Our book displays have metamorphosed to match the theme of our Summer Reading Kickoff for June! Read about bees, butterflies, hummingbirds, and other pollinators, learn more about insects and their relationships with humans and the environment, or enjoy some fiction featuring not-so-creepy-crawlies in starring and supporting roles. Stop in and pick up a book today… and don’t forget to attend our special What’s the Buzz? Presentation on June 8th, 2:00–3:30 PM!
What’s the Buzz?
Saturday, June 8 | 2:00 – 3:30 PM
This summer, our Pollinator Pathway garden will be part of a research project tracking the movement of bees through pollinator gardens in the Bethany area. We are pleased to have Breahna Gillespie, Ph.D. (a research scientist from the Department of Entomology at the Connecticut Agricultural Experiment Station) here to talk with us about her work and the research she will be conducting this summer.
Come learn about how bees are tracked as pollinators, and the work that is being done to encourage pathways throughout Connecticut. Plant some seeds and take home a pot to add a pollinator-friendly plant to your garden. All ages – all fun!
The Bethany Community School’s LEGO Club will be meeting at Clark Memorial Library again this summer! The program is open to patrons of all ages; drop-in from 2:00 to 4:00 PM on Wednesdays, starting June 5th. We have both LEGO and DUPLO blocks. Stop by and get creative!
The Library will be kicking off its Summer Reading Program on June 8th!
Young patrons can take part in our Read & Bead program, which will run throughout the summer during Library hours. Pick up a Read & Bead Chart in the Children’s Room and check off a box for each 20 minutes of reading you do over the summer. You’ll earn one bead or charm for each checked-off box on the chart – by the time summer is over, you’ll have an amazing personalized necklace celebrating your reading achievements!
The Library will also be providing Reading Journals for the CT Reads! Governor’s Summer Reading Challenge. You can count your summer reading time towards both the challenge and your Read & Bead Chart!
This week in our Makerspace, create a special spinner card
that cycles through compliments for Mom to give her on Mother’s Day!
The craft is available during Library hours, while supplies last.
The growing season is in full swing! Garden Tomes are sprouting on the Library’s displays, featuring guides for gardeners and aspiring botanists, stories set in gardens and on farms, and protagonists who care for their local natural and green spaces.
Stop by and pick a few!
Don’t forget, there’s a permanent Horticulture and Gardening display upstairs, just outside of the Teens & Tweens area – and our nonfiction collection also includes a selection of books recommended by Sustainable Bethany.
Help us shape the future of Clark Memorial Library!
The Bethany Library Association is creating a new strategic plan and would like your input! Whether you use the Library or not, please take a few minutes to share your thoughts and opinions – a short survey is available at www.surveymonkey.com/r/5KTDNL2 or via the QR code above.
Our book displays this month feature poetry collections, books written in verse, and the biographies of famous poets, and out on the front lawn our storywalk showcases a selection of spring-themed poems and rhymes!
It’s all in honor of National Poetry Month, a celebration of poetry’s important place in our lives and poets’ integral role in our culture. Launched by a nonprofit charitable organization called the Academy of American Poets in April 1996, it has become the largest literary celebration in the world! This year’s National Poetry Month poster features a line of poetry by a former Chancellor of the Academy of American Poets, Lucille Clifton, and artwork by children’s author and illustrator Jack Wong.
More than 150 libraries in Connecticut will be taking part in the Connecticut Library Association‘s Passport to CT Libraries program this year to celebrate National Library Week! We invite you to take this opportunity to visit as many public libraries as possible; each has its own architecture, vibe, and collection to explore and browse!
The Passport program is open to both children and adults, and we hope that it will encourage residents to explore the amazing diversity of our public libraries.
To participate in the program, visit Clark Memorial Library between April 1 & April 30 to pick up your Passport and have it stamped. Then, take your Passport along as you visit other participating libraries. At each location, be sure to get your Passport stamped; if you visit at least five (5) participating libraries and return your Passport to a participating library by Friday, May 10, you will be entered into a state-wide drawing for a chance to win a $200 Visa gift card for adults (18 and up) and a $200 Visa gift card for children (under 18). This is a state-wide contest where four winners will be selected: one adult and one child from a random drawing of all returned Passports with at least five separate library stamps, and the adult and child who visited the most libraries/received the most stamps total. Get exploring and good luck!
The Library’s March book displays feature stories about collecting clues and navigating mazes, as well as books of wordplay, whodunnits, and hidden object puzzles.
Stop by during your next visit and find something to stump you!
