Category Archives: Summer

Way back when, Wednesdays

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What every child wants for Christmas

What would your children like for Christmas? Parents start putting toys on layby from the time of the mid-year sales. Or they race around the shops in December looking for the popular and sometimes expensive toys.

Search online and you will discover that a range of toys such as the Slime Factory, the Furreal Roarin Tyler and the Robo Alive lizard are in demand this Christmas. Santa is also stocking up on the cute L.O.L Surprise Dolls, the My Little Pony: My Magical Princess Twilight Sparkle and the Hatchimals. Lego and Star Wars related merchandise are listed as perennial favourites.

Would you like to encourage your children to play outdoors? Perhaps Santa could bring each of them a pair of stilts and they could have races! The North East Leader, a Messenger Newspaper printed this advertisement for Gimpy brand stilts on page 17 of the edition dated 7 December 1966.

Stilts

In a simpler time, kids probably had a lot of fun playing with their stilts over the summer holidays. Library staff who were children in the 1960s reflected on some of the Christmas presents that they received. Most parents never bought anything on credit. Only store-cards (which could be used exclusively in the issuing store) were available in Australia up until 1974 https://www.finder.com.au/credit-card-history and people usually could not afford to buy expensive gifts. Some toys were homemade. Intrepid woodworkers made and sold playsets such as a wooden hand-painted service station for toy cars. One member of our staff remembers that her uncle made her some furniture for her doll, a small wardrobe and a bassinet. Or you might gladly receive homemade clothes for your dolls. And you would have been very fortunate to receive several presents in your Santa Sack.

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Recollections of commercially made Christmas gifts include skipping ropes, Tonka toys, little cars, minature toy household appliances including a sewing machine and washing machine. There was also a treasured spinning top!

 

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A metal spinning top

 

little washing machine

Mini washing machine that really worked!

Childlike dolls, Mattel’s Barbie and Skipper and Sindy manufactured by English company Pedigree were on many girls’ wish lists. Board games such as snakes and ladders and quoits were popular gifts as they encouraged family interaction.

Snakes and Ladders

Skipper

Or you could have lots of fun with dress up outfits like cowgirl and cowboy costumes or a nurse’s uniform (perhaps you were lucky enough to also own a toy medical kit with a stethoscope).

Most toys manufactured in this era relied on children using their imaginations or being physically active to have fun, rather than the use of technological components.

You can still buy stilts for kids online. The design is still basically the same. Modern stilts are made from metal or plastic and the height can be adjusted to fit the child. Some can also be strapped on. Parents might be concerned about accidents and broken bones. Unlike in 1966, it is now recommended that children wear safety gear when using stilts, such as elbow and knee pads and a helmet.

#waybackwhenwednesdays

Way back when, Wednesdays

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Miss Potato Head

We can all remember what we especially liked to eat as kids. Your tastes can change as an adult and sometimes we cringe at the peculiar foods that we used to crave as children. On the other hand, there are foods that we will always love, such as hot chips!

During the first part of 1969 the Leader Messenger featured photographs of little girls enjoying the hot weather. Like cute Nadene Woods who was pictured on the front page of the edition dated 5 March. Her fondness for potatoes started from a young age and she had developed a curious taste for eating them raw.

Potato feast

Unlike other vegetables, potatoes are seldom eaten raw because of their starchy texture and somewhat bland taste. However, some people like to eat them uncooked, seasoned with salt! Raw potatoes don’t increase your blood sugar and they contain more vitamin C, thiamine and riboflavin than the cooked variety.

For those who enjoy the taste of an uncooked spud, take care. Choose fresh, unblemished potatoes. Wash potatoes thoroughly to remove all traces of soil from the skin and peel them to avoid ingesting bacteria and other microorganisms which are usually killed in the cooking process.

Potatoes are full of goodness but it is advisable to eat this raw vegetable in moderation. They are high in starchy carbohydrates, as the main purpose of a tuber is to nurture a new potato plant. Unfortunately humans digest raw starches poorly. Pieces of raw potato pass through the upper intestine and into the lower intestine largely intact. Intestinal bacteria then start to break down the fibrous mass, starting a fermentation process. Fermentation produces gas, which can cause the raw potato eater to experience discomfort through bloating, cramping and flatulence.

