Monthly Archives October 2021

Understanding U.S. Citizenship Process

Monday, November 8th 6:00–7:00 p.m. Click here for the Zoom link. Community Relations Officer Shyconia Burden will be discussing the naturalization application process. You will learn what the eligibility requirements are before applying and how to qualify for any exceptions and accommodations. Officer Burden will answer any questions about the citizenship and the naturalization process.
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Categories: Library News.

Free Online Tutoring & Homework Help

Parents, need a hand helping your child(ren) with homework? We have an amazing resource for you to use! All you need is Internet access and your library card and you have access to live, on-demand, tutors through tutor.com! You can get live help daily from 9 am to 10 pm in English or Spanish. Simply have a homework question? Ask a tutor. Need practice with your reading skills? Ask a tutor. Simply follow these directions to get started: 1. Find the Online Tutors option under the Youth section of our homepage. 2. Enter the resource using the link provided. Then
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Categories: Featured, Homepage Kids, Homepage Teens, Kids, Library News, and Teens.

Explore Japanese Culture: Fall Harvest

Explore Japanese Culture – Food Series Harvest time – Fall delicacies of Japan Wednesday, October 27th, 7:00–8:00 p.m. Click here for the zoom link. Did you know that Washoku (Japanese traditional cuisine) is registered as an intangible cultural heritage under UNESCO (United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization) ? Japanese cuisine and culture reflect the appreciation for the beauty of nature. Japan has four seasons and there are many festivals and cultural events throughout the year. Japanese people often celebrate these events by getting together and enjoying meals using seasonal ingredients. In this webinar, we will explore the cultural events
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Categories: Library News.

Grab & Go Kits: Tiny Art Show

We're offering a craft kit for teens and adults, featuring tiny works of art. We're hoping you'll use your inspiration to make a mini piece of art or two, and then return them to us for a special tiny art show. Kits are first come, first served, and will become available on Monday, November 1st. Just stop by the table in the Library lobby and pick up a Tiny Art Show kit. The kits include supplies to paint a tiny picture and weave a tiny square of fabric: paint, a brush, a canvas, a little loom, popsicle sticks, a tapestry
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Categories: Library News and Teens.

Project LIT Book Clubs for Kids and Teens

Project LIT is a global initiative to help kids, tweens, and teens engage with the real events shaking our country and the world at large. As a chapter in the Project LIT Community, the Trove and Edge staff organizes discussions revolving around recommended titles, highlighting and celebrating books that affirm and value all students. Our Project LIT Book Club for Kids & Tweens is for grades 4-8 and our Project LIT Book Club for Teens is for grades 7-12. We have been repeatedly blown away by our discussion participants, who have been smart, insightful, and continue to make connections between
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Categories: Authors & Books, Kids, Library News, and Teens.

Dive into Diversity: YA Fantasy

In 2021, my Dive into Diversity posts about young adult books will focus on a different genre each month. I’ll highlight books with characters that represent a range of experiences and identities. I’ll also feature authors who share an aspect of their characters’ identity as much as possible. This month we have the last genre theme for the year: my favorite, YA fantasy. This month I read Raybearer by Jordan Ifueko, which had been on my list for quite a while–so long, in fact, that its sequel was recently published. I had high hopes, and Raybearer exceeded them. The story
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Categories: Authors & Books, Featured, Homepage Teens, Library News, and Teens.

Dive Into Diversity: Food, Family, Friends

White Plains is a wonderfully diverse community! Parents, children, and teens have expressed an interest in titles that reflect the diversity in the community, and Ashley, Kathlyn, and Raquel's “Dive Into Diversity” column will spotlight noteworthy children's and teen titles that are inclusive, diverse, and multicultural to fulfill that interest. Ashley's portion is aimed at readers in grades 4-6. As we delve deeper into the fall and the weather gets chillier, I usually find myself reconnecting with friends and spending time with family around the holidays. I hope you enjoy reading these diverse recommendations that combine all three – food,
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Categories: Authors & Books, Featured, Homepage Kids, Kids, and Library News.

1,000 Books Before Kindergarten

The Library is excited to join the free nationwide program, 1,000 Books Before Kindergarten. This program is designed to help caregivers connect and prepare their children for kindergarten by reading together.  Research has demonstrated that reading to children at a young age has a direct positive impact on their cognitive development and later academic success. For a quick, easy-to-read summary of the benefits of reading to babies, see here. Who is it for? Any child may participate from birth until he/she enters kindergarten. You may start the program at any time. The goal of 1,000 books seems daunting, but in
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Categories: Authors & Books, Evergreen, Featured, Homepage Kids, Kids, and Library News.

Dive into Diversity: National Diabetes Awareness Month

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the National Institutes of Health (NIH), “Diagnosed cases of type 1 and type 2 diabetes are surging among youth in the United States. From 2001 to 2017, the number of people under age 20 living with type 1 diabetes increased by 45%, and the number living with type 2 diabetes grew by 95%.” According to the article, “New Research Uncovers Concerning Increases in Youth Living with Diabetes in the U.S.,” “The greatest increases in type 2 diabetes prevalence were seen in youth who are Black or Hispanic, and the
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Categories: Authors & Books, Featured, Homepage Kids, Kids, and Library News.

Author Visit with Anita Hill

Please join us for a virtual author visit with Anita Hill on Monday, November 1, 7:00–8:00 p.m. She’ll discuss her new book, Believing: Our Thirty-Year Journey to End Gender Violence, a combination of memoir, personal accounts, law, and social analysis. Anita Hill is University Professor of Social Policy, Law, and Women’s and Gender Studies at Brandeis University. After the 1991 Senate confirmation hearings for U.S. Supreme Court nominee Clarence Thomas, Hill became a leading figure in the fight for women’s rights and against gender-based violence. Believing is a story of America's three decades long reckoning with gender violence, one that
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Categories: Library News.

