The theme is STEAM and it’s rolling through the entire Verde Valley from February 23 through March 3, 2017. Sedona Public Library is participating in the Verde Valley SciTech Festival and is pleased to bring a 3D printer demonstration and an afternoon of activity to the Library’s community room on Wednesday, March 1.
Since 2010 the State of Arizona has held an annual AZ SciTech Festival during February and March. Hundreds of events focused on Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math (STEM or STEAM when you include the arts) are hosted at various statewide venues for the general public. You may remember a “Build a Foxhole Radio” workshop and a Squishy Circuit event hosted by Sedona Library in the past. Well, in 2014 an enthusiastic and hardworking group of Verde Valley people decided to work with the AZ state program in an effort to promote STEAM on a more local, community level. A mini, week-long Verde Valley SciTech Festival was created and is going strong today! Local STEAM events begin on Thursday, February 23, and end with a fantastic Verde Valley SciTech Expo at Yavapai College Clarkdale Campus on Friday, March 3. All events during the week are free, open to all ages, and include prize opportunities for active participants. You can pick up a VVSciTech Festival passport, listing all the events, at any event location including Sedona Public Library. Attending a minimum of six events, checked off on your passport, means that you will be entered in a drawing for gift items contributed by donors. The draw will take place at the Yavapai College Expo event. On Wednesday, March 1, at 12:30 p.m., Sedona Public Library invites you to join Chris Guerra, project specialist for the Arizona State Library, Archives and Public Records, for a presentation and live demonstration of 3D printing (additive) manufacturing. You will learn about the history, the process, the application, and the future of this increasingly pervasive technology. After the 3D printer presentation all ages are welcome to explore STEAM activity tables that will be set up in the community room. STEAM activities will include building miniature catapults while learning about simple machines, and using leverage to create a personalized metal button with our button-making machine. There will be a table for attendees to experience augmented reality. Augmented reality brings 360-degree viewing and sound effects to the world of education and entertainment. We will also be bringing out Snap Circuits, Lego bricks, and a couple of new building kits as well. It will be an afternoon of hands-on learning; it’s all about the science, technology, engineering, arts, and math. STEAM is a catchy acronym widely used to remind us that developing and strengthening skills in all areas can give us power as we approach mysteries and challenges ahead. Verde Valley SciTech Festival will give us a week to embrace our inner geek. All activities are listed on the VVSciTech passport, which you can pick up at Sedona Public Library youth reference desk. Then you are ready to go full STEAM ahead, enjoying dozens of activities in Sedona and the Verde Valley and don’t forget to drop in to the Library on Wednesday, March 1, for an interesting afternoon. Sedona Public Library Column for February 24, 2017 Written by Karen Mack, Youth Services Librarian Throughout the country, public libraries are finding that a good way to generate a closer-knit community is a community reads program, where an entire community is encouraged to read the same book and participate in events, fostering a shared literary experience.
Sedona Public Library is proud to hold its first-ever community reads program: Read Around Sedona, which will include book signings and discussions. Our selected book is “House of Apache Fires,” written by local author Morgan Jameson. This historic thriller set during World War II takes place in Sedona and the Frye home located within Red Rock State Park. The action-packed plot mixes real historic characters like Jack and Helen Frye with fictional Nazis who have embarked on a daring sabotage mission. The intrigue and the romance extend into neighboring Flagstaff and war-torn Germany. Copies of “House of Apache Fires” are available at the Library and a limited number of sets are available for book clubs. Books will be available to purchase at some of the events and you can also purchase the Kindle edition at Amazon.com. As part of Read Around Sedona, the Library has planned events in Sedona and the Village of Oak Creek. Please check the events calendar on the Library website at www.sedonalibrary.org and watch for announcements of additional events.
For more information, please contact Galen Worthington, 928-282-7714, ext. 116 or Cheryl Yeatts, 928-284-1603. We are excited about this opportunity for our community and hope you will participate in Read Around Sedona. Sedona Public Library Column for February 17, 2017 Written by Galen Worthington, Public Services Manager Sedona Public Library is a busy place during Love Your Library Month, with displays, programs, and events such as the quilt show, AARP tax preparation, book clubs, and tech help. Sedona youth will also find a lot to love in February at the Library. Read on to hear about the spaces, programming, and library collections that are loved by the younger demographic of our community.
