(bright instrumental music) - (sighs deeply) Oh, that was a good stretch.

Hey, welcome to Camp Read-a-Lot.

I'm Mrs. Hammack, and I'm so glad you're here today.

I was just doing a little yoga and waking up, so happy to see you.

You know, camp is a great time of learning and having fun.

And at Camp Read-a-Lot we're going to read, and talk, and sing, and learn, and do all kinds of activities that will help us become strong readers.

Parents, you can help at home too.

Have you thought about taking your family on a field trip?

Yeah, to the library!

Go on down to the library closest to you.

Do you have a library card, how about your kids?

You can all get library cards, it doesn't cost anything.

And then maybe take time to go to the library once or every other week to check out new books.

It's a great fun way to be able to read a lot of different books without it costing any money.

And a whole bunch of our libraries have summer reading programs that don't cost anything.

So, I hope that you will enjoy the county public libraries and use them as a field trip.

It's a great fun place to visit.

I think you'll love it.

And remember, when kids don't read over the summer they can go backwards in their progress up to two years.

We don't want that to happen.

So, I hope you'll plan a fun family field trip to your library.

All right, campers, are you ready?

♪ Hello readers, hello writers ♪ ♪ Hello campers, I'm glad you're here today ♪ ♪ Hello readers, hello writers ♪ ♪ Hello campers, I'm glad you're here today.

♪ It's time for our pledge, are you ready?

Okay, let's get our salute ready.

Here we go, repeat after me.

On my honor I will try my best to be kind to everyone, to have a smile on my face and a song in my heart.

Great job.

All right, it's time for us to train our ears for sound.

That's right.

And today we're gonna do a game called the blending game.

It's gonna be a little bit different though.

So, I'm gonna need my pal scooter to help me.

Did you see what he's doing?

What did you get into?

Why do you have, it's really early in the morning to be eating that giant lollipop?

What, where did you get that?

Yes, I know.

Yes, I know.

Can I have that just for right now?

I don't know if I'm gonna get away from him.

I know it's delicious, but I need your help with this game.

Will you help me?

Okay, let me, okay, let go.

(groans) Okay, I think it got stuck to your fur.

Let's put it over here on the craft table.

And then you can have that later, okay?

Yeah, it'll be, it'll be fine.

Nobody's gonna touch your lollipop, I promise.

Goodness, I think we need to go see the dentist about that sweet tooth of yours.

All right, you ready, okay?

Today we're gonna play a blending game.

But instead of just the very first sound, we're going to do a game called onset and rhyme.

That means we're gonna separate the first, might be more than one sound, and add it to the end.

Okay, are you ready?

I'm going to give you the sounds, and then you put it together to make the word.

Ch, in, what's my word?

Oh, you want me to use the dots?

Well, all right, I guess we can.

All right, here we go.

Ch, in, whoop, that one doesn't want to stay.

Chin, good job!

All right, how about the next one?

Sh, are, let's put it together, share, terrific.

Okay, the last one, oh, okay.

Pr, ice, price, very good.

You did a great job.

Okay, well, I actually have two jokes for you.

Now, all right, here we go.

So, why isn't anyone friends, let me think how it goes.

Oh, that's right.

Why isn't anyone friends with Dracula?

Do you know, no?

Because he's a pain in the neck!

(laughs) Get it, Dracula, he's yeah, okay.

So, here's my last one, are you ready, okay.

Well, not my last one, but for now.

Why shouldn't you give Elsa a balloon?

Do you know why you shouldn't give Elsa a balloon?

Because she will ♪ Let it go ♪ ♪ Let it go ♪ (laughing) Don't you get it, she'll let it go, isn't that good?

Yeah, that's a good one, oh, gosh.

I told you it was a good one.

I had to have two because they were so funny.

All right, it's time for our catch of the day.

Are you ready, oh, terrific.

Are you ready?

I know, yes, I know, I promise.

I'll give you back your lollipop when we're done.

All right, you have a seat right here.

And don't go anywhere, look at the book.

All right, let's take a look at our catch of the day words for today.

All right, I have the word scoot, scoot.

I use this word a lot with my boys and girls.

