Children's Summer Program Openings

We still have spaces available in our Stuff & Nonsense and Spotlight programs during the summer!

Stuff & Nonsense is for kids entering Grade 1, and will meet Mondays at 4 PM on July 8th, July 15th, July 22nd, and July 29th.

Spotlight (on The Mysterious Sea) is for kids entering Grades 2, 3, and 4, and will meet Wednesdays at 4 PM on July 10th, July 17th, July 24th, and July 31st.

Please call us (203-637-8802) if you would like to sign up your child for either of these programs!

Perrot's Summer Reading Club and Contest for Kids

Summer is here! And that means it's time to sign up for Perrot's summer reading club! You can participate (and win prizes for reading!) from June 25th through August 2nd.

To sign up for our summer reading club, simply go to our volunteer table by the computers in Youth Services. Our friendly teen volunteers will sign you up, tell you the rules and start a reading record for you. You'll also get to put your name up on the bulletin board! We'll keep your reading record here in the library. When you've read a book, just tell a volunteer next time you're in the library and they'll write it in your reading record. After you read your first, third, and fifth books, you get a prize! Also, this year, for each book you read, Perrot will make a donation to Oceana, a group that works to protect our oceans. 

Parents, you can also take home a reading record for your littlest ones. We have special sheets for books read aloud with your child. Children get a sticker for each book they've read with a grown-up.

We're also having a contest this summer! Our summer reading theme is CATCH THE READING WAVE. Each week in July, we will display a picture of Perrot's bears reading a book, and you will have to guess which book it us. Once you figure it out, fill out a guess slip. We will have a random drawing from all our correct guess slips each week. We have 4 great tote bags full of prizes to give away, each which contains books as well as ocean-themed prizes!

Be sure to join us at Perrot this summer and CATCH THE READING WAVE!

Movies in the Park 2013

Perrot is pleased to present our seventh annual series of Movies in the Park in Binney Park. This year we are featuring Up and Charade. Bring your picnic, your chairs, and enjoy!


Up (Rated PG, 89 minutes)
Saturday, July 20th, 2013, 8:30 PM
[Rain date: Sunday, July 21st]
From the revolutionary minds of Pixar Animation Studios comes a hilariously uplifting adventure where the sky is no longer the limit. Carl Fredricksen, a retired balloon salesman, is part rascal, part dreamer who is ready for his last chance at high-flying excitement. Tying thousands of balloons to his house, Carl sets off to the lost world of his childhood dreams. Unbeknownst to Carl, Russell, an overeager 8-year-old Wilderness Explorer who has never ventured beyond his backyard, is in the wrong place at the wrong time-- Carl's front porch! The world's most unlikely duo reach new heights and meet fantastic friends like Dug, a dog with a special collar that allows him to speak, and Kevin, a rare 13-foot tall flightless bird. Stuck together in the wilds of the jungle, Carl realizes that sometimes life's biggest adventures aren't the ones you set out looking for.

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Charade (Not Rated, 114 minutes)
Saturday, August 24th, 2013, 8:30 PM
[No Rain Date]
Hollywood legends Cary Grant and Audrey Hepburn light up the screen in the stylish thriller Charade. Regina finds herself pursued through the streets of Paris by several men in search of the fortune that her murdered husband stole from them. As her world turns upside down, she finds herself leaning on a suave, charming stranger whose motives are unclear. Co-starring James Coburn, George Kennedy and Walter Matthau, this timeless classic will keep you guessing until the very end.

Connecticut Trails Day 2013

Join the largest National Trails Day celebration in the nation on the weekend of June 1st and 2nd! That's right, Connecticut Trails Day is so large that we had to turn it into a full weekend celebration. Choose from 259 events in 152 towns on over 560 miles of trail featured in this year's booklet.

There will be outdoor activities for everyone, including hiking, biking, horseback riding, running, trail maintenance, kayaking, educational walks, bird watching, letterboxing, and more. These events are guided by knowledgeable volunteers from local hiking clubs, parks and recreation departments, state agencies, conservation organizations, historic groups, education programs, and land trusts.

Don't miss out on this fun-filled weekend, which will provide many opportunities to discover new places and experience the outdoors with family, friends, and neighbors.

See an electronic version of the events booklet, or pick up a copy in the library (at our bulletin board).

