Programs at the Bridgewater Library and Around the Community for children, teens, and families.Welcome our new mascot as we Celebrate Children’s Book Week at Bridgewater Library!
Kids -- Have a favorite Children’s Book? Teens/Adults – Do you remember your favorite from your childhood? You can immortalize that book by making a poster (up to 11x18”) and we’ll display it on our “Favorites” column. We have paper available for your use at the Children’s Desk or you can use your own. Please put your name & phone on the back if you’d like to have your artwork returned.Thanks to all those who submitted their votes to the 2012 Children’s Book Week contest! The national winners, announced on May 7th, are posted on our bulletin board by the reshelving area and can also be found online here.
Enter to WIN! Visit the library during Children’s Book Week (through 5/16) and fill out a raffle form for your chance to win a hardcover copy of Library Lion.@ Bridgewater Library: Programs
Join us each week for stories, songs, finger plays, and a short film. Family Story Time (ages 2-6) Tuesdays at 10 a.m. and 1:30 p.m. Toddler Time (18 mo.-3) Wednesdays at 10 & 11 a.m. and Thursdays at 10:30 a.m and 11:30 a.m. Clapping and singing, rhymes and books….introduce your toddler to the beginnings of story time! Infant Lap Sit (birth to 18 months) Thursdays at 9:30 Clap your hands and stamp your feet and let you baby feel the beat of stories, songs and rhymes. No registration required. 
Looking for an evening storytime? Bound Brook Library is offering a Pajama Storytime (Ages 3 - 6) Wednesdays at 7:00 pm on May 2, 9, and 16 June 13, 20, and 27. Register here for this program. Relax and listen to some stories before bedtime.Get an ID A Kid Kit made at Bridgewater Library
Astronomy Adventure with Teri Bellows (All Ages) (For families with children of all ages) Thursday, May 10th from 4:30-5:30pm Registration required. Where should we look for life beyond Earth? How long does it take to get to Mars? How many planets have rings? If you have these questions and more, this program will be fun for you! Hold planet models and talk about our amazing solar system, and then make a scale model you can copy at home. Before you blast off from the library, stay for a reading and book signing of Stars Are Like People by author and astronomer-educator Mrs. Teri Bellows. 
Eisenhower School Choir (All Ages) (For families with children of all ages) Thursday, May 10th from 7-8:30pm No registration required Join us for a wonderful, spirited evening filled with musical delight s the Eisenhower Intermediate School's 5th and 6th grade choir present their favorite spring selections. Light refreshments will be served. 
Craftacular: Mother's Day (Ages 3-8) Saturday May 12, 2012 10:00 AM to 11:00 AM Registration required What better way to show your love and affection than to make a lovely craft for your beautiful mother? Come celebrate mommies everywhere with a great, big Mother's Day Craftacular! 
Toddler Dance Party (Ages 2-6) Monday, May 14 From 4:30 pm - 5:00 pm Registration required. Read, rock, and roll at the library! Toddlers, ages 2-6, and their caregivers are invited to get their groove on at the library. Shimmy and shake to your favorite toddler tunes! New Jersey Rocks with Mr. C (Ages 6-12) Saturday May 19, 2012 11:00 AM to 12:00 PM Registration required With a silly sense of humor and a warm teaching style, New Jersey photographer and author Walter Choroszewski, 'Mr. C,' entertains and educates young audiences about New Jersey.
Sing-a-Long: You & Me and Family (Families with children of all ages) Monday May 21, 2012 at 10:00 AM. Midway between Mother’s and Father’s Days, we celebrate families with a slew of songs. No registration required. 
Lego Club (Grades K-6) Monday May 21, 2012 4:30 PM to 5:30 PM Registration begins May 7th. Hey LEGO fans, here's a club just for you! Get together with other LEGO-maniacs, share ideas and tips on building, and have a great time! Library LEGOS will be available for building, so you do not need to bring your own. Please Note: Parents are welcome to stay; however, younger siblings cannot be permitted to join this program. 
