Storytimes near WILMETTE PUBLIC LIBRARY DISTRICT

Wilmette Public Library, Youth Program Room

A bonding experience for caregivers and babies, with songs, cuddles, and bounces. Discover fun ways to play with your baby that also nurture early learning skills! An open playtime will follow at 10:10, to catch up with your friends, and to meet new ones! Siblings welcome. We use a visual schedule and offer noise canceling headphones for use during this program. Space is limited. Tickets will be given on a first come, first served, basis at the Youth Desk starting at 9am. Children 8 and under must be supervised at all times.

Wilmette Public Library, Youth Program Room

A bonding experience for caregivers and babies, with songs, cuddles, and bounces. Discover fun ways to play with your baby that also nurture early learning skills! An open playtime will follow at 10:10, to catch up with your friends, and to meet new ones! Siblings welcome. We use a visual schedule and offer noise canceling headphones for use during this program. Space is limited. Tickets will be given on a first come, first served, basis at the Youth Desk starting at 9am. Children 8 and under must be supervised at all times.

Wilmette Public Library, Auditorium

America’s greatest humorist roars back to life in a hilarious, profound, and touching new musical show. Warren Brown is Mark Twain, with a live banjo soundtrack by musician and songwriter Mark Dvorak. Warren Brown is Mark Twain: newspaperman, raconteur, riverboat pilot, inventor, world traveler, social commentator, and preeminent novelist. Brown has spent more than 30 years researching the life and work of Mark Twain and portraying him in spoken-word performances across the country. Folk musician and songwriter Mark Dvorak provides the soundtrack for Brown’s performance with old-time banjo tunes, period songs, and audience participation.

Wilmette Public Library, Youth Program Room

Make new friends and improve your chess game with the guidance of an experienced chess player. Chess sets will be available. Parents and caregivers of children 8 and under must stay for the program.

Wilmette Public Library, Library Lawn

Join us for a 30-minute walk around the neighborhood starting at the flagpole by the library's main entrance. Chat about what you're reading or watching, make new friends, or just enjoy the walk. This event is designed to promote physical activity and provide an opportunity for community members to engage in conversation with each other and with library staff. Adults of all fitness levels are welcome. Please wear comfortable shoes and clothing. No registration required. Walks are scheduled on: Monday, June 22nd Friday, July 10th Thursday, July 30th Tuesday, August 11th In case of cancellation due to rain or extreme heat, this listing will be updated to reflect a cancellation by 9:10am.

Wilmette Public Library, Auditorium

Experience Lakota culture through a demonstration and dance class with Lakota artist and teacher Starr Chief Eagle. Starr Chief Eagle will share the history of Lakota hoop dancing and demonstrate a short dance. We will learn a full dance routine that we will perform at the end of the program! Starr Chief Eagle is an enrolled member of the Sicangu (Rosebud) Lakota Sioux Tribe. She was born with the Lakota name Wichahpi Tokahe (First Star) and was later given the Lakota name Wichahpi Ohitika Winyan (Brave Star Woman) as she entered into adulthood. She grew up in the Black Hills of South Dakota and started hoop dancing before she could walk under the guidance of her father, Dallas Chief Eagle. Starr enjoys sharing her culture through art, language, dance, and song for future generations in hopes of restoring and maintaining the Lakota culture. Children must be accompanied by a parent or caregiver. We encourage you to carpool, bike, walk, or take public transportation, as library parking is limited.

Wilmette Public Library, Auditorium

Learn how to play traditional Chinese mahjong at a fun and interactive workshop for beginners. Registration required. Please register for one session only. In this workshop led by a traditional Chinese mahjong expert, you will learn a brief history of the game and basic rules and strategies. You will also have hands-on practice! Mahjong is a social game that enhances cognitive skills like memory and problem-solving. This program is suitable for adults with little to no experience playing. Experienced players may join, but please be patient with new players. Registration required. Please register for one session only. Adults only, no children or teens.

