Southbury Public Library

The Southbury Public Library Youth Services department is pleased to announce events for July 2024 for children and teens. We are offering a variety of programs this month. All programs are generously sponsored by the Friends of the Southbury Public Library. For more information and to register online please visit our website: www.southburylibrary.org/events.

Children’s Programs:

Drop-In Storytime (All Ages) – Monday, July 1, 8, 15, 22, 29, 10-10:30am and 11-11:30am, Storytime Room, No Registration Required. Join Jen for stories, rhymes, and a small craft.

Learn the Ukelele (Ages 7-12) – Monday, July 1, 10:30-11:30am, Kingsley Room, Registration Required - Space Limited. Want to try an instrument that is fun and easy to play? Join Julie Stepanek as she shows the fundamentals of ukulele playing. No experience necessary. Ukuleles provided or bring your own.

Babies & Books (Ages 6-24 months) – Tuesday, July 2, 9, 16, 23, 10:30-11:30am, Storytime Room, Registration Required - Space Limited. Babies & Books is a six-week series lapsit storytime for children 6 to 24 months and their parents/caregivers. Listen to short stories and songs.

Toddler Time (Ages 2-3) – Wednesday, July 3, 10, 17, 24, 10:30-11:30am, Storytime Room, Registration Required - Space Limited. Toddler Time is a six-week series for children ages 2 & 3 years and their parents/caregivers. Listen to stories and complete a small craft.

Make or Take Craft (All Ages) – Saturday, July 6, 13, 20, 27, While Supplies Last, Second Floor. Stop by the Youth Services department on Saturdays this month to make a thematic craft. Make it here or bring it home. Crayons and glue available in the library.

Kids Who Code (Grades 3-5) – Monday, July 8, 15, 22, 29, 3:30-4:30pm, Brown Room, Registration Required - Space Limited. Kids Who Code is a 6 week computer science program series, where participants can build confidence and have fun! We will grow our project management and problem-solving skills while learning to code and create games through the online program Scratch.

Summer Rock Painting with Miss Laleh (Ages 7-12) – Tuesday, July 9, 2-3pm, Storytime Room, Registration Required - Space Limited. Join talented art teacher Miss Laleh for a fun afternoon creating summer paintings on stones. Laleh Golafshani is a local artist, illustrator, and art teacher.

ARTuesday (All Ages) – Tuesday, July 9, 5-6pm, Storytime Room, No Registration Required. Stop by for a playful, messy, and expressive art experience where there is no right or wrong. Come play and experiment with a variety of art mediums and themes. Smocks recommended.

“The Lorax” and “Bird Count” Storytime and Activities with the Audubon Center (Ages 7-10) – Wednesday, July 10, 11:30am-12:30pm, Storytime Room, Registration Required - Space Limited. Join the Bent of the River Audubon Center for a special storytime featuring the books "The Lorax" by Dr. Seuss and "Bird Count" by Susan Richmond. After listening to the stories, participants are invited to create seed paper to take home and plant, and enjoy a special bird-themed library scavenger hunt!

Settler’s Park Pop-Up Family Storytime with Region 15 (All Ages) – Wednesday, July 10, 2-2:30pm, 280 Crook Horn Road (Near the Gazebo), No Registration Required. Join Jen and our amazing school librarians from Region 15 for a summer pop-up storytime for the whole family! This event is outside, so please come prepared with blankets, chairs, and anything else you need to be comfortable outside.

Food Explorers Baking: Strawberry Swirl Cookies and Chocolate Tarts (Grades 2-5) – Thursday, July 11, 10am-12pm, Kingsley Room, Registration Required - Space Limited. Join Food Explorers for a special summer baking program! You’ll be making two delicious recipes: Strawberry Swirl Cookies and Chocolate Tarts! You’ll get your hands messy crushing your freeze dried strawberries and making your Oreo crust, test out the electric mixer, frost your cookies, and more! Recipes are nut free but will contain dairy, eggs and gluten.

