Chapter 4: Community and events
THERE’S ALWAYS SOMETHING TO DO AND SOMEONE TO MEET AT YOUR LOCAL LIBRARY
Your council library is the perfect place to sink into a comfy chair, flick through a magazine or browse the shelves for whatever books take your fancy.
Your council library is definitely the place for indulging in some ‘me time’, but did you know it’s also the place to enjoy some ‘WE’ time?
Many libraries have regular programs, events and activities for all ages, from children’s story time, to book clubs, author talks, educational programs and craft sessions.
Your council library is a hub for your community to come together and share interests, learn new skills, and change the personal experience of reading into a shared one.
Please note: some library events have been put on hold because of COVID19 restrictions or are taking place with reduced numbers to comply with guidelines.
Contact your local council library for more information about what’s on:
Book Club at your Council Library
FOR ADULTS
Many council libraries offer book discussion groups, with regular informal meetups to chat about books, books and more books!
Traditionally, group members read the same book and then come together once a month to discuss it.
What better way to discover new authors, expand your reading and make new friends?
FOR TEENS AND TWEENS
Some council libraries even offer book clubs for young teens and tweens to encourage them to enjoy reading on a deeper level, have fun and help build vocab and discussion skills!
FOR THE LITTLES
Don’t forget storytime, which is basically just book club for bubs, and packed full of those important positive early experiences of language and rhyme!
Stories strengthen connections in a chid’s brain, right when your little person is in their most active period of brain development – between birth and the age of three! And storytime strengthens social connections for parents and carers of little people too, who have the chance to get out of the house and meet likeminded people with similar aged kiddos!
To find out more about book discussion groups at your local council library:
Author Talks
Many SA council libraries currently participate in an interactive live program, ‘The Author Talks’.
These author-in-conversation events bring top authors into the lounge rooms of book lovers all over the state, using the power of ZOOM.
‘The Author Talks’ present authors chatting live and answering questions submitted by audience members prior to the event.
Sessions are also recorded so if you can’t make it, you can catch up when it suits you!
Previous sessions have included Aussie legend, John Wood, chatting about his memoir, How I Clawed My Way to the Middle.
To find out more about The Author Talks sessions and events like it at your local council library:
Digital Literacy Courses
LEARN. EXPAND. IMPROVE.
Your local council library plays an integral role in ensuring that South Australians have the digital access and skills needed to be involved in our ever-evolving digital world.
Working to stretch the horizons of South Australians with access to existing and emerging digital technologies, many council libraries offer digital literacy sessions, at basic, intermediate and advanced levels, promoting fun, welcoming and engaging flexible learning environments.
Whether it’s one on one sessions or group learning opportunities, there’s something for every level of digital citizen to learn, including:
- Computer and website awareness
- Introduction to tablets and email
- Social media
- Online shopping tools
- Robotics
- 3D printing
- Virtual reality
Check with your council library for courses available:
Libraries for parents… and for parents of parents!
SOCIAL FOR SENIORS
Your council library is a social activity hub for all ages.
If you have elderly parents looking to stay physically and mentally active, there’s no better place than your council library.
Whether it’s joining a Scrabble Society, a chess club, creative writing group, knitting sessions or even learning about ancestry, there’s always something on at your local council library for the older folk among us as well.
Check with your local council library to see what’s coming up:
Council libraries
Shelf talk
Meeting Rooms & Community Spaces
If you haven’t visited in awhile, your local council library may not look the way you remember it from your own childhood.
Libraries are now more like community hubs, with many councils upgrading their library facilities extensively to suit the changing needs of their community.
Think beautiful landscaped gardens and courtyards, comfy lounges and seating; some even have outdoor playgrounds, offering the perfect place for families and friends to meet, explore, play, read and relax.
Many council libraries also offer multi purpose meeting rooms to hire for private use and activities and some even have IT training suites. Whether you’re looking for a quiet place to study, host a meeting or a community event, your local council library is likely to have a space you can use.
Some council libraries even have gallery spaces offered to artists in the local area to display their work!
For more information about hiring a space in your local council library:
Missed a Chapter?
Don’t forget to catch up on what you’ve missed for more information the offerings of your local council library:
Chapter 1: Storytime and Craft
- Storytime
- Babytime
- Kids activities
- Costumes
- Craft
- Digital catalogue
Chapter 2: Toy Libraries
- Toy library
- Games
- Sports
- Party hire
Chapter 3: Technology
- Digital services
- Community tech spaces
- Media labs
- Makerspaces
ONE CARD…LOADS OF LIBRARIES
FROM BURNSIDE TO BURRA. FROM NORWOOD TO NARACOORTE.
Did you know you can borrow from Burnside, and return in Burra? Try out a DVD from Norwood and return it in Naracoorte?
Access to over 4 million items, across all council libraries, with a single library card!
The SA Library One Card Network means you can use any public library across our state with a single card for your family.
Joining the network of over 130 connected public libraries across SA gives you access to:
- Reserve items in an online catalogue
- Free delivery of items to your library of choice
- Borrow and return at your preferred location
Easy access to libraries, from wherever you are, means you have a choice between millions of items, books, magazines, music and DVD’s for your family, with just one library card.
For more information about how to join the One Card Network:
FOLLOW YOUR LOCAL COUNCIL LIBRARY
DID YOU KNOW YOUR LOCAL COUNCIL LIBRARIES ARE BEING CREATIVE, DIVERSIFYING AND FINDING NEW WAYS TO CONNECT?
Every council library is brimming with activities for kids and families and you can follow along online and be the first to know what’s on!
Check out these social media highlights from some of our council libraries, making fun literary and showcasing what’s new and available both in the library and online.
Follow your council library by downloading the Libraries SA app and join in by tagging your #sacouncil #library #partofyoureveryday in your posts.
For more information about council libraries:
Images: Meaghan Coles Photography
