky

·         Toaster Time by Eve Merriam

·         Yellow Butter by Mary Ann Hoberman

 My Dog May Be a Genius by Jack Prelutsky

·         Sandwich Stan

·         I Wanted Macaroni

  Game: Picnic Bingo (Source: Etsy)

 


Movement Song: The Ants Go Marching

Game: Pass the Sandwich (From 2016 CSLP On Your Mark Children’s Manual, Chapter 7, p. 153)

Take Home: