Try our new Playaway Launchpads!

 

We are excited to announce a new collection of Playaway Launchpads available for our patrons to borrow!  These are durable tablets preloaded with an assortment of educational games and digital storybooks, aimed at preschoolers, and kids in grades K-2 and grades 3-5.  Many have games to help with math skills, problem solving, language arts, and STEAM topics.  

Patrons with accounts in good standing can borrow a Launchpad for periods of 7 days.  Only one at a time per family, please!  As with everything else in our collection, Launchpads will be quarantined for at least 3 days after they are returned.  We also will wipe them down and make sure they are fully charged before being put back in circulation for the next borrower.

This collection was made possible by a donation from ASTM, International.

Here is a list of the Launchpads we have available.  Come on in the library to learn more!  

Aimed at preschoolers:

• A Day at the Zoo (Animals)
• ABCs Just for Me! (Language Arts)
• More Ways to Learn! (School review & prep)
• Build it. Fix It. Fun! (Building & Engineering)
• Beep Beep! Vroom Vroom! (Brain breaks - puzzles and fun)

Aimed at grades K-2:

• Minds in Motion! (STEAM)
• Meow the Cow! (Animals)
• Bridge to Creativity! (Building & Engineering)
• I'm All About it! (Brain breaks - puzzles and fun)
• Backpack of Fun (Life skills)
• I'm Here, I'm There (Adventure)
• Imagination Station (STEAM super-pack)

Aimed at grades 3-5:

• Smithsonian: Dino-Planet (Language Arts)
• Smithsonian: All Things Animal (Language Arts
• One Big World (Life skills)
• Problem Solved (STEAM)
• Are We There Yet? (Brain breaks - puzzles and fun)
• Piece of Cake (Critical thinking)

What do you know about the Justice Bell?

 

Do you know about the Justice Bell?  This replica of the Liberty Bell was commissioned in 1915 by a woman from Chester County. This replica of one of the most beloved symbols of American freedom was a great way to draw attention--Pennsylvania's suffragists took it on tour around the state as they sought support in their battle for women's suffrage.

Holly Holst, a member of the Friends of the Conshohocken Free Library, created this video to help us all learn more about the Justice Bell, and has graciously given us permission to share it with you!

Voting - how we got where we are

 

A post from Sydney.

This year marked the 100th anniversary of women's right to vote.  The 19th amendment, which provides that the right to vote "shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any State on account of sex," was passed by Congress in 1919, and became part of the U.S. Constitution in August, 1920, after being ratified by 36 states.  It took more than 70 years and multiple generations of women to make the dream of women's suffrage a reality.

In our library this year, we marked the anniversary with some special programs.  We were lucky enough to host a pop-up exhibit from "Rightfully Hers: American Women and the Vote," from the National Archives. We shared it outside on our walkway or our front porch as often as the weather allowed all month long. We hope that many of you got the chance to check it out when stopping by the library in August.  

Our book club read The Woman's Hour: The Great Fight to Win the Vote, by Elaine Weiss.  We thoroughly enjoyed this book--even though we all knew how it was going to end (of course!), we were really impressed at how the author conveyed the incredible drama of the final push for ratification in the summer of 1920 in Tennessee.  That was one hot, contentious summer in Nashville, Tennessee, as all interested parties converged on the city to make their case for or against ratification.  What a political thriller this was, complete with illicit liquor and guys jumping off trains and sneaking out windows.  How is this not a movie?  

Susan B. Anthony tells her story

Finally, actress/historian Marjorie Goldman brought Susan B. Anthony to life for us in a program in August, telling us about the highs and the lows of her role in the struggle for the right to vote.  

With so much focus on the upcoming election, we decided to bring "Ms. Anthony" back to the library for a return visit on Tuesday, October 27 at 7:30PM.  If you missed her appearance in August, please join us!  You will never take your right to vote for granted again.

Many of us have strong feelings about who we plan to vote for, how we want to do our voting, and what issues are the most important to us.  In this context, it's important to remember how fortunate we are at this time in history to even have the right to vote.  Let's remember how hard some people fought to make sure that we have it at all.  

"SERIE-ous" reads for grade school readers!

Hello Friends!  Ms. Lorraine here, Youth Services Specialist @ the Conshohocken Free Library!

I have been noticing a great many fun and interesting book series' for grade school-aged readers in the past few years.  Here are a few that caught my eye and piqued my interest!

Dog Man, by Dav Pilkey 
Dav Pilkey's wildly popular Dog Man series of graphic novels appeals to readers of all ages and explores universally positive themes, including empathy, kindness, persistence, and the importance of doing good.

Baby-Sitters Club, by Ann M. Martin, Raina Telgemeier and Gale Gilligan.
These new graphic novel adaptations perfectly capture all the drama and humor of the beloved original novels. 

The Questioneers series by Andrea Beaty
If you loved the bestselling picture books starring Rosie Revere, Ada Twist, and Iggy Peck, now you can follow their further adventures in brand-new chapter books!

“I survived” series, by Lauren Tarshis
History's most exciting and terrifying events come to life in this New York Times bestselling series.

“I am” books - "OrdinaryPeople Change the World," by Brad Meltzer
This friendly, fun biography series focuses on the traits that made our heroes great--the traits that kids can aspire to in order to live heroically themselves. 

Heidi Heckelbeck series and Henry Heckelbeck series, by Wanda Coven
With easy-to-read language and illustrations on almost every page, the Heidi/Henry Heckelbeck chapter books are perfect for beginning readers.

What We're Reading: New Book Alert!

What We’re Reading: a series where we, your librarians, share what we're reading this week. A post from Harry.

This week I've been reading through Becoming Philadelphia: How an Old American City Made Itself New Again by Inga Saffron, the long time architecture critic for the Philadelphia Inquirer. The book collects 20 years of her work writing columns about Philly's urban landscape and how it affected and still affects the city's residents.

Since the book is a collection of her journalistic work, it reads fast, each column no more than a few pages. It's an easy book to devour, and there is no problem in bouncing around from topic to topic at the reader's whim. 

What I enjoy most about this book is how it gives a historical recounting of the last 20 years of the city through the lens of architecture and urban design. Through Saffron's observations, Philly's modern timeline is measured by the construction of new buildings and the demolition of the old. 

I would recommend this book for those interested in local history, urbanism, and those who want to learn more about the intersection of urban development and gentrification. While the book would benefit from some historical context for those less familiar with the ins and outs of Philly politics, it is a great primer for better understanding our city as it stands today.