To scoot means to go quickly or leave someplace quickly.

So, I might say scoot out to the car.

That means get going, go quickly.

How about culture?

That's kind of a very grown-up word, culture.

It is the ways of a group or people, like their arts, their celebrations, their food.

Those are all things that make up someone's culture.

All right, how about customs?

Customs, these are things that people do on a regular basis, like celebrations or routines.

It is my family's custom to have turkey for Thanksgiving, right?

So, those are the things that you do as kind of traditions or customs.

Isn't that fun?

All right, so today our story is going to be using these words.

And I want you to be listening for them.

That will help you to understand our story.

I'm gonna put on my reading tools for my eyes.

That is my glasses.

Remember, if you need tools to help you be the best you don't be worried about using them, okay?

All right, our story is Big Red Lolli...

Hold on a minute, lollipop, did you pick this story?

Oh, my goodness!

Big Red Lollipop by Rukhsana Khan, illustrated by Sophie Blackall.

Isn't that a coincidence that it's about a lollipop?

I think somebody planned it.

Well, this is the front cover of our story, and the back cover of our story.

Here's the spine of our story.

We know that the author is the one that writes the words to the story.

And the illustrator is the one that does the pictures.

So let's take a look and see.

We have the title page.

Let's jump into our story.

Oh, and look at all those pretty circles.

They remind me of lollipops.

Do you like lollipops, Scooter does.

Actually, Scooter likes anything with sugar.

Rukhsana Khan and Sophie Blackall, Big Red lollipop.

Take a look here, what do you see?

Right, it's a bag, isn't it?

Some kind of a bag.

And it looks, oh, look, ooh, I love those!

Have you had a Ring Pop before?

Oh, those are so good!

Yeah, and there's another kind of lollipop.

It looks like some kind of a little whistle and some other candies.

Huh, what do you think the story might be about?

She has a lollipop, you're right.

When would you get this kind of a little bag?

Yeah, maybe at a birthday party.

Let's jump in and see what happens.

"I'm so excited, I run all the way home from school."

See how they made the path, so you can see where she was?

"Ami, I've been invited to a birthday party!

"There's going to be games, "and toys, and cake, and ice cream.

"Can I go?

"Sana screams, I want to go too!

"Ami says, what's a birthday party?

"It's when they celebrate the day they were born.

"Why do they do that?

"They just do.

Can I go?

"Sana screams, I want to go too!

"I can't take her, she's not invited.

"Why not, says Ami.

"They don't do that here.

"Ami says, well, that's not fair.

"You call up your friend and ask if you "can bring Sana, or else you can't go.

"But, Ami, they'll laugh at me.

"They'll never invite me to another party again.

"Sana screams, I want to go too!"

What are you noticing so far in our story?

Right, they are from a different culture, right?

Maybe from a different country.

And so birthday parties are new to them.

That's not their tradition.

So it's something that, Ami, or the mom doesn't quite understand how it works.

"I say, look, Sana, one day you will get "invited to your own friends' parties.

"Wouldn't you like that better?

"No, I want to go!

"I beg, and I plead, but Ami won't listen.

"I have no choice, I have to call.

"Sally says, all right, but it doesn't sound all right.

"I know she thinks I'm weird.

"At the party I'm the only one "who brought her little sister.

"Sana has to win all the games.

"And when she falls down during musical "chairs she cries like a baby.

"Before we leave the party Sally's mom gives us little bags.

"Inside there are chocolates and candies, "a whistle, a ruby ring, and a big red lollipop.

"Sana eats her big red lollipop on the way home "in the car, but I save mine for later."

Look, I think that would be you.

And this would be me.

(laughs) "Sana doesn't know how to make things last.

"By bedtime her candies are all gone.

"And her whistle is broken.

"And the ruby in her ring is missing.

"I put my red lollipop on top of the shelf "of the fridge, so I can have it in the morning."

That sounds like you.

"All night I dream about how good it will taste.

"In the morning I get up early to have it.

"Sana is already up.

"And when she sees me she runs away.

"I open the fridge door.

"All that's left of my lollipop "is a triangle stuck to a stick.

"Sana!"

