NEWELL—There is a little gem located right in the heart of the downtown area called the Newell Public Library. There is so much to see and do there! Rows and rows of books to read and computers and free wifi to enjoy, along with comfy seating areas to snuggle in and read plus audio and ebooks if you wish to go that route and so much more!
Coming off a busy summer, the Library is settling into the school year by inviting little ones to come explore the library and enjoy story time! Story Time with Miss Patty is offered every Wednesday at 11:15 a.m. “So we have a volunteer that comes in to read to the kids and she has props and costumes and books that she reads to them,” explained Matt Clausen, Librarian. “We’re trying to get it started back up—to get some more kids coming in.” Clausen shared that the story time was geared towards kids under the age of five, but that everyone was invited to participate.
This summer the Library offered a program called Color Your World where they focused on S.T.E.A.M (Science, Technology, Engineering, Art, and Mathematics). With a summer reading list of Super Manny Stands Up, Simon Sock, Badger and the Magic Fan, Just One Little Light, Stories in Art: Mosaics, and Extra Yarn participants were kept busy! The kids logged their reading all summer long and got an entry into a special prize drawing for every 250 pages they read.
“We had about 30 kids signed up total,” said Clausen. “Every week we had a volunteer come in and read a story to the kids, and then they did an arts and crafts thing related to it.”
When patrons aren’t at the library, Clausen stays busy doing inventory and sorting books in the system and invites kids to check out the library after school and on school breaks if they get a chance. The library is open Monday, Wednesday and Friday from 10:00 a.m. until 5:00 p.m.
September is Library Card Sign-up Month! So if you get a chance, stop by and get a library card and explore the Newell Public Library! If you live in Butte County, you can sign-up for a library card for free. If you live outside of the county, for a small yearly fee, you can still get a card.
“As long as you’re a resident of Butte County, it’s free—you just come in and sign up! And for kids, you need to have parents come to get the library card,” explained Clausen.
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