The Crocodile, the Orangutan and ...

Patsy and Louise do the Orangutan Shuffle with P1 bairns from Papdale

Meanwhile, upstairs, the Book Bug room is buzzing today as always, parents, babies, toddlers bouncing to the songs and rhymes. 

In the corner Johnny proudly introduces me to his baby sister, Carys. 

While outside the door, the buggies are parked, waiting for their passengers to return. 

Louise Shows the Primary 1 children a display case in the Archives and explains what the straitjacket was used for. The little girl in pink tries to imagine what it might be like to have her arms tied behind her back!

But there's no need for arm-twisting for the children from P1 in Papdale and Glaitness Primary Schools. They are already a captive audience, captivated by the tour of the library and the stories and songs from Louise and Patsy. 

Some of the boys have a good look down into the library from the upstairs corridor.

And when they all leave - happy - to return to their classrooms with their goody bags of three free books from Scottish Book Trust for Book Week Scotland, they form a highly visible crocodile to cross the Kirkwall roads.

Orkney Children & the Monsters

The Branch Eating Monster

Louise and Patsy have let loose a whole wheen of monsters in the library today. Or at least they were on the loose until they pinned them to the wall. 

These were pictures drawn by P1 pupils from Papdale Primary. Louise and Patsy read them stories from the books in the family packs being given to every child in P1 in Scotland as part of Book Week Scotland.

Here they are telling the story of The Day Louis Got Eaten by John Fardell. They also read Jack and the Flumflum Tree by Julia Donaldson and Solomon Crocodile byCatherine Rayner! All three are shortlisted for the Scottish Children's Book Awards. The bairns were spellbound and produced a variety of very scary monsters themselves. 

Here are some more of the monsters below. The children themselves were very very good!

  

There are more events with children planned for this week. Read the blog to find out.