What do you think happened?

What happened to her lollipop?

Mm-hmm, little sister got it.

Has that ever happened to you?

Do you have a little sister or brother that sometimes get into your things?

Let's see what happens.

"I hear a sound in the front hall closet.

"I should have known, that's where she always hides.

"I shove aside the coats and boots.

"I'm going to get you!

"Quick as a rat, she scoots through my legs "and runs around and around "the living room, the dining room, "and the kitchen yelling, Ami, Ami, help, help!

"Ami comes out rubbing her eyes.

"Sana runs behind Ami, where I can not get her.

"What is going on out here, says Ami.

"Sana says, Rubina's trying to get me!

"Ami puts her hands on her hips.

"Are you trying to get your little sister again?

"She ate my lollipop!

"The greedy thing, she ate it!

"Ami says, for shame, it's just a lollipop.

"Can't you share with your sister?

"I want to cry, but I don't.

"Sana runs to the fridge and brings back "the triangle stuck to the stick.

"Look, I didn't eat all of your lollipop.

"I left a triangle for you.

"See says Ami, she didn't eat all of it.

"She's sharing with you.

"Go ahead, take the triangle.

"So, I have to take it.

"Go ahead, eat the triangle.

"But I don't.

"With all my might I throw it across the room, "and it skitters under the sofa.

"Sana scurries after it and eats that too.

"The worst thing is that all the girls "at school know that if they invite me "to their birthday parties I have to bring Sana.

"I don't get any invitations for a really long time."

Can you tell how she feels here?

Hm, yeah.

"Then, one day Sana comes home waiving an invitation.

"Ami, I've been invited to a birthday party!

"There's going to be games, "and toys, and cake, and ice cream.

"Can I go?

"Our little sister, Maryam, screams.

"I want to go, I want to go too!

"Sana says, no, no, I can't take her, she's not invited!

"Ami says, well, it's only fair.

"You went to Rubina's friend's party.

"Now Rubina and Maryam can go to your friend's party.

"I say leave me out of it.

"Ami says fine, then you can take Maryam.

"Now it's Sana's turn to beg "and plead, but Ami won't listen.

"Sana's begging so hard she's crying, "but still Ami won't listen.

"I could just watch her have to take Maryam.

"I could just let her make a fool of herself at the party.

"I could just let her not be invited to any more parties.

"But something makes me tap Ami on the shoulder.

"What, said Ami.

"Don't make Sana take Maryam to the party.

"No, says Ami.

"No, I say.

"Ami thinks for a moment, and then says, okay.

"So Sana gets to go by herself.

"After the party I hear a knock on my door.

"What do you want, I say.

"Here, she hands me a big green lollipop.

"This is for you.

"Thanks, I say.

"After that, we're friends."

Wow, wow!

That was a change, right?

In this story, did you see anyone showing kindness?

How about Sana, was she showing kindness at the beginning of the story?

Definitely not, no.

Where was the first sign that you saw kindness?

Right, when Rubina tells Ami, don't make her take the little sister to the party.

She could have just sat there and been celebrating that now it was gonna happen to her little sister, right, that Sana was gonna get a taste of her own medicine of how that felt to take somebody that wasn't invited to a party.

But she didn't do that.

She stepped in and helped, and said, mm, don't do that mom, right?

That is so awesome.

She showed kindness by not being silent.

Let's take a look here at our characters.

Here's Rubina, the oldest sister.

And how was she feeling?

Right, she felt happy.

Why did she feel happy?

Because she had been invited to a birthday party.

Now, it seems like she might be kind of new to that school, right, or new to that classroom.

So, getting invited to a birthday party would be really, really huge.

Because it meant she started to feel like she belonged.

And then, what can we tell by her words and the pictures.

Her words show that she's excited to be invited.

And her face is happy, right?

She ran all the way home to share about the party.

She was very, very excited.

All right, let's take a look at this character here.

Sana, she's kind of the middle sister, right?

There's Rubina, then Sana.

And then Maryam was the baby sister.

And how does Sana feel?

Yep, she was unhappy, and she was angry.

Because she wanted to go, right?

And what do the words and the pictures reveal about her feelings?

