From Russia with Love

A library program for children ages 4 through 12.

A staff member who is originally from Russia talked about growing up in Russia and shared some folk art pieces she brought from her former country (including nesting dolls).

The children's librarian then told the story of "The Enormous Turnip" with the help of the children.

Finally, the children made their own paper nesting dolls of the characters from the story "The Enormous Turnip."

This was a fun and easy program to put together thanks to the help of our Russian staff member. The children actually enjoyed coloring and cutting out the paper nesting dolls. Though there was some trouble with the glue making the figures stick to each other.

Fancy Folds

A library program for children ages 7 to 12 years old.

A librarian started the program off by telling a paper folding story to the children. During the story she made an origami hat and an origami boat along with a few other shapes. After the story, the librarian taught the children and adults how to fold the hat. She then showed everyone how a few quick folds can turn the hat into a boat.

We then sent the children to the tables to explore other origami shapes. Each table had paper, crayons, and instructions for making origami folded art. Each table had a different set of instructions. The simplest instructions were for a cat or dog face. The next simplest was for a jumping frog. Other popular instructions included the crane and french fries in a box.