Our first adventure of this summer reading program was EXTREME ANIMALS hosted by our Prague Library and presented by Shana Witt from EXTREME ANIMALS on Wednesday June 5th. Most of the children were curious and excited to get a close-up look at several animals including Charlotte, the rose haired tarantula; Titan, the albino Burmese python; Rooie, a red kangaroo; Romeo, a ring-tailed lemur, and Chomper, a dwarf Caiman crocodile, and many other interesting species. The children got "up close and personal" and enjoyed it immensely. Overall, the children seemed to be most impressed with Titan the python.
The Prague Library Summer Reading Program has each participant set his or her own goal. They are all busy working towards their goal. We have some participants that had already completed their goals by mid-way through the month of June. Whenever the child completes 5 books or 5 hours of reading, they bring in their tally booklet and they receive their prizes. These prizes are always bright, colorful and something that most children love! They can choose a prize out of the container that is categorized for their earned award. Their tally sheet is then marked according to their accomplishment. They are always ready to start working towards the end result. If a child reaches his or her goal at any time before the end of the program, he or she may set another goal and can receive more prizes to match their accomplishments. Their smiling faces and their sense of accomplishment means so much to them. Their self-esteem, confidence and responsibility increases as they learn to meet their goals and then are rewarded for their efforts.
The second week into the program, children learned how to make "dirt babies". This event was given by Gordon-Cooper Vo-Tech. They had a great time. Not to be outdone by the older children, each toddler had his or her own time spent by listening to a story read aloud to them by Ashley, an employee of the Haynie Public Library in Prague OK. The older children gathered at the Prague Community Center where they were given their supplies needed for the construction of their "dirt baby". A dirt baby is a project that is similar to the well-known Chia pet, made from seeds being placed in the toe of the hosiery" and dirt being poured over the seeds and then placed tail end down in a cup of water after tying the toe of the hose above the level of the dirt leaving a "tail". Then the "baby" is placed in a cup of water as required by the amount of dirt that was put into the hose. The "tail" absorbs the water and feeds the seeds and WOW! The seeds start to grow in "hair" at the top of the dirt, growing from inside the hosiery. In a short time, they have their own Chia pet that they made themselves and then decorated the outside of the cup however they wished. Some of the children named their "pet" a favorite name to be cherished while watching how nature transforms a small seed into an amazing experiment. We don't know if the children delighted in what they had accomplished or enjoyed the grown-up sponsors and the fun they had completing their own project more!
Our next adventure planned for Wednesday 19 at 10:30 at Prague Community Center is "Magical Michael". This program was popular last year and we are glad that he is coming to entertain us again this year.
