*****Reid, Rob. (2007).Something Musical Happened at the Library; Adding Song and Dance to Children's Story Programs. Chicago: American Library Association. ISBN9780838909423 A guide to making music an engaging part of children's library story programs. Paperback.
Something Musical Happened at the Library, the companion to Children’s Jukebox, is a comprehensive, cross-curricular guide to making music part of children’s programs. The book is broken into seven sections, the first being “Musical Story Program Lesson Plans.” Eight themed lesson plans are provided and include several songs, stories, and ideas for activities. While these “lesson plans” do provide activities and resources, they do not include objectives or evaluation methods. It also would be nice to have even more lesson plans on other themes.
“Fun Pairings,” is another nice reference section that matches up a picture book with a song and provides annotations for the resources. What child wouldn’t have fun with “Goldilocks Rap” by Bill Shontz after reading Goldilocks and the Three Bears?
“More Musical Ideas” is an annotated list of songs and sometimes activities to go with the songs. “Call and Response Songs” is a resource list of songs you can “play and follow the performer’s cues to sing specific words or phrases back.” It is perfect for anyone because it is so simple to do. The section entitled, “Cumulative Songs” is also a simple resource list that provides pattern songs that “feature verses that build upon each other.” Think Boom Chicka Boom. (It’s on the list!) “Songs Sung in Rounds” is another resource list of rounds, from the popular “Frere Jacques” (by Robin and Linda Williams) to “Belly Button Round” by Sandra Boynton.
“Best Picture Books Featuring Music in Your Library,” provides a lengthy annotated bibliography for picture books featuring song lyrics, music and musicians, and dance and dancers.
Also included are “Resources,” which are the websites where you can purchase and/or find out more information on the recordings found in the book. An index is also provided.
Something Musical Happened at the Library earns five stars because of its thoroughness, cross-referencing, and plethora of resources in general. This book is valuable to children’s librarians, classroom teachers, and music teachers. Even resources for guidance counselors and foreign language teachers could be found. Rob Reid certainly accomplished his goal, to provide information on resources for incorporating music into children’s programs. Highly recommended.
Reviewed by Kimberly DeNaples, Elementary Librarian, Egg Harbor Township, NJ
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