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Sensory play lays an important foundation for your child's learning. These activities from our librarians and staff, which can all be done with materials found around your house, encourage brain development, open-ended thinking, fine motor skill building, and even language learning.
Read more about "Kickstart your child's love of reading"Borrow books, digital books, audiobooks, DVDs, CDs, magazines, newspapers, and even musical instruments from our collection of nearly 1.4 million items.
Read more about "Over 100 digital resources"A long-standing volunteer, Library donor Maureen has helped many young readers develop strong reading comprehension skills and discover the magic of reading.
Read more about "Enjoy a good book in the Maureen Proctor Reading Nook."After years of discrimination, threats, and violence because of their sexual orientation, Boban Stojanovic and his partner fled Serbia in October 2016 and claimed refugee protection in Canada. As they adjusted to life as newcomers in Calgary, they began to hear a common question.“Everyone kept saying ‘have you been to the library?’” says Boban, a prominent Serbian human rights activist and key organizer of the Belgrade Pride Parade. “We were like, ‘OK, but why?’ In our culture, you don’t often go to the library. It’s not such an important institution in the everyday lives of people.”At the time, the couple were anxiously awaiting a government hearing to determine if they would be granted refugee status in Canada. Boban describes that period in their lives as a stressful grey zone. “You are in some kind of limbo,” he says. “You can’t make any concrete plan because you don’t know what will happen with you.”Looking for something to take their minds off the looming hearing, the couple heeded the advice they’d repeatedly heard from insistent Calgarians: visit the library. The newcomers walked to nearby Nose Hill Library and asked about becoming members.Boban remembers nervously unfolding his refugee claimant document, the lone piece of identification he had. To his surprise, a Library employee politely handed the paper back and explained that just his full name and address were required for a free Library card.“In Serbia, everything is very bureaucratic,” Boban says. “Here, this institution is open.”‘I belong here’Boban's new plastic Library card felt significant. “This was the first official proof I belong here. I am part of this system. I have some roots in this country,” he says.The card also made him feel equal. “In that moment, I was like every other Calgarian,” he says. “They became a member the same way I became a member.”In awe of the fact one person could borrow 99 books, Boban began to explore books at Nose Hill Library. “Having the opportunity to find all those books was something that really gave me hope,” Boban says. “You must have something to occupy your mind.”As he waited for the upcoming hearing, Boban found a sense of sanctuary at Nose Hill Library. He’d read coffee table books about Scandinavian design and imagine how he would decorate his future home in Canada.Boban also borrowed autobiographies, feeling solace in the fact people he admired had also experienced ups and downs in their lives. “Reading all these books, I was more comfortable with my life,” he says. “Claiming for refugee status or waiting for the decision, it doesn’t mean something bad. Because all those people had … some very challenging periods in their lives.”An Open and Safe PlaceIn March 2017, Boban and his partner learned their claim for refugee status had been accepted. They could now apply for work permits, social insurance numbers, and to become permanent residents of Canada.Today, Boban's partner is improving his English through LINC classes, while Boban works at the Centre for Newcomers in a new role, as Settlement Practitioner for LGTBQ+ newcomers.“I am very lucky and happy and privileged to work there and to help people from my community who just came here,” he says, noting LGTBQ+ refugees face distinct challenges. Boban is grateful newcomers can turn to the Centre for Newcomers and Calgary Public Library, both open and safe places for all.Boban also worked a seasonal job at Pier 1 Imports, a position that drew on the interior design books he loves to peruse. He continues to regularly visit the Library; following a move downtown, he calls Central Library home.Boban now finds himself repeating to newcomers the line he once heard again and again: visit the library. “I never had that perception before that something called a library could be so important to my life,” he says. “Now I do.”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 Gave Me Hope’ Boban Stojanovic’s Library Story made him feel at home as a newcomer to Canada"Get on the path to find a job, build your own website, start a business, improve your English, write your book, brush up on your computer skills, prepare for college, and more. Cardholders have free access to courses with their Library card. Once registered, the Library is unable to drop or transfer you from a course. Please read the course requirements carefully prior to registering for a course.Not sure how to start? Watch the tutorial in Niche Academy: Gale Courses tutorial
Read more about "Free, interactive, instructor-led online courses. "Search Canadian history from the 16th century to 20th century through monographs (books), serials (newspapers, annuals and periodicals), and government publications. Find information on major historical events, the development of institutions, genealogy, Canadian literature and politics, trades and tariffs, and more. In English and French.
