Paws to Read

Tessie, our certified therapy Labradoodle,will visit the library Wednesday, January 14 and Friday, January 23 for our special Paws to Read program. Children in kindergarten through 3rd grade may sign-up to practice their reading skills with Tessie. Please visit the Children's Room to register. For more information click here.

Congratulations!

Congratulations to our 2014 Story Writing Contest Winners!

1^st – 3^rd Grade

1^st Place: The Antarctic Animal Adventure by Gavin

2^nd Place: The Magic Talking Monkey by Harry

3^rd Place: The Missing Mask of Sellasville by Avonlea Jane

Honorable Mentions (in no particular order)

Back in Time by Ben

The Park by A.B.

Tara Goes to the Beach by Zayana

The Duckling Friends by Lauren

The Lost Tooth by Kassi

Charlie the Cute Little Kitten by Brooke

Rocket Saves the Day by Gian

Sunny’s Talent by Charlotte

Owlie Goes to the Shop by Addi

The Fight and the Know it All by Nicole

Surprise at the Beach by Elsa

My Birthday by Cooper

4^th – 6^th Grade

1^st Place: Mouse Cottage by Ellen

2^nd Place: Empty Hand by Meena

3^rd Place: The Perils of Time Travel by Jack

Honorable Mentions (in no particular order)

The Case of the Stolen Marshmellow by Eli

The Lost Key by Sophie

The Mysterious Man by Olivia

Many thanks to our esteemed panel of judges:

Sarah Lauderdale, Head of Reference, H-W Library

Barbara Lawrence, Ed.D., Local Author

Janet Mackay Smith, Managing Editor, Gatehouse Media New England

Helping Hands

We are still collecting non-perishable items for the Acord Food Pantry. Your donations will make a timely difference in helping local families in need. Please drop off your donations in the Children's Room shopping cart. Let's see how many times we can fill the cart before the end of December!

The Nutcracker!

Wear your favorite dance outfit to the library tomorrow, Tuesday, December 2nd at 10:30 am! The Boston Ballet School will be here to present the music and story of The Nutcracker. Families will dance together and will get to see real tutus, tunics and pointe shoes. No registration necessary.

Science is Everywhere Grant Kickoff

The library has won an important grant from the federal Institute of Museum and Library Services through the Library Services and Technology Act administered by the Massachusetts Board of Library Commissioners. Beginning Monday, December 1, we will be celebrating science here with all kinds of cool displays, games to play like bingo and a scavenger hunt, newly purchased videos and books for borrowing, and the opportunity to sign up for the Winter and Spring STEM programs. View the upcoming schedule of events here and join the fun!

Story Contest Deadline

The last day to submit your original story for our story writing contest is approaching swiftly! All entries must follow the guidelines and be submitted no later than Saturday, November 29th by 4 PM. For details click here, or visit the Children's Room.

Acord Food Pantry

If you have visited the library recently you may have noticed a shopping cart parked in the Children's Room (thank you Crosby's Market). We invite you to drop off non-perishable items for the Acord Food Pantry. The cart will remain through December. Please note the Acord Food Pantry cannot accept expired food of any kind. Thank you in advance for your kindness. Your donations will make a timely difference in helping local families in need. Let's see how many times we can fill it!

All Aboard!

The Friends of the Hamilton-Wenham Public Library have purchased a beautiful new train set for the Children's Room! Thank you so much for your continued support and generosity.

Please stop by the Children's Room to play with the new train. There is a helicopter, an airport, a construction site, a fire department and more. Choo choo and all aboard!

Art Club Meets Thursday

Betsy is back! Join us on Thursday, November 13th at 3:30 PM for Art Club. Bring your imagination and use our materials to create a unique masterpiece. No experience or registration necessary.

Toto the Tornado Kitten

Toto the kitten was caught in the tornado that hit Brimfield, MA in 2011. Join us on Thursday, November 6th at 3:30 p.m. to hear Toto's extraordinary story of survival, and meet Toto and owner Jonathan! Jonathan and Toto donate their time and have raised over $40,000 for animal shelters, including the Animal Rescue League of Boston, whose rescue services team were responsible for Toto's survival. All ages are welcome and no registration is required.

