Events Calendar

READ and PLAY with your favorite baby or toddler! Reading, singing, talking and playing with your baby from the beginning is important because the roots of language are developing in a baby’s brain even before they can talk! Library programs are always free. Siblings and childcare groups are welcome.

Attention word lovers: exercise your brain by playing Scrabble with other adults!

Wisconsin Sound Beginnings welcomes children ages 0-3 years old who are deaf or hard of hearing (DHH) and their parents/caregivers to join a story/song hour. During this interactive group time, family members will join their child in learning and playing through accessible songs, stories, and language activities through listening/talking and sign language. There is no cost to attend but registration is required. For questions or more information, contact Lauren Burke from the Wisconsin Sound Beginnings team at BurkeLa01@uww.edu

Registration link: https://cesa1.app.neoncrm.com/event.jsp?event=7364&

Explore art in process with recycled materials and other fun creations.

READ and PLAY together with children 5 & under! Stories, songs, and rhymes for about 20 minutes, followed by playtime and an art project. 

Engaging with books, songs and playful experiences all help children develop communication skills, patience, empathy, and pre-reading skills​ - and helps to build a lifelong love of reading.

No registration, free of cost, and older siblings are welcome!

READ and PLAY together with children under age 5! Engaging with books, songs and playful experiences all help children develop communication skills, patience, empathy, and pre-reading skills​ and helps to build a lifelong love of reading. Library programs are always free. Older and Younger siblings and childcare groups are welcome.

Join us to READ and Play together. When children engage with books, songs, and play, they develop communication skills, patience, empathy, and pre-reading skills which helps to build a lifelong love of reading. 

This program is geared toward children under age 5. All older and younger siblings as well as childcare groups are welcome to join.

Library programs are always free.

Visit the Dream Bus to browse books and other library materials, place or pick up holds, and sign up for a library card. Learn more at dreambus.org.

Join Making & Learning Intern Yaritza at Dream Bus and Parks Alive stops this summer for a fun, maker activity! While you're there, explore Madison Public Library's summer reading program WE READ: 

• Pick up your WE READ Card Game
• Fill your WE READ tote bag with books from the library collection
• Answer the Share Your Voice question of the week to earn a prize

Yaritza is bilingual in English and Spanish and will offer art and making programs throughout the summer. Learn more about Yaritza. 

Visit the Dream Bus to browse books and other library materials, place or pick up holds, and sign up for a library card. Learn more at dreambus.org.

Join Making & Learning Intern Yaritza at Dream Bus and Parks Alive stops this summer for a fun, maker activity! While you're there, explore Madison Public Library's summer reading program WE READ: 

• Pick up your WE READ Card Game
• Fill your WE READ tote bag with books from the library collection
• Answer the Share Your Voice question of the week to earn a prize

Yaritza is bilingual in English and Spanish and will offer art and making programs throughout the summer. Learn more about Yaritza. 

An open art studio experience for ALL ages and abilities.  Messy clothes recommended!

Visit the Dream Bus to browse books and other library materials, place or pick up holds, and sign up for a library card. Learn more at dreambus.org.

Join Making & Learning Intern Yaritza at Dream Bus and Parks Alive stops this summer for a fun, maker activity! While you're there, explore Madison Public Library's summer reading program WE READ: 

• Pick up your WE READ Card Game
• Fill your WE READ tote bag with books from the library collection
• Answer the Share Your Voice question of the week to earn a prize

Yaritza is bilingual in English and Spanish and will offer art and making programs throughout the summer. Learn more about Yaritza. 

Please join us to play chess at our weekly, drop-in program! All ages and experience levels welcome.

Drop-in knitting.  All experience levels welcome!  Children under 9 must be accompanied by an adult for duration of program. Yarn and Needles provided for in-library use.

Please contact Meadowridge Library at 608-288-6160 for more details and information!

It's time for LEGO Club! Join us the 2nd Wednesday of each month (June 12, July 10, Aug 14), for ages 5 to 12. Leave your own LEGOs at home - we've got plenty to share! Sometimes there's a theme, but there's always opportunity to free build.

Need help with basic computer or Internet skills? Get assistance with opening an email account, writing a Word document, navigating the internet, keeping your files safe, and more.

Call 608-266-6350 to make a 30-minute appointment.

Computer Assistance is sponsored by the Digital Equity Project.

Join the Naturalist-in-Residence, Alex Booker, at Oscar Rennebohm Park for a special storytime! Alex will read some of his favorite books, as well as some new titles recommended by the Cooperative Children’s Book Center on disabilities to help kick off the Go Big Read community read: Sitting Pretty: The View from My Ordinary Resilient Disabled Body by Rebekah Taussig!  Alex will give a tour of the accessible playground and community gardens. 