Tunes & Tales (Recommended for Ages 5 & Under) – Thursday, July 11, 18, 25, Storytime Room, No Registration Required. Join Jen for a morning filled with music and stories! Children will sing, dance, and experiment with simple musical instruments.

Storytime at the Farmers’ Market (All Ages) – Thursday, June 11, 25, 3:30-4:30pm, 501 Main Street South, No Registration Required. Stop by the Southbury Farmers' Market and enjoy stories with the librarians from the Southbury Public Library!

Family Giant Games Night (All Ages) – Thursday, July 11, 18, 25, Youth Services Department, No Registration Required. Join us for an evening of Giant Games! Families, drop in between 6 and 7:30pm to enjoy a variety of traditional, larger-than-life, board games. This event is perfect for families or a group of friends; if a team is not made of middle schoolers and above, an adult must be present. No registration required.

First Chapter Friday (Ages 7 & Up) – Friday, July 12, 26, 2:30-3:15pm, Storytime Room, Registration Requested. Looking for something new to read? Join Jen for a sneak-peek, first chapter read-aloud of some of her favorite chapter books! If you love what you hear, you can borrow the book and find out what happens next.

Writing Workshop (Grades 2-5) – Monday-Friday, July 15-19, 2-3pm, Brown Room, Registration Required - Space Limited. Join Kitan Arole, a senior at Pomperaug High School, for a creative writing workshop for children in grades 2-5! She is an accomplished student and award-winning writer, and she is excited to share her love of writing with children. At the end of the week, participants will have a written story to share with family and friends, and will build their confidence and public speaking skills. This five day series will run Monday-Friday, July 15-19, from 2-3pm.

Recycled UFOs Craft (Grades 1-5) – Monday, July 15, 3:30-4:30pm, Storytime Room, Registration Required - Space Limited. Join Katie to read "Minnie and Moo Go to the Moon" by Denys Cazet and create a UFO craft using recycled materials and dollhouse miniatures.

LEGO Club (Ages 5-10) – Thursday, July 18, 3-4pm, Storytime Room, Registration Required - Space Limited. Join Michelle for an afternoon of LEGO fun! We’ll provide the LEGO bricks, and you bring the creativity! You can free build, or work off of instructions. Cartooning Workshop with Rick Stromoski (Ages 7-12) – Thursday, July 18, 4:30-5:30pm, Brown Room, Registration Required - Space Limited. Award-winning cartoonist Rick Stromoski will show you how to dig into your imaginations to draw impossible animals. He will be joining us here at the library live via Zoom!

Settler’s Park Pop-Up Family Storytime with Region 15 (All Ages) – Friday, July 19, 11-11:30am, 280 Crook Horn Road (Near the Gazebo), No Registration Required. Join Jen and our amazing school librarians from Region 15 for a summer pop-up storytime for the whole family! This event is outside, so please come prepared with blankets, chairs, and anything else you need to be comfortable outside.

Family Trivia Night (All Ages) – Friday, July 19, 6:30-8pm, Kingsley Room, Registration Required - Space Limited. Join us for another Family Trivia night! Work together as a family team to answer our trivia questions! We'll have a variety of topics, including kid-centric knowledge, general information, and questions aimed at parents, too. The family who answers the most questions correctly will win a $100 gift card to Riverview Cinemas! Bring the Hoopla (Ages 3-5) – Saturday, July 20, 10-10:30am, Kingsley Room, Registration Required - Space Limited. Bring the Hoopla’s Library Program creates a welcoming environment and allows each participant to find success within their hoop! Using our signature Hoopla Hoops everyone engages in basic hoop instruction, age & theme-appropriate games, and positive activities. This program encourages self-expression and creativity! Our skilled teachers come equipped with a sound system and help all participants learn a new spin on hula hooping.

Bring the Hoopla (Ages 6-12) – Saturday, July 20, 10:30-11:30am, Kingsley Room, Registration Required - Space Limited. Bring the Hoopla’s Library Program creates a welcoming environment and allows each participant to find success within their hoop! Using our signature Hoopla Hoops everyone engages in basic hoop instruction, age & theme-appropriate games, and positive activities. This program encourages self-expression and creativity! Our skilled teachers come equipped with a sound system and help all participants learn a new spin on hula hooping.

