Marshmallow Builders

How have I never done this program before?!  It's inexpensive and quick to set up, and it's a crowd-pleasing STEAM activity!  There would be a million ways to structure this program; here's what I did:

 

Before the event (I actually had early arrivals help me with this) I distributed cups of regular size and mini marshmallows, along with spaghetti noodles, penne noodles, toothpicks, and paper plates, to each table. 

 

As participants arrived, they assembled themselves into teams; each team had its own table.  I asked teams to name themselves, which was a nice icebreaker.

 

I gave the first challenge: Build something you could use to survive in the jungle.  Teams worked together to build something to meet the challenge.  When all teams were finished, I had them take turns shouting out the names of the items they built. 

 

After the first challenge, I rewarded each team with a cup full of jumbo marshmallows.  This was a HUGE hit! 

 

I gave additional challenges:

Build something you could use to survive in outer space.

Build something that's alive.

Build something really tall.

Build something really long.

 

I had extra supplies on hand, and teams were welcome to help themselves without any limit. 

 

There was no competition aspect.  We just had fun building together. 

 

One piece of advice: use plastic tablecloths!  I tried getting teams to build only on paper plates, but that lasted about 3 seconds.  Save yourself some clean-up time and cover your tables!

 

I ♥ Babymouse Party

We had a party to celebrate our love for Babymouse!  The event was one hour long and open to grades 1-7, and we asked participants to register so that we could be sure to have plenty of supplies.  At the beginning of the program, we talked briefly about the book series and I introduced the activity stations.  For the remainder of the hour, we moved freely between stations.  Everyone had a chance to do every activity, if they wanted to; some decided to focus on one or two activities, repeating them several times.

 Two stations were inspired by Extreme Babymouse:

Pipe Cleaner/Craft Stick Snowboarder

 

Make a Flying Skier (STEAM!)-- 

this activity was very popular, and we found ourselves measuring and trying different configurations in no time. 

 

Cupcake Wrapper Challenge, inspired by Babymouse: Cupcake Tycoon

(use cupcake wrappers and a variety of art supplies to make anything your heart desires... we had flowers, butterflies, necklaces, monsters, and lots more)

  

Make-Your-Own Mouse Ears (of course!)

I provided a template, felt, glue, and scissors, and participants were welcome to add their own creative touches or create something totally different.

After making their ears, Babymouse fans stood in front of the white board to pose with Babymouse herself.  Photo op!

 

We also set out coloring sheets and fill-in graphic novel pages from the Babymouse website.  These were popular during the program, and a lot of attendees took sheets home, too.

One last station was the book display; every last Babymouse book was checked out by the end of the program! 

Arts and MineCRAFTS

I'm back!  That blogging break was about six months longer than I intended... Summer programming is in full swing, and I'm hoping to highlight a few of our summer events here. 

We hosted an Arts and MineCRAFTS program in June, and it went really well.  We did ask participants to register in advance, because we needed special supplies.  The program was an hour long, and it was open to 2nd-7th graders.  We worked on two projects: perler bead creations and light-up paper torches. 

The perler bead project idea came from this book, which is a real treasure trove.  Most kids made pigs or swords, and we had self-adhesive magnets for those who wanted to be able to stick their creations to the fridge.  A word of advice: have more than one iron!  The only glitchy part of the program was waiting for perler bead projects to be ironed.  Two or even three would have been fantastic. 

The light-up torches came from this blog. I copied the pattern (in color) onto 11" x 17" white cardstock, and the kids LOVED the fact that their torches really lit up. 

All in all, this was a great way to cater to Minecraft fans without worrying about having enough computers for in-person play.  Everyone left brandishing at least one torch and carrying at least one perler bead item.  Hearing the kids talk and help one another while doing the projects was adorable, too. 

