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📖 Stories, Games and Fun for Long Evenings

How to keep spirits up and children learning when the power is gone and the winter evenings are long: why stories, play and a steady routine matter so much in hard times, how to open the library's books and e-books, what to read aloud at each age, teaching reading and numbers at the kitchen table, telling stories with no book, games that need no power (cards, board games you can scratch on a plank, group and outdoor games, string figures, pencil-and-paper and word games), toys to make, songs, home-made books and plays, safe light to read by, and a simple evening routine. The activity books are in Stories\Games-and-Things-to-Make; the classic stories are in Stories\Picture-Books-and-Rhymes, Stories\Read-Aloud-and-Early-Readers, Stories\Ages-9-to-13 and Stories\Teens-and-Adults; the McGuffey readers and Ray's arithmetic are in Children-Learning; the books on stress and children are in Community-Barter\Wellbeing (all under Southern-Oregon\; the download list is local/library-files.txt). Page numbers are the PDF page numbers, so they match the links.

The short version

🧠 Why stories, play and routine matter

📚 Go deeper: PFA, pp. 140–141 — parent tip sheets by age; SPR, pp. 99–101 — choosing things to do, for children and parents; Care for Child Development — play and talk from birth.

📱 Opening the books on the library computer or a phone

📚 Reading aloud by age

How to read aloud (rule of thumb unless cited):

The library has 265 classics, all free public-domain e-books in the Stories\ folders (📚 Books → 📖 Stories & fun). Each age band below picks a dozen or so to start with; the library description of every book gives its age range and says whether it has pictures.

Ages 2–6: picture books and rhymes

The other picture books are in Stories\Picture-Books-and-Rhymes (51 in all).

Ages 5–9: read-aloud chapter books and early readers

The rest are in Stories\Read-Aloud-and-Early-Readers (55 in all).

Ages 9–13: chapter books

The rest, including Nancy Drew, the Hardy Boys and Jules Verne, are in Stories\Ages-9-to-13 (58 in all).

Teens and adults

The rest are in Stories\Teens-and-Adults (101 in all).

Survival stories for older children and adults

People in hard times have always liked stories of others who made it through (rule of thumb). Read these for courage and ideas, not as instructions: check anything practical against the guides.

🔤 Teaching reading and numbers at the kitchen table

Reading with McGuffey (McGuffey Readers):

  1. Start with the Primer: "Only about six new words are to be mastered in each lesson", and you can teach by sounds (phonics), by whole words, by the alphabet, or a mix. The script lessons and "slate exercises" at the back teach writing too (p. 7).
  2. Then the First Reader. Phonics way: teach the sounds of the letters in the lesson, then put them together into words; words way: learn the words at the top of the lesson by sight and read without stopping; best is both, words first, then sounds and spelling. Teach writing letters along with their names (p. 6).
  3. Second and Third Readers for children reading on their own; the Third has a lesson on reading with expression to practise aloud (Third Reader, p. 14).

Numbers with Ray's:

  1. Count real things first. "Movable objects are better for exercises in counting than pictures": marbles, beans, kernels of corn, or pebbles (Ray's Primary, p. 11).
  2. Then the sums to 20, written out on a slate so they don't count on their fingers. "Teach one thing at a time, and teach it thoroughly" (same page). Lesson 1: point to each ball and count, then write the figure (p. 12).
  3. Mental arithmetic in Ray's Intellectual needs no paper and teaches a child "to reason, to analyze, to think for himself" (p. 9). Written arithmetic goes on in Ray's Practical; worked answers for parents are in the Key.

Older children teach younger ones. Structured tutoring works better than now-and-then help; short runs (up to about four weeks) on basic skills give the best results, math most of all, then reading (Peer Tutoring, p. 18). A child a few years older often sees what a learner doesn't understand better than an adult does (p. 19). But untrained tutors "may resort to threats of punishment and scornful put-downs": show them how to be kind first (p. 21).

Games that teach (each from the books below): Buzz for the 7-times table, Take Fourteen for adding, cribbage for counting by fifteens, Beast, Bird or Fish for quick naming. Keep lessons short, 15–20 minutes for young children, and stop while it is still going well (rule of thumb). Slates, chalk and home-made pencils: "Pencils, charcoal, chalk and slates" in the Paper & Ink guide.