Rocket Readers: 'Henry and Mudge and the Tall Tree House' (Grades 1-3) Tuesday May 22, 2012 4:30 PM to 5:30 PM Registration begins May 8th. The tree house seemed perfect, but it was missing something! What fun is a tree house without your best friend? Join us as we discuss the book, and enjoy an activity or craft! Chapter Book Club: 'Charlie and the Chocolate Factory' (Grades 3-4) Wednesday May 23, 2012 4:30 PM to 5:30 PM
Registration begins May 2nd. Young Charlie Bucket can't believe his luck when he finds the very last of Mr. Willy Wonka's Golden Tickets inside his chocolate bar. He wins the trip of a lifetime, a magical tour around Mr. Wonka's mysterious chocolate factory. Once inside, Charlie and the other four winners witness amazing wonders: rainbow drops, lickable wallpaper, and even a chocolate waterfall. But what happens when the children, one by one, disobey Mr. Wonka? There are also LOTS OF PROGRAMS at other system libraries for children & teens…find their online calendars under the “events/programs” tab on our home page.
@ Bridgewater Library for Teens:
Think you’ve got what it takes to get up on stage in front of your peers with nothing but your voice and guitar? Want to share your most well-crafted poetry or original music? Then this is your night! Join us for this one of a kind experience, and help local musicians and writers get their voices heard. Depending on registration, artists will receive 10-15 minute slots to play music or recite poetry. Sign ups will be on a first-come, first-served basis. Please check back for more registration information.
Displays:
Remembering Maurice Sendak, who died this week at age 83, with a display of his wonderful works. (See links to interviews below.)
Batter Up! Lots of books on a favorite spring past-time await eager readers at our display behind the Youth Services Reference Desk.
Around the Community:
Please note: due to a change in interpretation of library bulletin board display policy, we can no longer post information on events by for-profit entities (e.g. Lowe’s, Home Depot, and similar store-based programs) even if those events are free. Macaroni Kid of Hillsborough & Warren do post these events. We will continue to post events done by non-profits like museums and theaters.
LAST CHANCE TO REGISTER FOR A CHILDREN’S DAY OF ART
Time is running out to register for the Children's Day of Art, a full day of hands-on workshops led by professional artists in cartooning, drama, eco-sculpture, music, poetry and pottery for children ages 6-13.
WHEN: May 12
WHERE: St. Peter's Episcopal Church in Morristown
COST: $20. Advance registration is required. Forms are available HERE
Youngsters will participate in all six workshops plus enjoy "food art" with Chef Melody of The Main Event during lunch. The day will end with a reception for the young artists, their parents and the instructors from 4 to 5 PM. You can watch a video and read the biographies of the art day instructors HERE For more information, e-mail sharon@sharonsheridan.com.
Justin Roberts and the Not Ready for Naptime Players Saturday, May 12 McCarter Theatre in Princeton, NJ ages 2 and up, 11 am-12 pm, $16
609-258-2787
Justin and The Not Ready for Naptime Players dish out rock music for kids and their parents. Bass and drums pound out the beat as bodies spring to their feet, jumping, dancing, and bouncing off each other in the kiddie mosh pit. Tickets required.
NJ State History Fair May 12, 2012 11:00 AM - 5:00 PM Rain or Shine
Washington Crossing State Park County Route 546 Titusville, NJ 08560
Free Admission Parking - $5.00/Vehicle Directions on how to get there
101 Things to Do, including 78th Army Band, Jazz ComboMartha Washington
The Colonial Conjurer Magic Show
Tuckers' Tales Puppet Theatre
NJ State History Fair Juried Art Exhibit
GPS Heritage Cache Challenge
"Are You as Smart as a 4-Year Old?” game
Mother's Day Sunday, May 13
Willowwood Arboretum in Chester Twp., NJ
all ages, 12-4:30 pm, free 908-234-1815
Take family photos as you stroll amidst the spring gardens and lilac collection at the height of its beauty and fragrance. From 1-3 pm, folk, country, and bluegrass musical entertainment will be performed by the Stoney River Boys. Light refreshments and self-guided tours will be available.