Eyeball Contest Winners!

Congratulations to the winners of the "eyeball" guessing contest!

Isabella, 4

and

Michaela, 10

There were 87 eyeballs in the jar.

If you didn't win this month, the November contest is ready for you to try again!

Paws to Read with Tessie!

Tessie, our beloved certified therapy Labradoodle, is visiting the library on Monday, November 3 in the afternoon. Children in kindergarten through 3rd grade may sign-up to practice their reading skills with Tessie. Please call or visit the Children's Room to register. For more info click here.

Booo-tiful Pumpkins!

What did the ghost eat for lunch? A BOOOO-logna sandwich!

Thank you to everyone who joined us for our pumpkin decorating day. The pumpkins look great! There is still time for you to join the fun and enter our pumpkin decorating contest. Every participant wins a prize! For the contest rules click here, or visit the Children's Room. The contest ends October 31st. Please, no carved pumpkins.

Paws to Read

We have plenty of space available for children in Kindergarten through 3rd grade who would like to read with Tessie the dog! Tessie is a certified therapy dog, and will visit the Hamilton-Wenham Children's Room on Monday, November 3rd and Thursday November, 20th. Pre-registration in person is required. For more information click here.

Art Club

Join us on Friday, October 17th at 3:30 pm for another sensational session of Art Club with Betsy. No experience or registration required. This program is designed for kids in preschool and up.

How "Shell" We Say Goodbye to Summer?

Congratulations to the winners of our shell guessing contest!

Brendan, age 4

Adam, age 8

& William, age 8

There were 142  shells in the jar.

Checkmate! Chess For Kids

Chess for Kids is back! Join Sandra Stolle, former teacher and chess instructor, for some chess fun. Come find out how to play the game, learn new moves, and sharpen your skills.This program runs every Thursday in October from 3:30 - 4:30 PM, and is designed for kids in 1st - 6th grade. No prior experience necessary. Come to all the sessions, or just a few. Please register for this program in the Children's Room.

Fall Registration is Open!

Registration for the fall session is now open, and we still have space available in many of our programs. Please visit the Children's Room to register in person. For a complete schedule please click here.

Art Club is Back!

Is your child a budding artist who loves to paint and create? Drop by the Children's Room program area for Art Club at the Library this fall! Betsy, our favorite art teacher, explores a variety of materials and techniques, and facilitates a unique opportunity for kids to express their ideas through art. Art Club meets tomorrow, Thursday, September 18th at 3:30 PM. No experience or registration required. For more information about future Art Club meeting times click here.

Lego Club - It's A Snap! Lego Art

Thank you to all of our Lego Club participants for helping out with our Lego community art project! We designed and assembled a Lego landscape for the Wenham Museum special exhibit: It's a Snap! Community Lego Art. We added pizzazz to our design by including special Lego pieces that were fabricated on the Library's 3-D printer. Please make sure you stop by the Wenham Museum to take a peek at our creation.

Lego Club at the Hamilton-Wenham Library runs on Wednesdays from September 10th - November 19th at 3:00 p.m. This is a non-competitive, non-robotics program, created to share the joy of Legos. No experience or registration necessary. Stop by and join the fun!

Happy Autumn! Fall program schedule is now available

Our fall schedule is now posted here (and above on the fall program tab) and there are informational flyers in the Children's Room as well. Registration for most programs will begin on September 22 at 10 a.m. in person in the Children's Room. Please check back frequently, as new programs are added throughout the season.

August Art Club

Art Club is tomorrow, Thursday, August 21st at 3:00 pm. Drop in to complete a fun art project with Betsy, and explore a variety of art materials and techniques! No experience or registration necessary. This program is free, open to the public, and designed for children in preschool and up.

Musical Storytime Jam: Summertime Fun!

Two sessions: Monday Aug. 18 & 25 at 10:15 - 11:00.  On the 18^th the theme is “At the Beach”, the 25^th will feature “At the Carnival”. This is a music and movement story time class for parents with children ages 0-5.  This is an intentional playgroup with emphasis on literacy, cognitive, social, emotional and physical development. Learn about your child's development while you play, move, explore instruments, sing, read and have fun together. FREE to the community, register to register, please contact: Lisa Cheney at 978-468-5489 or e.cheney@hwschools.net.

