EVENT: Library Day at the Sam Noble Oklahoma Museum
of Natural History
DATE: Saturday, June 21
Dinosaurs are a subject of fascination for many people of all ages, but they seem most to capture the imaginations of children. A child's interest in dinosaurs can often serve as an open doorway into books, helping to create a love of reading that will last a lifetime. The Oklahoma Department of Libraries has selected dinosaurs as the theme of the 2003 Summer Reading Program, and the Sam Noble Oklahoma Museum of Natural History has partnered with the Department of Libraries to offer a Library Day featuring dinosaurs, reading and fun on Saturday, June 21.
The museum will offer free admission to anyone showing a library card throughout the day. For those without library cards, representatives from both the Pioneer Multi-County and Metropolitan Library Systems will be present to fill out library card applications on the spot. Dinosaur activities through the day will include a dinosaur puppet show and dinosaur sing-along with John Hinkle and Monty Harper at noon and 3 p.m., Dinosaur storytimes hosted by the Pioneer Library System at 11 a.m. and 2 p.m., and dinosaur crafts with museum education staff and volunteers from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.
Museum paleontology staff and volunteers will be on hand to show photographs of Oklahoma dinosaur digs, display tools of the trade, and to talk with visitors about how scientists find, excavate and prepare dinosaur fossils. For those who prefer living reptiles, the museum will feature a display and demonstrations of live reptiles in the reception lobby. Museum mascots Spike and Slash also will be available to greet and entertain visitors. The libraries will offer information on dinosaur books for young readers, and Excavations, the museum store, features a wide variety of dinosaur books for sale, from picture books to illustrated guides.
Oklahoma has an ancient past rich in dinosaurs, from the enormous long-necked Apatosaurus of the Jurassic period to the small but deadly predator Deinonychus of the Cretaceous. Examples of many of these dinosaurs are on display in the museum's Hall of Ancient Life. In addition to dinosaurs, visitors will see other ancient creatures, including reptiles and amphibians that predate the dinosaurs, and mammals such as the mammoth and saber-toothed cat that ruled the land after the dinosaurs became extinct.
The Sam Noble Oklahoma Museum of Natural History is located on the University of Oklahoma Norman campus, 2401 Chautauqua Ave., Norman, OK 73072-7029. Additional information about the museum is available by calling (405) 325-4712, or on the museum's Web site at www.snomnh.ou.edu.
Story contact: Linda Coldwell, (405) 325-0598