Wilmette Public Library, Youth Program Room

Do you love Minecraft? Join our Minecraft Club to make friends, collaborate, and build together on the library's private server. Are you a Minecraft expert or a Minecraft novice? All levels of ability are welcome at Minecraft Club! Take part in a group activity on our own shared server. In Minecraft Club we have three rules: 1. No killing other players in the Minecraft world. 2. No "griefing" (damaging another player's work). 3. No rude comments/name-calling in the chat or in the room. Inability to adhere to these rules will result in one warning, followed by removal from Minecraft Club for the day. Children 8 and under must be accompanied by an adult while in the library.

Wilmette Public Library, Zoom Adult/Teen

A support group for caregivers of those with Alzheimer's and other dementias. Sponsored by the Alzheimer's Association. Caregivers of an individual with Alzheimer's disease and other dementias are invited to attend these virtual support group meetings. This group is facilitated by trained Alzheimer's Association facilitators. The group meets the second Monday of every month on Zoom; newcomers are always welcome. Meetings are hosted by Wilmette Public Library and sponsored by the Alzheimer's Association. These meetings are for caregivers age 21 and older and not intended for those with Alzheimer's or other dementias. For support for those with dementia and for those living with or caring for individuals with dementia, their families and the public, helpful resources and information are available, contact the Alzheimer’s Association 24/7 Helpline at 800-272-3900. This free service is available around the clock, 365 days a year. Specialists and master’s-level clinicians offer confidential support and information. Contact senior services librarian Jillian McKeown with any further questions: jmckeown@wilmettelibrary.info or 847-256-5025.

Wilmette Public Library, Youth Program Room

Wiggle, dance, and sing together during this fast-paced storytime, perfect for toddlers and preschoolers. Filled with books, puppets, songs, flannels, music, movement, and bubbles, storytime helps develop important pre-literacy skills and cultivate a lifelong love of reading. We use a visual schedule and offer noise canceling headphones for use during this program. Space is limited. Tickets will be given out on a first come, first served, basis at the Youth Desk starting at 9am. Children 8 and under must be supervised at all times.

Wilmette Public Library, Youth Program Room

Wiggle, dance, and sing together during this fast-paced storytime, perfect for toddlers and preschoolers. Filled with books, puppets, songs, flannels, music, movement, and bubbles, storytime helps develop important pre-literacy skills and cultivate a lifelong love of reading. We use a visual schedule and offer noise canceling headphones for use during this program. Space is limited. Tickets will be given out on a first come, first served, basis at the Youth Desk starting at 9am. Children 8 and under must be supervised at all times.

Wilmette Public Library, Auditorium

Join us to discuss One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest by Ken Kesey. Boisterous, ribald, and ultimately shattering, Ken Kesey’s One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest is the seminal novel of the 1960s that has left an indelible mark on the literature of our time. Here is the unforgettable story of a mental ward and its inhabitants, especially the tyrannical Big Nurse Ratched and Randle Patrick McMurphy, the brawling, fun-loving new inmate who resolves to oppose her. We see the struggle through the eyes of Chief Bromden, the seemingly mute half-Indian patient who witnesses and understands McMurphy’s heroic attempt to do battle with the awesome powers that keep them all imprisoned. (From the publisher) Copies of the book are available here . Ebook and audiobook copies are available through Digital Library of Illinois or the Libby app. Eaudiobook always available on Hoopla . For those who would like to purchase a copy of One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest, please support our local independent bookstore, The Book Stall at 811 Elm Street in Winnetka. Copies may also be available at Books Down Under on the Lower Level of the library. Proceeds benefit the Friends of the Wilmette Public Library.

Wilmette Public Library, Small Meeting Room

Learn how to recognize and avoid common online scams. In a world where technology is everywhere, understanding cybersecurity is not just an advantage, it is a necessity. Learn about possible online threats and what you can do to protect yourself and others.

Wilmette Public Library, The Studio

Learn to mend your clothes! Bring one or two items of clothing with holes, tears, or missing buttons, and learn how to bring them back to life. Join us for a mending lesson led by an instructor from Sew On Central, a fabric shop and teaching studio in Evanston. Bring one or two clothing items that need to be repaired and learn how to make it happen. We'll cover holes, tears, and replacing buttons. No sewing experience needed.

