18th May International Astronomy Day

International Astronomy Day is a holiday that is celebrated not once during a calendar year but twice a year – once in spring and once in autumn. The purpose of this holiday is not only to celebrate astronomy and all of its contributions to society but also to bring the general public together with astronomy professionals and groups.

Astronomy goes all the way back to antiquity and is in fact, one of the oldest natural sciences in the world.

Of course you can just go outside and look up at the sky, but to know what you are looking at, you may need to look in a few books first.

Do you have a telescope? What can you do with a telescope? What will you see?

These books will help answer these questions.

Three books that will help with knowing what you're looking at:

This is a new Australian book from the CSIRO and a book by Australian astronomer Lisa Harvey-Smith.

Then if you know a child who is astronomy-mad and sees their future being a contributor to that world, explore some of the wonderful picture book biographies about famous space devotees.

16th May International Day of Light

The International Day of Light celebrates the role light plays in science, culture and art, education, and sustainable development, and in fields as diverse as medicine, communications, and energy. The celebration will allow many different sectors of society worldwide to participate in activities that demonstrates how science, technology, art and culture can help achieve the goals of UNESCO – building the foundation for peaceful societies.

Light is an inspiring subject in many disciplines, and is the perfect catalyst to promote science education among young people. Teaching programmes using light science and technology build worldwide educational capacity through activities targeting children, addressing issues of gender balance, and focussing especially on countries with emerging economies.

Light has influenced and continues to influence human culture. Studying the connection between light and culture throughout history provides valuable insights into the interactions between science, art, and the humanities, and brings greater understanding and appreciation of our cultural heritage.

This is a 'big' topic! I could spend quite a time collecting books together for this, but here I am only going to highlight a small number.

Light, Rainbows and Lasers  by John Lesley

Our sense of sight depends on light but what is light Is it something solid Where does it come from Find out the answers to these questions as well as others you have probably wondered about such as whether invisibility cloaks are a real possibility.

Light Waves  by David A. Adler

A kid-friendly introduction to the physics of light covers the basics of solar energy, the electromagnetic spectrum, photon particles, light scattering, and reflection and refraction

On a Beam of Light by Jennifer Berne

This picture book biography of Albert Einstein chronicles his development from a boy riding his bicycle through sunbeams to the man who created the Theory of Relativity and whose name would become synonymous with 'genius.'

City of Light by Julia Lawrinson

On Monday 20 Februrary 1962, the people of Perth lit up their city overnight to acknowledge the special mission of American astronaut John Glenn – the first American to orbit the Earth. Glenn, in turn, observed that the city was clearly visible from space, and Perth became known worldwide as ‘The City of Light’.

Who's Afraid of the Light  by Anna McGregor

Fergus lives down in the deepest, darkest depths of the sea and is scared of just one thing ... the light! This is a fresh and funny new narrative nonfiction picture book.

So They Build - Moles

The word 'mole' has so many meanings, but here we are talking about the animal.

Moles are small mammals that are found all over the world. They are often thought of as garden pests, mainly because of their intricate tunnel systems. And though they spend most of the time underground,  they are not blind. What they lack in sight, they make up for in their sense of touch. All moles have very sensitive snouts and long, clawed digits that they use to dig tunnels.

Males and females are solitary for most of the year, occupying exclusive territories. With the start of the breeding season males enlarge their territories, tunnelling over large areas in search of females. Within the tunnel system moles construct one or more spherical nest chambers, each lined with a ball of dry plant material. Nests are used for sleeping and for raising young.

I didn't think we had moles in Australia, but we do. We have marsupial moles. Unlike European moles they are small, blind and hairy – and rarely seen by humans.

We have very few books in the library that could be used to research moles, but they are very popular characters in stories and are usually depicted as being cute but cantankerous at times.

Look for:

  • Mole and Friends  series by Jonathan Emmett and Vanessa Cabban

• The series Mouse and Mole  by Joyce Dunbar and James Mayhew

 

• The Bear and Mole series by Will Hillenbrand

• Mouse and Mole series  by Wong Herbert Yee

• The Mole Sisters  by Roslyn Schwartz

• Secret Agent Mole by James Foley

And these stand alones:

12th May Mother's Day

It's Mother's Day! Of course we've had all the books about mothers out on display for the last two weeks and all but two books have been borrowed! But, something very touching happened on Thursday when I had the four kindergarten classes in the library. A girl came up to me and said 'all the books have only got one child in them'. I soon realised that what she meant was that her mum had two children and she wanted a book where there were two children to take home and preferably two girls like her family. On a quick perusal, I found she was right, most books were about a mother and a child. I needed to think quickly.

Straight away I thought of these... 

• You're All My Favourites by Sam McBratney and Anita Jeram. It was out.

• Mummy's Special Day by  Frances Stickley and Carolina Rabei. It was out.

• Five Minutes' Peace  by Jill Murphy. It was out.

• How to Raise a Mum  by Jean Reagan and Lee Wildish. It was out.

• Tucking Mummy In  by Morag Loh. It was in and she was happy to borrow it. Dilemma averted, but it made me think about what we had and so many of the books are about a single child who is doing something with his or her mother. Food for thought. Obviously, I need to broaden the offerings for mother's day for those students who are deeper thinkers or want to connect it to their family!

And if you are lucky you might find a copy of this old but lovely cumulative tale We're Making Breakfast for Mother  by Shirley Neitzel and Nancy Winslow Parker where two children are making breakfast in bed for their unsuspecting mother. Nothing goes quite as intended, of course.