You can learn about and register for programs for children of all ages here. To see which programs you are already registered for, click here
The Storyteller in Residence is a new residency that includes workshops, one-on-one consultations, and the gathering of stories from the community. Storytellers and listeners of all ages will find elements to enjoy during this residency.
Read more about "Connecting people to new ideas and stories "A book club at the Library was the beginning of Susan Calder's Library Story
Read more about "Susan Calder's Library Story"Growing up, Stephanie Mok found the Library to be a “safe haven.”Stephanie, now 27, grew up in southeast Calgary and frequented Fish Creek Library and Southwood Library. She spent most of her time after school and on weekends, from the age of 8 until she was 14, at the Library. To Stephanie, this was “a pretty critical timeline” in her life.“Honestly, it was the spot that I would come to all the time. Things in my home life were not ideal so as opposed to hanging out in the neighbourhood, I found [the Library] was an enriching place, a safer spot and also a place where you could meet up with a friend from school and not feel embarrassed,” said Stephanie. “It was kind of my little secret place I would go.”Being an only child of a single mother, who worked long hours during the evenings and weekends as a nurse, Stephanie used the Library as a place to go instead of going home to an empty house. She said her mother was comforted to know that she was at the Library, doing homework or reading about unicorns — science fiction was her favourite genre. Sitting in the Fish Creek Library today brings back memories of Stephanie’s youth. Although some things have changed, she says the Library is still a stunning space. Stephanie remembers liking that the staff and other people who frequented the Library were happy to answer questions or let her use a computer to look up things she was interested in.“I was never uncomfortable, I was always happy,” Stephanie said with nostalgia.Over time, Stephanie’s connection to the Library has changed. She used to work for United Way, where she would find volunteers to help deliver tax clinics at libraries around the city.Stephanie now works as an organizer for the Calgary Folk Music Festival, while pursuing an undergraduate degree in social work at the University of Calgary. She is also the president of Otafest, an anime convention in Calgary. As the organization doesn’t have a physical location, they’re constantly looking for places to hold meetings. The Library’s free and bookable meeting rooms are an accessible place for the group to meet.Throughout her life, the Library has been — and continues to be — an important place. “I found a safe haven, which broadened my horizons and, I believe, saved my life.”We want to know how the Library has made a difference in your life. Submit your own Library Story online.
Read more about "Stories ‘The Library Broadened My Horizons’ Stephanie Mok’s Library Story helped her through a difficult childhood"Calgary Public Library now has five mobile libraries that are rolling into communities around the city!Three vehicles are Book Trucks, bringing books, movies, and other Library services directly to the community. Our Book Trucks stop at regularly scheduled locations, and are also available to visit school or community events. Come aboard the Book Truck to get a free Library card, browse and borrow items, return items, or attend seasonal children’s programs.The fleet of libraries on wheels also includes two Story Trucks. These vehicles are designed to bring literacy activities directly to young children at day homes in select neighbourhoods. Library staff share stories, songs, and rhymes with children, through the Library Month at Your Day Home program.For our newest Story Truck, the Library worked with Mo Willems, children’s author and creator of Don’t Let the Pigeon Drive the Bus! and many other beloved titles.“The fact that the Story Truck team is leaving the building and going directly to the kids means they rock that much more!” Mo Willems says.Want the Story Truck to visit your day home? Requests can be made via this form. You can also request a Book Truck visit for your community event or school.
Read more about "Stories Meet the Library’s Newest Story Truck"Join us after dark in Central Memorial Park for frightful stories by candlelight.
Read more about "Ghoulish Ghost Stories"Bonjour! ¿Cómo estás? Grazie! These phrases might look familiar, but learning a language goes beyond the basics. Get practical knowledge with Rosetta Stone — one of the world’s most respected language learning solutions. It offers lessons in over 30 languages and is available for free with your Library card. Whether you want to discuss in Dari, inform in Italian, or talk in Turkish, here are some of the features that set Rosetta Stone a step above the rest for language learning. Seek and Speak Turn your everyday environment into practical language practice using your phone or tablet camera. Just point and shoot within the app to pull up information about how the object of your choice is pronounced in the language you’re studying. Practical Lesson Topics Learning with this app is catered to your needs, and you can begin to learn the parts of the language you’re interested in right away. Learning a new language for your job? Focus on topics like Business and Industry, or Professions and Hobbies. Want to learn a new language with your classmates? Study up on Work and School — or maybe Friends and Social Life. Lesson Structure Each step of your learning is broken down into parts of language theory that are easy to digest. After each Core Lesson, which acts as an overview of what you’re about to learn, you will go into greater detail on Pronunciation, Grammar, Vocabulary, Writing, Reading, Listening, and Speaking, depending on the lesson. Reasonable Teaching Times Larger lessons are broken down into smaller pieces, so you can progress towards your goals in a meaningful way whenever you have a spare moment. Lesson times vary from five to ten minutes each and are labelled so that you know how long each lesson will take before you begin, allowing you to squeeze in some learning any time. Phrasebook It can be hard to learn a language when you don’t know any other speakers to practice with. You can substitute that in-person interaction with Phrasebook. With this feature, hear native speakers of the language you’re learning pronounce common words and phrases so that you can get a feel for how the language works in real life, with real people. Stories The best way to learn a new skill is to practice it. After you’ve completed each Core Lesson, check out Stories for a chance to apply what you’ve learned in a more holistic way, by listening to and reading stories in the language you’re studying. This gives you a chance to identify and use the phrases you’ve learned in a more conversational environment than the simple sentences used in the Core Lessons. Accessible Anywhere Rosetta Stone doesn’t depend on Wi-Fi or cellular connectivity to deliver lessons. You can choose from plenty of pre-downloaded lessons within each learning unit — so you have time to brush up on your skills wherever you are. Download Rosetta Stone for iOS and Android.
