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Library News
Library Awarded Grant From ALA & Fetzer Institute to Host Building Common Ground
The Keene Public Library received a $2,500 grant from the American Library Association (ALA) and the Fetzer Institute to host a year-long series of programs “Building Common Ground: Discussions of Community, Civility, and Compassion,” which is part of a a national initiative to enhance the quality of life and learning within the community through a series of library programs.
The library is one of 30 public libraries nationwide receiving grants to host the series, which will encourage participants to consider the importance of community, civility, and compassion in their daily lives. Keene Public Library will partner with the Horatio Colony House Museum to host programs and events that include reading, viewing, reflection, discussion and civic engagement initiatives tailored specifically to engage the Keene community.
The library will offer four to eight programs to spark action, engagement, and reflection among community members. The first program will be held Tuesday, February 28th at 7:00 p.m. in the library’s Trustee’s Room. This program will be the first in a monthly reading and discussion series on focusing on Twelve Steps to a Compassionate Life by Karen Armstrong. Armstrong, writer and comparative religion scholar, who received the 2008 TED Prize, her vision of a Charter for Compassion, asks people to “make compassion a clear, luminous and dynamic force in our polarized world.” Twelve Steps to a Compassionate Life offers a practicum for bringing the Golden Rule into play in everyday life. Books will be available for participants.
For details and material, please contact Gail Zachariah at 603-352-0157.
All of the library’s programs are free and open to the public. The Keene Public Library is located at 602 Winter Street.
Library Recruits High School Students for Poetry Out Loud Competition
The Keene Public Library is pleased to annouce that we will once again participate in Poetry Out Loud. Recitation and performance are exciting current trends in poetry. There has been a resurgence of poetry as an oral art form, as seen in the slam poetry movement and the immense popularity of hip-hop music. Poetry Out Loud builds on that momentum by combining the dynamic aspects of slam poetry, spoken word, and theater in a friendly competition for high school students.
Our Poetry Out Loud competition will be held Sunday February 12 at 2 p.m. High school aged participants will participate in five Poetry Out Loud workshops at the Keene Public Library to memorize and prepare two poems to recite. Workshops will be held on Saturdays January 14 - February 11 at 3 p.m. A preliminary informational session for parents and interested students will be held Saturday January 7 at 3 p.m.
The National Endowment for the Arts and the Poetry Foundation have partnered with state arts agencies of the United States to support Poetry Out Loud, which encourages the nation's youth to learn about great poetry through memorization and recitation. This program helps students master public speaking skills, build self-confidence, and learn about their literary heritage.
Please register for the informational session and workshops by visiting the library's online calendar of events or by calling the library at 603-352-0157.
Library Begins New Current Topics Documentary Film Series
The new year brings a new documentary film series to the library starting with the 2008 film "Stealing America." Unbiased and nonpartisan, the film sheds light on a decade of vote counts that don't match votes cast – uncounted ballots, vote switching, under-votes and many other examples of election totals that warrant serious investigation.
Additional films will be screened each Wednesday at 7 p.m. All points of view are welcomed.
Wednesday, January 11, 2012: Inside Job, Sony Pictures Classics, 120 minutes, Academy Award for Best Documentary Feature, 2010, MPAA rating: PG-13; for some drug and sex-related material.
Wednesday, January 18, 2012: The 11th Hour, Warner Independent Pictures, 2007, 90 minutes.
Wednesday, January 25, 2012: Greatest Movie Ever Sold, Sony Pictures Classic, 2011, Rated PG-13 for some language and sexual material.
Wednesday, February 01, 2012: Gasland, HBO Documentary Films, 2010.
Wednesday, February 08, 2012: No Impact Man, Oscilloscope, 2008.