First Sunday Science at the Seaside Center at Greenwich Point- Spot and Tag Horseshoe Crabs

The Bruce Museum, and other non-profit organizations in the area, sponsor periodic free, fun, and educational programs for children and families at the Seaside Center at Greenwich Point!

Photo: James Finn

First Sunday Science at the Seaside Center
Project Limulus: The Horseshoe Crabs are Coming
Sunday, June 2nd, 2013, 1:30 PM-4:00 PM
The day will be full of exciting opportunities to participate and learn more about Project Limulus, an ongoing study of the Horseshoe Crab.  Don’t miss this opportunity to spot and tag Horseshoe Crabs on the Greenwich Point Beach, discuss the research project with people involved, and hear a presentation on the ecology of this often seen but not well known creature. There is a chance that participants will get wet during some segments of this program, please dress accordingly! We will be meeting at the Innis Arden Cottage, located on Greenwich Point. The program is free, but passes are required for Park entry. See the Town of Greenwich website for entry details. Presented by the Friends of Greenwich Point, Town of Greenwich, Sacred Heart University, and the Bruce Museum.  For more information, please call Peter Linderoth at 203-413-6742 or email plinderoth@brucemuseum.org.

School Visit Books-- Get some great recommendations!

During the month of May, our Youth Services librarian, Mrs. Jarombek, visited 4th- and 5th-grade classes at local elementary schools to talk about new and exciting books and to promote our book clubs for kids.

Check out the full list for some great book recommendations!

Children's Summer Program Registration Starts Tuesday, 5/28

Registration for Youth Services' Summer 2013 Program Session starts Tuesday, May 28th, and runs through Saturday, June 22nd. [View the summer program schedule]

Our morning preschool programs are drop-in during the summer, but you still need to register for Stuff & Nonsense (for kids entering 1st grade) and Spotlight (for kids entering 2nd/3rd/4th grade).

• Our program registration is by lottery
• You must have an active library card in good standing to register
• Obtain a registration postcard for the program of your choice from the Youth Services Circulation Desk
• Fill out ALL of the required information. Incomplete applications will not be considered
• Address the reverse of the card to yourself
• Affix a first-class stamp (46¢)
• Drop off your card at the Youth Services Desk by June 22nd
• Registration cards will be mailed back to you within a week of the close of registration

Questions? Please give us a call at 203-637-8802, or comment on this post.

Help Stamp Out Hunger, This Saturday, 5/11

More than 50 million Americans are facing hunger. You can help! This Saturday, May 11th, 2013, leave out a bag of non-perishable food by your mailbox for your mail carrier to deliver to a local food bank! [Please, no glass containers or expired items.] 

Wondering what foods are best to put out for the food drive? Here are the top ten non-perishable foods requested by food banks:

• Cereal
• Pasta
• Rice
• Canned fruits and vegetables
• Canned meals such as soups and chili
• 100% juice 
• Peanut butter
• Pasta sauce
• Macaroni and cheese
• Canned protein such as tuna or chicken
• Beans, canned or dry

The annual Stamp Out Hunger food drive is a nationwide effort that provides food to local food banks and pantries that would otherwise be faced with depleted stocks during the summer months. Food banks across the country continue to experience record demand for emergency food assistance. Stamp Out Hunger is the nation's largest single-day food drive, having collected more than one billion pounds of food since its inception in 1993. In 2012, generous Americans donated more than 70 million pounds of food, which marked the ninth consecutive year that at least 70 million pounds were collected. 

A photo and poem from our Poetry Slam

Here are some of the participants from Perrot's Poetry Slam last weekend-- 

2nd-grader Cavell, and 4th-graders Victoria, Emily, and Sarah. 

Sarah shared with us her lovely poem about libraries:

Library

Library, 

Peaceful and quiet.

Library,

Home of books

Library,

Oasis of wisdom

Library,

Home sweet home

Y2C2's Favorite Book of 2012/2013 Is...

The Young Young Critics' Club (Y2C2), Perrot's book club for 4th- and 5th-graders, has declared that its favorite book of 2012/2013 is...


KEEPER OF THE LOST CITIES
by Shannon Messenger
Twelve-year-old Sophie has never quite fit into her life. She’s skipped multiple grades and doesn’t really connect with the older kids at school, but she’s not comfortable with her family, either. And Sophie has a secret-- she’s a Telepath, someone who can read minds. But the day Sophie meets Fitz, a mysterious (and adorable) boy, she learns she’s not alone. He’s a Telepath too, and it turns out the reason she has never felt at home is that, well. . . she isn’t. Fitz opens Sophie’s eyes to a shocking truth, and almost instantly she is forced to leave behind her family for a new life in a place that is vastly different from what she has ever known.


