We're excited to hold a pumpkin decorating contest this October. Plus, we're having another popular Babble & Brew event for little ones and their caregivers to get connected in our community.

Check out all the other great events we have planned for you this fall season!

 
                                             -MPL Kids Staff

Pumpkin Project: A Contest with Character


This year, Marion Public Library is getting into the fall spirit by having a pumpkin decorating contest. We invite all ages to decorate a pumpkin like their favorite book character. It's easy and fun for the whole family! 


 

Basic guidelines:

-Pumpkin cannot be carved (must be decorated with paint, markers, paper, glue, etc.)

-Must be based on a book character

-2 Categories: 

Most Artistic/Creative and Funniest/Cutest

-All entries get a free book

-Winners get a special prize

-Voting is in library and online


 

For details on how to enter click here . 

 

Entries accepted: October 16th-October 20th

Judging: October 21st-26th

Winners announced: October 27th

Family Time

(All Ages)

Mondays at 6:30 p.m.


Got the Monday blahs? Start your week off right by coming to Family Time! Each week will feature a different activity appropriate for all ages and open to everyone! We'll have crafts, movies, games, and seasonal activities to get the whole family geared up for the week.


 

October Events:

6th - Foil Painting and Fire Fighters! (ages 3+) 

13th - Chalk Drawing (All ages) 

20th - Movie Night: Mr. Peabody & Sherman (PG)

27th - Halloween Party (All Ages)

Story Time Schedule

This season, our story time themes are going to focus on the alphabet and learning our letters. Each week, we're going to present a letter of the alphabet and provide stories, songs, and activities to go along with that letter. Check our calendar and website for each week's theme, and bring your little ones for a fun (and sneakily educational) story time. 

  

  

Toddler Time

(18 months-3 years)

Tuesdays & Fridays at 10:00 a.m. 

(20 minutes)

*No Toddler Times October 21 & 24

Toddler Time is a great way to build early literacy skills and a love of reading from an early age! We do lots of songs, rhymes, fingerplays, and books that will keep even the wiggliest toddlers engaged and learning!

 

Preschool Story Time

(3-5 years) 

Tuesdays & Wednesdays at 10:45 a.m. 

(30 minutes)

*No Story Times October 21 & 22

We have lots of great stories to share with your preschoolers! On top of the books we have fun songs, rhymes, and activities for you and your kiddos!

Baby Time

(Newborn-18 months)

Thursdays at 10:30 a.m. 

(15 minutes of structured time followed by 15 minutes of free play)

*No Baby Time October 23

Baby Time is a language enrichment program just for babies. It is an enjoyable time for you and your child full of rhymes, short books, bounces, and much more!

 

Babble & Brew: Playtime for Them, Coffee for You

Tuesday, October 21 drop in between 

10:00 and 11:30 a.m.


 

 

Longing for grown-up conversation? Want to reclaim your sanity, but need a place where your little ones will have fun too? Do you want to network with other parents in our community? Really like coffee? Then Babble & Brew is for you! We will have high-quality coffee from Wit's End Coffeehouse for the adults, and lots of exciting and age-appropriate toys for the kiddos (newborns-preschoolers).


 
Since October is Fire Prevention Month, we will welcome the Fire Fighters at 10:45 a.m. to show off their truck and gear and talk about fire safety.

 

Booksale!
October 24-26 
Happy Birthday, Juliette! A Party for Girl Scout Founder Juliette Gordon Low
Saturday, November 1st from 1:30-3:00

Happy Birthday, Juliette Gordon Low! The Girl Scouts founder was born on October 31, 1860; come celebrate her birthday and the Girl Scout Movement at the Marion Public Library. Girls can hear a Girl Scout story about Juliette Gordon Low, make a craft, and take part in activities in honor of her birthday! 

 
Mark Your Calendars 

November
11/11 Library Closed for Veteran's Day
11/12 Learning Safari
11/13 Lego Club
11/15 International Games Day
11/24-11/30 No Regular Story Times
11/25 Doodlebugs
11/26 Library Closes at 5:30 p.m.
11/27-28 Library Closed for Thanksgiving
11/29 Barnes & Noble Bookfair

December
12/5 Christmas in the Park
In This Issue
Pumpkin Project
Family Time
Story Time
Baby Time
Babble & Brew
Booksale
Happy Birthday, Juliette!
Upcoming
Library Info
Inspire
Star Wars Reads
Learning Safari
Doodlebugs
Lego Club
READ Dogs
Book a Trip!
Library Info

Hours:  

Monday-Thursday  

9:30 a.m. - 9:00 p.m.

Friday-Saturday 

9:30 a.m. - 5:00 p.m.

Sunday 

2:00 p.m.- 5:00 p.m. 

 

Website

 

Marion Public Library

319-377-3412

1095 6th Ave. 

Marion, IA 52402

 

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Learn all about our library building project!

All documents are posted at our website, including Library Director Doug Raber's blog, our Cost Benefit Analysis, our Needs Assessment, and our RFQ (Request for Qualifications).

Find out what's in the future for the library! Visit our website and click on the Inspire logo, or go directly to the information here: 
Star Wars Reads Day

October 11th

 

Come to the library on Saturday, October 11th and celebrate Star Wars Reads Day! We'll have displays set up of some of our favorite Star Wars books, crafts you can make here or take home, and we might even have some special visitors from a galaxy far, far away!
Learning Safari: Tuskegee Airmen

Wednesday, October 8th 

at 10:45 a.m.

Learning Safari is a special story time and art class for preschoolers in partnership with the African American Museum. This month features the Tuskegee Airmen. Join us as we talk about the Tuskegee Airmen and learn about the "redtail" planes they flew. Create redtail paper airplanes and compete in a paper airplane flying contests. 

Doodlebugs: Forms are Flat

Tuesday, October 28th 

at 10:45 a.m.

Doodlebugs is a hands-on art appreciation class for preschoolers and their caregivers made possible by th
Cedar Rapids Art Museum. We share stories, learn about how art is made and about the lives of famous artists, then we make our own masterpieces! 

 

This month you can take that flat shape and make it a "fat" 3D form. From spheres & cubes to cones & tubes, we'll plump up some forms to use for stamping.
 

Lego Club
Thursday, October 9th 
from 3:00-5:00 p.m.

Get creative with everyone's favorite building blocks! Build with our stash of Legos once per month on the second Thursday. 

READ Dogs!
Sunday, October 19th 
between 2:30-4:00 p.m.

Bring your kids to read to a certified therapy dog. They are great listeners and help build your child's confidence!

 

Book a Trip Across America!
All Ages Reading Program

Book a Trip with us at the library! This year-round reading program couldn't be easier: we'll have logs with maps available for everyone, and all you have to do is read books. Check off each state as you read a book that either takes place in that state, is about that state, or is by an author who is from that state. Read fiction or non-fiction. We've provided lists of suggested titles for kids, teens, and adults, but you can pick your own titles, too!


When you check off a state on your reading log, you can come in and get a colored dot from one of our staff, then go put it on the state you've just finished! We can all have fun watching as Marion Library readers read their way across the USA!