Wednesday, February 15, 2012: Broadcast Blues, Public Interest, 2009
Wednesday, February 22, 2012: Loose Change: An American Coup, Microcinema, 2009
Wednesday, February 29, 2012: "Solving the Mystery of WTC 7", (Architects and Engineers, 15 minutes) and 9/11 Conspiracies Fact or Fiction?, A & E Documentaries, 2010
Wednesday, March 7, 2012: Who Killed the Electric Car?, Sony Pictures Classic, 2006
Register Early for the Free SAT Prep Classes Held Saturdays in March 2012
The Keene Public Libary and Keene Orthodontic Speciaists are once again hosting a series of four Saturday morning classes in March designed to assist and motivate students in taking their SAT exams for college. This course will cover test strategies and practice test taking in all three areas of the SAT exam. Actual questions and problems taken from the SAT exams will be addressed. There are simulated tests which are then reexamined with two highly qualified instructors. Students will be able to judge where their weaknesses lie and learn strategies for preparing for taking the actual exams. Registration begins on Tuesday, January 3, 2012. Because space is limited, registration is limited to High School Juniors until February 1st. Please call the library at 603-352-0157 or visit our online calendar with the following information to register: Student's name, home address, school, grade, cell phone number and an email address that is checked frequently. Upon completion of the registration, the student will receive an email acknowledgement that must be printed out and will serve as a ticket to the first class. The email acknowledgement should be received within 3 business days, if you do not receive it, please call Colleen Swider at 603-352-0157. For additional information, please call Colleen Swider.
Signup Now for Winter Storytimes
A new session of library storytimes will begin in 2012. Please sign up now for one of these programs:
PRESCHOOL STORYTIME: Begins Tues. Jan. 24 at 1:30 p.m. or Wed. Jan. 25 at 10 a.m.
PUPPET TIME for Older Toddlers: Begins Tues. Jan. 17 at 10 a.m. LAPSIT TIME for Babies & Caregivers: Begins Thurs. Jan. 19 at 10 a.m. TODDLER and TWO-TIMES: Begins Fri. Jan. 20 at 10 a.m. or Fridays at 11 a.m.
Interested parents and caregivers should call the Keene Public Library at 603-352-0157 to register and for further information about family and youth programs. Families can also register through the library's online calendar of events.
The Keene Public Library has been conducting regular preschool story times since the 1960’s, and toddler and baby programs since the 1990’s. Over the years the biggest change has been in the quantity of programs offered. But now it's time for some changes! The Every Child Ready to Read® Project, a joint program of the Public Library Association and the Association for Library Service to Children, provides research showing the importance of the parent’s role in young children’s early literacy skills.
New reading research defines six skills that children must know before they can learn to read. Recently, the Keene Public Library restructured storytimes to help parents and young children as they learn these skills, which are:
Print Motivation – a child’s interest and enjoyment of books Phonological Awareness – the ability to hear and play with smaller sounds of words Narrative Skills – the ability to describe things and events, and to tell stories Letter Knowledge – learning to name letters, knowing their sounds, and recognizing them everywhere Print Awareness – noticing print, knowing how to handle a book, and to follow words on a page Vocabulary – knowing the names of things
Children who have these skills enter kindergarten ready to have a more successful learning experience.
Storytimes at the Keene Public Library are intentionally divided into specific age groups. Lapsit Time for Babies and Caregivers is for children ages 0-12 months and is designed to provide the parents with an opportunity to talk and read with their baby. Toddler and Two-Times, for children ages 13 months-36 months, is designed to stimulate the minds of very busy little people with short attention spans. Puppet Time, a new program for older toddlers, is aimed at children ages 2 1/2 years to 3 1/2 years of age. Preschool Storytime is for children age 3—age 5. Preschoolers have the ability to sit and listen, follow a complex story line, and love to participate in the story. Parents and caregivers are encouraged to use these programs as an opportunity to develop childrens' listening and cooperative skills. The library has a few tips that can help make Keene Public Library Storytimes more fun and rewarding. But the most important thing to remember is that no matter what library storytimes will be fun and focus on early literacy!
