In August, as part of the Summer Reading Program, kids were taught to use graphic tablets and Photoshop to create their own digital art. In September, two more workshops will be taking place, taught by Peter Simeti of Painted Heroes. Classes will be taking place on September 9 from 3-5 pm, and September 11 from 2-4 pm, and are for kids in grades 5 and up.  Sign up for either session here.

In addition to these workshops, young adults can check out the graphic tablets for two hours at a time with their library cards for use at any of the computers in the Youth Room. All computers on the lower level are equipped with Adobe Photoshop Elements and Premier Elements, and can be used with the tablets to edit photos, create movies, or paint and draw.

September is Art Month for Young Adults at Beebe!

After teaching our young adults to use this technology for creating art, we want to show it off! There will be an Art Show happening the last week of September at the library. Submissions of all kind will be considered from kids in grades 5 and up, with a preference given to art that has been digitally created or manipulated in some way. More details about the show and submission guidelines will be coming soon.

Click on the links below to play the games Wakefield kids created on Scratch.  Sign up for a free Scratch account to play their games.  You will need to download Scratch to your computer to play.

• Rock
• skull
• d0nut
• tobeannounced
• king
• 36
• puff

Scratch allows you to borrow scripts and make changes to games that you find on the Scratch website.  You can take codes from others, modify their games, and share with them.

The library’s Video Game Creation Program was funded through the Massachusetts Board of Library Commissioners with funds from LSTA, a Federal source of library funding  provided by the Institute of Museum and Library Services.

Programs for kids in grades 5 & up.

June

Slurpy Joe’s Café The library transforms into a smoothie bar for kids who want to find out what’s hot (and what’s not) on the GMS reading list.  Tuesday, June 22 at 6:00   Gr. 5 & 6 or Wednesday, June 23 at 6:00   Gr. 7 & 8

Beebe Library Talent Show Talent wanted! No act too small.  Perform for family and friends.  Bring your own props and music.  Rehearsal:   Tuesday, June 29 at 10:00.  Performance: Wednesday, June 30 at 7:00  Sign up by June 28 at the Youth Desk.   All Ages

July

The Night Sky     Registration required. Boston’s Museum of Science brings their traveling Planetarium.  Join us for an evening of astronomical wonders.   Tuesday, July 6 at 5:30 or 6:30 

DDR Tournament Square off against an opponent in Dance, Dance Revolution.  Socks are required.  Refreshments served.   Tuesday, July 13 at 6:00

Video Gaming Day: Drop in. Open gaming day. Wii, Xbox, Playstation 2 platforms. Refreshments served.   Wednesday, July 14 at 3:30

Candy Sushi:  Bring your appetite. Make sushi rolls with fruit roll-ups, jelly beans, marshmallow treats, and more.  Tuesday, July 20 at 6:00

Knit Your Lunch: Registration Required. Learn to make a lunch caddie. Yarn and needles provided. Tuesday, July 27 at 6:00.  Click here to register.

Video Gaming Day: Drop in. Open gaming day. Wii, Xbox, Playstation 2 platforms. Refreshments served.  Thursday, July 29 at 3:30-5:00

August

Karaoke: Refreshments served.  Bring friends, dance, win prizes. Join in!  Tuesday, August 3 at 6:00

Create Book Trailers: Registration Required. Create original art using iMovie. Trailers will be displayed during Art Week in  September.  Friday, August 6 at 4:00.  Click here to register.

Video Gaming Night: Drop in.  Open gaming night.  Wii, Xbox, PlayStation 2 platforms.  Refreshments served.  Tuesday, August 10 at 6:00

Calamari Inside & Out:  Registration Required.  Dissect squid with the New England Aquarium staff!   Wednesday, August 11 at 4:00 or  5:00.  Click here to register.

Medieval Knight Training: Registration Required. Weapons demo with Guard Up. Tuesday, August 17 at 6:00.  Click here to register.

Comics Workshop: Registration Required. Create your own comics with Photoshop. Comics produced will be displayed in the library. Thursday, August 19 at 4:00.  Click here to register.

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 »