Oh, let's see if we can get this paper off.

There we go, she screams.

And her face shows how unhappy she is.

When authors are putting their story together and their illustrations, do you see how the author works together with the illustrator to make the story come to life?

The author writes the words, but then the illustrator uses those words to make the picture so that it captures what the author was trying to show us.

And we can get information from the words of the story, but also from the illustrations.

I definitely saw kindness, didn't you?

She was trying so hard to be kind.

She wanted to go to that party all by herself.

And she wasn't allowed to.

But she stepped in so that Sana would not have to go through what she went through.

That is really, really kind.

Also, another word I would say to explain that is generous.

She was generous with her kindness.

She gave her kindness to her sister, even though her sister probably didn't deserve it.

Remember, she ate her whole candy, her lollipop.

And Rubina had been dreaming about it all night long and how yummy it would be.

Kind of like somebody I know who'd been dreaming about a lollipop, right, yeah.

So, I hope friends that you will remember this story.

And even when someone is not kind to you, I hope you will be a better example and that you will be kind, even when someone doesn't deserve it.

Because everybody deserves kindness.

And you can be a good example for them so that they can see what kindness is supposed to look like, right?

Imagine if all of us were kind to each other all the time.

Wow, what a great place we would have to live in.

All right, I have a joke before we go to our craft table.

Are you ready, this is a really good one.

(laughs) I love it.

Okay, do you know who will Smith is, right, okay.

So, how do you follow Will Smith in the snow?

I think the parents are gonna like this joke better than the kids.

How do you follow Will Smith in the snow?

You follow the fresh prints.

(laughs) Parents, I'm sure you know that.

Fresh Prince, he was the Fresh Prince on the Prince of Bel Air.

All right, well, Google it, you'll find out.

Are you ready to go to our craft table?

Yes, I know your lollipop's there waiting for you.

Let's get over there, so you can get to work on your lollipop.

Mm, ooh, it's watermelon!

Wow, that is fantastic!

How did you get such a lovely lollipop?

All right, let me see if I can get you, I hope it doesn't tip you over, it's kind of heavy.

I don't know if it's gonna stay.

Let's set it down here, you can have it in a minute.

He's gonna need help.

Today we are making kindness bookmarks.

What a great thing to do for reading, right?

I already have one example for you because here's the great thing, you can make them look however you want.

You can use paints, or markers, or crayons.

And here I used some stickers.

And I punched a hole in the top.

And I'm gonna tie a really pretty ribbon.

That way when my friend that I give it to, sticks it in a book, the little ribbon will show her where the bookmark is.

So, when you're reading a story, and you don't quite finish, you put your bookmark in to save your spot.

I want you to think about somebody that you can give a kindness bookmark for.

Here's all you need.

You need some strips of paper.

Now, see, you can make it wide or skinnier, doesn't matter.

And then I have some stickers.

I'm gonna decorate mine with stickers.

And since it's my friend Natalie's son's birthday, I'm going to make one for him.

So, I'm gonna put some cupcakes stickers on it because that says birthday like I don't know what.

And I'm going to decorate it.

And then I'm gonna use some markers and make it pretty.

Oh, I don't know where my hole punch went to, but then I can punch a hole in the top so that I can put my little ribbon there.

That way when he puts it in his book he'll be able to find it easily.

Bookmarks are a great, easy, fun craft that you can make with anything.

And share them with some people that maybe need a smile.

That's one great way to share kindness.

What are some other things that you can do to show kindness to others?

Think about that and see if you can make a list.

♪ Skidamarink a dink a dink ♪ ♪ Skidamarink a doo ♪ ♪ I love you ♪ ♪ Skidamarink a dink a dink ♪ ♪ Skidamarink a doo ♪ ♪ I love you ♪ ♪ I love you in the morning and in the afternoon ♪ ♪ I love you in the evening and underneath the moon ♪ (howling) ♪ Skidamarink a dink a dink ♪ ♪ Skidamarink a doo ♪ ♪ I love you, and you ♪ ♪ And you, and you ♪ I hope you have a great day.

And remember show kindness, bye.

(bright instrumental music)