Early Literacy Tip

                                                Early Literacy  

What children know about reading and writing before they learn to read and write.

It is important to develop early literacy skills in young children so that they are adequately prepared to learn how to read and write.  Strong reading skills form the basis for learning in all subjects and lead to better performance in school.

Early Literacy Tip

READ

Read and reread, and read again.  Read books about topics your child is interested in.  Read to your child, read with your child, and listen to their attempts to read to you.

Reading and rereading books to, and with, your child helps to develop your child's language skills, and increases their vocabulary and general knowledge.  It also promotes print awareness (the awareness that words on a page mean something), how books are put together, and letter knowledge (learning the letters of the alphabet).

Celebrate Roald Dahl

Roald Dahl Day

This year marks 100 years since the birth of Roald Dahl (1916-1990), the world's number one storyteller!  We celebrate Roald Dahl Day on his birthday, September 13th, every year!  

Check out some of these books by Roald Dahl:

The Gremlins

James and the Giant Peach

Charlie and the Chocolate Factory

The Magic Finger

Fantastic Mr Fox

Charlie and the Great Glass Elevator

Danny, the Champion of the World

The Wonderful Story of Henry Sugar and Six More

The Enormous Crocodile

The Twits

George's Marvellous Medicine

Revolting Rhymes

The BFG

Dirty Beasts 

The Witches

The Giraffe and the Pelly and Me

Matilda

Esio Trot

The Vicar of Nibbleswicke

The Minpins

The Roald Dahl Treasury

Reading Challenges

Sign up for one of our Reading Challenges!

Read all year long for lots of chances to win prizes!

BEGINNING READERS CHALLENGE

K-2^ND GRADE

We have a special set of reading challenges for kids in grades K-2.  We want to find out how many books you read together with an adult, and how many books you can read on your own!  The more you read, the more chances you have to earn raffles and prizes!  Complete the challenge by reading a total of 1000 books!

INDEPENDENT READERS CHALLENGE

3^RD-5^TH GRADE

Are you a fantasy fan?  Do you love to read mysteries?  Or do you like to read all different kinds of books?  Kids in grades 3-5 are invited to take on our Reading Challenge.  Read books of all different genres for a chance to earn raffles and prizes!  Read 8 books in each of the 16 genres to complete the challenge!

For more information, call or stop by the Children's Reference Desk.  
Sign up in person at the Children's Reference Desk.

Library Card Facts

September is Library Card Sign Up Month!

Get one for your child today!

Library Card Facts: 

Did you know that your child can get a library card starting at birth?  A Juvenile Card is for children from birth through 5^th grade.  If your child doesn’t have one, be sure to bring them in today to get one!

All you need is:

• A parent/guardian must fill out and sign a Registration Form.
• Parent/guardian must provide proof of residence.  This includes a current library card OR valid NYS Driver’s License, Utility Bill or Lease Agreement with current address listed.

What can you do with a library card?

• Take out books and other materials
• Register & attend Children’s Programs
• Use computers & print

T-Shirt Raffle and SRC Raffle Winners!

Congratulations to our T-Shirt Raffle Winners!

Reilly C., Colin B., and Ryan B.

All three won V-Tech Action Cams for wearing their Summer Reading Club t-shirts this summer!

Congratulations to all of our other raffle winners!

All of our raffle winners were pulled from Summer Reading Club participants.

Anthony C.

Benjamin H.

Nathan B.

Loudan G.

Sophia M.

Cole S.

Meghan M.

Caleb A.

William E.

Emme M.

Ava S.

Darby K.

Katherine A.

Sydney D.

Allison L.

Peter B.

Emma P.

Juliet R.

Nicholas V.

Zander C.

Christopher L.

Arush D.

Ava P.

Jake F.

Braelyn R.

Michael C.

Luke R.

Tyler J.

Grace L.

Delaney B.

Ryan Z.

Avery R.

Adysen B.

Arthur S.

Shaun M.

Dillon B.

Charles H.

We hope you're excited for next year!

