Our library mascots, Gerald Giraffe and Tess T-Rex, have indicated that they are super excited for all of our young readers to come in for Summer Reading, but they’re feeling a bit left out of the Summer Vacation Adventures scene. Can you and your young adventure seekers help them out?
Mail Gerald and Tess a postcard from the road or a letter telling them about your vacation and summer activities! If you forget to mail cards during your trip or didn’t have a stamp handy, you can always drop your postcard or letter in their personal mailbox in the library yourself (located on the circulation desk across from the kids’ pagoda). One of the best parts of adventuring is sharing your story with others, so why not tell us about yours! They’d love to hear what you’re up to! Send post to:
Gerald and Tess
c/o Seneca Free Library
606 Main St.
Seneca, KS 66538
Check back on this page later and you just might find your story being shared with Gerald and Tess in fun and unique ways!
5/28/2024
Director Kate discovered these notes to Gerald and Tess in their personal mailbox this morning. It’s their first official mailbox delivery so we were all quite excited. And, as a personal note, if you’ve never witnessed a plush giraffe blush, it’s quite the sight to see.
After a bit of a hiatus the Seneca Free Library E-News Letter is making a comeback. Updates, program previews, and semi-weekly “From the Bookshelf” articles are all available in a nifty automated email service that drops neatly into your inbox, ready to read at your leisure. Follow the link below and sign up today! It’s free, it’s easy, and it’s one less password you have to remember between websites and phone apps!
Comic books and Graphic Novels are powerful tools in bringing reluctant readers onboard while still building reading fluency and comprehension in younger readers and improving reading retention rates in older readers. Today’s comics are more than just spandex clad super heroes clashing with powerful villains in epic battles. Comics are available that depict nonfiction narratives for historical events, people, and any number of specialized topics from dinosaurs to solar systems. Kids comics can focus on social skills, educational materials (like numbers, colors, and the alphabet), and, of course, just fun or goofy stories to support literacy and literary understanding.
CompicsPlus Library Pass is an app available on Android and iOS that lets you or your young readers access a large assortment of comic book and graphic novel resources on your phone or tablet. The State Library of Kansas offers a new and easier access method to this resource than ever before. You can now access the ComicsPlus Library Pass directly with your Kansas Library eCard number. Your password will be your birth date (MMDDYYYY no spaces or characters between numbers).
Here’s How it Works!
Download the Library Pass App. (Library Pass, Inc * Comics) from your Play Store or Apple App Store.
Open the app and search for the Library from the list below that best fits your reading level or the reading level of your younger reader. The various reading levels and library collections help offer better control over the content your younger readers are likely to find. Choose from the following (you can always add or change library catalogs later, using the same login credentials).
State Library of Kansas KS- Full Library (All age content available, no restrictions)
State Library of Kansas KS- Children’s Library (Includes: Emergent (PreK – grade 1, ages 3-5), Children (K – grade 3, ages 5-7), Kids (Grades 3-5, ages 8-10), and Teen (Grades 6-8, ages 11-14)
Kansas Elementary Schools (Includes: Emergent (PreK – grade 1, ages 3-5), and Children (K – grade 3, ages 5-7)
Kansas Middle Schools (Includes: Kids (Grades 3-5, ages 8-10) and Teen (Grades 6-8, ages 11-14)
Kansas High Schools (Includes: Teen (Grades 6-8, ages 11-14) and Young Adult (Grades 9-12, ages 15-18)
Once you’ve chosen the library catalog you wish to access, enter your State of Kansas eCard Number and Password where prompted (date of birth mmddyyyy no characters or spaces between numbers).
Get in there and start browsing! Titles are available from the following publishers as of April 2024!
Don’t have a State Library ID? We can help you get one at the library circulation desk! A state library id opens up countless online resources, adding even more options to your reading, listening, and streaming arsenal!
We were recently reminded of a fantastic resource through the Kansas State Library website that our patrons have access to. BookFlix is an interactive program through Scholastic Books that combines one animated story book and one non-fiction book to create an entertaining and informative program on a topic your young (or young at heart) reader is excited about. Examples include “Curious George Rides a Bike” and “Scholastic News: Monkeys and Other Mammals,” or “Dinosaur Bones” by Bob Barner and “Scholastic News: Dinosaur Dig!” or “Goldilocks and the Three Bears” and “Rookie Read About Math: A Garden Full of Sizes.” There are nine categories to choose from with most categories having well over 20 story and non-fiction combos to select from and enjoy!
The Link below takes you to the Kansas Library e-books for kids page. If you click on the BookFlix link it might take you directly to the page or it might throw an error code and require you to login with a Kansas Library eCard (which we can help you sign up for in person at the circulation desk if you don’t have one, but not over the phone or via email). In testing this resource, I had the website produce both results at different times, so consider this a fair warning, just in case. This link also takes you to the hub that has Tumble Book Library, Britannica Collective Nonfiction eBooks, and a score of other ebook resources and links just waiting to be discovered!
Chad Jones joined our library team on February 5th and comes to us from Nemaha Central Elementary School where he was a para-educator with the Marshall-Nemaha Special Education Co-op. You may also recognize him as “Station Manager Jones” from his last five summers as a tour guide and facilities manager for the Seneca Pony Express Museum at 4th and Main.
Chad enjoys fantasy fiction, science fiction, and mysteries but admits that he’s most excited to dive into the youth fiction section and check out all of our awesome illustrated books! He is having fun finding the classics he grew up with as well as all of the new titles that have come out since he became a “boring grownup.”
Chad is also a self-published author and is proud to have two of his books in the Chronicles of Chalisaria series available in our adult fiction catalog, “Ash to Ashes,” and “Wolfkin: a Fairy’s Tail”.
We are excited to have Chad join the Seneca Free Library family and invite you to join us in welcoming him to the circulation desk!
