Archives for Teens

3D Design And Printing Workshops For Teens

During Spring Break, March 29th – April 1st, Woody Poulard, founder of FabriMakr and teacher at FatCat FabLab, will be joining us to offer teenagers an introductory 3D printing and design workshop. Woody will teach teens the history of 3D printing, the process of taking a digital 3D model and printing it, and teach basic 3D modelling using OnShape, a web based 3D design software program. The sessions will be from 10:00 a.m-12:00 p.m. each morning during Spring Break for 4 days. Following this, the Library will print objects designed during the workshops and let teens know how to submit
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Categories: Events, Featured, Homepage Teens, Library News, and Teens.

Grab & Go Craft Kits: Clay Valentines

Which Craft? Wednesday has been phased into Grab & Go Craft Kits! Instead of finding materials around the house, teens in grades 7-12 can pick up a kit with project supplies at the Library, then follow along with the instructional video below to make the project. Or, you can find the materials around your home and follow the video to make the project. Due to wintry weather and winds, Grab & Go Kits are now held inside the Library. Rather than having them sit outside to be picked up, when you arrive at the Library to pick up a kit,
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Categories: Featured, Homepage Teens, Library News, and Teens.

ALA Youth Media Awards

Each winter at the American Library Association (ALA) Midwinter Meeting, ALA honors outstanding books and authors with a variety of awards for excellence. You’ve probably heard of the Newbery and the Caldecott, but did you know that there’s also an award for debut authors writing for teens? Or an award for a children’s book written in a foreign language and published in a foreign country, and later translated into English for publication in the US? Each January, we look forward to seeing which authors and books are honored in these ALA awards. It’s so exciting to see a favorite book
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Categories: Authors & Books, Featured, Homepage Kids, Homepage Teens, Kids, Library News, and Teens.

Learn about Ancient Egypt!

Museums with Marisa will take you back in time to Ancient Egypt for a fun and fact-filled series of archaeological explorations! Note: a free registered Zoom account is required to access the Library’s youth programs. Get a Zoom account here. The Great Pyramids and the Giza Plateau Tuesday, February 16 at 3:30 p.m. Grades 1-6, Teens Access the program here Learn about the history and archaeology of one of Ancient Egypt’s most well-known sites, The Pyramids of Giza. What’s Up, King Tut? Wednesday, February 17 at 3:30 p.m. Grades 1-6, Teens Access the program here Learn about that most famous
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Categories: Events, Featured, Homepage Kids, Homepage Teens, Kids, Library News, and Teens.

Dive into Diversity: YA Science Fiction

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 #ownvoices authors, or authors who share an aspect of their characters’ identity, as much as possible. For January, we’ll start off with science fiction books, including adventures in outer space, humanoid robots, and questions about the multiverse. Sia Martinez and the Moonlit Beginning of Everything by Raquel Vasquez Gilliland Grades 9 and up OverDrive; Library Catalog I added this book to my To Read list
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Categories: Authors & Books, Featured, Homepage Teens, Library News, and Teens.

Grab & Go STEAM Kit: Magic Ice

White Plains Public Library’s Grab & Go STEAM kits are a great way to unplug and be creative while learning about a STEAM concept. Youth Services Librarian Caroline Reddy has put together a fun STEAM activity for Grades 4-8 that allows you to experiment with the freezing temperature of water. In the past, Caroline has used ice and salt to make her own ice cream as a summer STEAM project. For the winter, you can try creating this “magic” ice and amaze your family. This kit will be available for pickup outside the Library's main doors on Monday, January 25.
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Categories: Featured, Homepage Kids, Homepage Teens, Kids, Library News, and Teens.

Announcing the 2021 Project LIT Book List

Since becoming a Project LIT chapter last summer, we’ve enjoyed reading and discussing Project LIT books with kids and teens. Last month, we were thrilled to see the announcements of new titles in the 2021 Project LIT book list. We’re excited to share the list with you!  You can find the new Project LIT book lists for Middle Grade and Young Adult, as well as the lists from previous years, on our Reading Lists page. Highlighted below are a couple titles from the new selections that are of particular interest to our librarians. Stay tuned for future book discussions and
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Categories: Authors & Books, Featured, Homepage Kids, Homepage Teens, Kids, Library News, and Teens.

Who is Amanda Gorman?

Perhaps, like me, you were awestruck during the inauguration on January 20. Not just by the glass-ceiling shattering of Kamala Harris, the transfer of power and workings of democracy, the pomp and circumstance, the (mostly) excellent fashion, but primarily by the words of the young poet, Amanda Gorman.  Or, perhaps, you saw her during the opening of Super Bowl LV on February 7, a strikingly different, yet powerful, opening to the sporting event.  However you've come across her, perhaps you want to know more about who she is – her amazing story and her brilliant artistry. A self-proclaimed “Wordsmith. Change-maker,”
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Categories: Authors & Books, Featured, Homepage, Homepage Kids, Homepage Teens, Kids, Library News, and Teens.

College Workshops

The Library will be hosting two college admissions workshops on Zoom this January. The third and final workshop with College Wise will be on Wednesday, January 6, at 6:00 p.m. This presentation provides an overview of the different components of the college application and highlights ways student can make their application shine. Registration is required, you can register here. On Tuesday, January 19, at 7:00 p.m., Ron Feuchs from Stand Out For College will discuss strategies for applying to college in the age of COVID-19.
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Categories: Events, Featured, Homepage Teens, Library News, and Teens.

Grab & Go Grades 7-12 Kit: Paper Chain Wall Hanging

Which Craft? Wednesday has been phased into Grab ‘n Go Craft Kits! Instead of finding materials around the house, teens in grades 7-12 can pick supplies up at the table outside the Library's main entrance, then follow along with the instructional video below to make the project. Or, you can find the materials around your home and follow the video to make the project. This month we're using making a brightly colored paper chain wall hanging. The kit includes a wooden dowel, string, and strips of paper in ombre sunset colors. You’ll need to provide tape (or a stapler, or
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Categories: Featured, Homepage Teens, Library News, and Teens.

Celebrate Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Day

This year, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Day will be celebrated on Monday, January 18th, 2021. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. was born on January 15th, 1929 and his legacy is profound – perhaps now more than ever. “As a child, I remember studying Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. only from one perspective—the man who had a dream. Without a deep understanding of Dr. King, I lacked the ability to apply some of his profound principles to my life. Years later as an adult, I read his autobiography and was amazed at the depth of his personhood. Out of this
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Categories: Featured, Homepage Kids, Homepage Teens, Kids, Library News, and Teens.

Grab & Go Grades 7-12 Kit: Popsicle Stick Grabber

January’s Grab & Go STEAM kit for Teens is a Grabber Arm using popsicle sticks. You can pick up the kits at the Library, there are a limited number available so get there soon! The grabber arm is cool and educational. Teens will learn about a scissor lift, a piece of engineering that is used for lifting heavy objects like cars off the ground. Couldn’t get a kit? No problem. You can make these with some materials from home, just be creative! Just follow along with the video instructions.
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Categories: Featured, Homepage Teens, Library News, and Teens.

Browsing Suspended, Grab & Go Continues

In response to the rising number of COVID-19 cases in Westchester County, the Library is suspending browsing in the building. This means there will be no access to our first floor collections or the Trove beginning Friday, November 27. We will continue to offer reference services via phone, text, and email. Our Grab & Go services have changed. To utilize Grab & Go pickup services, place items on hold through our catalog and you will be notified when they are available. Give us a call at 422-1490 when you are heading to the Library and we will place your items
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Categories: COVID-19, Director's Corner, Featured, Homepage, Homepage Kids, Homepage Teens, Kids, Library News, and Teens.

Coding Workshops With The Techno Chix

Starting January 8, 2021, the Techno Chix, a group of young women in the Girl Scouts, will be teaching an 8 session workshop series on computer coding for Middle Grade students in grades 5-8. They will teach 8 one-hour workshops on Fridays, from 4:30-5:30 p.m., in January and February, covering the Python coding language. This is an in-depth course focusing on Python, and by the end of the workshops students will be familiar with Strings, User Input, Arithmetic Equations, Booleans, Loops, If/Else Statements, and Functions. Registration and attendance to all workshops is required. These workshops will be held on Zoom.
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Categories: Events, Featured, Homepage Kids, Homepage Teens, Kids, Library News, and Teens.