FAMILY PROGRAMS SATURDAY OUTDOOR ADVENTURES --
Trailside Nature & Science Center
452 New Providence Road, Mountainside, NJ 07092
Hours: Noon to 5 p.m., 7 Days a Week, Free Admission
E-mail: trailside@ucnj.org | Phone: 908-789-3670
Trailside Nature & Science Center is Union County’s Environmental Education Center, located in the Watchung Reservation, a 2,065-acre preserve containing woodlands, fields, lakes, streams and more than 13 miles of hiking trails.
Families with children of all ages are invited to take part in weekly theme hikes/nature related talks. Programs last about 45 minutes. Dress appropriately for the program and the weather. Donations appreciated.
May 12 Owls - Discover which owls inhabit the Watchung Reservation. Take a walk to known roosting sites to search for owl pellets and feathers. Learn to identify local owls by site and
sound. 10 AM.
May 19 Explore Your Senses - Investigate the out-of-doors to search for a shrub that smells of lemon, listen for the call of the cardinal and look for tracks of local wildlife. 10 AM.
Duke Farms Opening a New Orientation Center and miles of trails on Saturday, May 19.
Located on 2,740 acres in Hillsborough, the mission of Duke Farms is to be a model of environmental stewardship in the 21st century and to inspire visitors to become informed stewards of the land.
Beginning on May 19, Duke Farms will be open six days a week, Thursday through Tuesday, 8:30 a.m. to 6 p.m. (closed on Wednesdays).
Inside the orientation center, visitors may learn about and register for programs, tour a gallery of educational and interactive exhibits, view a nine-minute film about the history and mission of Duke Farms or obtain a trail map.
Visitors may walk then walk or hop aboard a two-carriage tram that will take them to the core area of the property north of Duke Parkway West. The tram will stop at three locations: the Old Foundation, which was to be the site of a mansion for the Duke family that was never completed; the Orchid Range, a conservatory renovated to LEED gold standards that houses a southeastern coastal plain garden and tropical orchids; and the Great Meadow, a once manicured expanse of lawn that is now a native wildflower meadow.
From these sites, visitors will now be able to explore 18 miles of trails through woodlands and meadows, and past lakes and waterfalls. Along the way, more than two dozen interpretive signs and audio tours explain the history of the property, the significance of the native habitat and the stewardship practices in use.
Duke Farms offers four miles of paved lanes that are wheelchair accessible and stroller-friendly, and cyclists will be welcome to bike more than 12 miles of paved and gravel paths. Click HERE for the Grand Opening Schedule of Events
SPRING ACTIVITIES FOR KIDS @ HUNTERDON ART MUSEUM
Spring is here and the kids are getting antsy. Wondering what to do with your little ones? Time to sign them up for art classes and summer camp!
ART FOR TWO: BRING YOUR FAVORITE ADULT (Kids 2.5-4)
Two artists mean twice the fun! This class is designed to make children feel successful and comfortable with their first adventures in the process of making open-ended art.
Bring a smock and be prepared to
get messy. We'll clean up!Saturday, May 19: Sculpting
Saturday, June 2: Collage / Assemblage
All classes are from 11:30 AM to 12:30 PM and are taught by Jim Pruznick. Tuition is $20 / $15 for Museum members per class.
Please register in advance for individual Saturday sessions.
AND if your kids are a little older (age 5 - 7), they can sign up for ART AND CRAFT SAMPLER. This series follows the same schedule as above, and is taught by Sarah DeWire. For information about the Art and Craft Sampler, click here.
There's still time to save on Summer Camp tuition. Sign up before May 15 and save $20 on most of our week-long summer camp offerings! For information on all three ways to save on tuition, click here.
Here's a teeny sampler of the 60+ options kids have for the summer at HAM:
COLORWORKS!
(week 1: June 25 - 29, ages 4 - 6, PM)
Explore the power of color! Painter Vasily Kandinsky once said "color is the keyboard...and the artist is the hand that plays". Learn the basics about colors and then experiment with different media, such as paint, pastels, watercolor, clay, fabric arts and more.