In addition to storytime series that require registration, the Keene Public Library offers two drop-in story programs each week of the year. Children of all ages and their caregivers are invited to listen to bedtime stories, songs, and rhymes on Tuesdays at 6:30 p.m. Saturday Morning Storytimes are offered each Saturday at 10:00 a.m. This program will include stories, fingerplays, and a simple craft or take-home project. The drop-in programs are perfect for busy families who cannot commit to a regular storytime or for visiting friends and relatives.
Although all Keene Public Library programs are free and open to the public, space is limited and registration is required for Preschool Storytime, Puppet Time, Toddler and Two-times, and Lapsit Time. Interested parents and caregivers should call the Keene Public Library at 603-352-0157 to register and for further information about family and youth programs. Families can also register through the library's online calendar of events.
eBooks for Kindle Come to Keene Public Library
It just got a whole lot easier to borrow and download e-books from your public library. The Kindle lending service you might have heard rumors about, is finally available in Keene. Users can visit the New Hampshire Downloadable Books Consortium website to view more than 2,000 books available for lending to Kindle devices.
It is very easy to check out a Kindle Book.
■ Once you have selected a title, you will enter your Keene Public Library card number.
■ Click on “Get for Kindle.” You will then be directed to Amazon.com to redeem your public library loan. You may be required to login to your Amazon.com account — or create a new account — if you’re not already logged in.
■ The book will be automatically delivered to your Kindle via Amazon’s Whispernet technology via Wi-Fi, or you can transfer over USB.
■ You can choose to read the book on your Kindle device, free reading app, or Kindle Cloud Reader. This means it is available for multiple platforms including the PC, Android, iOS, Blackberry and Windows Phone.
■ Users will be able to view real page numbers and synchronize notes, highlights and more across multiple devices.
Library Offers Free Access to Nonprofit Research Funding Opportunities
The premier database for nonprofit grant research, The Foundation Directory Online, is now available at the Keene Public Library.
The service connects nonprofit grantseekers with more than 100,000 potential foundation funders. User friendly, the database allows patrons to search by grantmakers, companies, grants or 990s. Foundation profiles include critical information important to nonprofit grantseekers including limitations, program areas, geographic giving focus, application guidelines, and more. It also includes information on over 80,000 foundations and core reference materials on grants, proposal writing, nonprofit management and current trends in philanthropy. The Foundation Directory Online can only be accessed at the Keene Public Library. Please see a librarian at the Reference or Youth Service Desks for login assistance.
Get Help with your Homework
Homework is a fact of life for students. So before you find yourself “stuck” while helping with a science project or prepping for a math quiz, take time to learn about homework help and tutoring services at your public library.
HELP @ YOUR LIBRARY
Schedule an appointment on-site with a volunteer tutor. The library offers free tutoring provided by trained volunteers to help all grade levels with research, writing, homework help and more. Call the library at 603-352-0157 for more information or to schedule an appointment with a tutor.
HELP AT HOME & OUT IN THE COMMUNITY
Get into a routine. Set a regular time for homework that works for everyone at home, and make your home a no-distraction zone.
Check out your child’s school library website or Facebook page to see what research tools can help with homework. School librarians work with classroom teachers to develop bibliographies, webliographies and other “pathfinders” for research projects.
Never stop learning! Demonstrate the joy of being a lifelong learner by exploring new areas of interest and continuing to learn about subjects that appeal to you.
CONNECT WITH A VIRTUAL STUDY BUDDY
The Keene Public Library helps students by offering an online tutor program. The program is free of charge. All you need is a library card and a willingness to spend time learning the steps it takes to arrive at the right answer.
“We offer the service with the idea that the student is not being given the answer, but is helped to solve it themselves,” says Gail Zachariah, Head of Youth and Community Services. The service caters to kindergarten students all the way through college, but most users are teens and young adults between sixth grade and college. “The average length of a session is about 20 minutes long with math and science being the biggest hits.”
Here’s how it works:
Grab your library card, and head to your local library. Access the library’s Web site (www.keenepubliclibrary.org) on one of our internet computers or your home computer and find the Tutor.com icon.