On Your Mark, Get Set....READ! Bookmark Contest Winners

CONGRATULATIONS to

Meghan M. (2nd grade) 

Sara R. (3rd grade) 

Leah R. (4th grade) 

and 

Jordan R. (5th grade) 

for winning our On Your Mark, Get Set....READ! Bookmark Contest!

View and download the winning bookmarks here, or pick up a copy in the library.

Meghan M.        Sara R.

Leah R.       Jordan R.

Songs and Story CD Collection

Check out Disney's Songs and Story CD Collection! 

A series of CDs that include songs from the original Disney film as well as the narrated story of the entire film, including character voices and sound effects.

Click to see if the title is available:

The Jungle Book

Sofia the First

Pocahontas

Monsters, Inc.

Tangled

Cars

Winnie the Pooh

Toy Story

More to come!  Look for:

The Little Mermaid

Finding Nemo

The Lion King

Wreck-It Ralph

Snow White

Toy Story 2

Toy Story 3

Up

Beauty and the Beast

Jake and the Never Land Pirates

Brave

Program Photographs

Looking for photos from past programs? Check out our new Program Photographs page (see tab above.)

**Please notify us immediately if there is a photograph of your child that you do not want posted online.  We will remove it.

1KB4K Achievement

Congratulations to Daytona G. for completing 1,000 Books Before Kindergarten!

She is the third child to complete the program since its launch in October 2014!

Check out our 1KB4K Wall of Achievement to see pictures of all children who complete the program.

News From the Children's Room Summer 2016

Affordable Things to do on Long Island Summer 2016
The Children's Librarians Association of Suffolk County (CLASC) has put together a list of Affordable Things to do on Long Island this summer!  All admission fees are $8 and under.  The list is organized by location, including: Bay Shore, Calverton, Centereach, Cold Spring Harbor, East Islip, Flanders, Greenport, Holtsville, Huntington Station, Islandia, Islip, Mattituck, Northport, Port Jefferson, Quogue, Ridge, Riverhead, Sag Harbor, Sayville, Smithtown, Southhampton, Stony Brook and Yaphank. 
To access the list, simply click on the link above.  The link can also be found under Things to Do in Your Community on our Resources page.

Summer Reading Club Fitness Bingo
Have some fun and get fit this summer! Pick up your Fitness Bingo Board at the Children’s Reference desk or when you sign up for the Summer Reading Club. Each time you complete an activity mark off the box.  You must complete each activity 5 times in order to mark off one box. When you have a Bingo you can bring your sheet to the Children’s Department to pick up a prize.

Check out the list of activities here:
25 Jumping Jacks
20 High Knees
10 Push Ups
1 minute Skipping
1 minute Crab Walk
15 Giant Steps
15 Hops Right Foot
1 minute Jump Rope
20 Toe Touches
20 Sit Ups
1 minute Walk on Tip Toe
15 Frog Jumps
Walk up 50 Stairs
20 Wall Jumps
5 Tuck Jumps
15 second Wall Sit
1 minute Walk on Heels
5 Broad Jumps
15 Small Arm Circles
30 seconds Running In Place                                                      Check out the board here.
15 Large Arm Circles
15 Ski Jumps
15 Hops Left Foot

If you need help with any of the moves, simply ask a librarian!


Bookmark Contest
Get creative and design a bookmark that goes with our Summer Reading Club theme, On Your Mark, Get Set…READ! Children entering grades 1st-5th can pick up a bookmark template at the children’s reference desk. Entries are due by Friday, July 29th. Two winning bookmark designs will be copied and distributed in the library during the month of August.


Harbes Family Farm Library Pass 
The library now has a pass to Harbes Children’s Farm located at 715 Sound Avenue, Mattituck. The pass allows for 2 adults and 2 children under 16 years or age admission to the Barnyard Adventure. The Harbes Farm Barnyard Adventure is an interactive experience nestled in the heart of a 100 acre working farm. The farm is home to chickens, cows, ducks, sheep, goats, ponies, pigs, bunnies and more. Some fun activities include Pony rides, Bounce House, Chick Hatchery, Goat Mountain Slide, and Gem Mining. 
Reserve the pass online here or call 631-363-6133.