CLAYMATION PRODUCTIONS
(week 4: July 16 - 20, ages 10 - 15, Full Day)
Combine digital photography with art making. Students will learn the basics or build their skills in 3D animation, storyboarding, bookmaking and more using shared computers, scanning and a variety of art materials. They will also learn to add advanced theatrical elements in their 3D shorts using animation software. This Full Day camp includes Lunch with the Bunch (please send your child with a nut free lunch). FASHION DESIGN AND ILLUSTRATION (week 6: July 30 - August 3, ages 9 - 10, AM)
Do you love to draw? Do you love to design clothes? This camp lets you do both while you learn the basics of fashion illustration and make fun projects you can wear! Bring a few magazines for ideas and models, plus one roll (3 yards) of pretty fabric ribbon.
ON VIEW through June 3
Kirsten Hassenfeld: CABIN FEVER
Kirsten Hassenfeld makes extraordinary sculpture and collage with ordinary materials. She carefully saves odds and ends from her daily life, such as bottle caps,
thread spools, envelopes and wrapping paper and incorporates them into complex works of art that defy expectations. In her hands, these items become multi-faceted chandeliers, highly detailed architectural forms, and abstract three-dimensional sculptures that illuminate dark rooms, often inviting the viewer to enter a private space, and, at the same, recall the vernacular handicrafts of the original American settlers. 
FRAGMENTEDThere are things that exist in this world which can be easily broken into pieces; fragmented by the slightest touch. There are other things, which are built from the partnership of smaller parts and thereby fortified by their unique attachment to each other.
However, even when their connection is strong, when viewed individually each piece appears as a fragmentation of the whole. Fragmented is an embodiment of repetition, detail and interconnectivity, and each of the four artists in the show takes a different approach to these concepts.
Yeon Jin Kim: SPACESHIP GROCERY STORE
With an intricately fabricated paper diorama and a video camera, Kim takes the viewer on an animated voyage through her dreams. She uses the traditional techniques of drawing and sculpture and merges them with the contemporary technologies of film, animation and video. Her hand-drawn scroll drawings, sometimes measuring up to 300 feet long, are animated and filmed in one long take. Citing the influences of Hitchcock, Kafka and Carrol, as well as Charles Darwin, Kim infuses aliens and animals with
human desires and experiences, setting them in environments that are at once familiar and completely foreign. For her show at HAM, the visitor will see both the video piece and the paper diorama from which the video was made. TAKE YOUR FAMILY ON A JOURNEY THROUGH TIME AT THE PRINCETON UNIVERSITY ART MUSEUM MAY 19
SKIPPYJON JONES AT PAPERMILL PLAYHOUSE
SkippyJon Jones Saturday, May 12, 2012 10 a.m. TheatreworksUSA Ages 5 & up
Skippyjon Jones is a little kitten with big ears and even bigger dreams! Sometimes he pretends to be anything BUT a Siamese cat! When Skippyjon Jones becomes convinced that he is really a chihuahua, he begins a battle against a big bandito bee that teaches him to accept himself and his own gifts.For each: Orchestra & Box $20 or $15, Mezzanine $12. Buy tickets at: http://papermill.org/whats-playing/for-children-3-12/season-shows.html
NJ PREMIERE OF CHILDREN’S SHOW @ THE GROWING STAGE
Diary Of A Worm, A Spider And A FlyBook, music and lyrics by Joan CushingBased on the books by Doreen Cronin and illustrations by Harry Bliss
Directed by TGS Director of Educational Programming Lori Lawrence
Choreography by Jillian Petrie
Musical direction by Laura Petrie
WHEN: April 27 to May 20 with Saturday and Sunday matinees at 4:00 PM and a special opening night performance on Friday, April 27, at 7:30 PM.