Read more about "Stories Learn Languages Online for Free with Rosetta Stone"Take a trip back in time with recorded history programs Miss out on a program, or want to rewatch one you loved? Check out the free history programs on our YouTube channel to hear accounts from experts in local history, international archeology, and more. Select a program
Read more about "Take a trip back in time with recorded history programs"Stories are cultural teachings handed down through generations. Remember that stories are there to educate or help you; they are not frivolous or strictly for entertainment.
Read more about "Treat stories as a gift."How has the Calgary Public Library made a difference in your life?We posed this question one year ago, and started sharing people’s answers through our Library Stories initiative. Calgarians told us memorable stories, about how the Library made them feel connected to their community, how it brought families closer together, and how it helped during challenging times.For Henry Bastidas, who came to Canada from Venezuela, at first, the Library was where he attended free ESL, careers, and technology programs. Today, it’s a place where he gives back and helps others, by volunteering with the popular after-school program Math Quest.Daniel Rankin and his daughter Christine were impressed to learn they could sign out instruments at Memorial Park Library, and use their new Library cards at home to download eBooks and take online courses. More importantly, they discovered the Library was a place to be together.Connections are also key for Mirna Khaled and her twins Julia and Jalal, who regularly visit Forest Lawn Library. Libraries are the perfect place to meet neighbours and friends, they say. Forest Lawn Library is also where Michelle Robinson organizes an Indigenous-focused book club that she says has changed her life.These are just a few of the stories Calgarians have shared over the past year, since the launch of the Library Stories initiative.We heard from people of varying ages, from 11-year-old Esandi Babaranda — who loves reading at the beautiful Crowfoot Library — to 90-year-old Nellie Befus, who has volunteered with Calgary Public Library for 44 consecutive years.For some people, including Stephanie Mok and Scottie Grinton, Calgary’s libraries have been a safe place they turned to during challenging times.Others credit the Library with helping shape their careers, like Val Lawton, who spent countless hours at Giuffre Family Library when starting out as a children’s book illustrator.For newcomer Boban Stojanovic, receiving a Library card at Nose Hill Library was significant. Amid an ongoing refugee claimant process, the card gave him a sense of belonging and made him feel equal to other Calgarians.The subject of our most recent Library Story, Frank O’Keeffe, first signed up for a Calgary Public Library card about 50 years ago. How he uses the Library has changed over the years, from a place to study to a place to feel companionship. Libraries, says Frank, are invaluable places in our communities.Thank you to the many people who shared their stories with us over the past year!We want to know how the Library has made a difference in your life. Submit your own Library Story online.
Read more about "Stories One Year of Library Stories The Library has been inspiring life stories for over 100 years. This year, we started sharing them."Do you have a story to tell — an experience that changed your life or an act of kindness you just can't forget? Join this free CBC Calgary writing workshop. In four sessions, you...
Read more about "Telling your Story: CBC Calgary Writing Workshop"Be mindful to not interrupt the Elder who is sharing until they give you the space to speak. This shows the Elder that you respect them and their teachings.
Read more about "Give your time and attention."Whether you live right on the edge of Calgary’s city limits and drive to work downtown, or live in the heart of the city and hop on transit to get where you need to go, many Calgarians have a commute to contend with. If that travel time is starting to get you down, don’t worry — you can transform it with these resources, all free with your Library card.AudiobooksIf your drive to work keeps your hands at the wheel, or your walk means keeping an eye out for obstacles, that doesn’t mean you can’t still be catching up on your reading. Library members can stream or download hours of audiobook titles from AudioBookCloud, OverDrive, and Libby to listen to on their way to work.eBooksTired of lugging around books to read on the train or bus? Opt for the ease of an eBook on your phone or tablet. With eBooks from Libby, LitFinder, and a resource just for Alberta eBooks, you can store thousands of great reads right in your pocket. For younger readers, check out BookFlix, Study Buddy, and TumbleBook Library for children’s eBooks.Movies and TV ShowsCan’t find time to watch the latest movies and TV shows? Start and end your day with shows and movies on Kanopy. This Digital Resource offers over 30,000 documentaries, classics, international films, and training videos, including selections from the Criterion Collection, Great Courses, and Frontline series, along with film and TV for kids.Newspapers and MagazinesIf you like to start your day by perusing the morning paper, the Library can help. Use Digital Resources including the New York Times Online, Canadian Newsstream, and PressReader to read news from local and international publications. If magazines are your preference, you can read popular publications with Flipster Online Magazines, and PressReader including People, Macleans, Time, Canadian Geographic, and Vogue.
Read more about "Stories Four Ways to Transform Your Commute with Free Library Resources"Listen and read-along to animated story books for young children.
Read more about "TumbleBook Library"Read, sing, talk, and play together in this interactive circle time.
Read more about "A-B-C: You and Me"