Gardening

Spring is here and it's time to garden! Did you know you can check out seeds from our Seed Library?
The Arrowhead Library System Seed Library encourages gardening and seed saving as a means of providing our community a fun and affordable source of nutritious sustainable food.

BORROWING BASICS
Step 1: Check Out
Check out up to five seed packets.
STEP 2: Cultivate
Plant the seeds, let them grow, and enjoy your harvest!
Step 3: Harvest & Preparation
Review the seed harvesting instructions.
Step 4: Save and Return Seeds
Save a portion of seeds that you will plant next year, then label and return the remaining portion to the seed library to be checked out next spring.
Your help makes this program grow!

We also have a lot of great resources to help make your garden really grow this season!

Magazines
Better Homes and Gardens
Birds & Blooms
Country Living

Books

Niki Jabbour's Veggie Garden Remix by Niki Jabbour

The Flower-Powered Garden: Supercharge Your Borders and Containers with Bold, Colorful Plant Combinations by Andy Vernon

Container Gardening Complete: Creative Projects for Growing Vegetables and Flowers in Small Spaces by Jassica Walliser

Garden Renovation: Transform Your Tired Yard into the Garden of Your Dreams by Bobbie Schwartz

Native Plants of the Midwest: A Comprehensive Guide to the Best 500 Species for the Garden by Alan Branhagen

The Garden Seed Saving Guide: Easy Heirloom Seeds for the Home Gardener by Jill Henenrson

Attracting Beneficial Bugs to Your Garden: A Natural Approach to Pest Control by Jessica Walliser

The Seed Garden: The Art and Practice of Seed Saving by Lee Alan Buttala

If you'll be gardening with kids, check out Alex Kuskowski's Super Simple Gardening Series with books on kitchen gardens, butterfly gardens, salad gardens, and more!

App Review: Endless Collection

App Name: Endless Alphabet, Endless Numbers, Endless Spanish
Developer: Originator
Cost: Free with in app purchases
Available on iOS, Google Play, and Windows
Recommended for Kindergarten - Grade 2

The adorable monsters in this app introduce kids to letters, numbers, and the Spanish language in a fun and engaging way. The free app comes with 6 free letters, numbers, or words depending on the app. Kids practice recognizing letters, spelling, and sound recognition. Additional items can be purchased in the app. This app is recommended for beginner readers and writers.

Users will practice letter recognition and phonological awareness (understanding the sounds that each letter makes). Kids are also introduced to common sight words and new vocabulary in English and Spanish as well as beginner math skills like counting and sequencing.

App Review: PBS Parents Play and Learn

App Name: PBS Parents Play and Learn
Developer: PBS Kids
Cost: Free
Available on iOS
Recommended for Preschool and up

This app is designed for caregivers to share with their children. There is plenty of information for parents to help guide through “teachable moments” within the app. The world within the app reflects many aspects of children’s lives, such as going to the grocery store or playing outside, making it easy to extend the learning into real life. Plus, it is completely bilingual (available in English and Spanish). Kids will practice beginner math skills like shape recognition, counting, sorting, and more. They will also engage with language and reading throughout the games. Each game shares a parenting tip on the concepts introduced and ways to further practice.

Celebrating Earth Day

Earth Day is coming up on April 22nd! Did you know that the US version Earth Day was started by Wisconsin Senator Gaylord Nelson in 1970? Since then, it has become a global event with more than 193 countries participating.

You can read more about Senator Nelson in his biography, The Man from Clear Lake: Earth Day Founder by Bill Christofferson

Here are a few more recommended reads for adults and older readers:

World Without Fish: How Could We Let This Happen? by Mark Kurlansky
Unstoppable: Harnessing Science to Change the World by Bill Nye
An Inconvenient Truth and An Inconvenient Sequel: Truth to Power by Al Gore

Books to Share with Kids

Thank You, Earth: A Love Letter To Our Planet by April Pulley Sayre
Rainbow Weaver / Tejadora de arcoíris by Linda Elovitz Marshall
The Family of Earth by Schim Schimmel
One Well: The Story of Water on Earth by Rochelle Strauss
All the Water in the World by George Ella Lyon
Fur, Feather, Fin: All of Us Are Kin by Diane Lang
All the World by Elizabeth Garton Scanlon
Nature by Thomas Hegbrook

App Review: Don't Let Pigeon Run This App!

App Name: Don't Let Pigeon Run This App!

Developer: Disney
Cost: $5.99
Available on iOS
Recommended for Kindergarten - Grade 2

This app is based on the popular pigeon series by Mo Willems. It is distinctly different from the books, but provides the opportunity to engage with these print books in a deeper way. Kids can create their own pigeon stories and add their own voices to recordings of it. You can also learn how to draw pigeon.

