Apps for You

by Amy Notarius Rowan Public Library

With so many apps for portable devices out there, it can be hard to know which ones to choose from. Here are just a few that stand out:

Do you enjoy taking photos with your phone or other device? Pic Collage lets you create fabulous collages using your own photos. Choose from one of their colorful templates or make your own design, drop your photos into the spaces shown, and voila! It’s that simple to create a great-looking photo collage. Pic Collage is available for Apple/iOS, Android, or visit the website pic-collage.com .

Zensong is a free app for Apple/iOS. Choose from a variety of sounds designed to help you relax and wind down, such as soothing rain and ocean waves. You can set an alarm or a sleep timer to shut the program off at a specified time. Similar programs for Android are Relax Night and Water Sounds. 

If you just want to have some fun what could be better than spending time with Tom the Cat? My Talking Tom is available for Apple/iOS or Android.  You can pet Tom and he purrs, feed him, dress him in different outfits, and put him to bed. You can also talk to Tom and he repeats what you’ve said. Young people will enjoy watching Tom go through his daily routines.

All the apps discussed are free to download. For help getting started with your device, check out iPad for Dummies by Edward Baig, My iPad by Gary Rosenzweig, and Android Tablets for Dummies by Dan Gookin. They’re available at Rowan Public Library.

Tail Waggin’ Tutors: Meet the Pups!

 by Emma Rose Rowan Public Library

            If you have ever been comforted by a K-9, you can understand why the Rowan Public Library has adopted the Tail Waggin’ Tutors program. Tail Waggin’ Tutors is a program developed by Therapy Dogs International (TDI) to encourage struggling readers to become confident and proficient readers with the help of a furry friend.  First through third grade students may come to the library with a book, magazine and/or graphic novel from home or should feel free to select one from Rowan Public Library’s wonderful collection. A library staff member typically selects a group of age- and grade-appropriate books featuring K-9 companions for the children to read from, if they choose. The child then sits in a quiet comfortable area with a licensed and seasoned therapy dog to read aloud to him or her. The benefits of this program to its participants include, but are not limited to, an increase in self-confidence, reading skills, comfort level with dogs and excitement to visit their local library. The program invites readers with intellectual and developmental disabilities to participate as well.

            Currently there are three registered therapy dogs participating in the Tail Waggin’ Tutor programs at Rowan Public Library. Each one has a calm, friendly and non-judgmental spirit that reassures children so that they feel relaxed while they practice their reading skills.

Meet Duprix! 

Duprix is a beautiful jet black standard poodle who has been working as a therapy dog for over eight years! He was rescued around the age of three by Charlotte Molrine and is now twelve years old. He has comforted those in need at assisted living centers, hospitals, and even at the Catawba College Library last year where he gave students some peace during the hectic exam period.

Meet Oliver! 

Oliver is a six year old labradoodle (Labrador and Poodle mix) who has been a therapy dog for almost five years. His handler is Barbara Teichroew, who claims happily that “she works for Oliver and not the other way around”. When Oliver is not at Rowan Public Library, he is on assignment, giving joy and comfort to those in need at the Glenn A. Kiser Hospice House, Novant Health Facilities in Rowan County and the Salisbury VA Medical Center. His curly white coat is soft and his demeanor is even softer!

 Meet Thor!

Thor has been a certified therapy dog for two years and just celebrated his fourth birthday. Thor is a handsome old English bulldog with a great personality! His owner is Ida Ellams and this duo loves children, reading and other dogs. Ellams says that “Thor loves going to work and is always happy to meet a new friend!” While children are reading peacefully to Thor, he sometimes falls asleep and begins to snore. Ellams likes to tell the children that he is probably dreaming about being the dog in the story that they are reading.

All three Rowan Public Library branches are participating in this program, so call the children’s room at your local library for more information or to reserve a time slot at the next Tail Waggin’ Tutor event! Slots are filling up fast!

East branch (Rockwell): 704-216-7842

Headquarters/Main (Salisbury): 704-216-8234

South Rowan Regional (China Grove/Landis): 704-216-7728

If you would like your dog to participate in this program contact, Youth Services Supervisor, Jennifer Nicholson at Jennifer.nicholson@rowancountync.gov. Reading teams must be registered with Therapy Dogs International. For more information about Therapy Dogs International, visit their website at www.tdi-dog.org. For more information about Rowan Public Library’s Tail Waggin’ Tutor dates and times, visit our website at www.RowanPublicLibrary.org and click on the Kids Space link.

If you love man’s best friend check out these fascinating non-fiction titles about the powerful impact therapy dogs can make on their community.