Celebrating Summer Reader Success with the Ice Cream Party

We are reminding all of our summer readers that our ice cream party is a rain or shine event, tomorrow beginning at 6 pm. Please remember to bring your reading log as your ticket to the party. The store will not have hours during the the party, but there is still time left to cash in your boom bucks! On Friday the 15th at 3 pm the store will close for the season. When coming to receive/redeem book bucks, we kindly request that you come during store hours only. Thank you for a great summer of reading!

Detecting Deweybot Weeks 4 & 5

Congratulations to our Detecting Deweybot winners for weeks 4 & 5! Vanessa, age 9, spotted Deweybot at Family Medicine Associates in Hamilton, and Chloe, age 6, detected Deweybot at Grassy Roots. This week, Deweybot is visiting her last venue before her return trip to the Children's Room. Will you spot her? If you see Deweybot, make sure you stop by the Children's Room to fill out a raffle ticket for a chance to win a special prize.

Mousetrap Science

Join us on Wednesday, August  6th at 6:30 p.m. for Mousetrap Science. Jungle Jim explains the mechanics of simple machines, and  invites volunteers to construct a Rube Goldberg-style mousetrap to solve the problem of a mouse on the loose! This program is offered at no charge, is open to the public, and is suitable for all ages. No Registration Required.

Detecting Deweybot Week 3!

Congratulations Isaac, age 7, for detecting Deweybot at the Wenham Post Office! Where will Deweybot visit next, and will you spot her? You could be the next winner! If you see Deweybot, make sure you stop by the Children's Room to fill out a raffle ticket for a chance to win.

Photography Contest Deadline!

Attention all budding photographers! The photo contest deadline is rapidly approaching.  All photo submissions must be received by 8 pm, Thursday, July 31.  Get all the details and guidelines here.
All entries win prizes!

Detecting Deweybot Week 2

Congratulations Emma, age 11, for detecting Deweybot at The Singing Flower! Where will Deweybot visit next, and will you spot her? You could be the next winner! If you see Deweybot, make sure you stop by the Children's Room to fill out a raffle ticket for a chance to win.

Animal World Experience

On Wednesday, July 23rd at 6:00 p.m., animal presenter Matt Gabriel will share his knowledge and expertise delighting us with LIVE animals that are both unique and familiar. Petting included!! No registration required, so we hope to see all of you at the library for this special event!

Build a Fairy House

This Saturday, July 19th at 10:30 a.m. we will host a garden party for the library garden fairies.Wear your favorite fairy costume, listen to a story, make a craft, join in a fairy procession, and design a magical shoebox habitat for the sprites in your backyard! No registration is required for this magical day.

Detecting Deweybot

Congratulations Mae for detecting Deweybot, our robot mascot at Talbots! Deweybot is visiting local businesses in Hamilton and Wenham through August 15th. If you spot Deweybot, make sure you stop by the Children's Room and fill out a "Detecting Deweybot" entry slip for a chance to win a special prize!

Wiggly Worms!

Congratulations to

Beau, 4

and

Ella, 9

winners of our

 “Worms” Guessing Contest!

There were

64

“worms” in the jar.

FIZZ, BOOM, READ...and register!

Monday, June 30th is going to be a big day. Starting on Monday at 10:00 a.m., you may pick-up your summer reading log and register for our summer programs! Once you collect your reading log, you may start to track your reading time to earn BOOM bucks, which may be spent in our library store. The store opens for business on Monday, July 7th through August 15th. Make sure you take a look at our summer brochure for program details, and pre-registration information.

The New Facebook Page!

We have a new Facebook page!! Please make sure you visit, and "Like" our new page, so you can receive instant updates on all of our programs and Summer Reading events.


