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Stuck on Ducks: June 2018 Santa Cruz Book Recommendations
Stuck on Ducks June 2018 Santa Cruz Book Recomendations By Michelle Spence I’m a Duck Written by Eve Bunting, Illustrated by Will Hillenbrand Practice makes perfect in this new rhyming tale of a young duck that is afraid of the water. “I cannot swim, and that is bad. A landlocked duck is very sad.” And yet, despite all the fears, trepidation, and unsolicited advice, this duckling finds just the right combination of preparation and confidence to take the plunge. The Other Ducks Written by Ellen Yeomans, Illustrated by Chris Sheban In another new duck-centric picture book, This Duck and That Duck are trying to make sense of their Big Puddle…
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It Isn’t Summer Without Plenty of Bubbles: Here’s How to Make Your Own
It Isn’t Summer Without Plenty of Bubbles Here’s How to Make Your Own By Jennifer K Mahal Santa Cruz Children’s Museum of Discovery Summer is here, with its warm, sunny days. It’s a great time to be outdoors. One thing we love to do outside is blow gigantic soap bubbles! It’s fun, if a bit messy. Bubbles are basically a very thin film of soapy water filled with a gas, in most cases air. If you looked at their molecules (the incredibly tiny building blocks that make up matter), you would see a layer of water molecules sandwiched between two layers of soap molecules. The layers creating the bubble walls…
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In Celebration of May Flowers: Book Recommendations
In Celebration of May Flowers: Book Recommendations By Michelle Spence The old English proverb “April showers bring may flowers” provides an anchor for this month’s book recommendations and an excuse to peruse seed catalogs, regardless of whether or not you will be planting a garden this spring. Here is a smattering of old and new gardening stories to share and inspire your gardening dreams or realities. Planting a Rainbow by Lois Ehlert Bulb planting in the fall and seed sowing in the spring set the stage for a colorful flower garden all summer long. in the deceptively simple board book Planting a Rainbow, we discover the pace of a garden,…
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Hands On Cork Boats
Hands On Cork Boats By Jennifer K. Mahal What You Need -3 corks–same size -2 rubber bands -Toothpick -Construction paper or cardstock -Scissors -Optional: crayons, markers, or paint Look out upon Monterey Bay on any given day and you are likely to see a boat floating in the water. sail boats, row boats, fishing boats, even large Coast Guard cutters all float. But if you throw a rock in the water, it will sink! So how does a large boat made of heavy steel stay afloat while a small pebble ends up in Davy Jones’ locker? In ancient Greece, a scientist and mathematician named Archimedes discovered why things float. He…
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Kids Read: The Shape of Whales
Kids Read: The Shape of Whales Written by Michelle Spence April marks the return of humpback whales to the Monterey Bay, after spending their winter months off the coast of Mexico. To get ready for the treat of casual whale sightings as you walk along the beach or drive up the coast, turn to these books with beautiful whale illustrations—and some sweet stories, to boot. If I Were a Whale Written by Shelley Gill Illustrated by Erik Brooks Beautiful and detailed renditions of nine different whale species accompany this simple rhyming celebration of these magnificent creatures. With just a smidgeon of technical detail (a distinguishing feature for each species), this…
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Building Your Own Weather Vane
Building Your Own Weather Vane Written by Jennifer K Mahal Look outside. Is it sunny? Is it cloudy? Is it rainy? Is it cold? Did you know before you looked what the weather would be like? If you did, you probably relied on meteorology, the science of weather prediction. The word “meteorology” actually means “the science of atmosphere and its phenomena,” according to Merriam-Webster. The earth has five layers of atmosphere: the troposphere, the stratosphere, the mesosphere, the ionosphere and the exosphere. Most of the things we think of as weather happen in the troposphere, which is the layer of gases closest to the surface of the earth. It’s…
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What’s the Magic of Camp?
What’s the Magic of Camp? Written by Michael Thompson, Ph.D. Why are people so loyal to their sleep away camps? What exactly happens at camp that makes people rhapsodize about the experience thirty or forty years later? Whenever I tell people that I am curious about the camp experience, the stories start to pour out. “I loved my camp,” they say in a dreamy voice. What is it about the summer camp experience — just a few weeks away for perhaps two or three seasons — that goes so deep under their skin? As a psychologist, I am curious about the mystery of camp. What’s the magic ingredient? After a…
