I Want to Believe

Keep your eyes open…you might just spot a unicorn in the library!

We read Do You Believe in Unicorns? by Bethanie Deeney Murguia (Candlewick Press, 2018). It might look like a horse in red hat, but the book’s narrator isn’t quite convinced. I mean, it could be a horse who thinks its hair is messy, likes the color red, or is trying to keep its head dry. But if you truly believe…then yes, it’s definitely a unicorn!

You’ll need:

  • 1 pony head template, printed on 11″ x 17″ paper
  • A 11″ x 27″ piece of white poster board for head (plus extra for the horn)
  • 2 rectangles of white construction paper for ears (approximately 2″ x 3.5″)
  • Construction paper for mane and forelock
  • 2 wiggle eyes
  • 2 black dot stickers for nose
  • A 41.5″ piece of PVC pipe for stick
  • A 35″ piece of ribbon for the reins
  • Hole punch
  • Packing tape
  • Stapler, scissors, tape for construction
  • Markers for decorating
  • Hot glue

Our unicorn is the stick horse we designed for this story time project. With an additional horn, of course. Our horns were 9″ long, and constructed from extra poster board. I stapled two, 3″ tabs of poster board to the base, then folded the tabs outward and hot glued them to either side of the horse’s forehead so the horn stayed centered.

Once we completed our unicorns, we rode forth in the library, including trotting through a magical hoop of flowers (which you might recognize as the slightly deconstructed door from our Hobbit event)! Those talented unicorns even took a stab at a theater performance!

And for the record, I do believe in unicorns.

It’s a Total Pigsty

Where there’s rubbish, disorganization, and debris, you will find a happy herd of piggies, ready to roll! The perfect indoor game to combat the winter blahs…it’s trash time!

We read Pigsty by Mark Teague (Scholastic, 1994). Wendell Fultz’s bedroom is a total pigsty. Ordered by his mother to clean it, Wendell is shocked to find an actual pig on his bed. As the mess in his room grows, so does the number of pigs, until finally Wendell is overwhelmed. He asks the pigs to pitch in and clean up. They do – and then depart for dirtier climes. One of my favorite books, and so fun to read aloud!

You’ll need:

  • 1 large oatmeal container
  • 1 paper cup
  • Pink construction paper
  • 3 paper towel tubes
  • A selection of colored tape
  • Scissors and tape for construction
  • Markers for decorating

First, the pig! Wrap a large oatmeal container in pink paper, then add a circle of pink paper to the lid as well. Next, cut a paper cup down to approximately 1.75″ and cover it with pink paper. This is your pig’s snout. Use extra paper for the ears, and a curl of paper (or corkscrewed craft stem) for a tail. Draw the eyes and nostrils on with markers. Finally, tape 3 paper towel rolls together to create the “steering stick” for your pig. You can color it with markers, or fancy it up with colored tape. You’re ready to race!

We also highly recommend decorating a jersey number from this numbers 1-16 template. The paper number gets taped to your back, and the matching number gets drawn on your pig. The pig race gets chaotic, and you want to be able to find your pig quickly if it gets bumped, kicked, or otherwise separated from you.

Time for the race! Scatter “rubbish” in a large area (we used plastic eggs, old film canisters, and toilet paper tubes because they rolled smoothly). Have all the contestants line up, standing behind their pigs with the steering stick. On the shout of “Go!” players push their pigs forward, zero in on a piece of rubbish, and push it across the finish line.

A less competitive version is to turn a table into the “goal,” and have kids roll the rubbish underneath it. When all the garbage is under the table, everyone wins!

New Year, New Mole Rat

Happy New Year! It’s 2025, and resolutions abound! If one of those resolutions involves a new fashion direction, well, today’s post is very relevant. ESPECIALLY if you are a naked mole rat seeking a plethora of new looks!

We read Naked Mole Rat Gets Dressed by Mo Willems (Hyperion, 2009). Wilbur is a naked mole rat who likes clothes. Unfortunately his passion for fashion is ceaselessly mocked and questioned by the other naked mole rats. Especially when Wilbur opens a clothing store. Outraged, the naked mole rats march Wilbur to Grand-pah mole rat for a supreme talking to. But wise Grand-pah has nothing but words of encouragement for Wilbur (and all the other naked mole rats) to lean into their individualism and follow their fancies.

You’ll need:

The simplest form of this project is to print the mole rat and clothing templates, then color and cut them out. Attach two button magnets to the mole rat, then tape paper clips on the backs of the clothing. Connect the paperclips to the magnets to change outfits!

At our story time, however, we went with a sturdier mole rat that could stand on its own. First, we traced our mole rat templates onto pink construction paper, then backed them with corrugated cardboard. We added a toilet paper tube support to the back, and then finished by attaching the clothing magnets. Here’s a look at the back and the front of our finished mole rats:

We also decided we needed to be extra fancy and make our mole rat a closet. As you can see, the closet rack is a snippet of balloon stick secures with two foam beads. Dangling from the rack are paper clips that act as “hangers” for the shirts, skirts, and pants. There’s a shortened paper cup glued to the floor to house all the fashion accessories, and mini clothespins hot glued to the door to secure the mole rat’s various hats.

Kids loved customizing the various outfits and hats!

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Sometimes, kids really connect with a project, and one mom reported that her son’s naked mole rat was his constant companion for WEEKS. He went with her son to the gym, on trips, to restaurants, in the stroller, was cuddled at night, and basically lived the life of a most beloved friend. Mom reports that this lead to some very interesting questions from onlookers about naked mole rats, which her son was happy to answer.

But that’s not all! Another one of our naked mole rats caught the eye of Brian George, Preparator in Special Collections. It still stands in his office to this day!