Spring Break for the Madison Metropolitan School District starts on Friday, March 26. How will you be spending your time off? The library has plenty of fun and exciting programs to interest and entertain everyone in the family!
Fun Films Fest Monday, March 29, 10:30 a.m. at the Lakeview Branch
Tuesday, March 30, 1:30 p.m. at the Hawthorne Branch - Register online or call 246-4548 Monday, April 5, 2:00 p.m. at the Alicia Ashman Branch - Register online or call 824-1780
Enjoy popcorn and lots of laughs as you watch these funny films at the library.
Art in a Suitcase with Mary Tooley Monday, March 29, 1:00 p.m. at the Pinney Branch - Register online or call 224-7100
Join Artist Mary Tooley for an Elephant Extravaganza!! Learn about elephants and make a craft. For children 4 and up.
Keyboard Jewelry Tuesday, March 30, 11:00 a.m. at the Meadowridge Branch - Register online or call 288-6160
Bring your friends and make unique jewelry with a mish-mash of keyboard pieces and parts. Rings, necklaces, earrings and more.
Around the World in 80 Strings Tuesday, March 30, 1:00 p.m. at the Sequoya Branch - Register online or call 266-6385
Join Eric Sorenson and explore musical instruments from all over the planet, from steel drums to the didgeridoo. Ages 4 and up.
Be A Parade Tuesday, March 30, 2:00 p.m. at the Central Library Come one, come all to the library’s parade! Stories, crafts, and of course, a parade around the library. Fun for all ages.
Reid Miller’s Paw Paw Theater Wednesday, March 30, 10:30 a.m. and Saturday, April 3, 2:00 p.m. at the Pinney Branch
Wednesday: Puppeteer Reid Miller will perform the “Fable of Lion and Mouse” and “Tale of Mama Chicken and the Hungry Crocodile” for preschoolers.
Saturday: Puppeteer Reid Miller will perform the “Fable of Monkey and Crocodile” and “The Story of Mootown Musicians” for children in grades K-5.
Joy of Origami Wednesday, March 31, 2:00 p.m. at the Lakeview Branch - Register online or call 246-4547
Certified origami instructor Ruth Anne Bessman teaches how to make beautiful and fantastic origami. All materials supplied.
Magnetic Poetry-Palooza Thursday, April 1, 11:00 a.m. at the Meadowridge Branch - Register online or call 288-6160
Express yourself with a lollapalooza of words & phrases! Join in the fun and create your own eye-popping poetry and ridiculous rhymes. All supplies provided!
Wii Outdoor Challenge Monday, April 5, 2:00 p.m. at the Sequoya Branch - Register online or call 266-6385
Are you up to the challenge? These games will get your heart pumping. Ages 7 & up. Please wear socks.
The Soloist is the remarkable story of the bond between a journalist and a mentally ill, homeless, classically trained musician in Los Angeles. “The Soloist is a great read,” says Porchlight executive director Steve Schooler. “More importantly, the main characters - Nathaniel and Steve - help us understand the intertwined issues of homelessness and mental health and inspire us to care more about the people who live in our midst.”
The Soloist is available both as a book and as a major motion picture starring Robert Downey Jr. and Jamie Foxx. Community members can get involved by either reading or viewing The Soloist. Porchlight and Madison Public Library have developed an online Community Read Tool Kit that is available to all book clubs and individuals, and prepared book club kits with multiple copies of the book which are available for checkout from the library. Members of the community are invited to read the book, see the movie, and join a discussion—either at home with friends or at the library.
We will be holding seven book discussions at libraries around the city. Please join us for a conversation about this “unique yet universal” story.
Porchlight provides emergency shelter, food, employment services, counseling, and affordable transitional and permanent housing to homeless people in the Dane County area. Porchlight’s services are designed to foster independence and the transition into permanent housing and employment. For more information, visit their website.
The Library has a new product that may work just as well for you. Transparent Language is an Interactive self-study guide on a USB drive. It’s an immersion program that enables learners to take basic vocabulary and quickly progress to more advanced comprehension and use. Grammar, vocabulary, reading, listening and pronunciation skills are emphasized through the use of native-language videos, texts and stories that immerse the user in the language. Each language edition includes:
Record, playback and compare
Conversation practice
Interactive games
Over 15,000 words of vocabulary
Full-motion video
Testing and scoring
and much more
Just download the program on to your computer, and as long as you have any of the USB drives in your computer, your work will be saved and available to you.
Languages available are Arabic, Chinese, English for Spanish Speakers, French, German, Hebrew, Italian, Japanese, Portuguese, Russian and Spanish. Look for Transparent Language in LINKcat.
Join us at upcoming Valentine Cards and Candy Sushi workshops for kids.Make a one-of-a-kind card with glitter, stickers, and sparkles & create some sweet candy sushi for someone special. All supplies provided!
