By Shelley Harris, Children’s Librarian What kind of things do you hear during the winter? When there’s a lot of snow on the ground, it can actually be very quiet! Until a snowplow comes by. Or the wind starts blowing and whistling. Or kids start playing in the snow. There are many benefits to paying … Read more
With the explosion of interest in chess fueled by Netflix’s The Queen’s Gambit last fall, library resource BrainFuse HelpNow has responded by offering live chess tutoring with expert coaches. Expert chess tutors are available Monday through Thursday from 3 to 9 pm CT. Tutors have certifiable qualifications such as high Elo ratings (2000+), chess coaching … Read more
By Shelley Harris, Children’s Librarian Well, 2021 has certainly begun right where 2020 left off: with a lot of tough topics. Even our youngest kids know when big or upsetting things happen in the news. They may not know the details, but they can see and feel the strong emotions of their grownups and that … Read more
This fall, we’ve been sharing some of our favorite virtual activities with our Discover and Explore posts. Have you missed any? Check out this list of great activities to do all year round! Visit museums virtually The National Museum of Mathematics is offering free classes for kids throughout the pandemic to explore the fun side … Read more
By Shelley Harris, Children’s Librarian Every year, our final Early Bird Reader tip we send via text (Want weekly early learning tips from the Oak Park Public Library? Sign up now for Early Bird Readers ») is to share stories about the year that’s ending. Sharing memories is a great way to practice narrating stories, … Read more
By Shelley Harris, Children’s Librarian Songs are powerful! When we plan our storytime classes, we organize them to build energy and then calm kids down before we send them back on their way. When we want to build energy, we do a lot of movement songs and silly songs, and then choose quieter songs to … Read more
By Shelley Harris, Children’s Librarian I’m one of those odd ducks who loves winter and snow and is excited to get this season started. I know—my co-workers shake their head over me, too. But I also know this is going to be a long and hard winter for a lot of people, so Jenny and … Read more
By Hal, Rainbow Services Librarian It’s Transgender Awareness Week, an annual event dedicated to educating our communities about the lives of transgender people. Transgender Awareness Week is celebrated every year during the week leading up to Transgender Day of Remembrance (November 20), a day set aside to recognize each life lost during the year to … Read more
By Shelley Harris, Children’s Librarian Miss Jenny and I both love building fun sounds into our storytimes and our videos. Sounds, especially unexpected ones, get and keep everyone’s interest and attention. Will your preschooler understand you if you give them directions using inflections and gestures but only mooing? Yes, probably! And they might even focus … Read more
By Children’s Librarian Shelley Harris Math. Did you just shudder? Or grin? Most people have a strong reaction to math, one way or the other. When I was growing up, one of my absolute must see shows was Square One TV on PBS. I was definitely a book person over a math person, but I … Read more
By Shelley Harris, Children’s Librarian Mr. Andy, one of our past librarians, always used to tell caregivers that he could remember the words to “Sweet Caroline” much better than he could remember how to use and program his remote control. Does that feel familiar? Things set to song are easier to remember! If you have … Read more
By Children’s Librarian Shelley Harris “Play is often talked about as if it were a relief from serious learning. But for children, play is serious learning.” That’s a quote from Fred Rogers, and one that we at the library take very seriously. Every time we update our department play spaces, we consider various different kinds … Read more
Learn about new tech information in a safe manner with digital titles available in your digital library, create-on-your-own websites, and tech news sources for kids! Check out these digital titles The Fake News Phenomenon by Duchess Harris Snap It! Snapchat Projects for the Real World by Carolyn Bernhardt The Robot Book by Bobby Mercer: Create projects by repurposing … Read more
By Children’s Librarian Shelley Harris When we think about talking with our smallest kids, there are so many sounds involved: animal sounds, choo choo sounds, airplane sounds. These may feel like small things, but they’re important—the sounds we make with our kids are the building blocks of words. Being able to hear and practice those … Read more
There are so many ways to bring stories into your lives, and podcasts offer a great way to listen, learn, enjoy, and grow anytime, anywhere—at home and on-the-go! Kidcasts are podcasts created especially for kids, and we’ve gathered together a list of our favorites recommended by NPR, Kids Listen, and American Public Media for you … Read more
Searching for good picture books online? Here are some of our favorite digital resources! Your digital library Babybug & Cricket on Flipster: Find stories just for kids in two award-winning magazines. Hoopla: Easy to navigate and use, the app offers educational and fun options for young readers of all ages. Media on Demand & Libby: From … Read more
Know someone without a card? Help us spread the word! Learn more about getting and using your card » #1: You get to say yes more! No late fines and automatic renewals? Go ahead, get all the books, music, and movies you can carry—and then some. With each library card, you can check out up to 200 … Read more
Check out students’ six-word stories in the catalog and by see more work by searching Twitter with #HackingHemingway Tweens and teens are digital learners, creators Inspired by old Hemingway family photos digitized earlier this year through a state grant to the library, Oak Park tweens and teens showed “a burst of creativity” in their classrooms and at the library this spring, … Read more
