Parents, are you ready for summer 2013?  The Frisco Public Library definitely is!!!

Beginning June 7, you can pick up or download a reading log and take part in the Mayor’s Summer Reading Challenge - there’s something for the whole family! Why should you do this you may ask?  Well, at the end of the summer, your child will have read at least ten books and starting July 5, they can turn in their readings logs for some fantastic prizes!  Sounds like a win-win situation to us!

Every Monday from June 10-July 22 (with the exception of July 1), our very popular summer series for children entering Kindergarten through 5th grade and their families will be held in the 1st floor Council Chambers.  Do you have an animal lover on your hands?  Want to explore some Mad Science without the mess?  Check out our Monday programs here.  Tickets are first come, first serve so get here early!  After the show, head on up to the 2nd floor and get your reading on!  For children entering 6th-12th grade, look at our programs for teens this summer.

Our story time session begins the week of June 11.  We have story times for babies, young toddlers, toddlers and preschoolers.  These story times are for both pre-readers and readers and are an excellent way to nurture the love of books.  Stories, puppet shows, finger plays, singing.  . . we do a little bit of everything! Preschoolers will even be visited by special guests during story times this summer! Get your tickets at the 2nd floor Ask Us desk on the day of the story time. Please check our schedule for days and times.

Whew!  Are you tired yet?  Rest up because a summer of reading, great prizes, and programs begins June 7.  The Frisco Public Library is your library for summer fun!

	Diane Wheeler
	Library Assistant
	dwheeler@friscotexas.gov

With students nearing the end of the school year, now is the perfect time to consider focusing on learning a new language at home. The Frisco Public Library has many great resources for anyone interested in learning a new language from babies to adults. Stop by any of the Ask Us! desks to tell the library staff what you have been learning!

Sign Language

The Frisco Public Library produces FPL Sign Time videos that feature Beebo, library staff, and patrons. FPL Sign Time is a free sign language video series that teaches American Sign Language (ASL) to young children and their caregivers. Introducing ASL at a young age has proven to promote early communication, encourage speech development, and reduce tantrums. Watch our FPL Sign Time videos here and check out more signing resources here.

Foreign Languages for Ages 2-12

Muzzy is the world’s #1 language course for children ages 2-12. Muzzy introduces children to French, Italian, German, Spanish, English, Mandarin Chinese, Portuguese, and Russian! You can access Muzzy through the library’s website 24/7. You will need your library card to log in and then you can start learning!

To learn more about the benefits of early language learning, read one of our previous blog posts.

Foreign Languages for Teens and Adults

Mango Languages is an online language-learning system that teaches conversation skills, vocabulary, grammar and culture of over 40 languages. You can access Mango Languages through the library’s website 24/7 or Mango Languages is also available as an app for Apple or Android devices.  You will need your library card to start learning and you can create an account to easily track your progress.

	Brienne Walsh
	Library Assistant – Editor
	bwalsh@friscotexas.gov

The Frisco Public Library is offering another FREE Early Literacy Workshop!

Parents, teachers, and childcare professionals will be exposed to all kinds of puppets, puppet techniques, and effective ways to use puppets with young children ages 2-7 during this fun and informative workshop. Don’t miss it!

May 11 10:00–11:30 am
2nd Floor Children’s Program Room
For Adult Participants Only
Receive 1.5 CE hours

Register online at friscolibrary.com beginning April 27.

For questions, contact Cindy Boatfield at 972.292.5639 or by e-mail cboatfield@friscotexas.gov.

	Cindy Boatfield
	Public Services Librarian
	cboatfield@friscotexas.gov

Preschool Story Time

April 16, 18, & 19

11:30 am

This week’s Story Time presentations teach children how to “clean and green” our planet – starting with our own city!  Ms. Molly and Rufus the Recycling Dog from Frisco’s Environmental Services drop by as special guests during Story Time to give children and parents a fun, interactive introduction to recycling in Frisco.  We will sing, dance, and read together to learn why recycling and picking up litter help to “Keep Frisco Beautiful” every day!  Children will also be able to meet Rufus and Ms. Molly after Story Time, which provides parents with a great photo opportunity!

