Applications will be available the Tuesday after Labor Day.  Parents of Wakefield children can apply for story time online,  in person, or by phone.

In order to allow all residents fair access to their choice of program times, story time slots will be filled by random application.   Parents will fill out a form indicating time preferences. The library staff will randomize story time applications and fill story times from the pool of applicants. 

The Library intends for every Wakefield child to be able to attend at least one of the four story time sessions offered during the school year – Fall, Winter I, Winter II, or Spring. The library strives to accommodate each registrant’s first scheduling choice. In any given session, the library gives priority to any Wakefield child who is not registered for another session.

On the application, please indicate your preferred sessions,  and provide your first and second choices.  Residents whose first choice is the fall session will be notified by September 17, if they are accepted into the fall session.  Fall applications must be in before September 14, 2010. 

Applicants who register in September for a subsequent session (Winter I, Winter II, or Spring) as their first choice (or who are not admitted to the Fall session, if that is their first choice, and name a later session as a second choice) are confirmed at registration. The library continues to accept applications throughout the year. If vacancies remain two weeks prior to a session, the library will randomly select from the applicants wanting a second session. Library volunteers will call parents two weeks preceding a session to confirm registration, except for the fall session.

Application Deadlines and Notifications 

Fall deadline to apply for story time is Tuesday, September 14.  Attendees will be notified by 6:00 PM on Friday, September 17.

Winter 1 deadline is Tuesday, October 12.  Attendees will be notified by 6:00 PM on Friday, October 15.

Winter 2 deadline is Monday, December 27.  Attendees will be notified by 6:00 PM on Thursday, December 30.

Spring deadline is Monday, February 14.  Attendees will be notified by 6:00 PM on Friday, February 18.

Snow Storms and Closings

The library closes for all Federal and State holidays.  There will be no story times on those days.

Story time takes place if the library is open, even if there is no school in Wakefield. In bad weather, call the library before leaving home at 781-246-6334.  In the case of a delayed opening, story time will take place if the library re-opens in time for the program.  For instance, if the library opens at 10:00, the 9:30 story time will not take place, but the 11:00 will.  Cancelled story times are not re-scheduled. 

Residency and Eligibility Requirements

Nonresidents from communities with certified libraries are wait-listed until five days before the start of a session.

Regretfully, the library does not provide library services, including story times to residents of communities without certified libraries.

Story Time Schedules

Applications will be available Tuesday after Labor Day at 9:00 AM.  You can access them by clicking the name of the group you want to apply to. 

Note: Clicking on the link early results in an error message. 

Lapsit

(ages three months to one year or until walking)
Fall Session: September 23-October 28
Thursdays at 9:30
Winter 1: November 10-December 15
Wednesdays at 11:00
Winter 2: January 12-February 16
Wednesdays at 11:00
Spring: March 10-April 14
Thursdays at 11:00

Walkers and Talkers
(ages one and two)
Fall Session: September 21-October 29
Tuesdays at 9:30
Wednesdays at 9:30
Thursdays at 11:00
Fridays at 11:00
Winter 1: November 4-December 17
(Note: During Winter 1, Thursday story times begin a week early on November 4 due to two holidays that take place on Thursdays this year. Thursday sessions last seven weeks instead of eight during Winter 1.)
Tuesdays at 11:00
Wednesdays at 9:30
Thursdays at 11:00
Fridays at 9:30 (No program on November 5.)
Winter 2: January 11-February 18
Tuesdays at 9:30
Wednesdays at 9:30
Thursdays at 9:30
Fridays at 11:00
Spring: March 8-April 15
Tuesdays at 11:00
Wednesdays at 9:30
Thursdays at 9:30
Fridays at 9:30

Threes and FoursFall Session: September 21-October 29
Tuesdays at 11:00
Fridays at 9:30
Winter 1: November 4-December 17
(Note: During Winter 1, Thursday story times begin a week early on November 4 due to two holidays that take place on Thursdays this year. Thursday sessions last seven weeks instead of eight during Winter 1.)
Thursdays at 9:30
Fridays at 11:00 (No program on November 5.)
Winter 2: January 11-February 18
Tuesdays at 11:00
Fridays at 9:30
Spring: March 8-April 15
Tuesdays at 9:30
Fridays at 11:00

Fours and Fives
Fall Session: September 22-October 27
Wednesdays at 11:00
Winter 1: November 9-December 14
Tuesdays at 9:30
Winter 2: January 13-February 17
Thursdays at 11:00
Spring: March 9-April 13
Wednesdays at 11:00

Lynn Toomey of VanGogh Arts conducted an art workshop using edible ingredients as part of What’s Cooking at Beebe Library. 

Saturdays, July 24 – August 14, 9 – 4:00 in the Youth Room

Children and families are welcome to browse our cart of games to play while visiting the library. Chess, Checkers, Candy Land, Chutes and Ladders, Connect Four, Rush Hour Othello, plus a preschool Memory Game and various card games (Uno, Crazy 8′s, Old Maid) and brain teasers are among the available choices.

Reading fuels the imagination and makes children eager and ready to learn. Research shows that children who read throughout the summer retain their reading skills and start the next school year as stronger readers and students. This summer, children will explore their world and the worlds of others, through cooking, food, and stories.   Buon appetito!

Reading Clubs

Joining a reading club, reading and earning prizes can make summer reading fun. Beebe Library runs separate reading clubs for preschoolers, kids entering grades 1-4, and young adults.   In each club kids can read, be read to or listen to audio books.  However they choose to engage with a book, children earn prizes for the time they spend reading or listening.

Dates to remember:

Registration begins Monday, June 21.

Final day to register is Friday, August 13.

Last day to collect prizes is Friday, August 20.

Special Events for Kids in Grades 1-4

Special Events for Preschoolers

Special Events for Kids in Grades 5 & up

Stories for a Safer Wakefield is a month-long community inquiry during May 2010, intended to provoke thought and discussion about violence and its deterrence. Beebe Library invites you to read from a selection of stories that draw awareness to the effects of violence in a community. Stories for a Safer Wakefield features forums and activities to better understand and mitigate violence in our lives. For more information on Stories for a Safer Wakefield: Brochure or Wakefield Alliance Against Violence. Titles for children and youth can be found here.

Events for Children and Teens

Pathway Story Walks™: On weekends throughout May, look for Pathway Story Walks™ featuring selected picture books near the Spaulding Street playground.

Downtown Story Walks™: May 1-23. Look for weekly Downtown Story Walks™ in merchant windows, starting at the Wakefield Co-operative Bank. Visit all participating merchants at the following times and collect a reward paperback at Beebe Library! Continue »