Look at all those badges! Monty the Mount Prospect Duck has been busy reading and doing activities for Winter Reading. You have until February 28 to try to earn as many (or more) badges than Monty!
Which ones are your favorites?
Attend a virtual event
Chill out & read
Listen to a story
Warm up with reading
Let’s get moving
Get cozy
Reading takes you places
STEAM
Find a good book
Beginning in the middle of February and stretching into mid March, the Sugar Maple trees begin to prepare for spring by sending sap up to their branches to fuel the spring growth. This is one of the first signs of spring in the forest and marks maple syrup season. On days where the nights are freezing and the days are in the 40s the sap will flow up the tree. Once it is still above freezing overnight, the sap will turn cloudy and can no longer be used for syrup. At this point the tree will begin spring growth.
Maple syrup is made by collecting the sap from a maple tree, usually a sugar maple, and boiling it to allow the water to evaporate and concentrate the sugar. Once enough water has evaporated, the sap becomes syrup.
Sugar Maple trees are tapped because their sap has the highest concentration of sugar, but even so it takes 40 to 50 gallons of sap to make one gallon of syrup. Straight from the tree, the sap looks like water and has a barely noticeable sweet taste.
To see photos and videos of the maple syruping process, visit: https://vermontevaporator.com/learn/sugaring-for-beginners/
Looking for some new stories to listen to at bedtime? Need some quick entertainment for your child in the car or store?
Look no further than our new service, Dial-a-Story. Just call 847/232-8600. Available 24/7!
Listen to stories, jokes, songs, and more. Some items are read by your librarians, and some by other great narrators, but all have been carefully selected by library staff. Our menu selections vary and change monthly, so visit this Web page for a list of what is playing during a specific month.
This activity is worth 5 POINTS in the Winter Reading challenge, going on through February 28. Register and log your activity on Beanstack for your chance to earn prizes!
Visit our Winter Reading Web page for more information, or go straight to our Beanstack site and get started.
During these winter days, stay cozy and learn a new language with the Library’s web resource, Little Pim. This language learning database uses fun short videos and covers Spanish, French, Chinese, Italian, Japanese, Hebrew, English, German, Arabic, and Russian.
Also, enjoy coloring the Little Pim Panda in New York City in this coloring sheet.
It may be cold outside, but you can enjoy books and activities from the warmth of your home. Read, attend virtual events, and get creative while earning digital badges and chances to win great prizes. Visit mppl.org/winterreading2021 for all the details!
Register with Beanstack to join in the fun. Then, log each day that you read or that someone reads to you, and enjoy fun activities to earn chances to win prizes!
Don’t have a smartphone or internet access? Call to request a paper log in English or Spanish (847/590-3320 for English or 847/590-4090 para español).