See the rest of Y2C2's favorite books from the last year!

Golden Y Award Winners, Spring 2013

CONGRATULATIONS to the winners of the Semi-Annual Young Young Critics' Club (Y2C2) Jeopardy Tournament!

The winning team, Flo (L-R): Charlotte I., Artemis, Matthew, and Charlotte H.

They are the current holders of the coveted Wonderful Golden "Y" Award! The winners have demonstrated their mastery of trivia questions related to the books that the Young Young Critics' Club (our book club for 4th- and 5th-graders) has read during the past year. (Yes, it looks like a lobster, but trust us, it’s also a wonderful golden ‘Y’-- stop by the Youth Services Department and see for yourself!)

Teens: Looking for a summer volunteer opportunity?

. . .Perrot needs you! Perrot is looking for teen volunteers for its Youth Services department to help run the summer reading program for kids.

Who can be a Perrot Library Summer Teen Volunteer?
Anyone going into Grade 7 and up who can volunteer at least 5 hours during the summer.

When do volunteers work?
From June 25th to August 2nd, whenever the library is open. You can set your own schedule and sign up for shifts any hour that the library is open—mornings, afternoons and evenings.

Why volunteer?
• To help others
• To learn job skills
• To earn community service hours
• To meet other teens and have fun!

How do I become a Summer Teen Volunteer?
Easy! Just pick up an application at the Youth Services Desk (or download one here), have a parent or guardian sign it, and drop it off.

How do I learn what to do?
All volunteers must attend a 1-hour training session in June where we’ll teach you everything you need to know.

Have more questions?
Please call Kathy Jarombek, Director of Youth Services, at 203-637-3535.

YCC's Favorite Book of 2012/2013 Is...

The Young Critics' Club (YCC), Perrot's book club for 6th-, 7th-, and 8th-graders, has declared that its favorite book of 2012/2013 is....

THREE TIMES LUCKY
by Sheila Turnage
Rising sixth-grader Miss Moses LoBeau lives in the small town of Tupelo Landing, North Carolina, where everyone's business is fair game and no secret is sacred. She washed ashore in a hurricane eleven years ago, and she's been making waves ever since. Although Mo hopes someday to find her "upstream mother," she's found a home with the Colonel-- a café owner with a forgotten past of his own--and Miss Lana, the fabulous café hostess. She will protect those she loves with every bit of her strong will and tough attitude. So when a lawman comes to town asking about a murder, Mo and her best friend, Dale Earnhardt Johnson III, set out to uncover the truth in hopes of saving the only family Mo has ever known.


See the rest of YCC's favorite books from 2012/2013!

Youth Services Summer Program Schedule Now Available

The Youth Services Summer 2013 Program Schedule is now available!

Please note that for our summer program session, all our preschool programs will be DROP-IN, and most are limited to the first 20 children and their caregivers to sign in before each program. Our Stuff & Nonsense and Spotlight programs will still be by registration only.

Pick up a registration postcard for the program of your choice from the Youth Services Circulation Desk, beginning on Tuesday, May 28th, 2013. Don't forget to bring a stamp! The registration period closes at 5 PM on Saturday, June 22nd, 2013. Our programs are selected by lottery. You may view our complete registration instructions online and see descriptions of our program offerings.

If you have other questions, please comment on this post!

Upcoming Events at Perrot

Poetry Slam
Sunday, April 28th, 2013, from 3 PM to 5 PM
Join us in celebrating Poetry Month at the first annual Perrot Library Poetry Slam! Bring a poem you have written or a favorite by someone else to read at our open mike. All ages welcome.

Talk with Lee Woodruff, author of Those We Love Most
Wednesday, May 8th, 2013, at 7:30 PM
Author Lee Woodruff, married to newsman Bob Woodruf who suffered a traumatic brain injury in Iraq, brings her own experience dealing with sudden tragedy to her first novel, Those We Love Most. A split-second distraction and a family is forever changed. Individuals must confront their choices, examine mistakes, and ultimately find their way back to each other in this humorous and poignant page-turner.