Programs & Events for Kids
Library staff design a full schedule of engaging, entertaining, and educational programs and events for babies, toddlers, preschoolers, and school-aged children. Various events – including options for early literacy, STEAM, gaming, and crafts – are offered year-round.
1KB4K: 1,000 Books Before Kindergarten
1KB4K is a library initiative that promotes reading 1,000 books to preschoolers before they begin Kindergarten. It’s easy to do, and the child gets a free book every time they read and report 100 books. Register and track their reading progress online with Beanstack, or visit the Youth Services Department for additional information or to register in person. You can also view the 1KB4K brochure here.
100 Club
The 100 Club is a fun way for kids to build their reading habits year-round – while earning prizes! Kids in kindergarten through 8th grade can join the club and track their progress on Beanstack. There’s no time limit for completing the challenge, but the goal is to read 100 books! The structure is simple: log books in any category and earn a prize for each 10 books read. Each month, a prize winner will be drawn from active readers, and readers who finish all 10 badges will earn a 100 Club completion prize and get to pick a free book to keep. Learn more about signing up in Beanstack at fondulaclibrary.beanstack.org/reader365 or ask a librarian for help and get your young readers involved in this awesome reading challenge!
Anytime Activities, Toys, & Games
Even when there’s not a program scheduled, there’s always something fun to do at the library! Stop by the desk in the Youth Services Department to learn more about the library’s current Anytime Activities – crafts, games, or projects kids can do whenever they visit the library. Additionally, the library offers a wide selection of board games and card games, as well as a train table, Lego table, puzzles, and a puppet theater to play with during your visit.
Digital Collections for Kids
With the school year in full swing, and our lives busier this fall, it might be hard to find time to stop by the library. The good news is, Fondulac staff have been working hard, not only for Summer Reading these past few months, but also to offer alternatives to our physical location this new school year. Of course, we have always had our digital collections, but over the summer we have added new collections! We hope our new digital collection makes it easier to access your library on your terms, with the content you are most interested in! Here are some of the new services we have added to our digital library!
Comics Plus offers thousands of comic books that the whole family will enjoy, completely free! The kids comics range from Minecraft-Inspired series to the Legend of Korra series. It also has lots of manga for teens and adults. If you are familiar with logging into Libby, Boundless, or your Fondulac District Library account, all you need is your library card number and PIN to get started! When first setting up this account, it will be important to make sure to help your kids sign up for the Comics Plus Children’s Library.
Kanopy is a great alternative to many of the streaming subscriptions that cost in our world today. Kanopy is completely free for our patrons. It offers tv shows, movies, and educational courses for both adults and kids! At FDL we offer 15 credits for our general Kanopy services per month, but the good news is kids are able to watch unlimited content in the Kanopy Kids section all month long!
FDL has also revamped our language learning services! We switched from Mango languages to Rocket Languages. This new language app can be used on the computer or with an app on your phone! It gives even more in-depth lessons than our previous service as well!
–Jacob Roberts, Youth Services Specialist
New Kids’ Fiction Highlight: Dealing with Tough Stuff
My Brother is Away
by Sara Greenwood
Recommended Ages: 5-8
This is an interesting book that touches on a sensitive, yet realistic subject. A young girl must face her friends and her feelings because her older brother has been incarcerated. Her friends talk about her brother being a bad person. She must face the truth that he did something wrong, nonetheless she still loves him and misses him terribly. The little girl and her parents must take a very long drive to visit him at the prison where he currently resides. She is anxious about visiting her brother at the prison, but instantly feels excitement when she sees him and he greets her with a big hug. She quickly learns that she is not the only person to have someone they love in prison.
Gut Reaction
by Kirby Larson and Quinn Wyatt
Recommended Ages: 8-12
My reason for recommending this book is that it deals with a chronic illness (Crohn’s Disease) and all the obstacles that go along with being sick while trying to remain active and social. Tess is an 8th grader who has just moved to a new school and is dealing with the loss of her father while trying to fit in and make new friends. She believes her stomach pains are due to stress from all the new challenges she is facing, but later finds out she has a serious medical condition that she must learn to live with. Tess is also a very talented baker and is competing in an elite baking contest while dealing with her health condition. This book demonstrates the importance of mental and physical health and how they are so closely connected. It also endorses the positivity of friendship and support.
–Christy Schurter, Youth Services Assistant