Read more about "Research Canadian history with heritage sources and scholarly journals"Scottie Grinton is a longtime Library member, a voracious reader who upped his visits when he became a father and started bringing his young son. Then in the mid ’90s, with his marriage on the rocks, the Library took on new meaning to him.“The Library deserves a bunch of credit for contributing to the saving of my sanity and my spirit,” he says.Scottie says he’s not the kind of guy that escapes to bars and clubs. Instead, the Library became his refuge.“It was a place I could go and feel safe and I could take time for myself, both in terms of escape, like reading fiction, and in terms of the sort of things I needed to keep my head on straight, like looking up counselling services,” he says.Scottie visited Nose Hill Library a few times a week. During those visits, Scottie remembers smiling Library staff who would always say hello. He found joy being in a comfortable place and devouring works of fiction. “There’s nothing safer than a book,” he says. Scottie gravitated to a diverse assortment of genres: cheesy spy thrillers, science fiction, classics he never read in high school (like Lord of the Flies), and summer reads.“I was lost,” he remembers. “When a marriage breaks down — even if a marriage ending is a good thing — your foundation is shaken up. I was looking for a place where I could feel emotionally safe and secure, and I found that at the Library.”Looking back now, Scottie says time, work, and creativity helped him get through a tough divorce. He also focused on being a good dad, and that meant lots of time spent reading with his son.In later years, when Scottie and his son moved to a south Calgary neighbourhood, the Giuffre Family Library (formerly Alexander Calhoun Library) became their home Library. “I really like this location because there’s an intimacy here,” he says.Scottie sees immense value in libraries, for being buildings full of books and resources, and welcoming places for people. “There’s such a need for community, for people coming together,” he says. He considers libraries valuable public spaces, quite unlike anywhere else in the city.Today, Scottie’s life is much different than it was in the ‘90s. He is happily remarried and works as a Realtor and a part-time actor. His wife, also a Realtor, is a writer with two books on the Library’s shelves.Now a grandpa, Scottie is proud that his three young grandchildren love reading. And Scottie still enjoys escaping into a good read; he loves plays, science fiction, mystery, and biographies, and is currently raving about The Essay.We want to know how the Library has made a difference in your life. Submit your own Library Story online.
Read more about "Stories ‘A Safe Place’ Scottie Grinton's Library Story helped him find hope during hard times"Healthy development in early childhood sets the course for a child’s future, leads to kindergarten readiness, and prepares children for lifelong learning success.Find all the tools you need to support your child's learning journey at the Library. Enjoy Early Learning Centres at 12 locations, free early literacy programs, and our extensive collection of books, movies and resources for each stage of a child’s early development.
Read more about "Supporting families as they help their children learn and grow."Easily borrow, place holds, read, listen and learn within the app in just a few taps. Browse thousands of eBooks, audiobooks and magazines from OverDrive instantly and for free with the Libby app. You can also take free online music classes with Artistworks or watch music performances, films and documentaries in Qello Concerts. Find them in the "Extras" section. Install the Libby app from the Apple App Store or Google Play. Or, use the Libby app in your browser.
Read more about "The easiest way to borrow digital books, audiobooks, and magazines"Blackfoot storyteller Alexander Soop plunges us into a shocking well of imagination in his debut of short stories. Reality mixed with terror, readers get a wicked glimpse into the...
Read more about "Book Launch: Midnight Storm Moonless Sky"A long-standing volunteer, Library donor Maureen has helped many young readers develop strong reading comprehension skills and discover the magic of reading.
Read more about "Enjoy a good book in the Maureen Proctor Reading Nook."Explore a rich collection of historical research databases including those related to First Nations and Indigenous peoples, as well as the Associated Press Collections, Smithsonian Collection Online, Archives of Human Sexuality and Gender, and Sabin Americana. You will find historical documents including books, manuscripts, photographs, newspapers, maps, magazines, and more.
Read more about "Discover a world-class collection of historical documents"The National Geographic Virtual Library gives you access to the complete archive of National Geographic magazine at your fingertips — every page of every issue — along with a cross-searchable collection of National Geographic books, maps, images and videos.Not sure how to start? Watch the tutorial on Niche Academy: National Geographic Virtual Library tutorial.
Read more about "Explore history through a new lens"