ü A dog walks into a nursing home : lessons in the good life from an unlikely teacher by Sue Halpern

ü The Dog who loved too much : tales, treatments, and the psychology of dogs by Nicholas H. Dodman

ü Where the trail grows faint : a year in the life of a therapy dog team by Lynne Hugo

ü The healing power of pets : harnessing the amazing ability of pets to make and keep people happy and healthy by Marty Becker

ü 100 dogs who saved civilization : history's most influential canines by Sam Stall

All of the above are available at Rowan Public Library along with many more to help you choose, train, feed, rescue, understand and enjoy dogs!

Superheroes at the Library

 by Hope Loman Rowan Public Library

Superheroes have quickly become an intrinsic part of our popular culture; they’re the subject of the biggest summer blockbusters, appear nightly on our television screens or Netflix queues, and are playable characters in some of our favorite video games.  But what happens when you’ve exhausted all these avenues, yet still want to see more of your favorite crime-fighters? Never fear: the Rowan Public Library is here!

For Batman fans, the library has a number of graphic novels that come highly recommended.  Jeph Loeb’s Dark Victory, The Long Halloween, and Hush are each action-packed tales with plenty of mystery and suspense to keep the reader guessing until the very last page.  There is also Frank Miller’s classic, The Dark Knight Returns, which has been praised for reinventing the Batman character from a cartoon to a hero for our times.  For those that want something more unusual, there is also the new title Bat-manga! The Secret History of Batman in Japan, a collection of Batman-manga comics translated from their original Japanese.

Fans of Superman might want to read graphic novels like All-Star Superman or Superman: Secret Identity, or rent all ten seasons of the popular Smallville series, which focuses on a younger Clark Kent’s life in Kansas before he dons the cape. There is also The Superman Handbook: The Ultimate Guide to Saving the Day, which promises to teach any superhero-in-training valuable lessons such as how to knock out a villain, stop a runaway car, or even rescue a kitten stuck in a tree.

If you lean more towards Marvel Comics, there’s plenty for you too!  Perhaps you are more interested in the art aspect of comics, in which case you can look at Alan Cowsill’s Marvel Comics: 75 Years of Cover Art, or try your hand at drawing the Avengers with Stan Lee’s How to Draw Comics the Marvel Way. Younger patrons can download different issues of the Marvel Adventures series from the NC Digital Library and read about beloved characters like Spider-man and The Fantastic Four.

Finally, if you still prefer watching your superheroes save the day instead of reading about it, the Rowan Public Library has got you covered there, too. We have everything from Ant-Man to (Avengers: Age of) Ultron available for checkout, as well as comic book adaptations, old animated series, and even documentaries about the history of comics.  You might even want to head over and see what the NC Live has to offer with its Films on Demand database.

This is just a small sampling of what the library has to offer if you are interested in the subject of superheroes.  Please stop by or go online to view our catalog and check out all that the Rowan Public Library has to offer!

Rainy Day Blues for Kids

by Jennifer Nicholson Rowan Public Library

  

Tulips are blooming, and birds are singing.  T-ball practice and trips to the parks fill the air on Saturdays.  Well, for most Saturdays.  When rainy days hit, many parents can feel the weather blues.  While the kids have spring fever, remember to keep reading and learning fever going year round! 

When rainy days hit, and one cannot make it to the library, grab your laptop or your tablet and check out some really awesome eBooks.  Tumble Books is a free program offered by the Rowan Public Library which parents can access through their internet browser, by visiting our website at Rowanpubliclibrary.org.   Once there, click on the link for Kids’ Space, then access Tumble Books through the link provided. 

Tumble Books is an interactive program that provides Story Books (picture books), Read Alongs (Chapter books), Non-Fiction books, videos, and games.  Parents and kids can choose to have the narrator read to them, or they can read the book themselves. If the child chooses to have the auto narrator, the child will see the section that is being read highlighted on the screen, building word recognition and sentence structure.  The educational videos provided by Tumble Books are part of the National Geographic video library.  These videos provide quick educational information to children who, love watching movies!  If you have a child who loves puzzles and games, don’t forget Tumble Books has those as well!

If the rainy weather still has you down, try visiting the Kids’ Space on the Rowan Public Library, click on the link for Links, and parents can find more free online resources, such as ABCya.com and Starfall.com.  Both ABCya.com and Starfall.com offers reading and math building skills for preschoolers and children up 5^th grade. Starfall.com offers, access to a mobile app which parents can download for free.

Remember parents, when April showers hit, grab a laptop or tablet and enjoy some rainy day reading and fun interactive games through the Rowan Public Library.

Jennifer Nicholson