Tiny Food Explorers (Ages 2-5) – Tuesday, July 23, 11am-12pm, Kingsley Room, Registration Required - Space Limited. Join Tiny Food Explorers for some fun with food! Come and explore new flavors and textures while playing games all about food and MyPlate! You’ll make a hands-on healthy snack that even the pickiest of eaters will enjoy.

Soulshine Arts: Music Together (Ages 0-5) – Wednesday, July 24, 10:30-11:30am, Kingsley Room, Registration Required - Space Limited. Leslie Pratt of Soulshine Arts in Woodbury invites children ages birth to 5 years old and their caregivers to join in a morning of family music! Join us as we sing, dance and play while bonding with your children through music.

Gaming with Mr. Matt (Ages 7-12) – Thursday, July 25, 10am-12pm, Kingsley Room, Registration Required - Space Limited. Join Mr. Matt for two hours of amazing gaming with Nintendo Switch systems on projector screens! You will also be able to work on some video-game themed crafts.

The Poop Museum (Ages 5-12) – Friday, July 26, 11am-12pm, Kingsley Room, Registration Required - Space Limited. The Poop Museum covers the serious science of poop and pooping, and is delivered with the silliness that you might imagine accompanying a program about poop. It's the perfect combination of fun, and fabulous, fascinating facts, so that kids (and parents) never forget what they learned.

Makerspace Morning (Ages 5-12) – Saturday, July 27, 11am-12:30pm, Storytime Room, No Registration Required. Join Jen to explore, think, and create in our mobile makerspace! Choose from a wide range of materials to create something new and unique, or complete a craft project using provided instructions.

Teen Programs:

Teen Giant Board Games (Grades 6-12) – Tuesday, July 2, 1-3pm, Kingsley Room, Registration Required - Space Limited. Join us for an afternoon of larger-than-life, board games! We’ll have giant jenga, checkers, chess, connect four, and more!

Glass Bits: Suncatchers & Mosaics (Grades 6-12) – Tuesday, July 9, 6-8pm, Kingsley Room, Registration Required - Space Limited. Learn about how glass is made, how glass is used and recycled, and how we can create art with the bits left over! Make either a suncatcher or mosaic with real glass, special glass glue, and more to create a one-of-a-kind art piece that will last years to come. The glass we’ll be using would normally be thrown away by a stained glass artist, but is perfect for what we are making.

Upcycled T-Shirt Tote Bags (Grades 6-12) – Wednesday, July 10, 4-5pm, Brown Room, Registration Required - Space Limited. Join us to upcycle old t-shirts into reusable tote bags! Feel free to bring your own clean, used t-shirts you don’t mind cutting into. We will also have t-shirts available.

Food Explorers: 2 Hours of Baking (Grades 6-12) – Thursday, July 11, 1-3pm, Kingsley Room, Registration Required - Space Limited. Join Food Explorers for two hours of baking! We’ll be making a Crumbl-style cookie and another sweet treat. No nuts, but dairy, gluten, and eggs will be present in this program.

Block Printing Totes & Bandanas(Grades 6-12) – Thursday, July 11, 4-5pm, Brown Room, Registration Required - Space Limited. Join us to learn about printmaking, carve your own block out of foam, and make a tote bag or bandana. All supplies provided.

DIY Smartphone Mini-Scope (Grades 6-12) – Monday, July 15, 2-3pm, Kingsley Room, Registration Required - Space Limited. Open your eyes to the amazing world of the ultra-tiny when we convert your cell phone into a portable, picture-taking Miniscope using simple supplies. Although less high powered than a microscope, we’ll still be able to see very cool close ups of plants, grains of salt, and more.

Cute Animals Hangout (Grades 6-12) – Tuesday, July 16, 6-7:15pm, Brown Room, Registration Required - Space Limited. Come hang out with a variety of cute animals, both furry and scaly! Meet, interact with, feed snacks to, and pet a variety of animal friends including bunnies, ferrets, sugar gliders, snakes, a bearded dragon, and more!

