Library Happenings

Henning School

My family and I love to play cards. We have many different games we enjoy and this year we are involving our two granddaughters in the card games. During our Spring book fair hosted by Cherry Street Book Store of Alexandria, Minn., I purchased a deck of cards with our birds of Minnesota on them. This will be a great way for our family to learn about our local birds and this will put us on the lookout to spot them in our travels.  

One of our purchased books from the Arts and Cultural Heritage Fund through Minnesota Historical Society is the “Kids’ Guide to Birds of Minnesota,” by Stan Tekiela. This book is the winner of the National Outdoor Youth Book Award. This will be another wonderful way to teach ourselves about our area’s birds. There are 85 different birds featured in this book of cool activities and facts. The Killdeer bird near my parents house would lay her eggs right alongside the long lane of their driveway. 

The eggs would look just like rocks and it was so fun for my children to try and find where they were as the mother bird would act wounded and try to draw our attention away from the eggs. We wouldn’t stop too long after discovering her spot as we knew this was upsetting to her. Killdeer birds are in the group Shoreline birds, however you are more likely to find them in dry habitats like along railroad tracks or near farms.  

A Killdeer bird will lay 3-5 tan colored eggs that both mom and dad will incubate. They spend the winter in Mexico, Central America, and southern states. The Yellow-rumped Warbler can be found at forest edges and in deciduous forests. This bird moves quickly amongst trees and from the ground to the trees. It will lay 4-5 eggs that are white with brown marks.  Mom incubates the eggs. They too spend their winter time in southern states, Mexico, and Central America.  

The Belted Kingfisher eats fish. They lay 6-7 white eggs that are incubated by both mom and dad. They migrate to the same area as the other two birds. They will rarely be away from water, making their homes along rivers, lakes, and large streams.  

We will love to share this book with you when we return to normal library hours during the school year in the fall.  

The State of Minnesota from the Arts and Cultural Heritage Fund through the Minnesota Historical Society has awarded the Henning Public School Library a grant in the amount of $9,325.  This grant will provide over 449 books to the Henning Public School Library.

This  grant helps provide a quality learning experience for our local Minnesotans by providing exemplary library bound (as much as possible) books that feature depictions of various aspects of the State of Minnesota. Students will develop knowledge, skills, and understanding about many areas of Minnesota by reading about Minnesota, its geography, heritage, culture, people, landforms, arts, sports, and more. Books will be purchased for all ages of people who frequent the library. This grant will help represent diverse ethnicities and people as we are purchasing books that feature a wide variety of people who have contributed to Minnesota.  

In addition, because Minnesota history is a vital component of our middle school curriculum, we want a strong selection of books that depict Minnesota history, industries, contemporary Minnesotans, immigration, the contributions of indigenous people, Minnesota authors/illustrators, and state bird/fish/foods, etc.