Beware of eating a green or sprouted potato, even if it is cooked. Never eat the leaves and stems of the plant itself or any fruit growing above ground. Potatoes are a member of the nightshade family, which protect themselves by producing toxic alkaloids. Potatoes produce solanine and chaconine, both of which are dangerous to humans. Normally a potato tuber harvested underground contains only small amounts of these chemicals.  However, sprouted or green potatoes become high in solanine.  A tuber that’s been bruised, exposed to sunlight or stored for an extended period of time might develop patches of green. The green pigment is chlorophyll, which enables photosynthesis to take place. Once this happens, solanine is present.  Solanine causes diarrhea, nausea, cramping, headaches and in extreme cases organ failure and death http://www.sandiegouniontribune.com,  http://www.livestrong.com/article/523041-the-risks-of-eating-raw-potatoes.

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Summer Reading Club 2015-16 Wrap-Up

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Well done to the 54 children who participated in the recent Summer Reading Club, held over the summer school holidays.

Tea Tree Gully Library received 70 logs and 46 reviews of books – and we are proud to say after totaling all of the figures, a grand total of 746 books were read.

Congratulations!

This high number of books read is a credit to our young readers who live in the Tea Tree Gully area. Reading is incredibly important not just for education and comprehension, but also for developing communication skills, empathy, logic & reasoning and a greater ability to focus and concentration. If you need greater convincing, check out more reasons for why children should read here here and here.

Some of the children who read lots of books or submitted some stand-out book reviews were invited with their families to the Pegi Williams Bookshop in Walkerville to purchase new books for the children’s collection. They also received a Pegi Williams Book Shop voucher to buy a book for themselves. We had so much fun selecting new books together.

Look out for the new books on our shelves soon. And keep reading!

It’s school holidays!

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There’s loads of Christmas decorating events, art/craft sessions, a kite building workshop, Lego Day, and a Harry Potter movie marathon in the mix. Don’t miss our pet-themed colouring-in competition either, you can win some prizes.

Find all these events + heaps more on our website.

Also check out what’s happening at Golden Grove Arts Centre, with their super cool SeaStar Rock event tomorrow! Original energetic fun music and dance for kids that promotes marine sustainability.

 

Safe Four Wheel Driving

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Monday 9 November 6.30 – 7.30pm

Imagine sitting around a campfire, under a myriad of stars, away from the glaring lights of civilisation, in the company of family and good friends.

Four wheel driving can take you to some unique, amazing places off road that you just can’t access in an ordinary car, such as remote beaches, the outback and some fabulous fishing spots.

4WD poster photograph small

Joining a four wheel driving club is also an excellent way to find out how to properly operate your vehicle and learn about the regulations involved in four-wheel driving.  You get to meet and socialise with people with similar interests and go on trips. And driving is fun!

So whether you already own, or are considering buying a four-wheel drive vehicle to hit the open road, this session is definitely worth attending.

Greg Chase, vice president of 4WD Adventurers Club of SA, will speak about topics such as:  Different trip destinations, driver training, responsible 4WD activities, insurance, potential dangers and how to deal with them, such as how to recover your stranded vehicle.

You will also learn about the benefits of joining a 4WD club, what 4WD clubs do and how to choose and join one.

So why not come along and begin your adventure?  Book online or telephone the Library on 8397 7333.

When: Monday 9 November 6.30 – 7.30pm

Where:  Relaxed Reading Area, City of Tea Tree Gully Library

Cost:  Free.  Bookings are essential.

Safe Four Wheel Driving – provided by the 4WD Club of SA

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4WD

Are you looking to explore the outback when you retire, or something to do in a friendly environment on weekends? Perhaps you have a 4WD and have yet to venture off-road?

Discover the exciting world of four wheel driving at a special info session provided by the South Australian 4WD club. Topics covered will include:

  • Why join a 4WD Club?
  • Responsible 4WD activities
  • Driver training
  • Trip destinations
  • Insurance
  • Potential dangers and how to deal with them eg recovering stranded vehicles

Free event.

Book online or phone 8397 7333.

4WD

Bushfire Awareness Talk Wed 22 July

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bushfire

A bushfire safety and awareness talk for Australians whose first language is not English.

The Country Fire Service will present an easy-English presentation with simple bushfire safety messages, ways to stay informed, bushfire behaviour and discuss people’s experience of fire. Easy English and translated materials will be provided.

Where: City of Tea Tree Gully Library Community Learning Centre
When: Wed 22 July 10.30am-noon

Bookings are essential. Book online or phone 83397 7333