Two IFLS librarians are having fun with gross things, and so are the kids they serve!

Jenna Gilles, youth services librarian at the Fall Creek Public Library had a Grossology 101 program last month which was attended by 58 people. That’s almost 5% of the entire population of Fall Creek, folks!

They made “snot soap” in small batches–Jenna had discovered in trials at home that small batches are the way to go. They also had smell challenges (items in film cannisters for kids to smell and guess what they were), taste challenges (fake blood and other disgusting-looking stuff), and touch challenges. Board games, a book display of gross and scary things, and Halloween Music with eerie sounds rounded out the mood.

Jenna used these books to prepare for the program:
The everything kids’ gross puzzle & activity book : hours of disgusting fun! / Beth L. Blair & Jennifer A. Ericsson.
Gross me out! : 50 nasty projects to disgust your friends & repulse your family / [authors, Joe Rhatigan & Rain Newcomb] ; illustrated by Clay Meyer.
100% pure fake / Lyn Thomas ; with photographs by Cheryl Powers and illustrations by Boris Zaytsev.

On the other side of the system, Georgia Jones in New Richmond has had great luck with a Gross Book Club. Attended mainly by elementary age boys, many of whom are reluctant readers, this book club is showing them the treasures available in books at at the library! Last month, in honor of Halloween, they made fake blood.

This month, according to Georgia, they “explored the world of poop. The non-fiction books we shared had information on the history of toilets and sanitation as well as microscopic pictures of ……yup, poop. The craft of the day was decorating toiletpaper with stamps and ink. Rather festive, actually!”

Any gross stuff in your neck of the woods??