🗣️ Telling stories with no book

From Sara Cone Bryant's How to Tell Stories to Children (1905):

  1. Pick a story with action, a little mystery and some repetition, like The Three Bears or The Three Little Pigs (p. 76).
  2. "Know your story." Don't learn it word for word: memorizing "utterly destroys the freedom" of telling. Tell it over and over out loud to an imaginary listener until it flows, keeping only the best phrases of the original (pp. 118–121).
  3. Seat little children close, in a half-circle, with you opposite the middle and no child behind another: "Little children have to be physically close in order to be mentally close" (p. 122).
  4. Be natural. No sugary voice (p. 125); "short, familiar, vivid words"; keep the story moving and end it "with a snap" (p. 127). There's "no need to speak loudly" (p. 136).
  5. Tired of the story? "Make believe" you enjoy it; the real interest usually comes back (p. 133).
  6. Afterwards let them retell it, draw it, or play it: "Who would like to be Red Ridinghood?" (p. 144).

The book's second half is stories ready to tell, sorted by age: for the youngest The Cooky, The Pied Piper, The Star Dollars; for 7–8 The Cat and the Parrot, The Fire-Bringer, Little Daylight; for 9–10 Arthur and the Sword, Why the Sea is Salt, The Little Hero of Haarlem (contents, pp. 16–17).

Your own stories count most. Tell how grandparents lived, how the family came to the valley, what you did as a child; let children make up endings and tell the next part (rule of thumb). A child who can't talk about what happened may "draw a picture or tell a story of what happened" (FEMA, p. 189).

🃏 Card games and board games

One deck of 52 cards is a whole winter of evenings. Rules are in Foster's Complete Hoyle (1914). Play for beans or matchsticks, never for food, tools or trade goods: losses of real things start real fights (rule of thumb).

Game Players Good for Where
Old Maid Any number Little ones: take out one queen, pair up cards, draw from your neighbor; whoever is left with the odd queen is the Old Maid pp. 537–538
Authors Any number Like Go Fish: ask a named player for a named card to collect all four of a kind; needs a good memory p. 536
Take Fourteen 1 Adding practice: deal 12 piles, take off any two top cards that make 14 (Jack 11, Queen 12, King 13) p. 548
Klondike 1 The usual solitaire p. 548
Cassino 2–4 Adding; "unhesitatingly admitted to the domestic circle" p. 514
Rum 2–4 Sets of three of a kind or three in a row of one suit; 10 cards each for 2 players, 7 for 3, 6 for 4 p. 722
Cribbage 2–4 Counting: each fifteen is 2 points (5 with a ten or face card, 9 and 6, 8 and 7); "no effort of the memory" pp. 478, 484
Hearts, Euchre 4 Older children and adults p. 385; p. 300

Boards you can make from a plank, a cardboard box lid or the dirt (rule of thumb):

Nine men's morris board: three squares one inside another, joined at the middle of each side, with 24 dots where stones go. Three dark stones in a row along the top are a mill; an arrow shows a stone moving one step along a line Stones go on the 24 dots; three in a line is a mill (Hoyle, pp. 636–637; a diagram drawn for this guide).

🏃 Group and outdoor games

Pick games for the age (Bancroft, pp. 27–28): about 6 years, games with lots of repetition, pretending to be animals or farmers, and one chaser after one runner; two or three years later, catching a whole group, daring, choosing sides; from 11–12, harder races and team play.

How to run a game (Bancroft, pp. 41–42):

Game Where What Page
Hide and Seek In or out Simplest form, for little ones p. 125
Sardines In or out One hides; whoever finds him squeezes in too p. 206
Hide the Thimble Indoors Clap or sing louder as the hunter gets closer p. 126
Drop the Handkerchief Circle Chase round the ring to the empty place p. 100
Duck on a Rock Outdoors Knock a stone the size of a baseball off a big rock from a line 25 ft away, then get your stone back without being tagged p. 101
Pom Pom Pullaway Outdoors Run across the 30–50 ft between two lines when your name is called; whoever is caught helps catch the rest p. 179
Prisoner's Base Outdoors Team chase for children starting to care about teams p. 186
Simon Says At a table Thumbs up, down or wiggle only when the leader says "Simon says" first p. 275

Singing games for the little ones: Farmer in the Dell (p. 309), London Bridge (p. 324), Looby Loo (p. 326), Mulberry Bush (p. 329), Oats, Peas, Beans (p. 333).

Bean bags suit little children and indoor games, where a dropped ball rolls away: heavy closely woven cloth (ticking, duck, denim) 6–12 inches square, stitched twice and filled with dried beans or peas; a square of cloth with dried leaves tied up in it will do (Bancroft, pp. 345–346).

Outdoors safely (rule of thumb): in Duck on a Rock nobody throws until everyone is behind the line; play in sight of the house and in groups; everyone in by dusk, when cougars and bears move; no child under 5 near the river, a pond or a tank unless an adult is right there (WHO, p. 90).