October 2021 LibraryReads

Here are the books published this month that librarians across the country love. All The Feels by Olivia Dade Library Catalog: Print “Alex is an actor on a Game of Thrones-type TV show entering its final season. Lauren’s job is to keep him out of trouble. Their relationship develops over forced proximity, a road trip, and tons of fanfic tropes (only one bed!). This steamy romance, with flawed, genuine characters and sensitive treatment of mental health and body issues, is a delight from start to finish. For fans of Spoiler Alert, Girl Gone Viral, and One To Watch.” —Lauren Mitchell,
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Categories: Authors & Books, Featured, and Library News.

Turtle Dance Music

Turtle Dance Music presents: Spooky Halloween! A Virtual Music, Bubble and Comedy Show! Thursday, October 21, 11:00 a.m. Children, families, all ages welcome! Access the program here. Note: a free registered Zoom account is required to access the Library’s youth programs. Get a Zoom account here. The Spooky Halloween Show! engages children with comedy, singing, the itsy-bitsy spider, bats, goblins, ghouls, bubbles, music technology and a monster mash dance party for the kids! The show is crafted to be inclusive for children of all abilities and a great time for parents and caregivers. Each song in the 40-minute show is
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Categories: Events, Featured, Homepage Kids, Kids, and Library News.

Grab & Go Craft Kits: Learn to Knit

Teens in grades 7-12 can pick up a kit with project supplies at the Library, then follow along with the video below to make the project. Or, you can find the materials around your home and follow the video to make the project. Kits are first come, first served, and will become available on Monday, October 18th in the Library lobby. This month's kit contains everything you need to learn to knit. The kit contains knitting needles and yarn. The goal with this kit is to complete the garter stitch square swatch. I’ve already done the cast-on and the first
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Categories: Featured, Homepage Teens, Library News, and Teens.

NaNoWriMo: November Writing Time Reminder

Are you a middle schooler or teenager who loves to write? Is writing the best way you can express yourself? If so, then you should join our NaNoWrimo (National Novel Writing Month) program. In September and October we brainstormed ideas, learned about conflict and worked on character sketches and writing prompts. If you missed our writing sessions for the months of September and October you can still sign up for our November writing sessions. This program is for anyone in grades 4-12 who is looking for some quiet time to write. Each week we will set an hour to write
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Categories: Events, Featured, Homepage Kids, Homepage Teens, Kids, Library News, and Teens.

Fall Stories & Stuff

We’re excited to announce that our popular program, Stories & Stuff, will be returning virtually in September and October! Stories & Stuff is geared towards kids from ages 4-8. During Stories & Stuff, stories are centered around a theme and children listen and discuss the topic. The children create a craft project that ties in with the theme. We ask that caregivers join the virtual program as well to assist their children during the craft portion of the storytime. Stories & Stuff will be held on Thursday, September 30th as well as Thursday, October 28th and the program begins at
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Categories: Events, Featured, Homepage Kids, Kids, and Library News.

Peculiar Picks

Peculiar Picks are a selection of odd, funny, interesting, curious, moving, irreverent, and otherwise wonderfully awesome, but perhaps not well known, reads. Peculiar Picks are books for younger readers and their grown-ups, handpicked by the Library's Youth Services Manager, Joshua Carlson. My last Peculiar Picks featured two girls who befriended dragons, but that was just scratching the surface of the many wonderful picture books with dragons. In this Peculiar Picks, find some fantastic draconic reads, that all share a similar quality: absolutely amazing artwork. If you like dragons, perhaps you’d like to check out some other Monster-rific Reads – there’s
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Categories: Authors & Books, Featured, Homepage Kids, Kids, and Library News.

Great Podcasts for Kids 5

Here are some more Great Podcasts for Kids on a variety of topics and themes selected by Josh Carlson, Manager of Youth Services. All of these should be available on any service you use to listen to podcasts, such as Apple Podcasts, Apple Music, Spotify, Stitcher, Google Podcasts, etc. Be sure to also check out earlier entries in the series and if you have some great podcast recommendations of your own, leave them in the comments below! Podcast Potpourri Greeking Out From National Geographic Kids, Greeking Out is all about Greek mythology, told in a very funny, kid-friendly, style. My
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Categories: Featured, Homepage Kids, Kids, and Library News.

October Genealogy Workshops

Benvenuti Italiani! Italian Genealogy Research and Dual Citizenship Wednesday, October 20th 7:00–8:00 p.m. Click here for the Zoom link. Determine if you are eligible to obtain dual citizenship. Find out what documents you need and how to obtain them, including Italian records. Uncover potential roadblocks and resources to get around them. Learn how to get started and what to expect in the dual citizenship process. Sarah Gutmann returns with another informative presentation. Genealogy Research in Cemeteries Tuesday, October 26th 7:00–8:00 p.m. Click here for the Zoom link. Cemeteries often get a bad rap, especially around Halloween. But for the genealogist,
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Categories: Library News.

Forever Young Adult Book Club

Forever Young Adult is a fun new book club for YA fans who are a little less “Y” and a bit more “A.” Whether you're a regular YA reader or you need a break from your usual “To Read” list, all are welcome! Each month, we will “meet” online to discuss the latest FYA HQ-chosen read. Keep your eyes peeled for special announcements such as themed pickup kits with crafts and goodies, author visits, and prerecorded author messages! Next session:   Cemetery Boys by Aiden Thomas Thursday, October 28 @ 7:00 PM Click here for the zoom link. Click here
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Categories: Library News.