What Should You Read After the Babysitter Club Series? A Reading List for Tweens
The Babysitter Club is 34 years old! A landline phone, tie-dye t-shirts, and glittery accessories all helped give the BSC that iconic 80s and 90s look. While the BSC remains a great reading choice for tweens and teens, many other series have been written since then capture the spirit of female resilience and friendship.
Craftily Ever After
Book 1: The Un-Friendship Bracelet
In the first book of the Craftily Ever After chapter book series, a new student gets between best friends Emily and Maddie--and changes the mea...
You’ve Just Binged “The Babysitter’s Club:” A Reading List for Grown-Ups
If you were a young girl growing up in the 90s, there’s a good chance you read at least one book from the “Babysitter Club Series” by Ann M. Martin. There’s also a good chance you squealed in delight when Netflix released its modern reboot of the series in July. The show modernizes the more outdated content while preserving the timeless themes of the books: friendship, female role models, and hard work. The heroines are thoroughly clever and entrepreneurial, compassionate and wise. I found myself wanting to revisit the spirit of Stonybrook that so captured me as a teenager. While waiting fo...
Comic Arts Q&A with Jerry Bennett
Jerry Bennett is a full-time artist creating comic books, children's books, and shirt designs for licensed brands (Lucasfilm, Marvel, DC, Saban). He storyboarded for Mattel and Dreamworks and created animated book trailers for Scholastic and Lerner Children's Books. He also art directed Even in Death, an award-winning animated short, with talented students on the autism spectrum. He served as the 2018-2019 Paseo Arts/Skirvin Hilton Artist in Residence, creating and involving the community in participating in the process of comic art. Jerry is currently drawing more comics and crea...
Metropolitan Library System Announces No Late Fines on Children's Materials
Beginning July 1, children’s materials including books, movies and music checked out from the Metropolitan Library System will no longer accrue fines if late.
“Fines are barriers to library access,” said Julie Ballou, Executive Director of the Metropolitan Library System. “We are committed to reducing barriers and supporting equitable access to literacy in our community.”
As of July 1, any existing fines on children’s materials will also be waived.
“Children’s fines are an obstacle that disproportionately impacts families without the means to pay,” Chris Kenned...
Black Lives Matter Community Read
As American’s delve into raw conversations about race, it can be beneficial to reflect on the stories and experiences of authors who confront antiracism and social justice today. OverDrive has provided libraries with some titles available for simultaneous use - no waits, no holds. Titles include The New Jim Crow: Mass Incarceration in the Age of Colorblindness by Michelle Alexander, The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas and Me and White Supremacy: Combat Racism, Change the World, and Become a Good Ancestor by Layla F Saad.
“The titles included in our Black Lives Matter: Community Read...
Pride 2020
Pride looks a little different this year with most parades either being postponed or moved online, but we are still doing our part to celebrate at the Library. If you don’t know the history, on June 28, 1969 there was a clash between LGBTQ+ people and cops at a gay bar called the Stonewall Inn. While there is much debate as to whether this event should be called a riot, rebellion or uprising, who threw the first brick at the cops, or whether it was in fact a brick, a stone, or even a handbag; what isn’t up for debate is the lasting impact that this event had for the LGBTQ+ community and Ame...
Media Literacy for Voters
Every election season we all get bombarded with mailers, online posts, and TV ads for candidates or issues, both at the national and local level. Campaigns are consistently adapting their outreach; efforts might range from texting community members to hosting live townhalls. How can we evaluate what we’re seeing and hearing? How do we know who these people are, and whether they’d do a good job in their elected positions? How do we wade through all this election-related content?
Sharpening our media literacy skills and using tried-and-true tools are the best ways to stay infor...
Be an Informed Voter!
Primaries & Special ElectionsDid you know that elections happen throughout the year, not just in November? The next election for Oklahomans is taking place on June 30. It includes both primary elections and State Question 802.
A primary election is an election used either to narrow the field of candidates for a given elective office or to determine the nominees for political parties in advance of a general election. In Oklahoma, the Republican and Libertarian parties conduct closed primaries, meaning that voters must be registered party members to participate. The De...
Access Magazines & Newspapers with a Library Account
Have you ever tried to finish a magazine article in the checkout line at the supermarket?
Keeping up with current events and hobbies doesn’t have to be difficult. Your library account gives you access to popular magazines and world-renown newspapers at your fingertips, for free.
This article will help you learn more about how you can use RB Digital, America’s News and National Geographic through your library.
RB Digital Magazines
Access popular publications like InTouch and Allure as well as niche publications like the American Poetry Revi...
Tax Resources 2024
The Metropolitan Library System is here to help make this tax season a little less stressful!
Check out our Income Tax Resources page for access to:
• Free online filing options
• Printable federal and state tax forms
Visit any Metropolitan Library location to have us print free federal and state tax forms for you.
We also have a variety of print and digital titles to help you prepare your taxes this year!
Disclaimer: Metropolitan Library System staff are neither tax experts nor tax advisers. Consult IRS.gov for the most up-to-date ta...
Checkout eBooks & eAudiobooks instantly on the one-tap Libby reading app
Have you checked out eBooks through your local library yet?
Download the Libby app. It’s free. It’s simple. And you can checkout eBooks with your library account instantly from anywhere.
Whether you’re staying with family, on vacation or stuck at home, a new read is at your fingertips.
The Libby app gives library account holders access to millions of eBooks and eAudiobooks.
With the convenient app, users can begin reading or listening instantly. Checking out your favorite reads has never been easier.
Here are just a few features in the ...
Ignite Your Mind and Your Career with Brainfuse
Brainfuse has a variety of useful resources for every age and learning level including homework help, study tools and practice tests, college or career path counseling, resume and interview assistance and more!
Our new Brainfuse online resource includes three unique services, Help Now, Job Now and Vet Now. Wondering how they can help you? Let’s explore these resources together…
Help NowAre you ready to ignite your mind with a personalized learning experience including online tutoring with a live tutoring professional, study tools, practice tests and more? Whether you...
Lego Builders
Sparking Creativity Brick by BrickDid you know that kids who play regularly with blocks, like LEGOS, score higher on standardized tests and perform better in math? To celebrate National Architecture April 21 – 27, we want to share with you the benefits of attending LEGO programs at the library.
Library LEGO programs are a great way to get children solving problems, learning new concepts in science, technology, engineering, art and math (STEAM) and building key leadership skills.
In a study of 62 students between the ages of 8 and 14 using LEGO Mindstorms construction...
So You've Been Asked to Read a Book to Children...
Have you ever been asked to read a book out loud to a group of children? This can be intimidating for community leaders who don’t have the professional training and experience of a children’s librarian!
Here are some tips to help:
Read the book first. Practice! Hold the book so children can see the pictures. Point out interesting things on the page. Add your own sound effects, silly voices, and ask questions of your audience as you feel comfortable. The best storytimes are engaging and interactive. Pick a book that’s not too long, is paced well, and doesn’t have to...
Belle Isle Butterflies
The Belle Isle Library recently welcomed some very special new members to its property: beautiful monarch butterflies! The annual migration of North America’s monarch butterfly is an incredible phenomenon. The monarch is the only butterfly to migrate two ways, as birds do. Unlike other butterflies that can sleep through winter as larvae, pupae, or even as adults in some species, monarchs cannot survive the cold. Using environmental cues, the monarchs know when to travel south for the winter.
In 2017, the library partnered with the Oklahoma Master Gardeners to plant a but...