 NOTES FOR PARENTS

• For more easy and fun activities you can do at home, check out Rufus’s new website for kids:  www.FriscoGreenTeam.org! 
• Mark your calendars… This year’s “Clean It and Green It” event takes place on Sat. April 20!  For more information about “Clean It and Green It” (Frisco’s annual Community Clean-Up and Earth Day Celebration) or to pre-register your family today, visit www.FriscoTexas.gov/Recycle. 

Could your student take the stage and captivate an audience with a story? If you answered yes, and your child is between ages 8 to 18, we encourage them to audition for The Lone Star Student Tellers. No storytelling experience necessary—just potential. For all of the details and how to audition visit http://lonestarstories.org/, click on Student Tellers.

	Cindy Boatfield
	Public Services Librarian
	cboatfield@friscotexas.gov

It’s almost time for St. Patrick’s Day!  Do you know why people pinch you if you don’t wear green?  Do you know who St. Patrick was?  What did St. Patrick have to do with snakes?  Where is the Emerald Isle?  Do you like green food?

Frisco Public Library can help you find the answers to all those questions.

Here’s a sampling of the books that you can borrow:

Then we have our awesome databases.  National Geographic Kids has lots of St. Patrick’s Day information, games, crafts and even recipes.  They even have a St. Patrick’s Day “Quiz your Noodle”.

Feeling lucky about green food?  Let’s try some Lucky Shamrock Krispie Treats with a Lucky Smoothie.

Here’s a fabulous pin to keep you from getting pinched on St. Patrick’s Day:

Search our catalog for more great books about St. Patrick’s Day!

	Margaret Ponder
	Library Assistant
	mponder@friscotexas.gov

Waiting for the Magic by Patricia MacLachlan

 2013-2014 Texas Bluebonnet Award Nominee

Release Date:  September 18, 2012

Recommended Age:  8 to 11

 Bluebonnet nominee for 2013-2014  Waiting for the Magic by Patricia MacLachlan (from Sarah, Plain and Tall fame) is a heartwarming story for the animal-loving elementary set or for anyone who believes in the magic of pets (like me!)

When Will and Elinor’s father leaves the family, the mother tries to fill the void by adopting four dogs and a cat (the cat is Elinor’s idea) from the shelter.  Lo and behold, the magic begins.  The animals telepathically communicate with any human who is young, old, brave, honest, and joyful.  Four-year old Elinor falls right into this category but Will and his mother do not right away.  Will is not brave enough to confront his father’s absense and be honest with his feelings.  The mother has other things are on her mind which will come to light later in the story.

Each of the animals has its own personality which readers will enjoy.  They provide the family with solace and comfort at this difficult time in their lives.  The grandparents, who fall into the “old” category, are also a support system which I liked.  The grandmother loves to knit so she communicates with the animals to find out their favorite colors for the sweaters she knits for them.

One of the things that struck me about this novel is, even though it is a current release, it has a nostalgic feel to it.  There are no cell phones, no computers, no mention of television.  Will and Elinor play outside with friends.  The illustrations in the book also hint to another time.  The phone is an old-fashioned corded phone (a great conversation starter for parents and children!!!) and dishes are washed and dried by hand. Despite this, the story’s theme is still relevant to modern society.

Without giving too much away, the story ends happily which I think is perfect for the age group that is intended.  All the characters are waiting for the magic that will make their family complete again.

	Diane Wheeler
	Library Assistant
	dwheeler@friscotexas.gov

Have you ever wondered (or been assigned to investigate) who invented items we take for granted, like toasters, ballpoint pens, or seat belts? Before we can thank the geniuses who developed these fine items – we need to know their names! (It’s easy to take everyday items for granted, but at one point, they were just an idea. An innovative idea!)

I’ll help you get started in finding answers to these burning questions – let’s take a look at some related books and online resources about inventors and scientists.

Take a gander at these books:

You might also search directly for the inventor’s name, or for his/her invention. If the person is a popular historical figure, we may have a book about him/her in our 2nd floor juvenile biography section – you would look under the person’s last name (e.g. Abraham Lincoln would be found at J B LINCOLN).

