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VIRTUAL: Grief Journaling Workshop
VIRTUAL: Living History Project
The Living History Project (LHP) is an attempt at youth leadership development that seeks to provide a space to help cultivate social and critical thinking skills, develop research skills, and gain public speaking experience. A major component of this project is that its authentically youth led meaning that youth are given the opportunity to discuss issues pertinent to them and do further research as well as plan and organize community presentations.
Facilitated by long time social justice and human rights activist Billy Brooks, LHP’s program structure is fairly informal and flexible, capable of adjusting to a variety of settings. It is within this informal conversationalist structure that Mr. Brooks is able to further instill necessary leadership skills ranging from foundations to effective communication to critical thinking and public speaking. In effect what the LHP is prepared to offer students is:
Knowledge of effective communication and social skills
Further development of critical thinking skills
Research skills
Experience with direct project management
Experience with public speaking
Self advocacy strategies You can register with this link.
VIRTUAL: Fireside Chat with Dr. Eve L. Ewing
Join us in a virtual conversation with Dr. Eve L. Ewing, award-winning author and assistant professor at the University of Chicago School of Social Service Administration, as we begin a new series of programming inspired by our Anti-Racism Resources. Dr. Ewing is a sociologist of education whose research is focused on racism, social inequality, and urban policy, and the impact of these forces on American public schools and the lives of young people.
REGISTER IN ZOOM NOW: Early registration is encouraged, as space is limited. This event will be interpreted live in American Sign Language (ASL).
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Dr. Ewing’s nonfiction work, Ghosts in the Schoolyard: Racism and School Closings on Chicago’s South Side, which examines the 2013 wave of targeted school closings in Chicago’s predominately low-income and African-American south side neighborhoods, is included in our Anti-Racism Resource Guide. Her most recent work, 1919, a selection from last year’s summerlong adult reading program, is a unique collection of poems exploring the story of the Chicago Race Riots of 1919, an event largely neglected in modern discourse. She is also the author of a book of poems, Electric Arches, an imaginative exploration of black girlhood and womanhood through poetry, visual art, and narrative prose, which was awarded the 2018 American Library Association Alex Award. She is currently continuing to write the Champions series for Marvel Comics and working on her next book, Original Sins: The (Mis)education of Black and Native Children and the Construction of American Racism.
ABOUT THE MODERATOR
This conversation will be moderated by reporter and author Natalie Moore. Moore covers segregation and inequality for Chicago’s WBEZ. Moore’s work has been broadcast on the BBC, Marketplace, and NPR’s Morning Edition, All Things Considered, and Weekend Edition. She is the author of The South Side: A Portrait of Chicago and American Segregation, winner of the 2016 Chicago Review of Books award for nonfiction and a Buzzfeed best nonfiction book of 2016.
MORE ABOUT THE EVENT
This event is presented by Addison Public Library District, Arlington Heights Memorial Library, Aurora Public Library District, Cook Memorial Public Library District, Gail Borden Public Library District, Glenview Public Library, Highland Park Public Library, Lake Villa Public Library, Oak Park Public Library, Skokie Public Library, Schaumburg Township District Library, and Wilmette Public Library.
VIRTUAL: Midday Meditation (New time!)
VIRTUAL: Mic Check Public Speaking Series
Discover how to gain greater confidence and minimize your fears in this public speaking program! For high school and college students (ages 13-24), this five-week, online workshop series provides guidance from a seasoned instructor and opportunities to practice presenting in front of others. Each session is one hour a week.
Our first session was awesome, and there's still time to join! Please register on or before February 23 to participate in the remaining four sessions of this series. And check out this video to learn more »
REGISTER IN ZOOM NOW: After you register, you will receive a specific Zoom link to join the event.
Who is this online course for?
- High school and college students (ages 13-24) who want to share their gifts and talents with the world but struggle to feel confident to express themselves with others.
- Young adults who have something to say/share, but need help building self-esteem and confidence.
- Young adults who want to empower and motivate others through their personal stories.
- Young adults who want to be in a space to connect and engage with other people.
- Young adults who would like to become a public speaker but don’t know where to start.
What you'll learn
- Get strategies for developing a speech
- Practice presenting virtually
- Become familiar with talking in front of people
- Learn skills that will enable you to overcome your fear of public speaking
- Identify reasons for uneasiness
- Discover preparation tools designed to boost your confidence
- Plan and present a presentation from opening to close that will have a positive impact on your audience
Course schedule
Join us virtually Tuesdays, February 16 - March 16, Time: 5:30-6:30 pm:
- February 16: Icebreaker: introduction to public speaking, learn the dos and don’ts, and watch a short video clip
- February 23: Check-in round: review the parts of speech, learn valuable public speaking tools, and write a brief impromptu speech
- March 2: Check-in round: watch a short video clip and learn confidence-building strategies and engagement techniques to connect with your audience
- March 9: Check-in round: share, review, and critique speeches
- March 16: Check-in round: come prepared to present your five-minute speech to a virtual audience
About the instructor
Ms. Darcel Washington is passionate about helping teens and young adults build their confidence through public speaking. She is a seasoned public speaker, mentor, educator, and Teen Services Specialist at the Oak Park Public Library. She has mastered engaging and connecting with her audience in an unforgettable way and is excited about helping you do the same.