WHERE: The Growing Stage, the Children’s Theatre of New Jersey, located in the Historic Palace Theater on Route 183 in Netcong, New Jersey
TICKETS: $18 for adults, $14 for children and seniors, with group rates available. School Matinee performances are also available throughout the week. Tickets can be purchased by calling the TGS Box Office at 973.347.4946 or logging onto their website at www.growingstage.com.
Is Spider getting too big for his own skin? Will Fly find her superhero powers in time to save her Aunt Rita from peril? Will Worm learn to stand on his own two feet…even though he doesn’t have feet? You are invited to take a look at the world from a bug’s perspective. Perhaps you’ll see that their lives are not all that different from yours. This world première musical captures all of the droll humor and whimsy of the wildly popular books. Here’s a review of the show.
Free Performance of IRL: In Real Life at George Street Playhouse in New Brunswick
IRL: In Real Life by R. N. SandbergCommissioned by George Street Playhouse through a grant from the New Jersey State Bar FoundationSaturday May 12, 2pmFrom shared text messages, exploited secret photos and threatening online conversations, cyber-bullying reaches every facet of the students' lives and leads to consequences everyone needs to face. This production investigates how students can take an active role to end cyber-bullying.
Tickets for this event are free, but registration is required.
Appropriate for Ages 11 – 16 Length: 65 minutes (includes performance and post-play discussion) George Street Playhouse 9 Livingston Avenue New Brunswick, NJ www.GSPonline.org
Mur-Mur (The Wall) at RVCC May 18
The Theatre at Raritan Valley Community College (RVCC) in Branchburg will present DynamO Theatre’s production of Mur-Mur (The Wall), Friday, May 18, 2012, at 7 p.m.
The performance is the final offering in the Theatre’s Family Series and is recommended for families with children ages 8 and older. Tickets costs $25 each.
A wall, with its graffiti and its secrets, alternates as a playground and a refuge from the world for five characters. It echoes the whispers and murmurings of earlier times. The wall speaks of the friendships among two teenage couples and a pesky and incorrigible younger brother. With humor and sheer innocence, these five characters are swept up in an air-bound acrobatic ballet. Telling of quarrels, shared schemes and stolen kisses, the acrobatic choreography allows the performers to unleash the eloquence of movement with the use of very little dialogue.
To purchase tickets or for more information, call the Box Office, 908-725-3420, or order online at www.rvccArts.org.
For more information about Summer Camps, review the last few issues of this newsletter and check out the “Camps” link in the “useful links for families” section on the right side of this newsletter (If you are receiving this by email, clicking on the headline will open to our bookcase format -- the “useful links” are on the right side of the page.)
Thanks to njfamily.com, njartsmaven.com, and njfootlights.com for some of these listings.
Let Your Fingers Do (MORE) Walking:
Remembering the King of the Wild Things – Maurice Sendak.
“Once a little boy sent me a charming card with a little drawing on it. I loved it. I answer all my children’s letters - sometimes very hastily - but this one I lingered over. I sent him a card and I drew a picture of a Wild Thing on it. I wrote, “Dear Jim: I loved your card.” Then I got a letter back from his mother and she said, “Jim loved your card so much he ate it.” That to me was one of the highest compliments I’ve ever received. He didn’t care that it was an original Maurice Sendak drawing or anything. He saw it, he loved it, he ate it.” - Maurice Sendak
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Maurice Sendak has died at 83. More importantly, Maurice Sendak lived.
Remembering Author Maurice Sendak
- Author and illustrator Maurice Sendak, whose classic children's book "Where the Wild Things Are" became a perennial and award-winning favorite for generations of children, died on Tuesday. He was 83. "Fresh Air" remembers Sendak with excerpts from several interviews.
- A Conversation with Maurice Sendak : NPR
The giant of children's literature talks with Jennifer Ludden about his craft and his early influences. His latest book is a re-illustration of a 1948 work by his mentor, Ruth Krauss, called Bears.
Sendak's Legacy: Helping Kids 'Survive Childhood' : NPR
"Children surviving childhood is my obsessive theme and my life's concern," Maurice Sendak told NPR in 1993. The author and illustrator — one of the most admired artists in children's literature — died Tuesday at the age of 83.
