Are you running out of books to read? Hoping to find something new? Why don’t you try visiting a Little Free Library. Little Free Library is a nonprofit organization that inspires a love of reading, builds community, and sparks creativity by fostering neighborhood book exchanges around the world. Through Little Free Library book exchanges, millions of books are exchanged each year, profoundly increasing access to books for readers of all ages and backgrounds. Bring a book — take a book! It’s that simple!
Chartered LFLs are quite easy to find. Go to Little Free Library. There you will find a function/map through which you can locate LFLs by ZIP code or other criteria. There are many in the West Chester area, and the United Way maintains one on each Born Learning Trail.
Of course, there are also many unchartered LFLs, which you just have to luck upon. It’s like a Treasure Hunt! Have fun and I hope you find some good books!
Per the Governor’s orders, Chester County will be moving to the Yellow Phase on Friday, June 5. For the Chester County Library and the Henrietta Hankin Branch, this means that library staff will be able to enter the buildings for the first time since March 13. We are very excited to begin the process of reopening the libraries.
We have been working hard behind the scenes to provide you with resources online through our blog, website, and social media. We will continue to provide information about databases, access to eMaterials, and a selection of virtual programming, as we did while we were unable to access the buildings. In addition, we have developed a thorough plan for reopening to ensure the safety of staff and patrons.
Although staff will be allowed in the buildings on June 5, the libraries will remain closed to the public for the next several weeks. While in the buildings, the staff will be quarantining and processing returned items, moving furniture and workstations to ensure social distancing, setting up a quarantine area, designating traffic patterns, and developing a process to provide curbside pick-up as soon as possible.
Effective June 5, we will begin to accept returns of materials in the book drops. However, due to the backlog of materials we are experiencing, it will take a week or two before they are checked in and removed from your records.
Please know that we are doing everything we can to help ensure the safety and well-being of our staff and patrons, and we ask that you continue to be patient while we work toward reopening.
Did you know that June is Audiobook Month? Audiobooks are a great way to hear a story while you’re driving, walking or doing things around the house. Besides those boring tasks at home, jigsaw puzzles, coloring, knitting and needlework can be terrific companions to an audiobook. And audiobook narrators are talented storytellers, bringing drama and subtle nuances to life.
To celebrate Audiobook Month, we have a collection of Great Narrators ready for you to download on your device. You can view the collection here.
Need help downloading your audiobooks? Click here for OverDrive help.
Did you know that you can access the Philadelphia Inquirer with your library card? Stay up-to-date with the most recent news (2018-Current), or explore historical newspapers (1829-1922, and 1981-Current).
To access the Philadelphia Inquirer Collection with Historical, visit chescolibraries.org, select “Tools and Research” from the ribbon of choices at the top of the page, select “All CCLS Databases,” and then “Philadelphia Inquirer Collection with Historical.” Enter your library card number when prompted.
Scanned copies of the complete print issues of the Philadelphia Inquirer are available for 2018-Current and 1829-1922 collections; the 1981-Current collection is available as text articles. Select a “Source Name” to browse issues by date; to access scanned copies of the most current news, be sure to select the Philadelphia Inquirer from 2018-Current under “Source Name.”
For all dates included in this collection, the “Search” or “Advanced Search” features may be used for more specific research.
Have questions about using the Philadelphia Inquirer Collection with Historical? Please feel free to contact us.
Today is Pennsylvania’s Primary Election Day is Tuesday, and adults around the state will be voting. You can learn more about elections and voting right here. These links from Kiddle Kids Encyclopedia will get you started — Voting Facts and Election Facts.
Sometimes the most difficult part of any project is finding the time to work on it. Wouldn’t it be great to have a time set aside just to work on your project in the company of other like-minded people? Enjoy friendly tips, camaraderie and much needed time. Learn new skills or build on old ones. Whether you knit, crochet, cross stitch, needle point, weave, quilt, sew or any of the other needle crafts, you are welcome to join the group!
A Zoom link will be emailed to registrants 2 hours before the program starts. Make sure to check the email address you registered with to receive the link. You do not need a Zoom account to attend the virtual program.
Believe it or not, summer will arrive at the Chester County Library and Henrietta Hankin Branch on June 15th! You are invited to join our Virtual Summer Programs. Imagine Your Story: Patch Power 2020 for children in Preschool/Pre-K and Kindergarten to Grade 5 encourages you to discover your own stories while reading others’ stories in fiction and non-fiction.