Or peruse these online resources:

• Facts on File: Science Online (use name as keyword in search)
• Searchasaurus (use inventor name or item invented in search)

Want even more? OK! How about these useful Websites:

• Google Patent Search
• inventors.about.com
• Library of Congress: Inventor & Innovations
• National Inventors Hall of Fame

Don’t feel like you have to “invent” facts when writing reports on famous (or not so famous) historical figures. Using the above resources, I think you’ll find some great information – and if you need additional help, be sure to visit us at the library. We love helping people!

And if you find out who invented the ballpoint pen (or another everyday item that you find interesting) – let me know in the comments.

	Claudia Wayland
	Youth Services Senior Librarian
	cwayland@friscotexas.gov

Your student comes home with the good news! A research project is due
a) Soon
b) By the end of the week
c) By 7:45 am tomorrow

The Frisco Public Library is here to help. Fortunately we are open nearly every day. So if you can drop by the library to get some in-person assistance, please do. We’re happy to help you search for source materials, locate books, find photographs, and even look up science experiments.

Over the years our librarians have been carefully selecting our non-fiction collection to meet the needs of our student patrons. Some of these items may not check out too often, but it is good to know that we have them when you need them.

Here is where some creativity will come into play. Your child may have been given (or self-selected) a research project about a particular fish, tree frog, or marginally famous Texan. It may be that a book devoted solely to that topic hasn’t been written, is out of print, or is simply too specialized to be part of our general non-fiction collection. That does not mean that we will be unsuccessful in tracking down lots of useful information from various sources. We can look in our Reference collection (that does not check out – it’s always here). We can examine books and materials on other floors of the library to see if we can capture the information you need. And we can also use some of the best proprietary databases that libraries have to offer.

Yep, there is NO reason to be afraid of our electronic databases and there is NO reason to confuse these databases with websites lurking out there on the internet. Why? Because we have purchased licenses to databases aimed at your student’s readling level, understanding, and needs. Another great advantage of these databases is that they have been prepared by the same authors, editors, and professionals who publish the reference books in our library. If you are looking for reliable, trusted information that can be confidently cited as authoritative, we can get you there. Wikipedia and Google certainly have their place, but it may not be the ideal spot for your research project.

To access these databases, visit our Online Resources page. Some examples of electronic databases include:

Facts on File: Science Online
This is a great place to look for science experiments, science fair information and general science background for homework.

EBSCO Kids Search
Not just a dictionary, an encyclopedia, and an image collection, this database includes hundreds of full text articles from popular sources aimed at KIDS!.

KidsHealth for Kids
Homework help on health and medical questions for kids and online help about how the body works.

Handbook of Texas
Encyclopedia of all things Texas. This multivolume set covers history, geography, famous Texans, and Texas culture.

But we have a wide variety of other databases for learning about math, foreign languages and world cultures. And the best part? They’re never closed!

	David Black
	Sr. Public Services Librarian
	dblack@friscotexas.gov

Jake and Lily by Jerry Spinelli

Released on May 8^th, 2012.

Recommended for ages 8-12.

Jake and Lily are twins who have always been best friends and done everything in life together. They have always shared a bedroom, played the same games, and they share a special connection that lets them know what the other is thinking or doing. When they celebrate their eleventh birthday, everything starts to change. Jake and Lily have their own bedrooms, Jake becomes friends with some boys from the neighborhood, and Lily has to figure out what to do without having her brother around all of the time.

As you read this book, you switch back and forth between Jake’s and Lily’s point of view as they share their experiences during the summer they turn eleven. Jake and Lily both learn about friendship, honesty, standing up for yourself, bullying, and growing up. While Jake and Lily will always be “the twins” or “Jake and Lily,” they discover their own identities. The personality of each twin is completely different and their experiences are easily relatable for young readers. Throughout this book, the reader will laugh, and maybe even learn, as Jake and Lily grow up.

Do you need to be a twin to understand what Jake and Lily are feeling? Nope, you do not even need to have a sibling. What do you need? You need to be ready for the humor and heartbreak that come with growing up. This book is a quick read as the chapters are short and you might like it so much that you have trouble putting it down.