🧶 String figures: cat's cradle and more

The string: about 6 ft long, ends tied to make a loop about 3 ft long. A woven cord kinks less than a twisted one; tie the ends in a small square knot (Jayne, p. 36). Most figures start with the hands in the "usual position": palms facing each other, fingers pointing up (same page).

First Position (p. 42):

  1. Put both little fingers in the loop and pull the hands apart.
  2. Turn the palms away from you, put each thumb into the little-finger loop from below, pick up the near string on the back of the thumb, turn the palms to face each other again and pull tight.

Opening A, which starts more than half of all string figures (pp. 43–44):

  1. First Position.
  2. Put the right index finger up under the string that crosses the left palm, and pull the hands apart (Fig. 12).
  3. Put the left index finger up under the string crossing the right palm, between the strings on the right index, and pull apart (Fig. 13). Now there is a loop on each thumb, index and little finger (Fig. 14). Always right first, then left (p. 44).

Three drawings of hands in string: the right index finger picking up the string across the left palm, the left index picking up the string across the right palm, and the finished Opening A with loops on both thumbs, index fingers and little fingers Opening A: right index first (Fig. 12), then left (Fig. 13), and the finished opening (Fig. 14) (Jayne, pp. 43–44).

Osage Diamonds, also called Jacob's Ladder (pp. 60, 63–65):

  1. Opening A.
  2. Drop the thumb loops and pull the hands apart.
  3. Each thumb goes away from you under all the strings and picks up the far little-finger string from below.
  4. Each thumb goes away from you over the near index string and picks up the far index string from below.
  5. Drop the little-finger loops and pull apart.
  6. Each little finger goes toward you over the near index string and picks up the far thumb string from below.
  7. Drop the thumb loops.
  8. Each thumb goes away from you over the index loop and picks up the near little-finger string from below.
  9. With the other hand, lift the near index string of each hand and put it over that thumb. Pull apart.
  10. Slip the lower loop on each thumb off over the upper one, keeping the upper loop on.
  11. Put each index finger down into the little triangle by the thumb, turn the palms down, drop the little-finger loops, pull apart and turn the palms away from you: the diamonds appear (Fig. 50).

The finished Osage Diamonds (Jacob's Ladder) string figure: a row of diamonds stretched between two hands The finished figure; turn the palms away from you to pull it tight (Jayne, p. 65).

Two-player cat's cradle: two people take the string off each other's hands in turn, through eight named figures: Cradle, Soldier's Bed, Candles, Manger, Diamonds, Cat's Eye, Fish in a Dish, Clock (p. 386). The book has 97 figures in all (p. 36), from fish spears to an Apache door: a teen can work through them all winter.

✏️ Pencil, paper and word games

All from Bancroft unless noted; most need only voices.

✂️ Things to make

Corn-husk dolls (Mother Nature's Toy-Shop, pp. 166–168):

  1. Use the soft inner husks, about two per doll; soak brittle ones in water.
  2. Lay one husk partly over the other, fold across the middle, fold the sides to the back, and wind soft string round for the neck and head (Fig. 186), then lower down for the waist (Fig. 187).
  3. For arms, roll a husk lengthwise, trim the ends, and tie it at the middle and near each end (Fig. 188).
  4. An adult pushes a small knife blade through the shoulders; slide the arms in along the flat of the blade.
  5. For a boy doll, split the skirt and tie each half into a leg (Fig. 189).

Corn-husk doll steps: husks folded and tied at the neck, then at the waist; a rolled husk tied at the middle and ends for arms; the finished doll with arms through the shoulders and the skirt split and tied into legs Head and neck, waist, arms, and the finished doll (Mother Nature's Toy-Shop, pp. 167–168).

More to make (the books have the drawings):

Safety and thrift (rule of thumb unless cited): an adult does the knife work for young children. Foxglove is poisonous fresh, dried or boiled (WSU, p. 28), so skip the Toy-Shop's foxglove toys (p. 97) with toddlers, and wash hands after any plant craft. The book also makes toys from lima beans, peas, radishes, apples and oranges: when food is short, use husks, shells, burrs, seed pods and leaves instead.

🎵 Songs

The Golden Book of Favorite Songs has 202 songs, 192 of them with the music (p. 1). You don't need to read music: one person who knows the tune leads, and the rest follow. A song leader "need not be a great musician but must possess qualities of leadership and a strong sense of rhythm" (p. 122).

Work songs, hymns your family knows and songs you make up about the chores count just as much. Singing while working makes the work go faster (rule of thumb).

🎭 Making your own books, plays and newspapers

🕯️ Light for reading, and fire safety around children

Making candles and lamps, getting more light from a little flame, and kerosene and children: the Lighting guide, especially "Getting more light from a little flame" and "Fire, fumes, burns and children".