Macramé (Grades 6-12) – Thursday, July 18, 6-8pm, Kingsley Room, Registration Required - Space Limited. Learn about the history of macramé, how macramé is used throughout the world, and how we can create art with cord. You’ll create your own plant hangers or wall art. If you have ideas for what you’d like to make, please bring them!

Family Trivia Night (All Ages) – Friday, July 19, 6:30-8pm, Kingsley Room, Registration Required - Space Limited. Join us for another Family Trivia night! Work together as a family team to answer our trivia questions! We'll have a variety of topics, including kid-centric knowledge, general information, and questions aimed at parents, too. The family who answers the most questions correctly will win a $100 gift card to Riverview Cinemas!

Pom-Pom Cacti (Grades 6-12) – Monday, July 22, 4-5pm, Kingsley Room, Registration Required - Space Limited. Make pom-pom cacti! We'll turn yarn into very easy to care for cacti, no green thumb required!

Fun with Brush Lettering Calligraphy (Grades 6-12) – Tuesday, July 23, 6-7:30pm, Kingsley Room, Registration Required - Space Limited. Let’s create playful letters with brush pens! Taught by calligrapher, Debby Reelitz. Lettering with a brush is fun and challenging all at the same time. We will go through a series of activities that make brush lettering easier to learn–and make a card in the process of practicing! No knowledge of cursive handwriting required.

Food Explorers: Coffee Latte Trifles (Grades 6-12) – Thursday, July 25, 2-3pm, Kingsley Room, Registration Required - Space Limited. Join Food Explorers to make Coffee Latte Trifles! You’ll be making coffee flavored cake pops to crumble up as your cake layer, chocolate pudding and homemade whipped cream with a hint of coffee. This recipe is nut free but will contain dairy, eggs, and gluten.

Paint a Drawstring Backpack (Grades 6-12) – Monday, July 29, 2-3pm, Kingsley Room, Registration Required - Space Limited. Join us to paint a canvas drawstring backpack! We’ll have a variety of fabric paints, and options for stenciling and free-handing designs.

Reading Programs for Children & Teens:

Summer Reading Program: Read, Renew, Repeat (PreK to Grade 12 & Class of 2024 Graduates) – June 8-August 16, In Person and Online. Log your reading time to enter win different raffle prizes, join us for fun events, and more! You can keep track of your time read on a paper log, or online at southburylibrary.beanstack.com.

1000 Books Before Kindergarten (Birth to Entering Kindergarten) – Ongoing, On Paper and Online on Beanstack. Read a book (any book!) to your newborn, infant, or toddler and keep track with a paper log or on Beanstack. Repeats count! 1000 books may seem like a lot, but if you read 1 book a day for 3 years, that’s 1095 books! 10 books a week for 2 years is 1040 books, and 3 books a day in one year is 1095 books. Every book you read you get one sticker, and if you finish you can get a certificate, small prize, and your picture on our wall of fame if you’d like! Pick up a paper log from the children’s department or visit southburylibrary.beanstack.com to get started online. For 0 to Entering Kindergarten.

100 Books Before Graduation (Grades 9-12) – Ongoing, Online at Beanstack. Read 100 books before High School Graduation! 100 books may seem like a lot (and it is), but it works out to about 1 book every 2 weeks. When you sign up, get a special tracking bookmark to fill out as you read. Make it to half way and get a $5 Gift Card to Dunkin' or The Bakery. Read 100 books and get a special throw blanket! Every 10 books you read, pick out something from the prize box (pins, pens, animal sticky notes, and more!).

Who Was? Reading Challenge – Ongoing, Upstairs Children’s Department.How many Who Was?, Where Was?, or What Was? books can you read? Get a checklist from our Children’s Department and keep track. Read 10 books and get your choice of special bookmark. You can repeat this challenge again if you read another 10. All Ages, Best for Elementary School. No Registration Required.

Please visit the Southbury Public Library website at www.southburylibrary.org/events for program details and registration information. Visit our Facebook page: www.facebook.com/SouthburyLibraryYouthServices/