Blog Post
Beauty and the Beast
by PizzaPuppy
Are you excited for the release of the new Beauty and the Beast movie? This classic "tale as old as time" has been revamped for a modern audience, and hits theaters next Friday, March 17th.
We will be celebrating here at the library with Beauty and the Beast Crafts at the Pittsfield branch on Saturday, March 18th from 3-4 pm. Join us in making themed crafts and listening to music from the movie!
While you're waiting for it's release, now is the perfect time to go back and revisit your old favorites. We have the original Disney animated movie in both regular DVD discs and Blu-ray, as well as the sequels Beauty and the Beast: The Enchanted Christmas and Beauty and the Beast: Belle's Magical World. You can also listen to the original soundtrack as well as the Broadway musical version.
We have plenty of classic (non-Disney) versions of the tale as well. Immerse yourself in this classic story set in 19th century France with copies found here, here, and here, or check out Jan Brett's fabulous illustrations. We have a Reader version available for children who are just beginning to read on their own.
We also have versions of this story that occur in other cultures, such as one that takes place in West Africa or a Chinese version where Beauty agrees to marry a fierce dragon in return for her father's life.
We have Beauty and the Beast inspired books, such as No Lie, I Acted Like a Beast! (where the story is told from the Beast's perspective). There's even a Rainbow Magic book featuring Gwen the Beauty and the Beast Fairy.
Older kids and teens can also get in on the fun with retellings such as Beauty and Belle. Also good are the Beauty and the Beast television show and the movie Beastly, both released fairly recently.
Crafts
Family Game Night!
Friday August 18, 2017: 6:30pm to
8:30pm
Westgate Branch: West Side Room
Grade K - Adult
Crafts
Family Game Night!
Friday July 14, 2017: 6:30pm to
8:30pm
Westgate Branch: West Side Room
Grade K - Adult
Crafts
Family Game Night!
Friday June 16, 2017: 6:30pm to
8:30pm
Westgate Branch: West Side Room
Grade K - Adult
Blog Post
FestiFools and AADL: Something New!
by manz
Our fellow robots, the time has come to change things up and we at AADL are retiring our robot suits for something new. We want to help keep things fresh for FestiFools fans! This year AADL is hosting multiple building workshops for ALL AGES to help us make two community puppets, and for you to make your own costumes or instruments for the big FestiFools event on Sunday, April 9.
This year we are bringing a big, bright, yellow sun puppet to join in whatever fun the official FestiFools organizers have planned for Ann Arbor! We’ll accompany our GIANT sun on Main Street with all of us decked out in our brightest sunniest YELLOW costumes as we march to fantastic beats. Onlookers will see so much YELLOW parading down Main Street! (Robots are always welcome at FestiFools, AADL just isn't hosting workshops to make them.)
We will have opportunities to papier–mâché, paint fabric, make a sunshiney costume with capes and masks, make a drum, and more. We are SO excited to have you join us in helping make FestiFools even more foolish and bright this year!
Festifools Workshop: Community Puppet Building Sunday, March 19 from 1:00-3:00
All ages will work together to help make a GIANT sun puppet that we’ll all march down Main St. at the BIG FestiFools event on Sunday, April 9! It will march alongside a mysterious surprise creature that you will help create in bits and pieces. While you won’t be making your own puppet at this workshop, you’ll have a chance to work together to be a part of something BIGGER that all will see.
FestiFools Workshop: Costume Making Sunday, March 26 from 1:00-3:00
Create your own costume to be worn while marching down Main St. at the BIG FestiFools event on Sunday, April 9! We are bringing a GIANT sun puppet to FestiFools and we need you to be the yellow rays to go with it. We’ll have supplies for capes, wings, hats, masks, and more – many golden yellow supplies to help make us into bright glowing orbs.
FestiFools Workshop: Make Instruments with Drummunity Sunday, April 2, 2017 from 1:00-2:00
Lori Fithian of Drummunity will help us make simple percussive instruments.
Meet back up with us on April 9 at the BIG FestiFools event ready to march along playing your instrument while wearing the most yellow sunshiny costume you can come up with. Picture a GIANT yellow sun with many marching alongside beaming with gold and playing music.
FestiFools Workshop: March with Drummunity Sunday, April 2 from 2:15-3:00
Lori Fithian of Drummunity will lead us in making the most of our unique musical instruments, getting us in the FestiFools spirit with a mini march.
Bring your own instrument or come to the instrument-making workshop right before this. Then meet back up with us on April 9 ready to march along in the BIG FestiFools event, playing your instrument while wearing the most foolish yellow costume you can come up with.
Meet Up and March Over to FestiFools! Sunday, April 9 at 3:30pm
Calling all fools! Meet us in the lobby in your most foolish costumes ready to march over to Main Street and join in the FestiFools fun from 4:00 - 5:00 pm. We library fools are all wearing yellow to surround the sun! So dress in yellow, dress in costume, be silly, and bring your instruments! Get ready to make some noise and spread some cheer in downtown Ann Arbor!
Blog Post
Storytimes: F is for Farm!
by eapearce
Elizabeth told stories about the farm, farm animals and farmers this week at her storytimes at Traverwood and Westgate. We heard the story of Lazy Jack, a retelling of the folktale about the silly little boy who works for various farmers but can never seem to figure out how to carry home his earnings. We also heard about the cowboy who’s trying to find a horse in the fun story Are You a Horse? by Andy Rash. And, we read about the infamous typing cows in Doreen Cronin’s Click, Clack, Moo: Cows That Type. Finally, the farm animals drove the farmer’s tractor in AADL’s felt version of The Gobble Gobble Moooooo Tractor Book, by Jez Alborough.
AADL storytimes take place at all locations and are open to all. For a complete list of storytimes and locations, visit our Jump page, created for parents and teachers.
Blog Post
PreK Bits - Stories-To-Go Kits 2016
by ryanikoglu
Preschool Kits launched in March 2016!
There are 10 new STORIES-TO-GO themes for 2016 that have been added to the Library Collections.
These kits have a pre-selected set of books and media especially for families, childcare centers, preschools, classrooms, home schools with kids ages 2-7 years old.
Every kit has an Activity Folder which includes songs, fingerplays and activities to extend the theme with our children.
The 2016 themes are as follows:
BIG MACHINES ... Diggers, Pushers, and more working machines.
OUTER SPACE ... Stars, Planets and space travel.
BABY SIGNS ... Nursery songs and DVDs for building signing vocabulary with your baby.
ANN ARBOR ... Books that link with major themes in our home town ... Ann Arbor, Michigan.
FAIRIES ... For all fans of fairy lore.
FEELINGS ... Stories about working with strong feelings.
LIBRARIES ... What goes on at the Library?
MONSTERS ... Friendly Monsters and monster fantasy.
SIZE & MEASUREMENT: Math Readiness ... How do you know sizes?
SEEDS to PLANTS ... What plants need and how they grow.
Crafts
Preschool ArtStart
Monday August 21, 2017: 10:30am to
11:00am
Pittsfield Branch: Program Room, Downtown Library: Secret Lab
Ages 2–5, Siblings Welcome
Crafts
Preschool ArtStart
Monday July 24, 2017: 10:30am to
11:00am
Traverwood Branch: Program Room, Pittsfield Branch: Program Room
Age 2–5, Siblings Welcome
Crafts
Preschool ArtStart
Monday June 19, 2017: 10:30am to
11:00am
Pittsfield Branch: Program Room, Downtown Library: Secret Lab
Age 2–5, Siblings Welcome