Click the link below to take you directly to our new Facebook page.
Hamilton-Wenham Library Children's Room Facebook

Photography Workshops

Register now for the summer photography workshops! On Saturday, June 28, professional photographer Toni Carolina will guide participants as they learn basic photography techniques including framing, focusing, and flash photography and more. All experience levels welcome. Guidelines for our summer photography contest will be available at the workshops as well. Bring your point and shoot or disposable camera to the workshop. Classes are divided into different age levels, entering 1st - 3rd grade at 1 pm and entering 4th - 6th grade at 2 pm. Space is limited, so please register in the Children's Room as soon as possible!

LEGO Contest Winners!

CONGRATULATIONS TO:

Stella, age 4

&

Libby, age 8 and

Eliza, age 9

Winners of the Hamilton-Wenham Library's

2014 May LEGO Guessing Contest

There were 

167

LEGOS!

The Lego Movie

The Lego Movie is playing at the library! Bring some popcorn, a comfy cushion, and watch The Lego Movie on our big screen. You have two opportunities to watch the movie. During the intermission, join us in the "Building Zone" where you may construct a unique Lego creation (Legos are to remain at the library). For more information about this event please click here.

Growums are Back!

Add some flavor to your garden! Wednesday, June 18 at 3:00 pm, come and plant seeds to grow your very own pizza, taco, or herb garden. All materials are provided.  Growums is designed for 4 years and up. Space is limited and pre-registration is required. Please visit the Children's Room to register. Special thanks go to the Topsfield Fair who generously donated the Growums materials!

STEM & Story

Here's the latest from Coordinated Family & Community Engagement!

Join Pam Espinosa and Lisa Cheney for STEM & Story! We will sing songs, read stories, make crafts and investigate simple scientific concepts. So far, we have played with our shadows, learned about how wind moves the leaves on a tree, and discovered the science of soap bubbles! There are still several weeks left, and we would love for you to register and join in the fun.

This program is designed for budding scientists ages 2 -5, and younger siblings are welcome. STEM & Story runs on Thursdays, from May 15 - June 26 at 10:30 a.m. Please contact Lisa Cheney at 978-468-5489 or e.cheney@hwschools.net to register.

STEM & Story P.M. Edition is also available!  This special evening version of STEM & Story will be at 6:30 pm on June 19 and is for ages 2 - 5 years.  Please contact Lisa Cheney at 978-468-5489 or e.cheney@hwschools.net to register.

I AM A SCIENTIST!, a STEM workshop for parents is being offered on Thursday, June 5 at 6:30 pm. This workshop is designed to increase parent knowledge in developing STEM experiences at home.  Please contact Lisa Cheney at 978-468-5489 or e.cheney@hwschools.net to register.

Spring Eggs Contest!

Congratulations to: 

Caleb, age 5

& 

William, age 8 and

Ryanne, age 11

Winners of the Hamilton-Wenham Library's

2014 Spring Eggs Guessing Contest

There were 

679

Eggs!

Fairy Houses Needed!

Do you have shoe boxes hiding in the back of your closet? We would love to take them off your hands, and our garden fairies would be very grateful! We are collecting shoe boxes for our fairy house building program. Please drop off any donations (with or without lids) in the Children's Room. Thank you!

The New England Aquarium Presents Tidepool Adaptations

Maris of The New England Aquarium visited the Hamilton-Wenham Library during vacation week, and we had the chance to observe a variety of coastal critters, including clams, oysters, sea urchins, mussels, snails, sea stars and a bunch of different crabs to name a few.  We learned so many fun facts about sea creatures that live right here at our local beaches.  Some of us even got to dress up as a sea star! After a dynamic presentation, we had the chance to meet and hold the animals in the touch tanks. The wiggly sea star podia, or tube feet, were really neat!

The Fairytale Characters Have Escaped!

Help! Little Red Riding Hood, Snow White, plus many other characters have escaped from the pages of their books, and they are hiding in the Children's Room. The Librarians are grateful for your help in finding these beloved characters, so we can get them back into the books where they belong. Stop by the Children's Room to collect your scavenger hunt sheet, and win a wee prize.

Please hurry because Rumpelstiltskin is causing quite a bit of mischief, and he is leaving straw in some of the books.