Wilmette Public Library, Youth Program Room

Wiggle, dance, and sing together during this fast-paced storytime, perfect for toddlers and preschoolers. Filled with books, puppets, songs, flannels, music, movement, and bubbles, storytime helps develop important pre-literacy skills and cultivate a lifelong love of reading. We use a visual schedule and offer noise canceling headphones for use during this program. Space is limited. Tickets will be given out on a first come, first served, basis at the Youth Desk starting at 9am. Children 8 and under must be supervised at all times.

Wilmette Public Library, Youth Program Room

Wiggle, dance, and sing together during this fast-paced storytime, perfect for toddlers and preschoolers. Filled with books, puppets, songs, flannels, music, movement, and bubbles, storytime helps develop important pre-literacy skills and cultivate a lifelong love of reading. We use a visual schedule and offer noise canceling headphones for use during this program. Space is limited. Tickets will be given out on a first come, first served, basis at the Youth Desk starting at 9am. Children 8 and under must be supervised at all times.

Wilmette Public Library, Auditorium

Award-winning magician and children’s book author Terrence Hunter presents lightning-fast illusions, comedy, and magic. Space is limited. Tickets for both shows will be given out on a first come, first served basis at the Youth Desk starting at 9am the day of the show. Children must be accompanied by a parent or caregiver. We encourage you to carpool, bike, walk, or take public transportation, as library parking is limited.

Wilmette Public Library, Auditorium

Award-winning magician and children’s book author Terrence Hunter presents lightning-fast illusions, comedy, and magic. Space is limited. Tickets for both shows will be given out on a first come, first served basis at the Youth Desk starting at 9am the day of the show. Children must be accompanied by a parent or caregiver. We encourage you to carpool, bike, walk, or take public transportation, as library parking is limited.

Wilmette Public Library, Youth Program Room

A bonding experience for caregivers and babies, with songs, cuddles, and bounces. Discover fun ways to play with your baby that also nurture early learning skills! An open playtime will follow at 10:10, to catch up with your friends, and to meet new ones! Siblings welcome. We use a visual schedule and offer noise canceling headphones for use during this program. Space is limited. Tickets will be given on a first come, first served, basis at the Youth Desk starting at 9am. Children 8 and under must be supervised at all times.

Wilmette Public Library, Youth Program Room

A bonding experience for caregivers and babies, with songs, cuddles, and bounces. Discover fun ways to play with your baby that also nurture early learning skills! An open playtime will follow at 10:10, to catch up with your friends, and to meet new ones! Siblings welcome. We use a visual schedule and offer noise canceling headphones for use during this program. Space is limited. Tickets will be given on a first come, first served, basis at the Youth Desk starting at 9am. Children 8 and under must be supervised at all times.

Wilmette Public Library, Auditorium

Explore America’s beginnings in historic Philadelphia with travel expert Nancy McCully. Visit Independence Hall, meet the Founding Fathers, and trace Washington’s Revolutionary War journey. Philadelphia played a major role in the development of the America we know today. Meet the Founding Fathers and the soldiers who fought in the American Revolution. Tour Independence Hall where independence was declared. Follow in George Washington’s footsteps as he fought at Germantown, crossed the Delaware River, and spent the winter at Valley Forge. Armchair Travels is generously funded with a gift from the Rutherford Family Trust.

Central Station Coffee & Tea

Join your fellow book lovers for a lovely afternoon of silent, contemplative reading at Central Station Coffee & Tea. All reading and listening formats welcome! How it works: at Silent Book Club, there's no assigned reading—you read whatever you'd like. All formats are welcome—ebooks, audiobooks, textbooks, comic books... it's BYOBook. We'll meet at Central Station Coffee & Tea in Wilmette where attendees are free to order food or drinks as they normally would, share what they're reading, and settle in for about 45 minutes of sustained silent reading or listening. At the end of the hour, attendees will come back together and discuss what they've been reading. The Silent Book Club as an organization set out to unite a global community of book lovers through the shared joy of reading together, and we're excited to host this special type of book club. Space is very limited at the coffee shop, and registration is required. If you have any questions or comments, please contact librarian Jillian McKeown at: 847-256-6933 or email: jmckeown@wilmettelibrary.info .