🌙 A simple evening routine

A plan that works in most homes (rule of thumb, built on FEMA, p. 189 and SPR, p. 101: routine, meals together, time at bedtime). Move it earlier in winter, when it is dark by 5.

  1. Before dark: evening chores done together: water, wood, animals shut in, lamps filled by an adult.
  2. Supper together, at the table, same time each day. Each person tells one good thing from the day.
  3. Game time, 30–45 minutes: cards, a board game, string figures, or a quiet game everyone can play.
  4. A song or two, a round if there are enough voices.
  5. Story time: a chapter read aloud by the one lamp, or a told story for the little ones.
  6. Bed: a few minutes with each child; this is when worries come out. Then every flame out.

Once a week, a show night: a puppet show, a play, poems recited from McGuffey, a reading from someone's own book, a song from each person. In summer, play outside until dusk and save lamp fuel (rule of thumb).

🆘 If this goes wrong

Problem What to do
A small child keeps playing out the disaster, or plays violently It can be "their way of telling us how crazy things were". Name the feelings, hold them, stay close. If they play the same upsetting scene over and over, or space out, calm them, help them feel safe, and get help (PFA, p. 140)
A child has gone back to wetting the bed or baby talk Common after a fright. Don't criticize or force; as the child feels safer the skill comes back (PFA, p. 140)
A child is "hyper" and can't sit still for a story Burn off the energy first: stretching, running, slow deep breathing; then sit and do something together, like throwing a ball or drawing (PFA, p. 140)
A child or teen withdraws, won't play, sleeps all day Keep the routines and meals together; don't let them spend long hours alone or doing nothing; get them outdoors, even a walk with a brother or sister (SPR, p. 101)
Games end in fights Settle the rules before you start (rule of thumb); let the players vote on the game, and give the rowdiest older child the job of leading the little ones (Bancroft, p. 42)
The grown-ups are too worn out to play Find one person to talk to about how you feel, and ask others to help with the child or the chores (WHO/UNICEF cards, p. 3); trade evenings with a neighbor family (rule of thumb)
Things get worse instead of better over weeks Talk to a doctor, someone who knows children, or clergy (FEMA, p. 189); see "Grief, stress and psychological first aid" in the Community & Barter guide
The library computer or phone is dead Tell stories, sing, play cards and string figures: none of it needs power. Keep a few paper books and a printed copy of this guide (rule of thumb)

⚠️ Old advice in the library to ignore

The old activity books are full of good ideas, and a few that hurt children or start fires.

Book says Do this instead
Paper hot-air balloons lifted by a ball of lamp wick soaked in alcohol and lit, sent up to sail "out of sight" (Boys' Handy Book, p. 165), carrying fire-crackers (p. 167) and powder from a Roman candle (p. 170) Never. A burning balloon comes down where the wind takes it; in our dry summers that is a wildfire. Fly kites by day
A paper lantern on a kite's tail, "the Moving Star", which "the motion of the kite is apt to set fire to" (Boys', p. 41) No flame on a kite, ever
Candles inside paper lanterns hung on wires and trees, and in cloth or paper "illuminated tents" (Girls' Handy Book, p. 133) No flame in paper or cloth. Outdoors, no flames at all June–October (rule of thumb)
"Small flashes of gunpowder" for lightning in the puppet show (Boys', p. 357) No powder. Shake a sheet of tin for thunder (rule of thumb)
"War kites" with broken bottle glass tied on the tail to cut other kites' strings (Boys', pp. 45–46) Skip it: glass cuts hands and falls on people
Melted lead poured into an eggshell for a roly-poly toy (Girls' Handy Book, p. 67) and into water to tell fortunes at Halloween (p. 212) Lead poisons children, and hot metal burns. Weight the toy with a pebble set in clay (rule of thumb)
Litharge (a lead oxide) in aquarium cement (Boys', p. 82) Leave it out
Arsenical soap for stuffing birds (Boys', pp. 260, 263) Arsenic poisons. Draw or press specimens instead
Insect-killing jars with ether, benzine, creosote or chloroform (Boys', p. 266) Draw the insects and let them go
Muriatic (hydrochloric) acid to polish shells (Girls', p. 126) Scrub with sand and water (rule of thumb)
Blow-guns that shoot tacks (Boys', p. 226) and a "spring shot-gun" that rattles bird-shot off a neighbor's windows (p. 229) Eyes are lost this way, and there is no eye doctor. Bean bags and targets instead
Foxglove "fairy-caps" to play with (Toy-Shop, p. 97) Foxglove is poisonous in every form (WSU, p. 28); not with small children

🖼️ Pictures & diagrams

🖼️ = drawings in the books on this drive.

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