Family Board Game Night

Family Board Game Night is on Wednesday, April 16th, so stop by the library for some old-fashioned family fun! We are hosting two sessions to try and accommodate your evening schedule. The first is 4:30 p.m. - 5:30 p.m., and the second is 6:30 p.m. - 7:30 p.m. We will have an assortment of games for you to enjoy together as a family. Stay for just a few minutes, or for the hour. No registration is necessary. This program is appropriate for families.

Super Saturdays

The Super Saturday crew had a wonderful time reading about art, painting, and color mixing. Ms. Katie even took out one of her GIANT books for everyone to enjoy. After listening to the stories, we sat down to paint with some pretty unusual objects: cars, toothbrushes, pom poms, shells and pipe-cleaners were just a few of the items we used to create our masterpieces. Everyone contributed to a giant mural, that will hang in the Children's Room for the month of April. Make sure you stop by the Children's Room to take a look at what we made together!

We would love to have you join us for our spring Super Saturdays. For our upcoming April themes click here. To view all of the Super Saturday dates on our complete program schedule click here. 

Waldorf School presents The Old Woman & The Mouse

Join us tomorrow morning at 10:30 a.m. in the Children's Room as the Cape Ann Waldorf School presents the puppet show, The Old Woman & The Mouse, a charming tale of kindness from Sweden. After the show, stay and create a soft toy using natural materials that your child can bring home.  This event is offered at no charge and is open to the public. No registration is necessary.

Tessie in the News!

Tessie and her friend Gavin made the front page of the Salem Evening News! Tessie, a certified therapy dog, regularly visits the Hamilton-Wenham Library, and patiently listens to children as they read. Paws to Read offers a unique opportunity for children to practice their reading skills, and spend some quality time cuddling with a very sweet pup.

Tessie visits monthly, so please call or visit the Children's Room, or check the blog for upcoming Paws to Read dates!

Turn Off Your Digital Device

Celebrate Brain Building in Progress Week by turning off your digital device, and join us for some family fun. Enjoy music with Peter Stewart, arts & crafts, and meet local early education specialists. Designed for children birth through 8 years and their families. This program is scheduled for Monday, April 7th from 6:00 p.m. - 7:30 p.m.

Spring 2014 Programs

The weather doesn't exactly scream SPRING, but believe it or not, our spring programs are just around the corner. We have a fantastic line-up this season, plus we have a few extra special programs scheduled for April public school vacation week! Many of the programs have limited space, and registration must be in person in the Children's Room unless otherwise stated. Pre-registration begins on Monday, April 14th at 10 a.m., so please flag that day on your calendar.

For the full program schedule please click here. Hard copies are also available in the Children's Room.

Raindrops Contest Winners!!

Congratulations to

Henry, age 5
and 
Lucy, age 10

Winners of our Raindrops Guessing Contest!
There were

234

"Raindrops" in the jar.

Art Club at the Library

Do you have a budding artist in your house? Our Art Club program is the perfect opportunity to let your kids channel their inner Picasso! Betsy, our art instructor, is full of creative and fun ideas. Last session we made multimedia collages, treasure boxes, and watercolors, just to name a few. Art Club is free and open to the public, and there is no pre-registration necessary. Please pop by for Art Club on Thursday, April 24th, May 22nd, and June 19th at 3:30 p.m., and make something magnificent. To learn more about our Spring 2014 programs click here.

Check out the incredible wax and watercolor paintings our friends made during the last Art Club class.

Paws to Read with Tessie

Sign-ups for April are open for Paws to Read. If you are in Kindergarten through 3rd grade you can register to read to Tessie, a certified therapy dog. Tessie loves to cuddle and listen to kids practice their reading skills. Tessie will join us on Thursday, April 17th. Please visit the front desk in the Children's Room to register.

Chess for Kids

Chess for Kids is back! Join Sandra Stolle, former teacher and chess instructor, on Mondays in March (3, 10, 17, & 24) from 3:30 pm - 4:30 pm to find out how to play the game, learn new moves, and sharpen your skills. Sandra will give you tips to stump your opponents! We still have space, and all skill levels are welcome. Come to all the sessions or just a few. This program is designed for kids in 1st - 6th grade and is offered at no charge. For more information check out the schedule.