February is probably the easiest (and my favorite) month for displays and decorations. Hearts, flowers, chocolates, etc. Here are ten display and program ideas for this, the shortest of months—even though it is Leap Year.
Bird Feeding Month
Feeding our feathered friends can be a fascinating hobby. Display books with colorful pictures of birds along with bird houses and feeders. Do you have any project books with how-to’s for building houses or feeders for birds? Put those out, too. Have the preschool story time crowd make their own bird feeder with peanut butter, a pine cone, and bird seed. Tie a string around the top of the pine cone under the ridges, and knot it. Thoroughly cover the pine cone with peanut butter and then roll it in bird seed.
Black History Month
Celebrate Black History with kids of all ages by displaying and reading stories of African-Americans overcoming adversity and making their multicultural mark on the world. With books about everything from jazz and Jackie Robinson to slavery and segregation, there are many rich biographies and themes to explore. You could borrow the book club set Jazz by Walter Dean Myers from the System Office. It is a picture book (designed for middle-schoolers) of jazz music poems and exhilarating paintings.
Rosa Parks Birthday (February 4, 1913)
Go to http://www.thehenryford.org/exhibits/rosaparks/story.asp to see the story behind the bus and a detailed chronology of Rosa Parks & the Civil Rights Movement. Print the chronology and display it with books about the Civil Rights Movement in general and Rosa Parks in particular.
Valentine’s Day (February 14)
Gather up all your romances with the word “love” in the title. Display them on a table with red, pink, and white fabric, paper doilies, and hearts. Be prepared to restock this display, because these books will check out like hotcakes.
Presidents’ Day (February 15, 2016)
Presidents’ Day, officially Washington’s Birthday, in the United States, is a federal holiday observed on the third Monday of February in honor of George Washington (born on February 22), the first President of the United States. The holiday is popularly recognized as honoring also Abraham Lincoln (born on February 12), and sometimes all the U.S. presidents. Display presidential biographies from all areas of the library.
Tootsie Roll Debuted (February 23, 1896)
How many licks does it take to get to the center of the Tootsie Roll Pop? According to the FAQ page for Tootsie Rolls, the world may never know. Go to http://www.tootsie.com/faqs for more interesting bits. Have a Tootsie Pop licking (and counting) contest and mail the results in to the company—just for fun.
World Read Aloud Day (February 24, 2016)
World Read Aloud Day motivates children, teens, and adults worldwide to celebrate the power of words and creates a community of readers taking action to show the world that the right to literacy belongs to all people. By raising our voices together on this day we show the world’s children that we support their futures: that they have the right to read, to write, and to share their stories. Go to http://www.litworld.org/wrad to plan your celebration!
Tell a Fairy Tale Day (February 26, 2016)
From classic Grimm tales to modern-day stories, this day is all about letting your imagination roam free. Read fairy tales at story time, or just read them for fun! Display all versions of fairy tales in the children’s area. Let your patrons vote for their favorite fairy tale? There are countless stories to choose from. Little Red Riding Hood, Rumpelstiltskin, Hansel and Gretel, and the Princess and the Pea are all whimsical fairy tales. Spark kids’ creativity and encourage them to write one of their own.
National Pancake Day (February 28)
Enjoy pancakes in the library today. Not necessarily by eating them, though that would be terrific as well. Read any picture book that features pancakes. A suggestion would be Lady Pancake and Sir French Toast. The publisher has prepared a 12-page, full color activity kit to go along with this title. Download it at: http://tinyurl.com/ndlabn4.
Leap Day (February 29, 2016)
February 29 only shows up on our calendar once in four years. On this day, offer a small prize to anyone who can give you the reason why. Here is the answer: A calendar year is 365 days, but a solar year is just a little bit longer. That’s why we have to add an extra day to February every four years to make up the difference.
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