ALL OF OUR PROGRAMS ARE ALWAYS FREE!

Visit our Youtube Channel for all Take & Make Kit Videos: 
https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLND9RFFs1dFF7LtO8D8qdCPL80v5nkUyl

1,000 Books Bonanza
Stop by the Children’s Room to sign up for 1,000 Books Before Kindergarten, and get a free canvas bag to kickstart your 1,000 book journey.  Any child who has not yet started Kindergarten can participate. Reading together helps children develop a love of reading, introduces them to new vocabulary, and teaches them important early literacy skills that will help them when they enter school.

Interactive Movie Experiences
We are thrilled to present our brand new Movie Kits! Interactive movie kits include a list of prompts for your family to do throughout the movie. Our kits include all the prompts, props, and crafts for 4 people. DVD’s are available first come first serve, but kits can be taken if you have a streaming service!

Music City Strings 2023
New London Community Orchestra is offering a new session of free violin lessons for children in grades 4-9. Instruments will be provided at no charge, and children may take their violin home to practice. Lessons are in small groups with professional teachers. Masks are required. Violin lessons are an excellent experiential enrichments activity that’s been shown to increase educational attainment. Fill out the form below to register:
https://form.jotform.com/61886278899180

Summer Reading 2023!
June 23rd – August 12th
Readers of all ages are invited to join us for an exciting summer as PLNL presents “Find Your Voice” for our Summer Reading program! We use our voices to share stories, express ourselves, and spark change. Our voices include not only the sounds we make, but the words we write, the art we create, the movements we perform, and the actions we take each day to impact our world. The 2023 Summer Reading Program is open to all ages and grouped into age categories: 3-12, 13-17, and adults. Join us all summer long for themed crafts, programs, special guests, and so much more! Get registered for the Summer Reading Program today! Stop by the Children’s Room starting on June 23rd or register online anytime for READsquared: https://plnl.readsquared.com/ For every week that children read 5 days or more, they will receive a prize! They will also be entered in the weekly raffle to win a weekly grand prize! Children can enter the prize raffle by bringing their reading log into the library and showing it to a staff member at the children’s desk, or they can log their progress on READsquared directly.

June 2023

Take Home Craft Kits
Available All Month – First Come First Serve

Jellyfish Paper Chain: It’s almost jellyfish season! Make a colorful friend to spend your summer drifting by with. A craft for kids of all ages. 

Hexagon Wall Art: Make a creative, unique, and fun piece of art for your wall! A fun craft for older kids.

Rainbow Spinners: A simple craft using color! A craft for kids of all ages.

Read It, Make It – Finding Francois: A message in a bottle craft is inspired by the free copy of Finding Francois included in your kit. A craft geared for toddlers and young children.

Interactive Movie Experiences
Interactive Movie Kits are fun for the whole family! Kits include a list of prompts for your family to do throughout the movie plus props and crafts! Each kit comes with enough supplies for 4 people. DVD’s are available to check out on a first come first serve basis, but kits can be taken with or without the movie if you use a streaming service or have the movie at home. 
Available in June:
Finding Nemo: An overprotective clownfish named Marlin who, along with a forgetful regal blue tang named Dory, searches for his missing son Nemo. Along the way, Marlin learns to take risks and comes to terms with Nemo taking care of himself.
The LEGO Movie: Emmet Brickowski, an ordinary Lego minifigure, helps a resistance movement stop a tyrannical businessman from gluing everything in the Lego world into his vision of perfection.

All-Ages Story Time
Wednesdays 10am
All ages story time and playgroup! Enjoy stories, songs, and a chance to play! Best for children ages 4 and under. No registration required!

Baby + Me
Fridays 10am
Join us for a story time and play group! Baby + Me is designed for babies to socialize and for caregivers to meet each other! We will do a short lap story and then turn on the music and take out the toys for time to socialize. A great opportunity for new parents to meet and babies to play! 

Children’s Chess Club
Saturdays 9:30am – 12pm
Chess Club is now available in the Children’s Room! Children are still welcome to participate in the Adult Reading Room, but this space is reserved for just children and their families. All skill levels are welcome!

Children’s Book Club: Story Thieves
June 22nd 4pm – 5pm
This month we are reading Story Thieves by James Riley. You can pick up a copy from the Circulation Desk to check out!

Pride Puppies
June 6th 10am – 5pm
Celebrate Pride Month with us by making rainbow puppy art! Inspired by the book Pride Puppy by Robin Stevenson.

TieDye Flowers
June 15th 10am – 5pm
Summer is the perfect time to try out (washable!) tie dye with this fun flower activity, using coffee filters!

Summer Pen Pal Program with Waterford Public Library
June 17th – August 18th
This summer we are excited to be partnering with the Waterford Public Library for a Leave a Letter, Take a Letter Pen Pal Program! Beginning Saturday, June 17^th, you can write and leave a letter in the Children’s Room at the library. These letters can be about your plans for the summer, your favorite activities, your family and friends – anything you want to write about! Throughout the summer we will be exchanging letters with the Waterford Public Library so you can read and learn about other kids in our neighboring community. Starting Saturday, June 24 when you write a letter, you will be able to take a letter from a Waterford friend. Recommended for ages 6 and up. Please only use your first name when signing your letter.

Juneteenth Crafts
June 20th 10am – 5pm
Stop by the Children’s Room and pick up a today-only craft kit all about Juneteenth! Don’t forget to also check out some of the awesome books on display all month long.

Summer Reading Kick-Off Concert!
June 23rd 3pm – 5pm
Join us for our Summer Reading Kick-Off Concert at the library! There will be a live children’s concert with local children’s performer, Steve Elci & Friends at 3:30pm. All ages can sign up for Summer Reading, take part in our free Book Giveaway, and enjoy the show! Don’t miss out!

Author Visit: Amber Sawyer
June 26th 4pm – 5pm
Come to the Children’s Room for an Author Visit from Amber Sawyer! Amber is visiting all the way from Wisconsin, and will be promoting her book Love to Race. Stop by for a reading, a craft, and a great opportunity to meet the author!

About the book: This is the story of harness racehorse, Derek Bromac N. After racing in New Zealand as a 2-, 3-, and 4-year-old, Derek was shipped to California to begin his racing career in the United States. He immediately began dominating his competition at remarkable race times. This classy bay gelding found success wherever his travels took him and was often a barn favorite. His crazy antics of always sticking his tongue out while being harnessed, and on the racetrack, made him a horse that wouldn’t easily be forgotten. From California to New Jersey, and every racetrack in between, he was driven by some of the most elite and talented in the harness racing business. He was always known as the horse that always “gave his all.” Follow Derek’s narration, written by his owner Amber Sawyer, and beautifully illustrated by Tami Joe DeLisle.

Journal Making
June 27th 10am – 5pm
Make a journal for your thoughts and feelings! We’ll be posting writing prompts throughout the summer!

Children’s Room
860-447-1411 ext. 103

Children’s Librarian
Zoë Hayn
zhayn@plnl.org
860-447-1411 ext. 104

Children’s Library Assistant
Tori Congdon
vcongdon@plnl.org