App Review: Pigeon Presents Mo on the Go

App Name: Pigeon Presents Mo on the Go
Developer: Disney
Cost: $3.99
Available on iOS
Recommended for Kindergarten - Grade 2

This app includes 4 interactive games featuring beloved characters from Mo Willems' books including Elephant, Piggie, and Pigeon. In one game, Pigeon finally gets to drive the bus (at your direction). In others, kids will draw, create monsters, make up dance moves, and take pictures. Kids can personalize their experience using the camera which really allows them to interact with these characters. Kids will practice writing, get up and move, and engage with these books in a new way through this app.

Poetry Month

April is National Poetry Month!

We will be celebrating all month long. Join us at one of our special events or check out a book of poetry!

After School Adventuring! 
Wednesdays at 3:30 PM
An occasional, drop-in series for kids of all ages with lots of hands-on learning and fun.
April 10 - Poetry Prompts and Play
April 17 - Fun with Poetic Forms
April 24 - Poetry Read-Aloud

Open Poetry Reading
Saturday, April 27 at 10:30 AM
Everyone is welcome to come share some poetry! Come read (or listen) to the work of your  your own, your neighbors' or that of other favorite poets. Plus, a special reading by Evansville poet Lisa Marie Brodsky -author of the book, Motherlung, (which, by the way, we have at the library-- Feel free to check it out!)

Poetry for Kids
Poetree by Shauna LaVoy Reynolds
Thirteen Ways of Looking at A Black Boy by Tony Medina
With My Hands: Poems About Making Things by Amy Ludwig VanDerwater
Outside Your Window: A First Book of Nature by Nicola Davies

Poetry for Teens
For Everyone by Jason Reynolds
The Poet X by Elizabeth Acevedo
Shout: A Poetry Memoir by Laurie Halse Anderson
Ink Knows No Borders: Poems of the Immigrant and Refugee Experience by Patrice Vecchione

Poetry for Adults
Motherlung by Lisa Marie Brodsky
Don't Call Us Dead: Poems by Danez Smith
The Witch Doesn't Burn in This One by Amanda Lovelace
The Best American Poetry

App Review: Arthur's Big App

App Name: Arthur's Big App
Developer: PBS Kids
Cost: $0.99
Available on iOS, Amazon, Google Play, Nook, and Windows
Recommended for Kindergarten - Grade 1

Fans of Marc Brown’s Arthur books and TV show will enjoy playing games with familiar characters and places set in Elwood City. The app includes 40 games with opportunities for creative and social play. Kids will enjoy exploring the world of Arthur while practicing early literacy skills like matching colors, following recipes, and playing music.

In Celebration of Board Books!

Board books are printed on extra thick paper and are designed to be handled roughly by babies and toddlers (and older kids and grown ups too!). Many of them can even be wiped off which is great for babies and toddlers. You'll find our board books in child friendly browser bins in our early literacy section. We also have many Spanish and English/Spanish bilingual books in our children's Spanish collection.

There are so many wonderful board books that have been published in the last few years. Of course there lots of classic board books you might already be familiar with like Goodnight Moon by Margaret Wise Brown and Brown Bear, Brown Bear What Do You See? by Bill Martin Jr., but we hope this list will introduce you to a new favorite.

But Not The Armadillo by Sandra Boynton
Published in 2018
Sandra Boynton has been a long time favorite in the board book genre. Her simple text and excellent understanding of toddler humor makes her books delightful to share with a little one.

Black Bird Yellow Sun by Steve Light
Published in 2018
A simple, repetitive book that introduces colors in the natural world.

Ciao, Baby! by Carole Lexa Schaefer
There are two books in this series, Ready For A Ride and In The Park, where a very cute baby explores the world with Nonna (grandma).

Wiggles by Claire Zucchelli-Romer
Published in 2018
This unique book, originally published in French, invites kids can trace along in the grooves on each page as the lines and dots move around.

I Thought I Saw A Lion by Lydia Nichols
This board book includes a slider mechanism that helps you find the lion on each page. A fun, interactive element!

Rosa Loves Dinosaurs by Jessica Spanyol
Published in 2018
Play and individuality is celebrated in this story about Rosa and her dinosaurs.

Black White: A Baby's Very First Book by Tana Hoban
Published in 2017
High contrast images are a smart choice for very young babies whose eye sight is still developing.

Hickory Dickory Dock and Other Favorite Nursery Rhymes by Genine Delahaye
Published in 2017
Bright and whimsical illustrations accompany classic nursery rhymes and lullabies.

Making Faces: A First Book of Emotions by Molly Magnuson
Published in 2017
Babies love looking at other the faces of other babies.Great photographs and a mirror to watch your own faces make this book a fun one.

Will Bear Share? by Hilary Leung
A funny and surprising book that is a part of a series including Will Giraffe Laugh?, Will Ladybug Hug?, and Will Sheep Sleep?
published in 2018