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.
Attention all college-bound high school seniors & families! Do you need money for college?
The Urban League of Greater Madison and Great Lakes Higher Education Guaranty Corporation are sponsoring a free hands-on workshop where you can receive help as you complete the online Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA). No matter where you go to college, the FAFSA is the key to unlocking money for college-including federal grants (FREE money!) and low interest federal student loans. Don’t miss out!!
To fill out your FAFSA, you’ll need to bring your:
* Social Security number (or alien registration card)
* Driver’s license or equivalent
* 2009 federal tax returns (yours or your parents)
* 2008 federal tax returns if 2009 returns are not complete (yours or your parents)
* 2009 untaxed income record (yours or your parents)
* 2009 bank statements (yours or your parents)
* 2009 business and investment records (yours or your parents)
If you don’t have everything, bring what you can
Hosted by: Urban League of Greater Madison and Great Lakes Higher Education Guaranty Corporation.
Seating is limited–please RSVP to Erin Broome at the contact information below.
When:
Wednesday, February 17
6:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m.
Where:
Urban League of Greater Madison
2222 South Park Street, Madison
2nd Floor, Madison Community Foundation Training Room
For more information contact Erin Broome, 608-729-1214, ebroome@ulgm.org
Lights, camera, library! Want to show off your creative talent and your love of reading? The Library has a new Flip Video Camera, and we want for you to show us how we should use it and help create a video advertisement for the 2010 Summer Library Program. We’ll be hosting five events in early March for you to film your masterpiece at the library with our camera. Or, if you’ve got your own digital video camera, you can shoot a short on your own and share it with us online. Be sure to register if you’d like to use our camera; space is limited, and we want for everybody to be able to bring their vision of reading fun to life! Registration opens the week of February 22.
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.
at the Central Library! Launched in May 2004 by local poet Shoshauna Shy, Poetry Jumps off the Shelf takes poetry out of the libraries, bookstores and classrooms and into the public arena. A display featuring new postcards released this fall can be found on the first floor of the Central Library. Pick up a free postcard and send a poem to a friend!
This latest project titled “Lines in the Sand” features poems that reach across territorial, cultural and interpersonal boundaries. Paired with the abstract art of Sarah Spencer and produced on postcards, they made their debut at the first Lorine Niedecker Poetry Festival in Fort Atkinson and at the Harambee-South Madison Health & Family Center in October.
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.
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.
Thrifty and thoughtful - gently used books and audiovisual material from one of these Library used book sales make great holiday gifts. Plus, all of the proceeds from sales go to supporting your library!
Sequoya Friends Book Sale Saturday, December 5, 9 a.m. - 4 p.m. at the Westgate Mall
At our new location–Westgate Mall next to TJ Maxx.
Bag sale on selected books at 2 p.m.
Art, gift quality books, CDs, science fiction, new fiction, collectibles, classics, cookbooks, mysteries, German, discount books, history, public policy, travel, and much more.
Can’t make it on the 5th? We’re holding an extra special additional sale this month on Saturday, December 19!
Friends of the South Madison Branch Library Holiday Book, AV and Bake Sale Friday, December 4 and Saturday, December 5 at the South Madison Library
Friday 9 am - 7 pm, Saturday 9 am - 2 pm
Support your branch library AND do your holiday shopping at the same time! Loads of new and good-as-new books, DVDs, CDs, videos, cassettes and more. Books for kids, teens and adults! Many books in Spanish, too. All at affordable prices. Plus delicious cookies, candy, cakes and pies for your holiday table.
Blustery Days Book Sale Thursday, December 10 - Monday, December 14 at the Pinney Library (No Sale Sunday, December 13) Thursday: 6 - 8 p.m. Members Only Presale. Join at the door! Friday: 9 a.m. - 8:30 p.m. Saturday: 9 a.m. - 4:30 p.m. Monday: 9 a.m. - 7 p.m.: All day $5 Bag Sale.
Friends of the Lakeview Branch Library Used Book Sale
Saturday, December 12, 9-5 p.m. at the Lakeview Branch
Hundreds of books, bargain prices. Bag sale 3-5 p.m
Madison Public Libraries also accept donations of materials. Contact your local library for more information about donating your used books or assisting with future sales.
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:
Lights, camera, library! Want to show off your creative talent and your love of reading? The Library has a new Flip Video Camera, and we want for you to show us how we should use it and help create a video advertisement for the 2010 Summer Library Program. We’ll be hosting five events in early March for you to film your masterpiece at the library with our camera. Or, if you’ve got your own digital video camera, you can shoot a short on your own and share it with us online. Be sure to register if you’d like to use our camera; space is limited, and we want for everybody to be able to bring their vision of reading fun to life! Registration opens the week of February 22.
Thrifty and thoughtful - gently used books and audiovisual material from one of these