Yesterday, after reading the book Du Iz Tak by Carson Ellis, kids in primary grades did an activity making up a new language. Then they created new written dialogue for picture books with few or no words. They chose a book and wrote dialogue for it on sticky notes shaped […]
STEAM Careers in Pasadena: Forensic Specialists Fighting Crime with Science
Published on :On Wednesday, August 2nd, we had some special visitors at the library. Two forensic specialists from the Pasadena Police Department, Noel Herrera and Alex Padilla, came to meet kids between the ages of 7 and 12 and share what they do and how it incorporates science and technology! Noel and […]
Make a Penny Battery
Published on :On August 8th, we had a packed story room full of kids 7-12 years old who were here to learn about how electricity works, what kinds of materials conduct electricity, and how to make their own batteries. First, we viewed a slideshow that explained concepts like electric current (the movement […]
Silly Split-Panel Books – Writing Parties for Primary Grade Kids
Published on :At our most recent Writing Party for Primary Grade Kids (previously named “Creative Writing for Beginning Readers”), we made split-panel books inspired by A Cheese and Tomato Spider by Nick Sharratt. Because of the odd format, this book is not available in Pasadena’s collection–unfortunately, libraries often cannot add unusual books […]
Bears: Preschool Storytime
Published on :I recently saw a live bear in the wild, while on a hike up at Lassen Volcanic National Park. It was scary! You have to be very careful and keep your distance from bears in the wild. So for today’s Preschool Storytime, I was in the mood for some books […]
Reading Great Books to Learn Writing Great Hooks
Published on :At our Kids’ Writing Workshop on Friday, June 16th, we learned about writing engaging beginnings. I combed through the upper middle grade books at our library and looked through all of my favorites, seeing if the first line was something I would hold up as an example of a great […]
Music and Movement with Dayita Datta
Published on :Earlier this year, Pasadena Unified School District surveyed parents about what their kids need and found a strong need for more music learning opportunities. Well, Pasadena Public Library has traditionally offered all kinds of free musical performances especially during the summertime. But today we really stepped up our music literacy […]
Musical Fun With Angie Donkin
Published on :On June 6th, we had a delightful music performance by Angie Donkin for infants, toddlers and their families. She played guitar and ukulele and sang. She used puppets, props, even a nonfiction book, to support her songs. Literally every moment of the show is music. Angie sings the entire time, […]
Siblings: Preschool Storytime
Published on :At last Saturday’s Preschool Storytime, we read books about brothers and sisters! Books We Shared Our first story, Squid Kid the Magnificent by Lynne Berry and Luke daMarca, features a young squid magician named Oliver whose sister Stella keeps commenting that his tricks aren’t “really magic.” The argumentative dialogue is fun […]
Tablets and Tech for Kids
Published on :Coming up on Tuesday, June 13th from 2-3:30 pm, we have our next Tablets and Tech program at the Pasadena Central Library on our 4th floor. This is a fun, walk-in program where kids are invited to move around different iPad stations exploring a wide range of apps that incorporate […]