Miracles on Main St. 2017

Ozark Regional Library- Fredericktown participated in Miracles on Main St again this year.  We teamed up with the Health Department to provide crafts and stories with Mrs. Claus.  The library had a wreath decorating craft and the health department provided miniature stockings for decorating.  Mrs. Claus read stories until it was time for the parade.  She appeared on a float with Santa and the Fredericktown Fire Department.  

Wreath making

Stocking decorating

Stories with Mrs. Claus

Mrs. Claus reading stories

Ironton's Trunk or Treat

This year, Mrs. Michelle and I dressed up like trees from Chicka Chicka Boom Boom for Trunk or Treat.  I also created a backdrop where the children could put their face in so they could look like a tree too!  We had so much fun and passed out candy to over 500 kids!

Freaky Town 2017

We had a lot of fun this Halloween at the Fredericktown branch of Ozark Regional Library.  We participated in Freaky Town by having scary story readings, a craft, and a pumpkin decorating contest.  Below are the pictures of our winners:

Pre-K Winner with Poppy from Trolls

Team Winners with Cat in the Hat

Elementary School Winner with Dog Man

YA Literature Trivia Night

Our first ever Young Adult Literature Trivia Night was a HUGE success!  We had four teams compete: two from AVHS and two from FHS. There were a total of 50 questions; 5 categories of 10 questions.  We tested their knowledge in Science Fiction/Fantasy, Romance, Classics, Harry Potter, and Realistic Fiction.  The winning team was from Fredericktown High and got to pick prizes from our prize table.  Due to the program's success, we will be hosting another YA Trivia Night in February at the Fredericktown branch. 

AVHS Team 1

AVHS Team 2

Some of our FHS competitors 

FHS generously chartered a bus for to bring students to the Ironton library

THE WINNERS!

Meet the Author

At the 2017 Missouri Library Association's Annual Conference, I had the great pleasure of hearing author, Shanna Swendson, speak.  She is the author of three popular series: Enchanted, Inc., Rebel Mechanics, and The Fairy Tale Series. I have not yet read any of her books in the Enchanted or Fairy Tale series, but I loved the first book in her Rebel Mechanics series.  You can find this series in our collection!

-Rebel Mechanics

-Rebel Magisters

-Rebels Rising

She was kind enough to autograph my copy of Rebel Mechanics.  

Fall Festivals 2017

We participated in three fall festivals this year!  Did you stop by our tables?  We were present at the Annapolis Freedom Fest, Viburnum's Old Miner's Day, and Ironton's Mountain Music Festival.  We provided various crafts and activities and handed out information about library events and services.

Freedom Fest

Making puzzles at Freedom Fest

Fan decorating at Freedom Fest

Holding a bunny at the Mountain Music Festival

Fall Story Time Party 2017

Whew! What a Fall we have had!  For this story time session, we read the Building Block Award Nominee Books.  During our sixth week, we voted on our favorite book.  The favorite was Frog on a Log? by Kes Gray.  This book is extremely colorful, silly, and is full of rhyming words that make it interactive for children. 

We celebrated the winning book by having a Frog Party!  After reading the book, we played "Pin the Frog on the Log" and "Fly Races."  We followed that up with a frog mobile craft and a snack.

Fly Races at Ironton

Frog Mobile Craft at Ironton

Snacks and Crafts at Steelville

Crafts at Bourbon

Pin the Frog on the Log at Bourbon

Snacks and Crafts at Fredericktown

Summer Reading Carnival

Thanks to the YALSA and the Dollar General Literacy Foundation, we were able to hold a carnival near the end of the Summer Reading Program.  We didn't have big attendance because it was so hot outside, but we did have some awesome activities to do.  The staff sure enjoyed it!  Circus Kaput from St. Louis provided a caricaturist and a face painter/balloon artist.  We also had sand art, magic scratcher ornaments, K'nex kits, Minute to Win It games, ring toss, and a bean bag toss.  The door prize winner also got to throw a pie in my face!! I definitely think that was her favorite part! Check out the pictures below!

Popcorn and cotton candy!

Caricatures!

Unicorn!

Mrs. Michelle with her face paint snake tattoo

Isn't that the cutest balloon hat?

Face paint by Circus Kaput

Making sand art!

She won the hat as a prize!

Doesn't she look excited?!

Pie in the face!

Congratulations to our door prize winner!

Closing Party!

We wrapped up the Summer Reading Program with closing parties at each of the branches.  The branches that had a Dino O’Dell performance the first week had a craft that the rest of the branches did at the opening party.  It was an Earth Mobile and on the hearts they wrote or drew pictures of what they think “builds a better world.”  The rest of the time was spent playing Minute to Win It games and playing with play-doh, magna tiles, legos, K’nex kits, and at Bourbon, a giant parachute.  The branches with smaller attendance had face painting as well.  All in all, it was a blast and I think everyone had fun. 

Minute to Win It at Ironton

They had to move cotton balls using only their noses and shaving cream

Mummy Wrap in Ironton

Minute to Win It in Viburnum

Minute to Win it Games in Steelville

Minute to Win It games in Bourbon

Giant Parachute fun in Bourbon

Playing in Fredericktown

What makes the Earth a better place?

Egg Drop Challenge!

I think this may have been my favorite teen program of the summer and according to a lot of the kids, it was their favorite too.  The teens were provided with materials and had to create a container that would protect an egg from being dropped at 3 ft, 6 ft, and 8 ft.  Many of the teens were successful, but we also had a lot of broken eggs.  It was so hot on some of the days that the teens thought the eggs might be able to actually cook on the ground!

Building structures at Ironton

Did it break?

Dropping from 9 feet

Can they protect the egg?

Getting creative at Annapolis

Success in Steelville

Egg Drop in Bourbon

Balloons were popular in Bourbon

A lot of success in Cuba with the Egg Drop