Greetings Michigan Library Community,
Why did a scarecrow win the Nobel prize?... Because he was outstanding in his field!
The recent survey that we ran about MeL Minutes found that themes were very popular. We aim to please. You will see more “themed” MeL Minutes in upcoming months.
For more than a century now, people in the U.S. have celebrated Scarecrow Day on the first Sunday of July. To help Michigan celebrate on July 1st of this year, we wanted
to offer some great ideas for programming at your library or for families to do together at home using MeL resources!
1.
Host a “How to Build a Scarecrow” activity
o
From
General Reference Center Gold:
·
Fragrant scarecrow. (Seasonal Scent)
·
Recycle Sam tin-can scarecrow
·
Digital scarecrows. (country lore: readers' tips to live by)
·
Homemade garden guard: scarecrows have a long history and are fun to make
o
From
Kids InfoBits:
·
Ready, set, create! Make a scarecrow
2.
Dress a Scarecrow and Run Game (taken from
http://www.kidactivities.net/month-july-ideas-page-2/)
o
Stock up on oversized plaid shirts, goofy pants, floppy hats and any other clothing that a scarecrow might wear. Make piles containing one of each item. The number of piles is determined
either by the number of kids or teams participating.
o
Line up kids and let the game begin!
o
The children run to the pile, put on the outfit, and dart back to the starting line.
o
If doing it as a team game, they then switch the outfit with their teammate–who runs out and back.
o
First team with their last team member dressed as a scarecrow wins.
3.
Research stories, articles, poems, and games about scarecrows from MeL Databases:
o
eBooks
- open eBooks first, then click on the following link:
·
Spooky Ballet: The Case of the Whistling Scarecrow
o
General Reference Center Gold
·
Scarecrows, lava, and why we get the chills: do scarecrows actually scare crows?
·
The Fake Scarecrow: A Chinese Fable
o
NoveList K8+ -
open NoveList K8+ first, then click on the following
link:
·
Scarecrow booklist:
See a list of books about scarecrows.
·
Did you know you can check MeLCat directly from a book record in NoveList K-8+?
o
Opposing Viewpoints in Context
·
Video:
Could Robotic Birds Lead to Safer Air Travel?
o
World Book for Kids -
open World Book for Kids first, then click on the following link:
o
Britannica School -
open Britannica School first, then click on
any of the following links:
4.
Borrow books from
MeLCat
5.
Other online resources outside of MeL
o
Modern Farmer -
Hay, Man: The Curious Life and Times of Scarecrow
o
Scarecrow Trivia -
http://www.pumpkinnook.com/halloween/scarecrows.htm
Brought
to you by Christine Schneider of the MeL Team.
MeL databases are available to Michigan residents or Michigan library access only.
Want more information on MeL? Stay tuned for the next MeL Minute available on many Michigan library listservs, email us at contact@mel.org,
visit http://mel.org, or sign up for the MeL Minute and other Library of Michigan e-mail lists via
GovDelivery. We encourage you to share MeL Minutes with your colleagues and networks.
#IMLSGrant
Sonya Schryer Norris
Library Consultant
Library of Michigan
702 W. Kalamazoo St.
Lansing, MI 48909
517-373-4457
https://michigan.gov/libraryofmichigan
Our collective efforts can help make Michigan a Top 10 education state in 10 years! Here are the goals and strategies:
http://mi.gov/top10in10/