 

Make-It! Build an Antenna

Ready to play with tools?  We hosted an antenna-building workshop and gave 'tweens the chance to do just that.  Our goal was to transform wire coat hangers, wood, screws, washers, and small transformers into working television antennas.  We used these instructions.  I'll be the first to admit that this program was out of my comfort zone.  I know nothing about televisions or antennas or transformers.  Thankfully, I know how to follow directions, and I know how to ask for help.  I spent a lot of time doing both of these things in preparation for the program.  Ultimately, I was able to build a sample antenna that actually worked! 

We limited enrollment to 15 'tweens, and we asked each young builder to bring an adult to help.  Having the adult helpers was absolutely essential.  To my surprise, the program didn't fill up; we had a total of 6 kids, plus accompanying adults. 

In the spring, I contacted our local high school's technology education program to find a student to help me prepare for and facilitate this event.  I did this for a couple of reasons:  first of all, I'm having a baby, and the program was less than a month from my due date, so I wanted to be sure that if another staff member needed to step in, there would be someone on hand who was an "expert" on the project.  It's also nice to offer this type of opportunity to teens, and a lot of 'tweens eat up the chance to talk to teenagers. 

My very patient, project-oriented husband went with me to Home Depot for some serious supply shopping.  The high schooler and I generated our own step-by-step instructions and prepared materials by cutting and bending the wire hangers and marking the points on the wood where the screws would go.  The program itself was only an hour long, so having these steps done ahead of time meant that families could realistically finish the project before they left. 

As participants arrived, they picked up instructions, selected materials based on a list on the instruction sheets, and got to work building.  We had a small TV so they could try out their antennas, but because this program was held in the basement, we didn't get great reception.  Next time, I would have a try-out-your-new-antenna station on the main level of the library. 

The project was demanding enough to require the effort and attention of both child and adult, which meant that they had to work together, like it or not.  Of course, they liked it, and they were proud to leave the library with their newly built TV antennas!

Garfield Fans Unite!

 On June 19, we celebrated the birthday of everyone's favorite lasagna-loving cat.

 

We had a bean bag toss...

 

 

button-making...

 

 

coloring sheets, a trivia quiz, and fill-in-the blank comic strips...

 as well as party favors (Garfield bookmarks), snacks, Garfield & Friends on the big screen, Garfield books for browsing, and a speed gift-wrapping game. 

 

Our Garfield books are well loved by patrons of all ages, so this event was a natural fit for our library.  It was so popular that I'm considering purchasing a Garfield costume for next year! 

 

I had planned to serve lasagna and cake at this program, but we asked for sign-up so we could find out about food allergies.  Am I ever glad we did that!  Knowing in advance the types of allergies we'd be working with (including tomato, gluten, and dairy) helped me to purchase party-worthy snacks that everyone could enjoy. 

 

Participants were free to choose any combination of activities, in any order, and stay as long as they liked during the 45-minute program.  Having a self-serve structure helped eliminate waiting in line for one-person-at-a-time stations (like button making and the gift wrap game); there were plenty of things to do, and everyone had the chance to try every activity, if they chose to do so. 

 

The gift wrap game was surprisingly delightful.  I bought several rolls of birthday-themed gift wrap on clearance at Target, and I brought in two small boxes and a Garfield pin (which I had serendipitously found in a drawer a few days prior to the program).  We started with both boxes wrapped in gift wrap, one of the boxes containing the pin.  I had a volunteer staff the gift wrap game table; she timed kids as they unwrapped both boxes, moved the Garfield pin to the other box, and wrapped both boxes back up.  Simple?  Yep.  But they LOVED it.  I think the fact that we were encouraging them to use gift wrap and Scotch tape with abandon helped a lot. 

 

The button-maker was, as always, a hit.  I purchased a one-inch American Button Machine personally six years ago, and it has been a fabulous investment.  I highly recommend them!  We had a volunteer at our button station, and he helped each participant choose a Garfield or Odie graphic and transform it into a piece of wearable bling. 

 

Many happy returns of the day to Garfield!