Here are some more ideas I got from the programming-for-elementary-ages- idea swap, held at the Wisconsin Association of Public Librarians Conference earlier this month (look for more coming up!)
- From Waupaca: Jousting using library stools as mounts and swim noodles as swords--the goal is to knock a ball off a cone held in the non-noodle hand.
- From Algoma and other places: Chocolate program included:
- Personality test, based on what kind of chocolate bar was your favorite
- Chocolate tasting
- Photos of cross-sections of candy bars, guessing
- Microwave candy bars, then guess what kind they are
- From Rhinelander: Worm racing!
- Teams of 2
- Worms (nightcrawlers) from the bait shop
- Give the worms a wet surface to traverse
- They always have a local vet there, with worm ambulance for very, very tired worms
- Someone else was reminded of minnow racing in gutters
- Kite programs! Very popular, especially if you have a place to take kids to fly them
- Wisconsin Kiter's Club is a good resource--here in western WI, we might have better luck with the Minnesota Kite Society (it looks like they do educational events)
- Several folks mentioned having great success with 20 minute kites, and how fun it is to see families and individual kids out flying their kits for weeks after the program!
- A How-Does-It-Work program: get donations of old computers, radios, and other. Let kids take them apart and examine how they work. BYOS (Bring Your Own Screwdriver). Most cities have a recycling program for electronics--make sure you aren't stuck with a huge fee for recycling these before accepting donations!
Labels: after school, programs, tweens
