Blogger Kirsten Caldwell

Interactive Flannel Boards

Interactive flannel boards have become uber popular at my library with kids of all ages. They love being able to manipulate the felt pieces and create their own stories. The projects are quick and budget-friendly. I mix them up with the seasons to keep them exciting and it’s fun to come up with new ideas. Benefits of Flannel Boards The ALSC blog by Tess Prendergast discussed the benefits of flannel boards for storytelling. Tess shares that they are visually appealing, engaging, and are an inexpensive early literacy tool that you can make yourself. Children love using them in storytime to retell the story they heard. She also says that watching their brains process the story in a different way is really fun. The National Child Development Council says that “Encouraging a child to re-tell a story or a number sequence or identify colors and shapes is a great independent activity…

Blogger Maria Trivisonno

Interactive Picture Books

In 2011, I read a most unique (at that time) picture book—Herve Tullet’s Press Here.  My guess is that most of you are now familiar with the book, but in case you are not:  Tullet created an interactive story where the author instructs the child to press a yellow dot which appears to affect when happens after the page turn.  Thanks to the child’s directed actions, the dot multiplies, changes colors, moves around the page, and grows.  Meanwhile, the child gets a chance to tap, rub, tilt, and blow on the book.   I though the book was brilliant.  In a way, it mimicked interacting with a tablet while still giving the child an experience with a book. I was so delighted with Press Here that I purchased multiple copies that holiday season and gave it to every toddler and preschooler I know.  Several relatives of these kids told me…

Children's Librarians are Experts

Children’s Librarians are Experts at…Interactive Displays

Take a Photo, it will last longer: Connecting Photo Booths & Book Displays In the summer, our library team had created a small photo booth with some props related to the Summer Reading Theme: Libraries Rock! We had it semi-close to our display area that had a rotation of books related to the theme as well. The engagement with the props and book display were shockingly high! Kids loved playing on the air guitars and families asked library staff to take their picture. When summer was over, we packed it up, but still had families asking us when and what would be the next photo booth. Why Do Interactive Displays? Interactive displays that correlate with a book display can help all library users connect library materials with fun activities, or visually help them reflect on a topic. An interactive display, whether this is a photo booth or activity, can start conversations…