Talk Like A Pirate Day is every year on September 19th. For this year, I changed my interactive bulletin board to ask library users what their pirate name would be. 

This is the generator I came up to find your pirate name. It includes my dads childhood nickname for me on the right side - I won't disclose what name that is. 

Unbeknownst to me, my coworker had a similar chart already made up from several years ago. I threw
both signs on the board and let the kids decide which chart/name they wanted to write on a skull to be attached to the board. 

Here's a close up of the 2 as they were on the board . . .

My name would either be Swashbuckler Kidd or Rotten Navigator. What would yours be?

Favorites from this list include . . .

Matched by Ally Condie

Delirium by Lauren Oliver

Amid Stars and Darkness by Chani Lynn Feener

The Selection by Keira Cass.

If you also are a fan of The Selection, then you might enjoy The Princess Trials by Cordelia K Castel. I've not read that series yet but based on the description, they sound similar. Everneath by Brodi Ashton is now on my TBR list.

 

During our summer book club meetings, we had a wide range of attendees. Some kiddos could read, some could not. 

For our second meeting, I needed an activity that everyone could enjoy and one of the older kids had the idea to play Bad Kitty Bingo. That was the PERFECT idea!! 

Here you will find the materials I made for this to happen. 

BINGO SHEETS

I made 50 different Bingo sheets for this game in anticipation that they might want to change their sheets at some point. 

Besides, it's better to have too many than not enough!

Click here for my Bingo Sheets PDF.

BINGO ANSWERS

I'm not sure what these are called when they're not balls. Bingo Folds? 

There are 47 different images that were used in the Bad Kitty Bingo Sheets. These are the larger versions of those images. 

For our game, I cut out each individual picture and folded it up. It was placed inside a fish bowl. 

As each image was drawn, kids marked it off their board no matter what column it was in. 

Click here for my Bingo Answers. 

How We Played

Our prize table was filled with books and an assortment of other goodies we had acquired. 

Each person was allowed to Bingo twice for a prize. Once they bingo-ed, they could come up and choose an item from the table to keep. 

The rule was that they had to at least choose 1 book.

 

This idea was not original but that doesn't diminish from the straight forward and simplistic message. 

 

If you're looking for a quick and easy book related slogan for your bulletin board, this is it!

 

 

This book display takes a single quote (1 or 2 sentences) to give a general idea of a book.

Paper sleeves were made to be wrapped around the each books front cover with the quote, a full image of the book and its current Goodreads rating.

  

Here is one sheet of my paper sleeves.

 It's a full page portrait sheet divided into 3 equal sections. In order for this sleeve to completely wrap around a books front cover, I taped scrap paper to reach between top and bottom edges. That seam does not show unless you look inside the book.

 Unfortunately our library does not have enough of these physical books to create a book display for the lost princess trope. 

My favorites from this list include . . . 

Rogue Princess by B.R. Myers

The Storyteller by Kathryn Williams 

The Noble Servant by Melanie Dickerson (An Alabama author!)

 

 

For a 1st grade field trip, I was asked to do a story time about the importance of reading for a group of 80-90. 

BOOK: A Library Book For Bear by Bonny Becker

This book took a few readings before it grew on me but it was a hit. 

In this book we have Bear and Mouse. Bear has exactly 7 books at home and cannot imagine ever needing more. He certainly doesn't need to visit the library but he's promised to accompany Mouse on a visit so off they go together. 

Talking points after this book were: Bear was only interested in books about pickles. How did Mouse try to get Bear to read something different? Why did Bear decide he liked the library? How do you choose a book for yourself at the library?

A Library Book For Bear gives the reader/teacher/librarian opportunities to use a handful of different voices, wide sweeping hand motions and raising your voice/ lowering your voice. 

BOOK: Library Books Are Not For Eating by Todd Tarpley

The kids had to help me with this book, which really made this reading great. In this story there is a repeated line, "library books are not for eating".

Whenever the line came up in the story, the group said it along with me. 

For this to work, we used a secret hand signal to indicate when to say the phrase. The hand signal was "library" in ASL. It is a wide sweeping motion so the kids were able to notice very easily when I made this motion.

SONGS

Songs were kept as generic as possible for this, so no super cool library story time songs for me to share.

The best I can add for this section is we sang "If You're Ready For A Story Clap Your Hands". Verses included: clapping hands, say "let's read a book!", sit so still. 

 

 

Happy story telling!!

 

This tabletop Easter passive program ideally had kids coloring Easter Eggs and putting them inside a cardboard Easter basket. 

Due to our library getting new light fixtures at this time, this table barely had any traction before it had to be put away. Then Easter Sunday passed before the department reopened. 

These printables will definitely be reused next year and I will endeavor to take pictures for this post! In the meantime, save these to your computer for use later.

 

My most popular book display of 2023 has been books based around secret or hidden identities. There are a TON of really good YA options in this trope.

Personal favorites include . . . 

The Winners Curse by Marie Rutkoski 

The Supervillain and Me by Danielle Banas

Amid Stars and Darkness by Chani Lynn Feener

Tweet Cute by Emma Lord

However, this display has added several more titles to my TBR list, that's for sure!

2015

2018

2021

2023

-

Foxcraft by Inbali Iserles

      The first book in a thrilling fantasy trilogy starring one of the animal kingdom's most hunted heroes. Foxcraft is full of excitement and heart, and a touch of magic.

