Everyday Heroes - Construction Workers: July 27-28, 2015

Books:
The Construction Crew by Lynn Meltzer *
Dig! by Andrea Zimmerman *
The Little Dump Truck by Margery Cuyler
Monsters on Machines by Deb Lund
Old MacDonald Had a Woodshop by Lisa Shulman *
Work, Dogs, Work: A Highway Tail by James Horvath

Craft: Tool Belt
Our craft was based on the picture above.  We made one slight change in that instead of cutting slits for the tools to fit into, we instead folded a half piece of construction paper and glued it to make a pouch that the tools could sit in.

Literacy Extensions:
- Talk about different tools and their uses.  With supervision, have your child try some of the tools.
- See if your child can come up with the steps to build something (i.e. - table, house, etc.)

Everyday Heroes - Firefighters: July 20-21, 2015

Books:
Fire Truck is Flashing by Mandy Archer
Firefighters! Speeding! Spraying! Saving! by Patricia Hubbell
The Firefighters' Thanksgiving by Maribeth Boelts
If I Were a Firefighter by Thomas Kingsley Troupe
This Is the Firefighter by Laura Godwin

Crafts:
Door Hanger - Children colored the doorhanger at left before cutting out the center hole.
Badge - I found a badge online that could be colored and taped to their shirts.

Literacy Extensions:
- Talk about fire safety with your child.
- Most fire stations welcome visits by local children.  Take a field trip with your child to the local fire house.


Notes:
Due to my vacation this week, the story times were led by Ms. Aly and Ms. Angie.

Everyday Heroes - Mail Carriers: June 13-14, 2015

Books:
Bear at Work by Stella Blackstone *
The Giant Hug by Sandra Horning *
A Letter for Leo by Sergio Ruzzier
Millie Waits for the Mail by Alexander Steffensmeier *

Craft: Mail Carrier's Hat
Kids colored the template at right cut from cardstock.  They then glued on the logo of the US Postal Service before gluing on strips of paper to turn it into a hat.

Literacy Extensions:
- After reading Bear at Work, have your child guess what kind of mail different businesses and people would be receiving.
- Have your child "write" a letter to someone.  Have them practice addressing an envelope.

Everyday Heroes - Trash Collectors: July 6-7, 2015

Books:
I Stink! by Kate McMullan *
Smash! Mash! Crash! There Goes the Trash! by Barbara Odanaka
Supertruck by Stephen Savage *
Trashy Town by Andrea Zimmerman *

Craft: Trash Truck Picture
Children colored a coloring page of a trash truck that I found online.  They then glued on crumpled squares of colored paper for trash to the picture.

Literacy Extensions:
- In I Stink! it gives a list of items the trash truck eats.  See how many items starting with letter of the alphabet your child can come up with that they throw into the trash.
- After reading Supertruck ask your child to come up with a list of qualities that makes a superhero.

Every Day Heroes - Drivers: June 29-30, 2015

Books:
Don't Let the Pigeon Drive the Bus! by Mo Willems *
The Little School Bus by Margery Cuyler *
My Big Rig by Jonathan London
The Wheels on the Race Car by Alexander Zane *

Craft: Semi-Truck
Kids colored a cab and wheels before gluing them to a rectangle truck.



Literacy Extensions:
- After reading Don't Let the Pigeon Drive the Bus! ask your child to come up with the reasons why Pigeon shouldn't be allowed to drive a vehicle.
- The Wheels on the Race Car is a variation on the song "The Wheels on the Bus".  See if your child can come up with verses to fit other types of vehicles.

Everyday Heroes - Teachers: June 22-23, 2015

Books:
My Creature Teacher by Laura Leuck
My Teacher Is A Monster!  No I Am Not! by Peter Brown *
Oopsy, Teacher! by Stephanie Calmenson *
What Teachers Can't Do by Douglas Wood *

Craft: Schoolhouse
This week's activity was a schoolhouse that when colored and folded formed the outside of a school and the inside of a classroom.



Literacy Extensions:
- After reading What Teachers Can't Do discuss how the teachers in the book are similar and different from their teachers. (i.e. use chalkboards vs. dry erase boards, play during recess, etc.)
- My Teacher Is a Monster! uses speech bubbles to tell parts of the story.  Find more stories that use the same format such as the Elephant and Piggie books by Mo Willems.

Everyday Heroes - Police: June 15-16, 2015

Books:
Bug Patrol by Denise Dowling Mortenson *
The Police Cloud by Christoph Niemann *
Police: Hurrying! Helping! Saving! by Patricia Hubbell
Police Officers on Patrol by Kersten Hamilton
Traffic Pups by Michelle Meadows *

Craft: Police Car
Our craft was based on the picture at left.  A paper plate was chopped in half and then triangles cut out to make into the shape of a car.  The kids colored the car and wheels before gluing the wheels, star, windows, and light to the car.

Literacy Extensions:
- Talk with your child about stranger danger -- who is it safe to ask for help from?
- Discuss all the ways that police help people.

Everyday Heroes - Astronauts: June 8-9, 2015

Books:
Astro Bunnies by Christine Loomis
Astronaut Handbook by Meghan McCarthy *
I Want to Go to the Moon by Tom Saunders
If I Were an Astronaut by Eric Braun
Mousetronaut by Mark Kelly *
Zoom, Rocket, Zoom! by Margaret Mayo

Craft: Floating Astronaut
Our craft was based on the picture above.  The kids colored a paper plate to make it into a planet or a moon.  They then colored an astronaut cutout.  The astronaut was attached to the plate by a piece of yarn.

Literacy Extensions:
- Learn more about the different astronauts and animals that have been to space.  There are many books at the library that will give information on the space program and its participants.
- After reading the Astronaut Handbook, have your child attempt some of the activities the astronauts must do (i.e. survival training, swimming, freeze-dried food, etc.)

Everyday Heroes - Parents: June 1-2, 2015

Books:
Meet the Parents by Peter Bently *
My Dad Is Big and Strong, But . . . by Coralie Saudo
My Father the Dog by Elizabeth Bluemle *
My Mom by Anthony Browne
Ol' Mama Squirrel by David Ezra Stein *

Craft: Superhero Mom and Dad
Kids were each given two small gingerbread person cutouts to color and glue on capes to make into a superhero mom and superhero dad.


Literacy Extensions:
- Talk with your child about heroes.  What makes someone a hero?  Superpowers?  Bravery?  Who are their heroes?
- After reading My Father the Dog pick a different animal and have your child find ways that animal is like mom.