Did you know that the Library has a beautiful children’s room? An interactive play-to-learn area in the children’s room gives parents opportunities to build important early literacy and social skills with their child. Older children also enjoy learning in the children’s room, with ongoing access to hands-on activities that engage both the creative and scientific mind. A popular activity right now is assembling a 2’ by 3’ 24-piece puzzle of a map of the United States. This timed challenge ends on February 28, and a free book will go to all participants who shave more than 10 seconds off of a previous attempt. Do you have five minutes to spare? Give it a try! The Teen Zone is a quiet space next to the library courtyard where teens can chat, charge devices, play chess, and check out books. Both the children’s room and Teen Zone have comfortable seating, desktop computers, and free Wi-Fi. At the youth reference desk, laptops are available to borrow for online school, homework, and research needs during library visits. Programming for youth includes story time presented by library staff every Tuesday and Thursday at 10:30 a.m. for infants, toddlers, and preschoolers. Annette Foldes brings a musical touch to the session on the first Thursday of each month. Every Saturday we present a story time and craft program at 11 a.m., offered in Spanish and English on the first Saturday of each month. For older children, library programming currently includes a Friday Code Club, Second Saturday Science Fun, Wednesday early release from school activities, and a monthly after-school movie on the big screen with popcorn. Check the Library’s online calendar for details and additional programs for all ages. Of course, Sedona youth love their library for the great selection of books! With a library card, families get to choose from thousands of books and can have up to 50 items borrowed on their card at one time. The youth collection, in both English and Spanish, includes durable board books for infants and toddlers; picture books and easy chapter books for children; and bestsellers, graphic novels, and classics for tweens and teens. Library cardholders can also borrow audiobooks and e-books, books in Braille and talking books, as well as magazines, CDs, DVDs, and more. Sedona Public Library strives to be the heart of a diverse and loving community. Let us know how we can do our best for you! Sedona Public Library is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization, supported by donations and grants. Please send your tax-deductible donations to Sedona Public Library, 3250 White Bear Road, Sedona, AZ 86336, or go to www.sedonalibrary.org where you can give online. Sedona Public Library Column for February 10, 2017 Written by Karen Mack, Youth Services Librarian Join us for a free screening of A Man Called Ove on Monday, February 6, starting at 6 p.m. in the community room. The film is an adaptation of the bestselling book, by Swedish author Fredrik Backman, about a grumpy yet loveable man who finds his regimented and lonely world upended when he gets new neighbors.
A Man Called Ove is a feel-good story comparable to other moving tales with an endearing older main character such as The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry, Major Pettigrew’s Last Stand, and The Curious Charms of Arthur Pepper. A summary from the book’s publisher provides more details about the plot: “Meet Ove. He’s a curmudgeon with staunch principles, strict routines, and a short fuse. People call him ‘the bitter neighbor from hell.’ But behind the cranky exterior there is a story and a sadness. So when one November morning a chatty young couple with two daughters move in next door and accidentally flatten Ove’s mailbox, it is the lead-in to a comical and heartwarming tale that will change one cranky old man and a local residents’ association to their very foundations.” The movie version, a huge box-office hit in Sweden, is a nominee for best foreign-language film at the upcoming Oscars. It stars Swedish actor Rolf Lassgard, whose performance won him the best actor award at the 2016 Seattle International Film Festival. A Man Called Ove also won the audience award for best film at the 2016 Scottsdale Film Festival. Even the short trailer, which you can watch on YouTube, is touching enough to bring a tear to your eye. Ove’s creator, Fredrik Backman, is also the author of the bestselling novels My Grandmother Asked Me to Tell You She’s Sorry and Britt-Marie Was Here. All of Backman’s books are available in various formats from Sedona Public Library or other libraries in the Yavapai Library Network, and we have the DVD of A Man Called Ove in both the new and popular collections. By logging into your library account, you can also reserve a copy of Backman’s next novel, Beartown, which will be published in late April. If you enjoy film adaptations of books, check out the other movies showing at the Library in February. The February 13 screening is The Light Between Oceans, and on February 27, you can watch Queen of Katwe on the big screen. Monday night movies at the Library are always free—however, we welcome your donations to help cover the cost of paying licensing fees. Sedona Public Library is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit corporation. Donations and grants allow us to continue to offer free and innovative services to residents and visitors. Your tax-deductible donation may be sent to: Sedona Public Library, 3250 White Bear Road, Sedona, AZ 86336; or go to www.sedonalibrary.org where you can give online. Sedona Public Library Column for February 3, 2017 Written by Elizabeth Cate, Collection Development Librarian |
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