A FoodShare specialist from Second Harvest FoodBank Wisconsin will be on hand at many library locations to help you find out if you’re eligible and to assist you with the application process. Call (toll-free) for an appointment at 877-266-3635 or feel free to drop-in. The program is available to singles, families, students, seniors and disabled individuals with limited or fixed income.
At this time, the schedule is as follows. But check back–more dates will be added soon.
Central Library–Every Monday through February, 12-4pm; Wednesdays, February 10 and 24, 10am-2pm.
Do you have a great idea for beautifying your neighborhood and bringing your vibrant community together? Check out the Department of Planning & Community & Economic Development Division’s 2010 Neighborhood Grant Program! Begun in 1999, this program has helped to fund over 200 neighborhood projects that have included many thousands of volunteer hours. Build a better community with Mini-Grants up to $2,000 and Full Grants over $2,000.
Projects are accepted in three separate categories: Community Enhancement, Neighborhood Leadership and Capacity Building, and Neighborhood Planning Grants. Neighborhood associations and planning councils, business associations, and other community organizations are eligible to apply for these grants.
Want to become involved? Save the date for these important meetings and deadlines:
Thursday, January 21, 6 - 7:30 p.m. at the Hawthorne Branch Library - Grant Application Q&A Session (Call Linda Horvath at 267-1131 with questions.)
Monday, February 8 - Full-Grant Project Intent Forms Due
Monday, March 1 - Mini & Full Grant Applications Due (Must have submitted a Project Intent Form by 2/8 for Grants over $2,000)
For more full guidelines and applications, see the City of Madison Neighborhoods Grant Program information pages.
All Madison Public Library locations will be closed for Martin Luther King Jr. Day on Monday, January 18. You can still use the library when we’re closed: place holds in LINKcat, return items to our bookdrops, or use our 24/7 online reference service, AskAway. See our web site for more information on area celebrations or on Martin Luther King, Jr. or discover our recommended resources for African American History Month in February.
Join others in celebration of the life of Dr. King at the 25th Annual Madison-Dane County King Holiday Observance at the Overture Center Capital Theater at 6 p.m. on Monday, January 18. Former SCLC Education Director, Dorothy Cotton, who served under Dr. King’s direct supervision, will bring her message of hope on her first visit to Madison. Sponsored by the King Coalition and the Urban League of Greater Madison; see more information on Cotton and other ULGM sponsored events.
In an effort to troubleshoot ongoing problems with wireless internet access at the Central Library and the Hawthorne Branch, Wireless Internet Service will NOT be available on Thursday, January 7th and Monday, January 11th at both Central and Hawthorne. We apologize for the inconvenience. All other MPL locations will have wireless access on those days.
Madison Public Library has acquired an online subscription to the Value Line Investment Survey. Formerly available in paper at six of our nine libraries, the new online service is available at all nine Madison public libraries, as well as to city of Madison residents with valid library cards.
Value Line is best known for the Investment Survey, one of the most widely read investment services in the world. Value Line online offers the same one-sheet summary as the Investment Summary, but also includes more up to date information on the stocks covered, as well as stock screening, custom reports, industry information, historical data, and email alerts. Madison Public Library’s subscription also includes the Value Line Special Situations Service.
Madison Public Library chose to switch from paper to online access to Value Line after much public input from individual investors and local investment clubs. Paper access will continue for at least six months at most locations that currently subscribe, and you can call the Central Reference Desk to schedule a demo of the new service for yourself or your investment group.
Want to learn more? Visit our online tutorial web site, watch our YouTube video tutorial below, or just log on and get started! (Online help and investment advice is always available in the Education Section tab.
Did you know? You can find the Madison Public Library on many of your favorite social networking sites.
Become a fan of the Library on Facebook and have our posts appear alongside your friends’ status updates. Follow @MadisonLibrary and @SequoyaLibrary on Twitter for real time news and info. Share our bookmarked resources on Delicious. See photos from events and libraries on Flickr - Sequoya Branch and all other Madison Libraries. Check out videos and tutorials on our YouTube channel. Keep track of the library through your favorite blog reader or RSS service with all of our RSS feeds.
We want your feedback: how do you want to use the internet to connect with us? Please take a minute to complete our quick Social Media survey. We’re looking forward to putting your ideas into practice!
Not sure what a “tweet” is? Perplexed about “tagging”? Check out our quick introduction to social media, with short descriptions of all of the sites we use to connect with you.
The Library has a new product that may work just as well for you. Transparent Language is an Interactive self-study guide on a USB drive. It’s an immersion program that enables learners to take basic vocabulary and quickly progress to more advanced comprehension and use. Grammar, vocabulary, reading, listening and pronunciation skills are emphasized through the use of native-language videos, texts and stories that immerse the user in the language. Each language edition includes:
