This Week at the Library

I don’t hear any calls for major snow this week, so here’s hoping that’s true and we get kids off for a full week of school for the first time this year! Everyone did great with understanding our children’s program policies in case of East Penn delays/early dismissals/closings. I’ve included it at the bottom for those of you who haven’t seen it yet.

New this week is a Kickoff for our Muslim Journeys program. Just as we’ve done with other culture groups like Pennsylvania German, India, and China, we will be offering the community an opportunity to learn more about the Muslim culture represented in our community. For this cultural event, we’ve actually received a grant from the National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) and the American Library Association (ALA) to present a program called Muslim Jouneys. It’s a free five-part reading and discussion series this spring called Let’s Talk About It: Muslim Journeys. This unique series will allow patrons a chance to read a book and discuss some important themes in Muslim history and literature with the help of well-qualified scholars from the Religion Studies Department at Lehigh University. Please contact the library for more information.

This week at the library…

Monday: Roots; 6:30pm; Gr 2nd-3rd . This is our monthly program for children in 2nd and 3rd  grade.  We “dug” the “Dig” summer reading theme so much, we decided to keep it going during the school year, focusing on “roots”… plants, trees, hair, family history. Each month we’ll read some stories and do a craft. Advanced registration is required.

Tuesday: 4 year old storytimes, 10:30am and 12:30pm. Advanced registration is required for storytimes, as there’s a limit to how many kids I can fit into the program room, plus advanced registration helps me prepare for the right number of kids… not ending up “short” or wasting craft supplies when people don’t show, and there’s an age cutoff date of 9/12 based on the East Penn School District.

Intro to the Web; 5pm. This is an introductory course on learning to navigate web pages, basic searches, downloading files, and printing. Advanced registration and a $5 class fee are required.

Wednesday: 3 year old storytimes, 10:30am and 12:30pm. Advanced registration is required for same reasons as above

Thursday: 2 year old storytimes, 10:30am and 12:30pm. Advanced registration is required for same reasons as above.

Ancestry Library Edition: Part 1; 11am.L earn genealogy basis while researching your family tree history using these international databases and other online resources. Part 1: Getting Started With Hands-on Training (Part 1 is a prerequisite to take the Part 2 class). Advanced registration and a $5 class fee are required.

Friday: Baby Lapsit, 9:30am, a “beginner storytime”/introduction to the library for children who were 11 months old or younger as of 9/12/12; advanced registration required.

Ones Storytime, 10:30am; a “beginner storytime”/introduction to the library for children who were between 12-23 months  as of 9/12/12; advanced registration required.

Intro to Microsoft Word 2010; 1pm. Learn the basic skills to understand and use Word 2010, which is the word processing program that makes documents easier to create, share, and read. Advanced registration and a $5 class fee are required.

Saturday: Daddy and Me Storytime, 10am. Dads and kids can come out for this special storytime just for them! No moms allowed! We’ll read some stories and do a simple craft. A great way for your children to introduce Dad to the library if he doesn’t already come in! Advanced registration required.

Muslim Journeys Kickoff, 1-3pm. Stop in to talk to scholars and representatives from the Muslim Association of the Lehigh Valley; see a demo on the Oxford Islamic Studies Online database; sign up for programs; and everyone who asks a question or signs up will be entered in a raffle for one of five gift cards! Refreshments will be provided.

As you can see, programming is gearing back up here at the library! There’s something for all ages, so be sure to check out the online calendar located on our website. Our website has more information, but you  can also stop in or call for more details!

Finally, the closing policy: We operate independent of the East Penn School District in our own delays and closings decisions, meaning even if EPSD is closed one day, we may still open or open late. However, as far as children’s programs go, we take a cue from East Penn: If EPSD has a two hour delay, morning programs are cancelled. If EPSD has an early dismissal, afternoon and evening programs are cancelled. If EPSD is closed for the day, all children’s programs are cancelled. You can find the library’s winter weather delay and closing information by checking our website (www.lowermaclib.org) which will have a gray banner across the top with any information, on our Facebook page (www.facebook.com/lowermacungielibrary), or on WFMZ.