Events Calendar

You and your child will dance, Dance, DANCE! Bubbles, shakers and more! The last part of each class involves free play with library toys and a chance for caregivers to chat. Geared for children ages 5 & under, but older kids are always welcome to join in, too! 

Babies too young to toddle can clap and bounce to the rhythm. Preschoolers are leaders in following cues. Children participate in their own way, in their own time. The only expectation is to have fun!

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

MMSD welcomes new and returning students to the 2024-2025 academic year in the Madison Metropolitan School District!  Online enrollment is now open for all 4K, elementary, middle and high school students.  From 10am-4pm on Thursday, August 22, a bilingual resource specialist will be available at Pinney Library for drop-in assistance with the online enrollment process.

Instructions on how to enroll new and returning students are also available on the MMSD website. Note: returning MMSD families should not create a new Infinite Campus account if you are having difficulty logging in. Instead, contact the MMSD Enrollment Office for support via enrollment@madison.k12.wi.us or (608) 663-4957.

Additional assistance opportunities include:

• Tuesday, August 20 10 am - 4 pm at Lakeview Library, 2845 N Sherman Ave
• Thursday, August 22  10 am - 4 pm at Pinney Library, 516 Cottage Grove Rd
• Friday, August 23 10 am - 4 pm at Goodman South Madison Library, 2222 S Park St

You and your child will dance, Dance, DANCE! Bubbles, shakers and more! The last part of each class involves free play with library toys and a chance for caregivers to chat. Geared for children ages 5 & under, but older kids are always welcome to join in, too! 

Babies too young to toddle can clap and bounce to the rhythm. Preschoolers are leaders in following cues. Children participate in their own way, in their own time. The only expectation is to have fun!

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!

Help shape the South Madison Investment Strategy! Staff from the UW Population Health Institute are talking with residents of south Madison about things the City is doing to preserve the look and feel of south Madison while it grows.  We want to hear resident experiences and opinions about changes that are coming to South Madison.  

Is this worth my time? How does it benefit me? By telling SoMa what is working and what is not, you can help shape City-led investments in the area to ensure it stays affordable and feels like home to our Black and Brown communities. Participants will receive money for their participation. 

Who should participate? People that live in the Bram's Addition, Capitol View, or Burr Oaks neighborhoods and the mobile home park. 

Questions? Concerns? Want to be interviewed? Contact SoMaRise@pophealth.wisc.edu, or 608-285-2050

Do you have clothing or other fabric items that need mending? 

Volunteers from the Sewing Machine Project are offering free mending at Hawthorne Neighborhood Library every other Wednesday from noon - 2:00 pm. These helpful sewers mend clothing and can handle many other fabric-related repairs (exception: no zipper repairs).

Mending is done on the spot on a first come, first served basis. There’s no drop off or pick up, we do what we can do in the time allowed.

Drop in anytime between 12:00 - 2:00 pm!

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.

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.

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.

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!

Stop by to make art with our summer artist in residence, Elias!  Each week will offer a different fun, hands-on project for kids of all ages!

Wednesdays, June 26-August 21, 3:30-5:00pm

Note: No programs on July 17 & August 14.

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 other young people and caregivers for a relaxing art workshop. Take what you make with you when you leave. No registration required and free of cost.

Draw a design on unique plastic that shrinks and looks like glass after being baked. Be aware that after creating your design it will need to bake. Bake & wait time will be dependent on attendance. There will be the option to take your Shrinky Dink unbaked to finish in a personal toaster or conventional oven.

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

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

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.

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.

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

Central Cinema Cinesthesia presents Medium Cool (1969).

"It’s 1968, and the whole world is watching. With the U.S. in social upheaval, famed cinematographer Haskell Wexler decided to make a film about what the hell was going on. Medium Cool, his debut feature, plunges us into the moment. With its mix of fictional storytelling and documentary technique, this depiction of the working world and romantic life of a television cameraman (Robert Forster) is a visceral cinematic snapshot of the era, climaxing with an extended sequence shot right in the middle of the riots surrounding the Democratic National Convention in Chicago. An inventive commentary on the pleasures and dangers of wielding a camera, Medium Cool is as prescient a political film as Hollywood has ever produced." (Criterion Collection)

Hosted by Jason Fuhrman, Cinesthesia is an adventurous, eclectic series of classic and contemporary films that focuses on the complex relationship between literature and cinema. Cinesthesia strives to foster constructive dialogue, while breathing new life into controversial works, neglected masterpieces, and titles in the margins of film history.  

Inspired by a real historical figure, Kidd alternates chapters between one of two abolitionist and women’s rights focused sisters and the enslaved girl ‘gifted’ to one of them on her 11th birthday. Letters, articles, and diaries of the time inform the narrative, which is unsentimental and unflinching yet also deemed by many reviewers as a ‘masterpiece’ of hope and daring. Join us for discussion and perhaps dessert. Newcomers warmly welcomed.