Baby Storytime

For children from birth to 24 months and their caregivers. Talk, sing, read, write and play together. Share books, stories, rhymes, music and movement in a format especially designed for babies.

Family Storytime

For children of all ages and their caregivers. Talk, sing, read, write and play together. Share books, stories, rhymes, music and movement.

Crafterdark

Craft, create, and connect with your library community. We encourage you to bring your current projects – any and all portable crafts with library-safe materials are welcome! Don’t have a project going already? Washburn Library has materials available for you to use! ......More

Craft, create, and connect with your library community. We encourage you to bring your current projects – any and all portable crafts with library-safe materials are welcome! Don’t have a project going already? Washburn Library has materials available for you to use! All skill levels welcome. Sponsor: Friends of the Hennepin County Library.

Read With an Animal

Grades 1-3. Cuddle up with a certified therapy animal and practice reading aloud. Most libraries host dogs, but you can call ahead to see if other animals will be visiting. Sign up when you arrive for a 15-minute slot.  Collaborator: PAWS to READ is a program of North......More

Grades 1-3. Cuddle up with a certified therapy animal and practice reading aloud. Most libraries host dogs, but you can call ahead to see if other animals will be visiting. Sign up when you arrive for a 15-minute slot.  Collaborator: PAWS to READ is a program of North Star Therapy Animals (NSTA). All handlers are required to be trained in an additional children's reading program that focuses on utilizing registered therapy animals.

Washburn Book Club

Welcome back the Washburn Book Club and join our discussion of new and interesting fiction and nonfiction titles. A limited number of lending copies may be picked up at the information desk prior to each discussion. Upcoming titles include: No meeting in November Dece......More

Welcome back the Washburn Book Club and join our discussion of new and interesting fiction and nonfiction titles. A limited number of lending copies may be picked up at the information desk prior to each discussion. Upcoming titles include: No meeting in November December 9: The Authenticity Project by Clare Pooley January 13: Erasure by Percival Everett February 10: Lessons in Chemistry by Bonnie Garmus March 10: The Merchant of Venice by William Shakespeare

Baby Storytime

For children from birth to 24 months and their caregivers. Talk, sing, read, write and play together. Share books, stories, rhymes, music and movement in a format especially designed for babies.

Family Storytime

For children of all ages and their caregivers. Talk, sing, read, write and play together. Share books, stories, rhymes, music and movement.

Community Connections Book Club

Join our discussion of new and interesting titles focused on transforming perceptions and building a more equitable and connected community. A limited number of lending copies may be picked up at the information desk prior to each discussion. Upcoming titles include: ......More

Join our discussion of new and interesting titles focused on transforming perceptions and building a more equitable and connected community. A limited number of lending copies may be picked up at the information desk prior to each discussion. Upcoming titles include: November 13: The Art of Gathering: How We Meet and Why It Matters by Priya Parker December 11: Bowling Alone: The Collapse and Revival of American Community by Robert D. Putnam January 8: See No Stranger: A Memoir and Manifesto of Revolutionary Love by Valarie Kaur February 12: The Sum of Us: What Racism Costs Everyone and How We Can Prosper Together by Heather C. McGhee March 12: The Color of Law, a Forgotten History of How Our Government Segregated America by Richard Rothstein

Drop-in LEGO® Lab

Calling all future engineers and architects! We've got the bricks, but we need you to bring your imagination. No experience necessary. We'll also have DUPLOS®, so all ages are welcome.

Northside-Southside: Monthly Community Mapmaking

Join staff from Mapping Prejudice who will guide you through the step-by-step process of reading property records to identify and document racial covenants. Racial covenants were clauses inserted into property deeds to restrict people who were not White from buying or ......More

Join staff from Mapping Prejudice who will guide you through the step-by-step process of reading property records to identify and document racial covenants. Racial covenants were clauses inserted into property deeds to restrict people who were not White from buying or occupying homes. Deemed illegal through the enactment of the Fair Housing Act of 1968, these covenants are a classic manifestation of structural racism. Help us make and map history.  About Mapping Prejudice: Based at the University of Minnesota Libraries, Mapping Prejudice collaborates with community members to expose the history of structural racism and support the work of reparations. Their work has always been community-powered, mobilizing more than 12,000 community members across the country to document racial covenants. Data from the Mapping Prejudice project has influenced policy changes and new laws, inspired museum exhibits and works of art, and been used for journalistic reports and educational curriculum. Northside-Southside is a series of programs created to highlight lesser-known histories from opposite ends of Minneapolis. Attendees are encouraged to attend programs at both locations. Note: The program alternates monthly between two locations: the 2nd Sunday of the month at Sumner Library and the 2nd Saturday of the month at Washburn Library. Sumner Library: Sundays; September 14, November 9, January 11, March 8, May 10; 1-2:30 p.m. Washburn Library: Saturdays; October 11, December 13, February 14, April 11, June 13; 1-2:30 p.m.