Teach Your Children Well

There's a lot going on in the world right now and it can be hard to find the right words to talk about it all. Even though it's hard, these conversations are extremely important and it's never too early to start! Luckily, many author's have written books that can help start these invaluable conversations about  race, racism, and activism. 

Here are a few booklists for children of all ages that are worth checking out! 

While the Library remains closed, it may be hard to get some of these titles right away. Many, although not all, are available as eBooks. Some are also available as audiobooks. To see if a title you are interested in reading is available, search by title in Libby or Hoopla. 

Charis Book & More, an independent bookstore located in Decatur, GA, published a very helpful bookslist of titles for white children and teens to learn more about undoing racism and white supremacy. That list can be found HERE!

The Conscious Kid, an education, research, and policy organization dedicated to reducing bias and promoting positive identity in youth, curated an extensive list of books for children and teens to develop anti-racist thought patterns and activist skills. Click HERE to check out this list.

Colours of Us, a website devoted to promoting multicultural children's books and toys, publishes a monthly list of new multicultural titles (Click HERE to see May 2020). They also post themed lists on various subjects and specific cultures.  Click HERE to look through the list on racism and discrimination.

The Coretta Scott King Award is given to outstanding African American authors and illustrators of books for children and young adults that demonstrate an appreciate of African American culture and universal human values. Common Sense Media, a trusted rating website, curated a list of some of the more recent winners. Click HERE to access that list.

If you would like help navigating our eResources, please email Ms. Dani at danylod@einetwork.net or the Library at pleasanthhills@einetwork.net

Lego fun at home!

The last Wednesday of the month has traditionally been LEGO Club Day at Pleasant Hills Public Library! Unfortunately the Library is still closed so we can't be together to build today.

 Below are some fun resources about LEGO's that you can explore at home.

For our younger friends, check out this awesome collection of LEGO DUPLO videos of favorite rhymes and songs. We particularly enjoyed "Twinkle Twinkle Little Star" and "Old MacDonald."

For older friends, check out the LEGO Kids Experience to play online games, watch LEGO videos, and learn about new Lego sets.

Did you know that you can get a FREE LEGO Life magazine subscription if you have children at home that are between 5 - 9 years old? This awesome quarterly magazine features comics, posters, activities, and much more! To learn more, please CLICK HERE.

Online book festivals!!!

If you've ever wanted to attend a book festival but didn't because it was too far away, cost too much, or wasn't feasible for whatever reason....

Now is your chance!!

BookExpo, the publishing industry's leading trade event, is going to be online this year from May 26 - 29 which means that everyone can attend for free!

Traditionally a place where booksellers, librarians, specialty retailers and national chains, publishers and tastemakers could come together, this move to a virtual presentation allows book lovers everywhere to come together to discover the latest titles, authors, technology, trends, and so much more! 

Running May 26 - 29, BookExpo Online will feature authors, experts, and publishing experts sharing their great work and ideas. The first day is full of educational sessions. Later sessions include Adult and Children's Book Dinners where literary giants and celebrity authors will join the conversation! (Here's your chance to hear Judy Blume talk!!!) Don't miss the BookExpo Buzz sessions (Adult, YA, and Middle Grade) to learn about exciting new titles! All the sessions will be on BookExpo's Facebook page so make sure to check it out! 

Click HERE for a complete sessions schedule.

BookCon, an event where storytelling and pop culture collide, is going virtual this year from May 30 - 31! BookConline will feature sessions with different authors and publishers to give you a first look at debut books and behind-the-scenes peek at some of your favorite titles! Plus there will be ARC giveaways, quizzes, trivia, and more fun yet to be announced! Sessions will be on BookCon's Facebook page so make sure to check it out! Don't forget to join the BookCon Official Facebook Group for the latest details.

Click HERE for a complete sessions schedule.

Want more? Check out this amazing list of virtual book related events!

EQT Children's Theater Festival @ HOME!

The COVID-19 pandemic has changed life as we know it across the world. Schools have been moved to remote learning, libraries and other public institutions have closed their physical doors while throwing their virtual ones wide open, and events and festivals have been cancelled or postponed. It's easy to get discouraged with so much changing, but there's still lots of things to look forward to like the 34th annual EQT Children's Festival happening May 14 - 17, 2020!

The EQT Children's Theater Festival has decided that instead of cancelling this year, they're going to move their awesome annual festival online! They are working with featured performing artists, local artists and organizations, and more to bring us a re-imagined version of the festival that can enjoyed from anywhere! There will be digital engagement opportunities that amplifies the work of local organizations that are creating and distributing content for young audiences and their families! You can expect virtual learning activities, opportunities to engage with featured performing artists, special performances from local performers, and more fun surprises! The festival runs from May 14 - 17, 2020 but you can start the fun now with the Frog Stop Scavenger Hunt!

Click HERE to see a list of festival events!

Click HERE to learn more about the Frog Stop Scavenger Hunt!