Isla and her brother are two young foxes living just outside the lands of the furless -- humans. The life of a fox is filled with dangers, but Isla has begun to learn mysterious skills meant to help her survive. Then the unthinkable happens. Returning to her den, Isla finds it set ablaze and surrounded by strange foxes, and her family is nowhere in sight. Forced to flee, she escapes into the cold, gray world of the furless. Now Isla must navigate this bewildering and deadly terrain, all while being hunted by a ruthless enemy. In order to survive, she will need to master the ancient arts of her kind -- magical gifts of cunning known only to foxes. She must unravel the secrets of foxcraft.

Spirit Animals

      Four children separated by vast distances all undergo the same ritual, watched by cloaked strangers. Four flashes of light erupt, and from them emerge the unmistakable shapes of incredible beasts - a wolf, a leopard, a panda, a falcon. Suddenly the paths of these children - and the world - have been changed for ever. Enter the world of Erdas, where every child who comes of age must discover if they have a spirit animal, a rare bond between human and beast that bestows great powers to both. 

      A dark force has risen from distant and long-forgotten lands, and has begun an onslaught that will ravage the world. Now the fate of Erdas has fallen on the shoulders of four young strangers ...and on you.

      The first book is written by Brandon Mull. All books are written by different authors. 
 

Pride Wars by Matt Laney

     Prince Leo is next in line for the throne of Singara, a land ruled by super-evolved felines. Like every thirteen-year-old, Leo must prove his worth by hunting a deadly beast called a slaycon. But killing a slaycon is the least of Leo’s problems. The enemy beyond the Great Wall is rising up. Inside the wall, Singara is being torn apart by Leo’s rebellious cousin. Worst of all, Leo is a Spinner, cursed with a dangerous and forbidden power he can’t control.

The future of Singara is in Leo’s hands. Can he conceal his curse, claim the throne, and protect his realm? Or will he embrace his power and discover a far greater destiny . . . for himself and for his world?

Bear of the Ice by Kathryn Lasky 

      For generations, the noble polar bears have ruled the Northern Kingdoms. But now, their society is on the brink of collapse. A group of power-hungry bears has seized control, and darkness is creeping across the snow.Cubs First and Second don't know any of this. Although they're twins, they couldn't be more different. First loves imagining stories, while his daring sister, Second, wants to live them.

    When their mother is taken prisoner, the cubs' world falls apart. They know they have to rescue her, but how can two cubs who've barely learned to hunt survive a treacherous journey across the ice? Their only chance is to learn to trust each other and--even more important--trust themselves. But survival is only the beginning. And soon, these two unlikely heroes find themselves at the heart of a battle unlike anything Ga'hoole has ever seen.

     This 3 book series is set in the land of Ga'hoole along with the next series!

Wolves of the Beyond by Kathryn Lasky

A wolf mother has given birth, but the warm bundle snuffling next to her brings only anguish. The pup, otherwise healthy, has a twisted leg, and the mother knows what the harsh code of the pack demands. Her pup will be taken from her and abandoned on a desolate hill. The pack cannot have weakness - the wolf mother knows that her pup is condemned to die.

      But along in the wilderness, the pup, Faolan, does not perish. This is his story - a story of survival, of courage, and of love triumphant. This is Faolan's story, the wolf pup who rose up to change forever the Wolves of the Beyond.

    Wilderlore by Amanda Foody

     The last thing Barclay Thorne ever wanted was an adventure.

Thankfully, as an apprentice to the town’s mushroom farmer, Barclay need only work hard and follow the rules to one day become the head mushroom farmer himself. No danger required. But then Barclay accidentally breaks his town’s most sacred rule: never ever EVER stray into the Woods, for within the Woods lurk vicious magical Beasts.

To Barclay’s horror, he faces a fate far worse than being eaten: he unwittingly bonds with a Beast and is run out of town by an angry mob. Determined to break this bond and return home, Barclay journeys to find the mysterious town of Lore Keepers, people who have also bonded with Beasts and share their powers.

But after making new friends, entering a dangerous apprenticeship exam, and even facing the legendary Beast of the Woods, Barclay must make a difficult choice: return to the home and rules he’s always known, or embrace the adventure awaiting him.

 

Wings of Fire by Tui T. Sutherland

     The seven dragon tribes have been at war for generations, locked in an endless battle over an ancient, lost treasure.

      A secret movement called the Talons of Peace is determined to bring an end to the fighting, with the help of a prophecy -- a foretelling that calls for great sacrifice.Five dragonets are collected to fulfill the prophecy, raised in a hidden cave and enlisted, against their will, to end the terrible war.

      But not every dragonet wants a destiny. And when the select five escape their underground captors to look for their original homes, what has been unleashed on the dragon world may be far more than the revolutionary planners intended . . .

Redwall by Brain Jacques

A quest to recover a legendary lost weapon by bumbling young apprentice monk, mouse Matthias.

Redwall Abbey, tranquil home to a community of peace-loving mice, is threatened by Cluny the Scourge savage bilge rat warlord and his battle-hardened horde. But the Redwall mice and their loyal woodland friends combine their courage and strength.

     Summaries are book descriptions taken from Goodreads and Scholastic.