2020 Best Book Lists

In case you're as curious as we are about what different publications deem the “Best Books of 2020,” we've compiled a list below. What were your favorite reads this year? Leave us a comment letting us know. Some of the titles named the Best of 2020 are listed below; you'll find a much wider selection at Overdrive, here. Such a Fun Age by Kiley Reid Library Collection: Print, Large Print, and CD audiobook OverDrive and Libby: eBook and audiobook The Splendid and the Vile by Erik Larson Library Collection: Print, Large Print, and CD audiobook OverDrive and Libby: eBook and
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Categories: Authors & Books, Featured, Homepage, Homepage Kids, Homepage Teens, Kids, Library News, and Teens.

2020 Staff Favorites

The White Plains Library Staff have assembled their picks for the year, featuring cookbooks, DVDs, music, audiobooks, and plenty of plain old books. It's a wonderfully wide-ranging list, full of lots of surprises, and should help with your holiday shopping or just some entertainment for yourself. Enjoy! Below you'll find a list with links to the catalog or resource where they're available as well as a blurb on why staff enjoyed it. Books: Peace Talks by Jim Butcher Library Catalog OverDrive and Libby: eBook and audiobook Harry Dresden is a wizard living in modern day Chicago. Think of this book
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Categories: Authors & Books, Director's Corner, Evergreen, Featured, Homepage, Homepage Kids, Homepage Teens, Kids, Library News, and Teens.

“How Did I Get Here?” Career Panels

This January we will be holding two career panels for teens. Monday, January 11 at 4:00 p.m., faculty from Touro College will talk about 3D printing and dentistry. This is a real world application of 3D printing. Thursday, January 28, at 6:00 p.m., join Dave Mott, a manager at KPMG, one of the largest accounting firms in the country. He has a unique background in accounting, and will explain that it isn’t just doing taxes. All of our participants will talk about their interests as teenagers, what they studied in college, and the path that led them to their current
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Categories: Events, Featured, Homepage Teens, Library News, and Teens.

New Books for Children and Teens

Ordering books for the children’s and teen collections is a rare part of our jobs that hasn’t changed too much over the past six months. While many other aspects of the workday look different now, it’s still a joy being able to select fantastic books and materials for patrons to enjoy. We’d like to take the opportunity to share some fresh new titles from our carts this month. The Trove My Rainbow by DeShanna Neal, Trinity Neal & Art Twink Preschool-Grade 2 Street Date: 10/20/20 OverDrive Library Catalog “In their #OwnVoices picture book debut, mother-daughter duo and transgender rights advocates
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Categories: Authors & Books, Featured, Homepage Kids, Homepage Teens, Kids, Library News, and Teens.

Grab & Go Kit: LED Creature

White Plains Public Library’s Grab & Go STEAM kits are a great way to unplug and be creative while learning about a STEAM concept. Edge Librarian Erik Carlson has put together a great STEAM activity for Grades 4-8 that allows you to create your own LED creature. The LED Creature Grab & Go kit will help young scholars learn some basic elements of electricity. If you have ever wanted to work on a conductivity experiment, or create a circuit bug or creature, here’s your chance! This kit will be available for pickup outside the Library's main doors on Monday, December
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Categories: Featured, Homepage Kids, Homepage Teens, Kids, Library News, and Teens.

College Admissions Workshops

This fall and winter, the Library will be hosting virtual college admissions counseling workshops for students, because it’s never too early to get started! Monday October 26, 6:00 p.m. – Pat Kronik will cover a variety of topics to get you started with the college admissions process. Register in advance here. Wednesday October 28, 6:00 p.m. – Learn about free tuition for college from Michael Turner, with the NYS Higher Education Services Corp. This program is being hosted by Yonkers Public Library. Check their calendar for more details. Wednesdays, November 4, December 2, & January 6, 6:00 p.m. – Join
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Categories: Events, Featured, Homepage Teens, Library News, and Teens.