Guinness World Records AT HOME!

Do you have what it takes to break a WORLD RECORD?!?

The amazing folks at Guinness Book of World Records has created an at-home platform for kids and their families to explore the stories of people who have set world records AND try breaking some of their own! The site includes weekly challenges, #gwrchallenge, where participants have a week to become the best at things like flipping and catching a full deck of playing cards faster than anyone else in the world!There is also a "Try This at Home" series, a Records of the Day podcast, and a cool trivia contest families can play.

Check it out HERE!

May the 4th Be with You!

May 4th is known across the galaxy as Star Wars Day! 

How do you plan to celebrate?

Need ideas? Check out this awesome article features on StarWars.com for awesome craft, food, and activity ideas! CLICK HERE for ideas!

Some of your favorite actors from the Star Wars franchise have read their favorite Star Wars picture books for you to enjoy! Check out Joonas Suotamo (Chewbacca), Anthony Daniels (C-3PO), Ashley Eckstein (Ahsoka Tano), and Daisy Ridley (Rey Skywalker) reading to you and your family this Star Wars Day!

Even more FREE eResources from publishers for YOU!

Andrew McMeel Publishing, known for publishing such great series as Phoebe and Her Unicorn and Big Nate, is offering a FREE middle-grade eBook every week! All you need to do to access their weekly free eBook is to sign up for their newsletter, which you can do HERE!

They also have a plethora of amazing free resources you can download. 

Check out their resources page HERE.

ABDO Publishing, known for their amazingly vast collection of non-fiction and fiction titles for children and young adults, is offering access to their digital collection for FREE through June 2020. Check out their digital collections HERE.

Capstone Publishing, through their Reading is for Everyone campaign, is offering FREE access to their digital learning products PebbleGo and Capstone Interactive eBooks.

They are also offering tons of great resources for activities, science experiments, and other fun projects you can do at home to support learning. 

Check it out HERE!

Resources for TEENS!

Hey teens! 

There seems to be no shortage of virtual resources for children, but don't fret! There's tons of great resources for young adults too!

Starting TODAY (April 30) you can sign up to be part of the SYNC Audiobooks for Teens program, a yearly summer audiobook program for teens ages 13 and up (and adults who enjoy young adult literature are welcome too!). This amazing program is in its 11th season of offering free audiobooks downloads weekly! SYNC Audiobooks for Teens runs April 30 until July 29. Interested participants from all over the world can get two free audiobook downloads per week which they can keep even after the program is over!

New this year, users will need the Sora Student reading app,which can be found on OverDrive's website. Each title will be available for download for seven days during their corresponding weeks. When a new week begins, the previous titles will be gone, so make sure to download all of the titles so you won't miss them!

To participate, you need to sign up for the program's newsletter on their website to get alerts.

Check out this useful article from Book Riot to learn more!

Riveted by Simon Teen is an online community for anyone that loves young adult fiction! You can read YA books for FREE, discover new books and authors, enter contests for new and upcoming releases, and much more! It's free to join and you will need an account to access any of the FREE reads. Check it out today!

Are you, or someone in your household, planning on taking the ACT test? The Grandview Heights Public Library, in Columbus, Ohio, is offering their famous ACT prep classes online for FREE for any teen who is interested! At the moment, there are three courses scheduled: May 2, May 23, and June 27. They are also offering classes for parents and caregivers interested in learning more about the ACT test and how Covid-19 is impacting college admissions. 

Registration is limited so make sure to sign up today!

Barnes & Noble announces a national short story contest for kids!

Barnes & Noble is calling all children ages 6 - 12 to share their original short stories for a chance to be published in a book!

Fifteen entrants will be published in a book sold exclusively at Barnes & Noble, with a portion of the proceeds going to charity. In addition, fifteen winners and fifteen runners-up will get a signed book from bestselling author Gail Carson Levine. How neat is that?!?

Entries are accepted from April 27 - May 29, 2020. 

Bust out the paper and pencil and let those creative ideas flow!

More information on the contest can be found HERE.

Learn more and complete the entry form HERE

Free eBooks from Sesame Street!

Can you tell me how to get to Sesame Street?

If there are fans of Sesame Street in your household, make sure to check out the Sesame Street website for fun and educational games, videos, and now FREE eBooks*! Please note that a grown-up will have to create a free account before being able to access some of the resources. 

For a limited time, Sesame Street is offering many of their eBooks for FREE! There are eBooks in a few different languages that feature all of your favorite Sesame Street characters! These eBooks are compatible with Google Play, iBooks, Kindle Books, NOOK Kids, and Kobo Books. 

Click HERE for a complete list of the eBooks they offer!

*Please note that not all of the eBooks are available for free. To find out if a title is available for free, you will need to click on it. You will be redirected to the platform website. Each platform website lists what is available differently. For example, Google Play lists all that are available for free but iBooks does not. 

Click HERE to see the complete list available on Google Play