Carnival of the Animals this Saturday!

The Fort Wayne Ballet Youth Company will be performing Carnival of the Animals at the main library on Saturday, March 5th at 11am & 2pm. Doors will open fifteen minutes before the performance, seating is limited.

Suddenly Stories and MORE!

Today is THE day to be downtown!

9am - 1pm - Visit the library at Barr Street Market to make a pasta necklace
10am -4pm - Used book sale in the Program Room of Children's Services
11am - The Fort Wayne Dance Collective will perform Books Alive! in the library theater
2pm - Suddenly Stories: School Days in Children's Services

Fort Wayne Dance Collective

The Fort Wayne Dance Collective Touring Company will present a free performance of Books Alive! in the theater at the Main Library.

This delightful literacy-based performance invites students into the world of children’s books including Dr. Seuss’ The Foot Book, Babette Cole’s Princess Smartypants, Alma Flor Ada’s The Gold Coin and The Z was Zapped by Chris Van Allsburg.

This 45 minute program engages the audience through dance, theater and a variety of interesting props while delivering an unusual and humorous performance that will ignite your child’s imagination. Performers include Brittney Coughlin, Kelly Horne, Gloria Minnich and Liz Monnier.

Seating is limited, free tickets will be distributed beginning at 9am on the day of performance.

Check this out! Jim Gill HERE Tomorrow!

Jim Gill will be at the main library, performing on the plaza for four shows:
Friday July 23 2:00pm AND 7:00pm
Saturday July 24 11:00am AND 1:00 pm

Japanese Cherry Blossom Festival

Cherry Blossom Festivals are held all over Japan in spring every year. Hanami is the Japanese word for cherry blossom viewing parties. At hanami parties, people have fun, drinking, eating, and singing during the day or night. It is like a picnic under the trees. Usually, people bring food, do BBQ, or buy food from vendors for hanami parties.

People of all ages are warmly invited to attend a Japanese Cherry Blossom Festival right here at the Main Library, May 31st from 12:00 - 6:00 PM.
There will be Japanese food, traditional dance, a bonsai exhibit and a karaoke competition among other activities.

This Week in Children's Services

This is a week full of events in Children's Services at the Main Library:

• Today at 2pm and 6:30 pm Fairies and Other Dancing Forest Creatures with the Fort Wayne Ballet. Bring the entire family to this free mini-performance by the Fort Wayne Ballet featuring selections from A Midsummer Night’s Dream. Look for fairies and other forest creatures during this magical presentation.
• Wednesday, March 4 at 10:30 a.m. Smart Start Preschool Storytime: Colors! Colors! Colors!
• Wednesday, March 4 at 1pm and 2:15pm Elements of Music with the Fort Wayne Philharmonic. Learn about the elements of music and hear them demonstrated by members of the Fort Wayne Philharmonic. Instrument demonstrations will include the Bass, the Harp, and the Xylophone.
• Thursday, March 5 @ 10:30am Disney on Ice Presents: Mickey & Minnie's Magical Journey. Come hear the story of Peter Pan followed by a special meet and greet with the stars from Disney On Ice presents Mickey and Minnie's Magical Journey. The first 100 children will receive a Peter Pan pennant. Tickets are required for this free event. Pick up your free tickets in Children's Services after 9am on Thursday, March 5th.
• Thursday, March 5 @ 6:30pm Paws to Read. Come to the library and read a story to a book-loving dog.
• Friday, March 6 @ 10am Babies and Books: Peek-A-Boo!
  
• Friday, March 6 @ 10:30am and 11am Toddler Time: Peek-A-Boo!
  
• Friday, March 6 @ 2pm Fabulous Fridays Homeschool Book Club: Early Reader Roundup (Grades K - 2): Cowgirl Kate and Cocoa, by Erica Silverman & Reading Rocks! (Grades 3 - 5): Frindle, by Andrew Clements

Fairies and Other Dancing Forest Creatures

The Fort Wayne Ballet will be returning to the ACPL on Monday, March 2nd at 2:00 pm and 6:30 pm to present a mini-performance of selections from A Midsummer Night's Dream. Look for fairies and other forest creatures during this magical performance!

Performances will be held in the Main Library Theater.

2008 - The Year in Review

2008 was a busy year in Children's Services! Here are some highlights:


In January 2008 musicians from the Fort Wayne Philharmonic performed pieces from Beethoven Lives Upstairs in the Jeffrey R. Krull Gallery.


In February 2008, the winners of the Your Reading Pet Photo Contest were announced.


In March 2008 over 300 children & adults attended the Homeschool Sneak Preview.


In April 2008 the kids in the Early Reader Roundup group practiced their emotions with Mo Willem's Elephant & Piggie characters.


In May 2008 Time 2 Chime, the homeschool handchime choir, finished off their year of practice with a live performance.


In June 2008, Fritz the GermanFest dog stopped by Children's Services to sign up for the Catch the Reading Bug Summer Reading Program.


In July 2008 kids had the opportunity to meet a ballet dancer from the Fort Wayne Ballet as part of a special SmartStart Preschool Storytime.


In August 2008 kids displayed their good sportsmanship and concentration skills at the Children's Services Chess Tournament.


In September 2008 things got very fancy at the Fancy Nancy Tea Party.


In October 2008 the Art Out of the Box kids painted two cars on the Library Plaza.



In November 2008 hundreds of children and grown ups enjoyed performances by Justin Roberts and the Not Ready for Naptime Players.

On December 31, 2008 we prepared for another wonderful year!

Please remember: The Main Library and all branches of the ACPL will close at 5pm today & will be closed all day tomorrow. Please visit early to pick up your books and other materials. The Main Library will re-open on Friday, January 2nd at 9am. Branch libraries will re-open at 10am.

Ballet Dreams Storytime

This morning's Ballet Dreams storytime was so much fun! We read Angelina Ballerina by Katharine Holabird, Over in the Meadow at the Big Ballet by Lisa Shulman, and Ballerina! by Peter Sis. We danced the entire List of Dances with Jim Gill and we Put Our Hands Up in the Air with Hap Palmer. After the stories and songs, Lucia Rogers from The Fort Wayne Ballet taught us the five ballet positions, showed us jumps, leaps and arabesques. She also answered all of our questions about ballet and then she posed for photos with us. See the rest of the ballet-tastic photos here!

Fort Wayne Ballet

Today at 2pm, join us in the Theatre at the Main Library for Life in the Arts with the Fort Wayne Ballet. Dancers will share information about their lives and then present a mini-performance.
At 6:30pm, Dancing Dogs and More! will be presented in the Theatre. This will include a discussion of the book James the Dancing Dog by Linda Maybarduk and a mini-performance by the ballet.

Summer Reading Program Events

This week in Children's Services at the Main Library:

• Tuesday, July 15th @ 7pm - Make Your Own Recycled Art (registration required)
• Wednesday, July 16th @ 10:30am - Smart Start Storytime Ladybugs
• Wednesday, July 16th @ 2pm - Life in the Arts presentation and mini-performance by the Fort Wayne Ballet
• Wednesday, July 16th @ 6:30pm - Dancing Dogs and More presentation and mini-performance by the Fort Wayne Ballet
• Thursday, July 17th @ 10:30am - Team Read
• Thursday, July 17th @ 6:30pm - Paws to Read
• Friday, July 18th @ 10am - Babies & Books
• Friday, July 18th @ 10:30am & 11am - Toddler Time
• Saturday, July 19th - All Day - Creative & Crafty Saturdays
• Saturday, July 19th - 9am to 1pm - Visit us at Barr St. Market to make a pot and plant a seed to take home.
  

You still have time to get involved in the summer reading program!