Meet to attend this event at: 115 N Eau Claire Ave, Madison, WI 53705

PLAYGROUNDS FOR EVERYONE: Through the Madison Parks Foundation initiative, Madison Parks offers accessible playgrounds in Brittingham, Elver, Rennebohm and Warner parks. 

Part of the MPL Naturalist-in-Residence. For more information visit madpl.org/naturalist. The Naturalist-in-Residence is made possible in part by generous support of Nancy Leff and Kenneth Lerner, and in partnership with Madison Parks.

Join Bubbler Artist in Residence Savannah Starlin for a relaxing art workshop. Take what you make with you when you leave. No registration required & free of cost.

Create a vision board to manifest what you want your autumn to bring. Use magazines, stickers, quotes, and prompts to help yourself visualize and plan.

We Make Summer Session meets weekly on Wednesdays, June 26th - August 28th. 

Youth 8 years and younger must bring an older caregiver with them.

During this program, your librarian will be using an exciting new tool called the Observation Deck, funded by the Institute for Museum and Library Services, to better report on learning outcomes for youth. You can learn more about the project on our website: https://www.madisonpubliclibrary.org/engagement/observation-deck 

School-age children (elementary and middle school) are invited to join us for this kid-led Dungeons & Dragons campaign. Be a part of an adventuring party where you'll use your imagination and creativity to explore a fantasy world in an epic quest. Our Dungeon Master Jared will provide support and help guide campaigns along with our adult D&D experts and our Youth Librarian Ruth.

This weekly session is for beginners.

About D&D: Dungeons and Dragons is a fantasy tabletop role-playing game that allows each player to create their own character to play. These characters embark upon imaginary adventures within a fantasy setting. A Dungeon Master (DM) serves as the game's referee and storyteller, while maintaining the setting in which the adventures occur.

Connect with Madison Public Library at Parks Alive. Stop by to get a library card, learn about library resources, and pick up a WE READ Library bag and a card game that inspires youth to read over the summer!  Parks Alive builds stronger neighborhoods and connects neighbors to their parks through fun, family-friendly activities, music and free food. Events are held in parks across the city and throughout the summer. Connect with your neighbors and engage with your community at a Parks Alive event near you!  Learn more at Parks Alive https://www.cityofmadison.com/parksalive.

Drop in knitting: Learn a new craft or work on that unfinished project with other neighborhood knitters.

Join Pinney Library Studio's Artist-in-Residence Phil Hassett, owner of Washboard Press, to learn the basic skills necessary to set a favorite quote, motto, or other short text in metal type. Text should be no longer than two or three sentences. You will have the opportunity to choose a typeface for your quote, make choices about how you want to present it on the page, and then hand set type ranging from 12pt to 36pt depending on the typeface chosen. You will learn about printer’s measurements, spacing, justification, and adding decorative elements or borders if time permits. Each participant will have the opportunity to print several copies of their quote, choosing from a selection of paper stocks & ink colors.

Registered participants are optionally invited to email the instructor at workshops@washboardpress.com with their text ahead of time to make sure it’s an appropriate length for the time we have, along with any general hopes for typeface styles (Serif/oldstyle, sans-serif, slab serif, blackletter, or decorative/ornamental typefaces) to ensure the availability of a good selection of typefaces and spacing material appropriate to their texts. 

Please note: This workshop involves handling typemetal, which is an alloy of lead and other metals. We will discuss the safe handling of metal type and best practices to reduce lead exposure. 

Space is limited and registration is required, opens for both dates on 8/1 at 9 am. Both Typesetting Quotes workshops (8/8 & 8/14) are the same content and are in high demand; select one session date to register for. 

This 2 hour workshop is for adults and older teens at least 14+.  Registration is full. If you are interested in this, please reach out to Pinney Library via phone (608-224-7100) or email pinney@madisonpubliclibrary.org to inquire about joining a waitlist that will be used if additional spaces are added.

About the Artist: Phil Hassett is a local letterpress printer living in Madison, WI, where he maintains a small collection of historic printing presses and a growing collection of historic and modern printing type. A lifelong musician, he named his print studio Washboard Press(link is external) because of the sound one of his presses makes, and because he enjoys doing by hand what is now usually done in a more automated way.

To explore the topic of evolving church and community property, the next District 11 Book Club will be a discussion of the 2024 book edited by Mark Elsdon, Gone for Good?: Negotiating the Coming Wave of Church Property Transition. Copies of the book may available at the Ask Desk at Sequoya Library, first-come first-served.

The discussion will be facilitated by Alder Tishler with authors Mark Elsdon, Nadia Mian, and Curt Paulson. All community members are welcome to attend!