Participants in Preschool, Pre-K, and Kindergarten to Grade 5 are encouraged to read or listen to books every day for 30 minutes or more all summer and record your accomplishments through the Imagine Your Story: Patch Power 2020 website or app. You can also complete Missions, by completing at-home activties and attending Virtual Programs, to earn the 2020 patches!
Students in Grade 6 and up may join the Imagine Your Story: Teen Reading Club 2020! Teens are encouraged to read or listen to books for at least 60 minutes every day to earn a Reading Grand Prize at the end of the summer! They may also complete independent Missions to earn collectible mini-buttons!
Even children under 3 years can participate this summer by signing up for 1000 Books Before Kindergarten! Research has shown that listening to 1000 Books Before Kindergarten helps children to develop the important pre-reading skills that provide a solid foundation for learning to read — a key to learning and school success. Read at least 100 book this summer to earn a special award!
The Next Chapter Book Club is a program that welcomes adolescents and adults with Down syndrome, autism, cerebral palsy and other intellectual and developmental disabilities to participate in reading and discussing books together in a fun and informal social setting. It is the largest community-based book club program of its kind in the world with hundreds of clubs meeting weekly in North America, Australia and Europe. The Chester County Library and Henrietta Hankin Branch became an affiliate in 2019 and Henrietta Hankin Library has been hosting a club that has been meeting since June 4th, 2019.
As we approach our Next Chapter Book Club’s one-year anniversary, we find ourselves adjusting to the times and have begun meeting virtually via Zoom from 5:00-6:00pm on Wednesdays. We are always open to accepting new members as well as volunteers to help co-facilitate. This June is a particularly opportune time to join in the fun, as we are in the process of selecting our next long book which we hope to begin reading in July. For more information or to sign up, please contact Henrietta Hankin Branch librarian, Claire Michelle Viola at cviola@ccls.org. For more information on the Next Chapter Book Club program, check out their website at https://www.nextchapterbookclub.org/.
Formatting your journal for aesthetics or for function.
Welcome to our second installment in our series about journaling. In this post, we’ll be talking about Bullet Journaling.
The Bullet Journal was invented by Ryder Carroll, a digital designer, as a method of organizing his life. The thought process went as follows: Many of us have multiple different journals, although we might not think of them as such. From planners and calendars to bill planners and budget spreadsheets to sticky notes with grocery lists and movies to watch – all of these in some combination of physical and digital forms – many people have the information of their life spread out everywhere, and thus can find nothing when they need it. Carroll’s Bullet Journaling system combines all of these into one.
Now, his system for doing this is quite rigid. On his website, the link to which you can find below, he outlines exactly how you should format your journal to match his method. But since it’s inception, the Bullet Journaling system adopted by many people has expanded to fit the needs of the individual. So in essence, the Bullet Journal boils down to this:
A Bullet Journal is just an empty journal, preferably dotted or grid, that you can do whatever you want with. It sounds vague, and I hear you saying “isn’t that just any normal journal?” But what makes Bullet Journaling special is that it is all about these things called “spreads.” The basic concept of a spread is that it is a formatted page that you draw out for yourself. Some spreads are calendars – yearly, monthly, weekly, or daily – that you draw out freehand and fill in with tasks, goals, events, or accomplishment. Some are mood trackers, where you mark down how you felt each day – good for keeping on top of your mental health. Some are habit trackers that are designed so that you can keep up with good habits or attempt to break bad ones. To-do Lists, Finance Trackers, Expense Trackers, Gratitude Logs, Brain Dumps, Mind Maps, Bucket Lists, Book/Reading Trackers, Watch Lists, Weight Loss Trackers – all are examples of different spreads that people who keep bullet journals utilize in order to cut down their many journals into one.
There are tons of ideas floating around on the internet, from web pages listing various spread ideas to try to Pinterest photos of the most beautiful, aesthetically pleasing spreads you’ll ever see in your life. The fun part is that all these spreads are designed by you for you. It can be as creative or as minimalist or as practical as you want it to be. And, even better, all of the journals that we’ll be discussing throughout this journaling series can be formatted as a spread in a Bullet Journal, if you’re up for giving it a try.
Resources & Inspiration:
Ryder Carroll’s website (the Learn page that talks about his system)
As long as you’re not talking computers, a cookie is a small sweet cake, typically round, flat, and crisp. Like we didn’t know that already! You might be surprised, though, at how many different kinds there are. If you’d like to try your hand at baking something delicious, visit these sites for recipes — Cookie Recipes at Cooks Recipes or All Recipes All Recipes – Cookie Recipes. You won’t know which to try first!
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