Home School Club - Kanji Rocks!

If you missed this last meeting, you will want to check out the Bulletin Board on

Japanese Kanji Script.

Next meeting, December 1st - we'll try some brushwork. . . chance to learn some Chinese symbols too!

Call or email me for more info (annette.davis7@gmail.com) I heard we may have some new members in December, so don't miss it!

American Girl Book Club UPDATE

We decided not to meet during the week of Thanksgiving, so the 25th is cancelled.

Next two meetings are December 2 and 16. Briana Gilyard will lead the discussion of "Meet Kit."

We now have the movie too! Let's plan on watching it together during the Christmas holiday break.

A.G. Book Club Meets Tomorrow

We're on our 3rd book, "Kaya's Escape." Discussion Tuesday, Nov. 11 (no school day!) at 4:00. Grace Hanson leads this discussion.

Our next book will be "Meet Kit" in two weeks, Nov. 25. Briana Gilyard will lead that discussion.

"Meet Addy" today at 4

Our American Girl book club meets today. We'll share some items of clothing, props and stuff we found at home that remind us of one of the characters. See if you can guess which character it is.

Cornbread (just a taste), but better than Addy and her mother had on their journey. . . popcorn, lemonade, and good book discussion. These girls have what it takes to make a great book club!

Hello, Pokemon Fans!

It's been great to see all the Trading Card Fans coming out to the weekly games . . . the word has gotten out that we are still meeting during the summer!

Meetings are Wednesdays at 10:00 am - 12:30 (or when finished)

Starting the week of August 20, still on Wednesday, we go back to our school-year time of 3:30 - 5:30. Be sure to tell your friends. See you there . . .

Summer Storytimes

We're into the second week of Storytimes for the Summer Migrant Education Program. Three groups of mixed ages are visiting the library three times a week for three weeks.

Last week we told Trickster Tales and placed the characters on a world map: Anansi the Spider, Zomo the Rabbit, Brer Rabbit and Brer Fox, Coyote , and Jabuti the Tortoise.

This week, we enjoyed a few of the many collected fables: The Town Mouse and the Country Mouse, The Fox and the Grapes, and the Milkmaid and her Pail, to name just three. And just for fun, a tale of Renard the Fox called "Renard and Crow."

My favorite moral: Said the country mouse to the town mouse: "A humble life with peace and quiet is better than a spendid one with danger and risk." --Aesop

You are Invited . . .

Hear ye, hear ye!

This is the week of the "Mad Hatter" Tea Party --
make a hat, enjoy a treat, and play a card game with your friends!

Tuesday at 2pm for Grades K-2
Thursday at 2 pm for Grades 3-6.

Please register 24 hours in advance by calling the library at 893-3955.

Winner receives prize to "Get in the Game" this summer!

Congratulations to Ashley Harris, 4th grader, for her winning essay, "The Lion in Love."
She received a beautiful wood and glass game chest containing six games donated by Rural King. Way to go, Ashley!

Essay Contest Deadline Extended

The Aesop Fable Essay Contest has been extended until April 30 (Wednesday). Kids, 3rd through 5th grade, may enter and win prizes:

Please be sure to read the GUIDELINES, either online at www.rantoul.lib.il.us/Aesopfablescontest.html
or pick up a copy at the Children's Desk in the Library. (Or read on...)

For ideas, check out Aesop's Fables website at www.aesopfables.com --
about 1/2 way down the index list, there is a link to "Selected fables" -- or check out the longer lists divided into four parts. These fables are really very short--something like a "summary" which is what you need to answer question #1. I suggest that you pick your fable, then find another source (print or online) to read a longer version. This will help you answer the 2nd and 3rd questions.

Don't know the questions? Here they are:

1. State the title of the fable and summarize it in your own words; do not repeat the entire fable.

2. Tell why you think the author chose the particular animals for this fable and how the choice of animal helps tell the moral or lesson. For example, why choose a Lion and a Fox in “The Old Lion and the Fox.”

3. Give an example from life where you might learn such a lesson.

That's it! Now hurry and turn in those essays so you can be eligible for the prizes!

Tell me what you know about a fable . . .

Most of us know the fable, "The Hare and the Tortoise," in which Aesop told us about the dangers(!) of procrastination . . .

Now kids in Grades 3-5 can choose a fable to write about and enter Aesop's Essay Contest . . .

Don't procrastinate--the deadline for receipt of your essay is Wednesday, April 30. And the prizes are nifty, too!

Access the rules from the library's homepage, www.rantoul.lib.il.us
and click on the link to "Aesop's Essay Contest."

Tea Party!

Pursuit of Happiness . . . American Colonies . . . Boston Harbor . . . Tea Party!

You are invited to a Tea Party! Bring your mind, and heart, to my online tea party. . . where we can share our reading passions. . . .

I hope you are actively pursuing your happiness, as our Cabin Fever Winter Reading Program winds down. If you've had a chance to read any of the books on the "Pursuit of Happiness" bookshelf, or any other book, feel free to add your comments here.

I discovered some interesting facts about two of our most famous American authors on the "bookshelf": "political pamphleteer" Thomas Paine (1737-1908) and poet Walt Whitman (1819-1892). Each man began his career as a printers apprentice and died relatively poor and alone, but we remember them as men who had a deep effect on the passions and psyche of the nation's people.

Come along to my "Online Tea Party" . . . you're invited to add your comments about what you're reading!

"We the People" Bookshelf -- Some New Old Reads

Just as medical students are advised to read in the humanities, it's good to try something out of your usual genre once in a while. That's the idea behind "Cabin Fever Winter Reading Program" which is going on right now for teens and adults. You're encouraged to read a variety of types of books.

Here's an idea--try one of our new "old" books the library received thru an NEH grant called "We the People." The theme this year is "The Pursuit of Happiness." The list is on the Children's page, but they're not just for youth.

Reach the list on our website (http://www.rantoul.lib.il.us) by clicking on "Children's Library" on the left hand margin, then scroll down and click on "Pursuit of Happiness." Or, go here: http://www.rantoul.lib.il.us/pursuitofhappiness.html

Break that Cabin Fever today!

Last Chance for Making a Valentine

A big THANK-YOU to all who stopped by last week to make valentines for Country Health patients. We still need more valentines, as there are about 70 patients, so if you have a little time, please stop in before Tuesday evening (that's when I'll be delivering them). We have all the stuff, you bring your creativity. It doesn't take much time, and it's fun to create something unique and beautiful, and will lift someone's spirits on Valentine's Day.

Please come to the Children's Desk and ask for me. Hope to see YOU!

Make a Valentine for Nursing Home Residents

We are making valentines for nursing home residents in Gifford, this Thursday and Friday, Feb. 7 and 8, at the Rantoul Public Library. Anyone can participate; we need at least 70 cards. Come down to the Activity Room after school.

My First Test Post

This is my first posting! Yay, I'm now being published.

I hope you all like what I have to share with you.

And, I hope you'll share with me too!