A Fictional Adventure Through Jasper National Park
September 29 2020Colin’s first memory is of falling. Which is quite an embarrassing experience when you’re a fully grown raven. Why was he falling when he has two perfectly good wings? Your guess is as good as his. Determined to regain his memories, Colin embarks on a journey…
A new website section just for kids
September 21 2020Have you noticed a new option on our website’s main menu, called “Kids’ Corner”? Well, it’s up there—right at the top right corner, in big bold letters. That’s a small “surprise” we have for our patrons this week: a section totally created for our…
Knot Your Average Writing System
September 16 2020What’s this you’re looking at? A fancy necklace, perhaps? Nope. That, friends, is a 15th-century government document. We used to think the Inca couldn’t write. It turns out they could, just not in a way we would readily recognize. Instead of writing with symbols…
Let’s Start At the Very Beginning: Part 2
September 9 2020Is your kid in the process of learning how to read? We have recommendations for some books they might enjoy! We’ve talked in a previous post about what early reader books are and how they work. Now comes the really fun part: recommendations! While we have a lot of…
Let’s Start At the Very Beginning: Part 1
September 1 2020First things first, what is an early reader book? They’re books intended for kids who are still in the beginning process of learning how to read but know their letters enough now to be able to read words rather than just practice recognizing what sound goes with…
Your COVID Questions Answered
August 26 2020One of the less talked about stresses of living through a pandemic has been just not knowing; not knowing how long the lockdown will last, when a vaccine will finally be ready, what symptoms to watch out for, and on and on. Well, good news: there’s a resource for…
How to Find Read-Alikes On Your Own
August 19 2020For those who haven’t seen our If You Liked Harry Potter You Might Like... post, a read-alike is, as its name suggests, a book which you might like if you’re looking for books similar to one you liked. Read-alikes can be paired together based on similar plots,…
Lesser-Known Gems in Our Catalogue: Artemis Fowl
August 12 2020Twelve-year-old criminal mastermind Artemis Fowl is determined to raise his Irish mafia family back to its former status before his father’s disappearance. His plan? Kidnap a fairy, extort the fairy government for a ransom, and become the first human in history able…
Things Kids Say in Libraries: Asking for Assistance
August 5 2020Need help finding something? We’re glad to say these mini-patrons have learned early on that we’re here to help. ~~~~ 5-year-old: I’d like a book on dogs because apparently I’m a dog person. ---- 8-year-old: Do you have any books on foxes, please? If not, raccoons…
More Than Just Books
August 1 2020When you think of things you can take out at libraries, the first thing that comes to mind is likely books. But don’t be fooled: nowadays libraries offer far more than they once did. Some of the newer offerings you can probably think up if you take a moment to ponder:…
If You Liked Harry Potter You Might Like...
July 22 2020You know when you finish a book and you want to read more like it? One of the many things librarians can do for you is make you something called a read-alike list—a list of books that are similar in some way to the book you enjoyed and so there is a good chance you…
Why Series Are Great for Kids
July 15 20201. They like them.If you want someone to get into reading, reading for pleasure is the best way to get them hooked. And in order to get them into reading for pleasure, they need to like the material. So at the first stage of turning your kid into an avid reader, whatever…
Hidden Gems in Our Catalogue: Mr. Lemoncello
July 9 2020Designed by the greatest board game maker in the world and built under great secrecy, the town’s new library is finally ready to open its doors to the public. A group of 12-year-olds are given the opportunity to spend the night at the library before opening day.…
Things Kids Say in Libraries: A Short Compilation
July 1 2020It is a truth universally acknowledged that children have a rather… unique way of seeing the world.So we’ve gathered together for your amusement the best of the best of entertaining mini patron library interactions we've heard of through the librarian grapevine.…
Open Call for (Young) Artists!
June 25 2020We would like to see from our mini patrons what they have been up to since they’ve had to attend school from home. Maybe they drew you a picture of you as their teacher, made a science project or a crafty project for another class, or have been taking part in the…
5 Tips on How to Encourage Reluctant Readers
June 17 20201. Don’t push them to read above their level.Doing so has the opposite effect of what you want, because they’ll learn to associate reading with being hard and not fun. The best thing to do is to support their reading at the level they’re at and to let them…
Libraries in the Time of COVID
June 11 2020Libraries, like everyone else, have been having to adapt to the COVID lockdown, and we at Bon Accord Public Library are no different. We want to be there for our community now more than ever, but how to do it safely? After educating ourselves on safety standards and…
Furry Librarians: A History
June 2 2020Most regulars at Bon Accord Public Library are good friends with our library dog. You’re probably aware that having a library dog is pretty unique, but did you know that having a furry librarian in itself is actually not that uncommon? In library tradition, four-pawed…
Working Together to Stay Safe
May 27 2020When you go out on your grocery run or at work, do you worry about coming into contact with someone with the coronavirus? The government of Alberta has created ABTraceTogether, a nifty (and free) app to help in the fight against coronavirus by making it easier to…
Tumble Into Reading
May 20 2020If you’re a parent, you’re probably worried about your kids not getting enough reading time in. Or maybe you're just looking for a way to keep your little ones entertained. Your library has a resource for that! It’s called Tumblebooks. One of many e-resources…