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Storytime (January 12 to February 18) - Podium Pals

The
Winter Olympic Games are held every four years. They feature winter
sports held on snow or ice. Fewer countries participate in the
Winter Olympics than the Summer Olympics.
This will be an
opportunity for young children to get acquainted with the Olympic
Games. In keeping with the spirit of the Games, the central message
during our activities will be one of friendship and peace. People
playing and working together in peace and friendship makes for a
better and beautiful world.
Storytime runs every Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday morning at 10:30am from January 12 to February 18.
For more information or to register, please call Programs at 780-875-0850 or email
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Let's
get physical
While
today snowshoes are mainly used for recreation, primarily by hikers
and runners who like to continue their hobby in wintertime, in the
past they were essential tools for fur traders, trappers and anyone
whose life or living depended on the ability to get around in areas
of deep and frequent snowfall. Even today, snowshoes are necessary
equipment for forest rangers and others who must be able to get
around areas inaccessible to motorized vehicles when the snow is
deep. Snowshoes work by distributing the weight of the person over a
larger area so that the person's foot does not sink completely into
the snow. Also, they
must not accumulate snow, hence the latticework, and require bindings
to attach them to the feet. Could
snowshoeing have been Canada's first winter sport? We'll
test the question by making a
wearable craft that children can try in the snow. Paint the town red!
Olympic Games also showcase the art and customs of the organizing host
country. We'll be focusing on art this week by designing our own Totem
Pole. This form of artwork, hand carved out of giant cedar trees by
Northwest Coastal First Nations, served to pass stories from one
generation to another, just like a book that you might read. Totem
poles could be small or large. A large one might be more than 60 feet
high and could take two or three years to carve. The figures on the
totem poles were symbols, usually of animals and birds, representing a
tribe, clan, family or person. They were painted with colors made from
bark, coal, clay, copper, berries and shells that were mixed with
crushed salmon eggs. Black, red, blue, green and white were the most
common colors painted on totem poles.
Spirals and spins
Figure
skating is a very popular part of the Winter Olympic Games, in which
the elegance of both the competitors and their movements attract many
spectators. Not
surprisingly, the best skaters show many of the same physical and
psychological attributes as gymnasts. Figure skates differ from
hockey skates most visibly in having a set of large, jagged teeth
called toe
picks
(also called "toe rakes") on the front of the blade. The
toe picks are used primarily in jumping and should not be used for
stroking or spins. Blades are mounted to the sole and heel of the
boot with screws. Ice dancers' blades are about an inch shorter in
the rear than those used by skaters in other disciplines, to
accommodate the intricate footwork and close partnering in dance.
This week, we'll produce an ice skate craft and decorate it with
sparkles and lace.
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