We join millions today in mourning the loss of Maurice Sendak, the brilliant author and illustrator who refused to lie to children, and whose works were often targeted by censors.
Maurice Sendak: 'I refuse to lie to children'
The moral of Maurice Sendak
Wonder of the Day #582: Who Invented Play Dough?
It’s play time today in Wonderopolis!
Are you ready to get crafty?
Have you ever wondered…- Who invented play dough?
- What is play dough made of?
- What was play dough originally used for?
The invention of play dough was actually a fortunate accident. Way back in the 1930s, Noah McVicker created a substance that looked like putty out of flour, water, salt, boric acid and mineral oil. His family’s soap company — Kutol Products — in Cincinnati, Ohio, marketed his creation as wallpaper cleaner!
McVicker’s special putty-like substance was an excellent wallpaper cleaner, because it didn’t contain any toxic chemicals, could be reused and would not stain the wallpaper. Eventually, teachers learned that the wallpaper cleaner could be used as a modeling compound to make art and craft projects at school.
It wasn’t until after World War II that Noah McVicker’s nephew, Joseph McVicker, joined the company and learned that their wallpaper cleaner was being used for arts and crafts in schools. Joseph thought it would be a good idea to give the product a new name — Play-Doh® — and market it to schools, teachers and department stores.
The new product was an immediate success. In 1956, the McVickers started the Rainbow Crafts Company to make and sell Play-Doh®. Macy’s in New York and Marshall Field’s in Chicago began selling the product. The new company also began to advertise the product on popular children’s television shows, such as Captain Kangaroo. Within one year, its sales had already reached almost $3 million!
Over time, the exact ingredients in Play-Doh® have changed. As technology has improved, so has Play-Doh®. Although the exact recipe is a secret, Play-Doh® remains a popular modeling compound for art and craft projects, because it is still nontoxic, easy to use and simple to clean up.
Today, Play-Doh® is owned by a company named Hasbro that continues to make and sell the product through its Playskool line. In 2003, the Toy Industry Association added Play-Doh® to its “Century of Toys List,” which contains the 100 most memorable and creative toys of the last 100 years.
Play-Doh® comes in a variety of bright and bold colors. There are also a series of related products and toys that make use of Play-Doh®. Since its “invention,” over 700 million pounds of Play-Doh® have been sold around the world!
Try it out!
Did you know you can make your own play dough right at home? It’s true! There are different recipes and lots of fun ways you can make a batch of play dough with your friends. Just be sure to get an adult’s help.
Check out the play dough recipes below and pick one to try. If you don’t have all the ingredients on hand, you may need to head to the store first. Have fun!
- How To Make Play Dough
- How To Make Play Dough with Kool-Aid
- How To Make No-Cook Play Dough
- How To Make Edible Play Dough
Visit Smithsonian’s History Explorer to check out the Pueblo Pots lesson to investigate the roles that pottery and water played in the lives of the Pueblo Indians.
Middle Schoolers/Teachers Interested in a MATH CHALLENGE?
Register now for the Lure of the Labyrinth Challenge, today through – June 15! The Education Arcade at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) is pleased to announce the Lure of the Labyrinth Challenge—a free online math challenge for grades 6–8. While playing Lure of the Labyrinth, students use mathematical thinking skills to progress through a compelling graphic-novel story.
Funded by a Next Generation Learning Challenges Grant, the Challenge invites groups of 4–6 students to collaborate in a safe, moderated environment to strategize and problem-solve with others. Students and youth leaders have many chances to win regional prizes such as Lenovo ThinkPad Tablets, books, and technology tools like subscriptions to BrainPop just for playing. Ultimately, the Challenge will help us all learn more about the role of gaming in the instructional process.
There is no cost involved to participate in the challenge, which runs through June 15. Since the game is web-based, students can play at home or at school, in the classroom, computer lab, library, or after-school program. Students can play as little or as much as they want. Enroll today at http://lureofthelabyrinth.net
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