Wilmette Public Library, Library Lawn

Use words, pictures, and numbers to relax and connect to the natural world. Nature journaling is the art of drawing or writing in response to nature. It focuses the mind and crystalizes our observations, thoughts, and experiences. Using a notebook and some simple art supplies, we'll begin a practice of nature journaling in the library's very own natives garden. Journals and art materials will be provided. Register children individually under their own names. Parents and caregivers of children 8 and under must stay in the library during the program.

Wilmette Public Library, Youth Program Room

Move, groove, and learn Spanish while having fun with music! Children will learn basic vocabulary and simple expressions for everyday use. Ideal for children ages 2 to 6 years. Children age 8 and under must be supervised at all times.

Wilmette Public Library, Youth Program Room

Join us for stories, songs, and fun in Mandarin Chinese! Presented by local educator Ling Liu. Children 8 and under must be supervised at all times.

Wilmette Public Library, Auditorium

Learn about Chicagoland's hardcore punk scene in the late 1990's, and an archival team's efforts to preserve its history. Before Fall Out Boy became a multiplatinum-selling rock band, they cut their teeth in the Chicagoland hardcore punk scene. Tracing the members' participation in this scene during the late 1990s and early 2000s uncovers a rich and vibrant history of local DIY music. The FOB Archive Team began in the summer of 2024 as a fan project to uncover this more deeply. Fall Out Boy rose in the early aughts, a time when digital promotion was beginning to take form. In this new era of the unfamiliar, the history of this local music scene survived in remnants on now old, forgotten websites across the Internet. The scattering and disappearance of parts of the Internet have also led to misinformation, and amongst our central goals is dispelling this. For the research team working more than 20 years later, old websites saved over the years by the Internet Archive offer several clues to understanding the musical landscape that the Fall Out Boy band members came from. The archivists explore not only the relation between this music scene and the Internet in the past and present, but have since birthed their own thriving community through archiving it. The Fall Out Boy Archive Team (FOBAT) is a fan-run team dedicated to researching and preserving information revolving around the band Fall Out Boy and their affiliates in the hardcore, pop-punk, pop, and adjacent music scenes. They operate almost entirely online through various platforms. Visit their website at https://fobarchive.com .

Wilmette Public Library, The Studio

Use leftover Studio materials or bring scraps from your own home projects to create something new! Get creative by using scraps to make mini vinyl stickers, a potholder, or a project of your own creation. Parents and caregivers of children 8 and under must stay in the library during the program.

Wilmette Public Library, Youth Program Room

Wiggle, dance, and sing together during this fast-paced storytime, perfect for toddlers and preschoolers. Filled with books, puppets, songs, flannels, music, movement, and bubbles, storytime helps develop important pre-literacy skills and cultivate a lifelong love of reading. We use a visual schedule and offer noise canceling headphones for use during this program. Space is limited. Tickets will be given out on a first come, first served, basis at the Youth Desk starting at 9am. Children 8 and under must be supervised at all times.

Wilmette Public Library, Youth Program Room

Wiggle, dance, and sing together during this fast-paced storytime, perfect for toddlers and preschoolers. Filled with books, puppets, songs, flannels, music, movement, and bubbles, storytime helps develop important pre-literacy skills and cultivate a lifelong love of reading. We use a visual schedule and offer noise canceling headphones for use during this program. Space is limited. Tickets will be given out on a first come, first served, basis at the Youth Desk starting at 9am. Children 8 and under must be supervised at all times.

Wilmette Public Library, Auditorium

Learn how to play traditional Chinese mahjong at a fun and interactive workshop for beginners. Registration required. Please register for one session only. In this workshop led by a traditional Chinese mahjong expert, you will learn a brief history of the game and basic rules and strategies. You will also have hands-on practice! Mahjong is a social game that enhances cognitive skills like memory and problem-solving. This program is suitable for adults with little to no experience playing. Experienced players may join, but please be patient with new players. Registration required. Please register for one session only. Adults only, no children or teens.