CURIOUS GEORGE PROGRAM, PART TWO

On February 25th, 2006 , 47 children and parents gathered in the Bucyrus Public Library’s Community Room to enjoy an afternoon of Curious George fun! As they arrived, each child received a nametag that stated “Hello, my name is…..” with Curious George artwork on it. They were also encouraged to sign up for door prizes.

Children’s Librarian Barb Scott welcomed the group and shared a short Powerpoint presentation on George and his creators, Hans and Margret Rey. They learned, among other things, that Curious George was not the monkey’s original name—it was Fifi! They also learned that the books have been translated into many different languages, including Braille!

Once the Powerpoint presentation was finished, participants were invited to partake in five different Curious George-themed crafts. They were:

CURIOUS GEORGE COLORING SHEET—At each program participants do one craft (usually a coloring sheet) that is left at the library for display with photos taken that day. The coloring sheet done for this program was Curious George riding a bike, delivering papers.

CURIOUS GEORGE BOOKMARKS—This bookmark pictured Curious George sitting atop a brick wall. Participants colored, and cut out the bookmarks, then cut on dotted lines around George’s feet to form the piece of the bookmark that would fit over the book page!

CURIOUS GEORGE MASK—Masks in the shape of Curious George’s face were colored and cut out. Eyes holes were cut. Masks were then glued to a small craft stick.

“BE CURIOUS ABOUT READING ” DOOR HANGER—Ellison door hanger shapes were cut out of red construction paper. Monkey shapes were cut out with an Ellison die as well. Small sheets of paper were cut with fancy scissors that said “Be Curious About Reading” These were glued to the front of the door hanger shape and monkeys were glued on around them as the participants wished!

CURIOUS GEORGE MOVEABLE PUPPET—Individual pieces of the Curious George puppet were colored and then cut out. A hole punch was used to punch holes in the areas indicated. 6 brads were used to attach the various body parts to construct the monkey. A craft stick was then attached to the back.

While the children worked on crafts, they also enjoyed a visit from none other than Curious George himself! Many parents took the opportunity to have their children pose for pictures with Curious George. He was a big hit!

Snacks were then served. Snacks consisted of yellow cupcakes with yellow icing, pretzels, and a mixture of animal crackers and banana chips. Punch was also served.

At the end of the program, drawings were held for several prizes: an autographed book from Louise Borden, author of the new book on the history of Curious George; two Barrelful of Monkeys games; two paperback books of the Curious George movie.

Each child also received a goodie bag at the end of the program that contained a Curious George bookmark, sticker, a gold medal, a neon-colored monkey bracelet, and small candies.