SISTERS GRIMM PROGRAM

This program was cancelled due to poor sign-up...other issues with things going on the weekend that it was planned (I had planned to do it toward the end of October--the community had Halloween parades and other activities). Be that as it may, here are some ideas for those of you wanting to do a program on this popular series!

Michael Buckley, the author of the books, is a native of Ohio (Akron), now living in New York City. The books feature two sisters, Sabrina and Daphne Grimm. Sabrina is 11 and Daphne is 7. They have been placed (and run away from) more foster homes than you can count, since their parents mysterious disappearance. Enter Granny Relda, the girls' grandmother, who is also a world-class detective. She takes the girls to Ferryport Landing, the town where the Ever Afters (all of your favorite fairy take characters) live ever since Wilhelm Grimm (yes, THA T Grimm) brought them there in an attempt to save them.

As of this writing, there are 5 books in the series. They are:

#1 The Sisters Grimm: The Fairy-Tale Detectives
#2 The Sisters Grimm: The Unusual Suspects
#3 The Sisters Grimm: The Problem Child
#4 The Sisters Grimm: Once Upon a Crime
#5 The Sisters Grimm: Magic and other Misdemeanors (due out 12/2007)

I had prepared a Powerpoint presentation using information from Michael's site (http://www.sistersgrimm.com/), which introduced the characters of the series and the plot like. This presentation is available if anyone would like it.

The crafts that I had planned for the afternoon were:

1. Jack in the Beanstalk Craft--Use Styrofoam cups, potting soil, and 3-4 bean seeds. Fill the cup halfway with potting soil. Plant the seeds and then cover with soil until the pot is 3/4 of the way full. Water the plant. Have participants take this home and place in a sunny spot and keep watered. They will be surprised how quickly their plants grow with a little TLC!

2. Snow White Toilet Paper Tube Craft--Participants were to color and cut out all of the peices that made up Snow White and her outfit. Pieces were glued to the TP tube to create a lovely Snow White figure. Snow White, in the Sisters Grimm series, is a school teacher at the Ferryport Landing Elementary School. This pattern can be found in both black and white and color at http://www.dltk-kids.com/

3. Let's Make a Wolf Paper Bag Puppet--Mr. Canis is the friend of Relda Grimm, who is the Sisters Grimm's grandmother. For those who know Latin, "canis" is the word for wolf or dog! Pieces comprising the wolf's body are colored and then glued onto a paper bag. Googly eyes or sticker eyes were to be used to cover the black pupils to make cool eyes for the wolf!

4. Let's Color Prince Charming!--Prince Charming is the Mayor of Ferryport Landing, the town where all of the Ever Afters (fairy tale folk) live. This craft was one that would have been turned in as participants finished it. This was simply a coloring page of Prince Charming (from Cinderella) in his royal best. These coloring sheets would have been displayed with pictures taken of the days event.

5. Let's Make a Royal Crown--Crown kits were purchased from J and A Handy-Crafts, Inc (165 S. Pennsylvania Avenue, Lindenhurst, PA 11757; 1-888-252-1130. Website: www.JAcrafts.com) These great kits come with gold crowns that can be adjusted to size, along with feathers, jewels, and stickers with which to decorate them.

I have since ran across a cool-looking Pretty Princess Mask craft project from the book 101 PaperPlate Art Projects. The craft is a large face of a princess that is colored and secured to a large paper plate, which is laced with yarn to tie on the child's head.

A great simple recipe that I was going to use as a snack for the party was one that I ran across called "Goblin' Good Gorp". Adjust the amounts for your group:

2 cups peanuts
1 cup miniature creme-filled chocolate sandwich cookies
1 cup candy corn
1/2 cup cheese flavored tiny fish-shaped snacks
1/2 cup raisins

Mix all ingredients together and story in a tightly covered container. This amount makes 10 servings. You could do this as a snack to eat at the program, or do up small snack bags to take home.