Enter your library card number, and answer a few questions. This helps the program connect you with an expert tutor who can help answer your homework questions.
Meet with your assigned tutor in an online classroom, where you can interact via text-chat, an interactive white board with drag-and-drop tools, Web browsing and file sharing.
At the end of the session, you can e-mail yourself the transcript or print out the entire session.
Have a geometry problem that’s simply puzzling? The online classroom’s drag-and-drop tools include 3-D shapes, a virtual protractor, graphing paper background, most math symbols and even math equations. Everything can be dragged and dropped onto the whiteboard where you and the tutor can work together in real time.
Even making sense of your English assignments may become easier. If you are working on a term paper, the site allows you to share the document and watch while your tutor edits in real time.
Other popular topics offered through the service include:
Math: Elementary, Algebra I, Algebra II, Geometry, Trigonometry, Statistics, Calculus (AP levels too)
Science: Elementary, Earth Science, Biology, Chemistry, Physics (AP levels too)
Social Studies: U.S. History, World History
English: Writing, Grammar, Vocabulary, Book Reports, Essay Writing, Creative Writing
Tutor.com has been working with libraries since 2000. And don’t worry: The service comes approved by your friends.
“We have over a 90 percent recommend-to-friend-rate from students and thousands of great comments,” says Jennifer Kohn, vice president of corporate communications with Tutor.com.
What’s the best part about the service? It’s offered even when the lbirary is closed. We provide the service every day -- even Sundays -- from 3:00 p.m. until 10:00 p.m.
ASK A LIBRARIAN!
Your librarians can be the most valuable asset when looking for homework help. The Keene Public Library has an Ask A Librarian link on its homepage that lets users ask a librarian questions regarding an assignment or some other information need. And even if the librarian doesn’t know the answer, someone will be able to point you in the direction of a virtual or on-site resource that can. Good luck!
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License.
Library Offers Aspiring Writers Workshop Series
Aspiring authors are invited to join a writers' group led by local author Jack Coey. The groups will meet on Thursday evenings through November 17 at 7 p.m. at the Keene Public Library located at 60 Winter Street. All programs at the library, are free and open to the public. Each week, participants will share partial manuscripts with other members of the group so they may take them home for a week and at the next session have a 'feedback' session. The workshops are for teen and author writers of writers of realistic fiction and all experience levels. Jack Coey is the author of Lights from Monadnock and Two Legged Foxes both of which deal with the Dean Murders. For more information about programs at the library, please contact the Keene Public Library at 603-352-0157.
The most important school supply of all is available @ your library®
When it comes to heading back to school, it’s important that your child has the all the tools they need to start off the school year right. So between trips to the store for glue sticks, markers and three-ring binders, be sure to stop by your library and pick up the most important school supply of all – a library card. Studies show that children who read in the home and use the library perform better in school and are more likely to continue to use the library as a source of lifetime learning.
September is Library Card Sign-up Month, a time when the American Library Association (ALA) and libraries across the country remind parents and caregivers that a library card is the most important school supply of all. We have a special webpage on how to get a library card, that can answer all of your questions regarding eligibility.
Owning a library card provides students the resources they need to compete academically. Like most public libraries (89.6 percent), the Keene Public Library provides students free access to databases of news articles, encyclopedias and test preparation materials, as well as homework help and resources. In addition, public libraries are the number one access point for free Internet access, an important resource for families without access at home when 96 percent of school districts require students to use the Internet to complete their homework. Information regarding Internet access at the library is also available on our website.
“The library card is the smartest card in my wallet,” remarks Cal Ripken, Jr. Baseball Hall of Famer and Honorary Chair of Library Card Sign-up Month.
For ideas on how to use your library card to spend family time together, visit the http://atyourlibrary.org/connectwithyourkids web page. Connect with your kids encourages parents to use the resources at their library to spend quality time with their children at the library, at home and in their community.