On Tuesday, October 2nd, East Lansing City Manager George Lahanas visited Miss Karrie's story time to read Moose on the Loose by Kathy-Jo

Only two more days left to register!  

Is your child entering kindergarten this fall?

The East Lansing Public Library has many picture books about getting ready to go to kindergarten that you can share with your child. Click here for our Welcome, Kindergarten! booklist.

You will also want to mark your calendar for our 6th annual Welcome Kindergarten! event on Wednesday, August 22, 2-3 pm. Come for a story time featuring local kindergarten teachers and finish with a craft. Please register for this event starting August 8 in person or by phone, 351-2420, ext 5.

To read a helpful article about getting your child ready for kindergarten on the SchoolFamily.com site, click here.

The Michigan Library Association announced last week that City Dog, Country Frog  by Mo Willems is the winner of the 2011 Mitten Award. This lovely picture book is the story of two animals that develop an unusal friendship.

A Mitten Honor Award was given to Sharon Draper for Out of My Mind, Michael Tunnell for Candy Bomber, Julia Donaldson for What the Ladybug Heard,  Bob Raczka for Guyku, and Rob Buyea for Because of Mr. Terrupt.

The Mitten Award was established in 1999 "to recognize one children's book published in the United States within the calendar year that has captured the attention of children's librarians throughout the State of Michigan for its ability to communicate through literature to an intended audience."

Saturday, March 12          2-3 pm

Visit with storybook favorite, Froggy! Enjoy stories and a craft.

Bring your camera!

Costume sponsored by the Early Childhood Literacy Coalition
 

Here's a great website for parents looking for books for their children, info on why reading is so important, the best books to read aloud, and more. It's authored by Jim Trelease, an expert on literacy for children.

Here's the link: http://www.trelease-on-reading.com/. Also, you may want to check out his book, The Read Aloud Handbook. Enjoy!

Did you know that the Friends of the East Lansing Public Library have used books for sale every day? It's the best deal in town! Stop in the library and check out the Friendshop, where you'll find tons of used books at great prices. There's something for everyone - adult fiction, mysteries, history, gardening, music CDs, magazines, children's books, and much more. You'll pay a fraction of the price of brand new, and when you're done, you can donate them back to the library! And remember, all proceeds benefit the library.

Check out the Friends' web site for more information.

Back by popular demand!  Hurry! Space is limited.

Join us for a special reading time with a trained therapy dog. Each session will last 10 minutes. Bring your own book or choose one at the library.

Ages 5 and up. 

Here are some great web sites to help you find good books for your children.

Kidsreads.com
Part of The Book Report Network, a group of websites that share book reviews, compelling features, in-depth author profiles and interviews, excerpts of the hottest new releases, literary games and contests, and more with readers every week.

About.com: Children's Books
Lots of ads, but still good. You can sign up for Elizabeth Kennedy's (a journalist and educator) email newsletter.

Reading is Fundamental