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Monday, Mar 15, 2021 | View in browser
 What is Spring and why does it officially begin on March 20th? In the Northern Hemisphere the vernal or spring equinox (when night and day are equal) falls about March 20 or 21, as the Sun crosses the celestial equator going north. According to the astronomical definition of the seasons, the vernal equinox also marks the beginning of spring, which lasts until the summer solstice (the longest day of the year), June 20 or 21.
Time to Celebrate Spring!
- Read a book with your kids using this list of great spring titles!
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Register to pick up a herb growing kit and Grow with EPL! Available while supplies last, but if we run out of kits Speedy Snail's got kid-friendly instructions for planting seeds indoors.
- Make art flowers! Instead of composting the end of a bunch of celery, you can cut it flat to make a stamp. When kids dip it in paint and stamp it on paper, ta da! a cabbage rose. All you need is paper, paint and a bunch of celery to create beautiful blooms! What to do with all the celery sticks? Make this Ants on a Log recipe.
- Listen to this silly spring song; it will make you smile.
Register now for these great events:
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Microwave Cooking Classes: More Desserts! Another opportunity for kids in grades 1-5 to cook some new microwave desserts with Ms. Kim. Ingredients list will be sent out ahead of time so you can cook in real time with Ms. Kim if you like. Recipes will be emailed afterwards. Saturday, March 20, 11 am: Register.
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Hola Friends! Cuenta Cuentos: Bilingual Storytime for all levels of Spanish. Ages 8 and up. Monday, March 22, 4 pm: Register; AND Monday, March 29, 4 pm: Register.
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Nature Scavenger Hunt: Go on a scavenger hunt around Evanston searching for various natural items over Spring Break week! Once you've learned about plants, trees, pollinators, and local fauna, come to the Main Library or the Robert Crown Branch Library to collect a nature-related prize. March 27-April 5.
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Graphic Novel Book Club for Kids: Join this month's book club to discuss Hope Larson's mystery graphic novel, Goldie Vance. Meetings will be held over Google Meet and you can get the eBook on Hoopla. For kids in grades 1-5. Saturday, March 27, 1 pm: Register.
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Virtual Board Games: Kids in grades 3-5 can join us for a night of virtual board games using Discord and Board Game Arena. Saturday, March 27, 4 pm: Register.
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Locomotion Book Discussion: Register now for this discussion of Jacqueline Woodson's award-winning, fast-paced verse novel Locomotion. Woodson is the winner of the Children's Literature Legacy Award. Pick up a free copy of the paperback book at the library while supplies last or place a hold on the book here. For kids in grades 4-6. Monday, March 29, 3 pm: Register.
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Yee Haw Take Home Activity Kit: Celebrate the upcoming Dog Man #10 release, Mothering Heights, with this fun kit! It contains Dog Man printables and supplies to celebrate and make your own small robot. Stop by the Main Library or Robert Crown Branch Library to pick up your kit. Monday, March 29, all day while supplies last.
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Virtual Sewing Class: Want to sew? Learn to make two simple felt crafts: a taco earbud holder and a little creature. Come by the Main Library beginning March 15 to pick up your materials once you register. For Evanston residents in grades 4-5. No sewing experience necessary.Tuesday, March 30, 10 am: Register.
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Preposterous Pilkey Party: To celebrate the newly-released Dog Man book, Mothering Heights, we welcome fans in grades 1-4 to our Preposterous Pilkey Party full of trivia, mini-games, a reading of a classic Pilkey picture book, and maybe even a sneak peek at the new book. Note: you do not need the Yee Haw craft to participate in this event. Wednesday, March 31, 4 pm: Register.
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Virtual Trans Day of Visibility (3/31): International Transgender Day of Visibility is an annual holiday dedicated to celebrating the accomplishments and victories of transgender and gender non-conforming people while raising awareness. Join us to celebrate. Wednesday, March 31, 6 pm: Register.
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STEM Explorers: Exploring Light: We'll look at different ways to see light, even light we can't see with our own eyes. A kit of materials for use during this program is available for pick up at the Main Library beginning March 29. For Evanston residents in grades K-2 with a grown up. Friday, April 2, 10 am: Register.
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Mystery Science Kit! Do you love all things science-y? We've got a fun activity for you! Pick up a kit from the Main Library or the Robert Crown Branch Library. For kids age 5-13. Available all day, while supplies last. Friday, April 2; Saturday, April 3; OR Monday, April 5.
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Fridaypalooza! Cuentos bilingües: This weekly storytime is bilingual English/Spanish. Join Miss Rosie for music, interesting stories, and fun rhymes for younger audiences.Infants to age 5. Friday, March 19, 10:30 am: Register.
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Family Reading Night: Join some of your favorite EPL librarians for this fun evening of stories and songs that you can enjoy in the comfort of your PJs. Most appropriate for kids ages 3-5, but all are welcome. Thursday, April 1, 6:30 pm: Register.
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Storytimes: Enjoy Ms. Leigh sharing a seed book for ages 2 and up, or Ms. Bridget reading a funny science book for ages 4 and up called Flower Talk, about how plants get animals to help them pollinate.
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Make Crayons! If you're spring cleaning, you can repurpose old, worn down crayons by melting them in the oven in a muffin tin. You'll get a fascinating tie-dye color swirl that will let kids continue drawing with their favorite colors. Here's how to do it.
 We hope to see you during Spring Break. We continue to keep safety our number one priority so masks, one-hour time limited visits, and other COVID rules still apply. Please note: we are closed at both locations on Thursday, April 1 for an All Staff Development Day. For information about hours at both locations and other important information please view our FAQ page.
Have you visted our Robert Crown Branch Library? Supervising Librarian Miguel Ruiz gives a great tour here. The video was made by Northwestern University students in support of an online theatrical event this spring.
On the hunt for some brand new spring break reads? We just updated our Great New Children's Books for Younger Readers list and our Great New Children's Books for Older Readers list. Take a look!
Try Kanopy, our movie streaming service! Women’s History Month is a great time to check out the 2005 documentary Girls Rock!, the story of a rock and roll camp for girls in Portland, Oregon. Portlandia fans will recognize Carrie Brownstein, a funny actress, a gifted musician, and one of the camp founders. The campers have rock music lessons, write songs, and learn to work together as bands. Great for fans of the book, The First Rule of Punk by Celia Perez. In fact, it's a great combination: watch the movie, read the book, and make your own playlist. Rock On, Evanston! - review by Ms. Robin
 Want to do something meaningful and fun during spring break? Author and STEM specialist Anastasia Suen writes, "Invite your tweens and teens to play the free online game Foldit and help scientists design a brand-new protein that will attach to the COVID-19 strain of the coronavirus. Why do the scientists need help? As the site explains, 'The number of different ways even a small protein can fold is astronomical because there are so many degrees of freedom. Figuring out which of the many, many possible structures is the best one is regarded as one of the hardest problems in biology today."
If you prefer non-COVID STEM activities for Spring Break, we've got you covered:
- Celebrate St. Patrick's Day (March 17) with kids by making Irish Soda Bread and sharing it with your family. Warm bread ready in 40 minutes! A fun spring break family STEM project.
- Do some lettuce experiments! These instructions work for older kids on their own or for parents to do for a little one's observations. By the time your 12 days of experimental observation are done, plant the lettuce outdoors! (Romaine is cold hardy.)
- Work with Flashlights and Morse Code over spring break in this STEM challlenge; send your messages to neighbors or just into the night sky!
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