VIRTUAL: Shake, Rattle and Read
VIRTUAL MEETING: Detection By Daylight Mystery Book Discussion: These Honored Dead
In March, we will read These Honored Dead by Jonathan Putnam, written in 2016. This is the first of a series of 4 novels featuring young Abraham Lincoln Lincoln and Joshua Speed. Inspired by actual events, the author skillfully captures the pioneer times of the 1830’s in Springfield, IL where Lincoln and Speed were real-life roommates. In this first novel, Joshua Speed is an amateur detective who is intent to determine why a dead girl was found in a neighboring town. Lincoln brings his legal expertise and they work together to solve the crime.
Detection by Daylight is a book group that meets monthly on the first Wednesday at 12 pm. We discuss detective mystery stories, often the first book of a series and sometimes standalone books. The group has been running since 2011 and always met at the Maze library. For now, we are using the library's Zoom platform. It is open to all so please join us!
The eBook and audiobook are on the Hoopla platform for Oak Park Public Library card holders.
All library virtual meeting space rentals are open to the public and follow the library’s meeting spaces policy. This virtual meeting will be hosted by Detection by Daylight. Please contact the non-library organizer listed here for more information about this meeting.
REGISTER IN ZOOM NOW: After you register in Zoom, you will receive a specific Zoom link to join the meeting.
VIRTUAL: Living History Project
The Living History Project (LHP) is an attempt at youth leadership development that seeks to provide a space to help cultivate social and critical thinking skills, develop research skills, and gain public speaking experience. A major component of this project is that its authentically youth led meaning that youth are given the opportunity to discuss issues pertinent to them and do further research as well as plan and organize community presentations.
Facilitated by long time social justice and human rights activist Billy Brooks, LHP’s program structure is fairly informal and flexible, capable of adjusting to a variety of settings. It is within this informal conversationalist structure that Mr. Brooks is able to further instill necessary leadership skills ranging from foundations to effective communication to critical thinking and public speaking. In effect what the LHP is prepared to offer students is:
Knowledge of effective communication and social skills
Further development of critical thinking skills
Research skills
Experience with direct project management
Experience with public speaking
Self advocacy strategies You can register with this link.
VIRTUAL: English Language Conversation
VIRTUAL: Shake, Rattle and Read
VIRTUAL: Spanish Conversation Hour / Conversación en español
VIRTUAL: Writers' Word Feast
VIRTUAL: Living History Project
The Living History Project (LHP) is an attempt at youth leadership development that seeks to provide a space to help cultivate social and critical thinking skills, develop research skills, and gain public speaking experience. A major component of this project is that its authentically youth led meaning that youth are given the opportunity to discuss issues pertinent to them and do further research as well as plan and organize community presentations.
Facilitated by long time social justice and human rights activist Billy Brooks, LHP’s program structure is fairly informal and flexible, capable of adjusting to a variety of settings. It is within this informal conversationalist structure that Mr. Brooks is able to further instill necessary leadership skills ranging from foundations to effective communication to critical thinking and public speaking. In effect what the LHP is prepared to offer students is:
Knowledge of effective communication and social skills
Further development of critical thinking skills
Research skills
Experience with direct project management
Experience with public speaking
Self advocacy strategies You can register with this link.
VIRTUAL: Chair Yoga
- Chair yoga and meditation are accessible and open for all
- Dress comfortably
- Find a location where you can focus and dedicate 30 minutes to you
- You are not required to keep your camera on
- Prepare to take time to match your movement and motion and have a little fun
- Have a chair that can be stationary
VIRTUAL Books & Brews: A Woman is No Man
Copies can be downloaded through Media on Demand/Libby and Hoopla
Need help getting started with Hoopla or Libby? Watch how-to videos at oppl.org/how-to-library.
VIRTUAL: Mic Check Public Speaking Series
Discover how to gain greater confidence and minimize your fears in this public speaking program! For high school and college students (ages 13-24), this five-week, online workshop series provides guidance from a seasoned instructor and opportunities to practice presenting in front of others. Each session is one hour a week.
Our first session was awesome, and there's still time to join! Please register on or before February 23 to participate in the remaining four sessions of this series. And check out this video to learn more »
REGISTER IN ZOOM NOW: After you register, you will receive a specific Zoom link to join the event.
Who is this online course for?
- High school and college students (ages 13-24) who want to share their gifts and talents with the world but struggle to feel confident to express themselves with others.
- Young adults who have something to say/share, but need help building self-esteem and confidence.
- Young adults who want to empower and motivate others through their personal stories.
- Young adults who want to be in a space to connect and engage with other people.
- Young adults who would like to become a public speaker but don’t know where to start.
What you'll learn
- Get strategies for developing a speech
- Practice presenting virtually
- Become familiar with talking in front of people
- Learn skills that will enable you to overcome your fear of public speaking
- Identify reasons for uneasiness
- Discover preparation tools designed to boost your confidence
- Plan and present a presentation from opening to close that will have a positive impact on your audience
Course schedule
Join us virtually Tuesdays, February 16 - March 16, Time: 5:30-6:30 pm:
- February 16: Icebreaker: introduction to public speaking, learn the dos and don’ts, and watch a short video clip
- February 23: Check-in round: review the parts of speech, learn valuable public speaking tools, and write a brief impromptu speech
- March 2: Check-in round: watch a short video clip and learn confidence-building strategies and engagement techniques to connect with your audience
- March 9: Check-in round: share, review, and critique speeches
- March 16: Check-in round: come prepared to present your five-minute speech to a virtual audience
About the instructor
Ms. Darcel Washington is passionate about helping teens and young adults build their confidence through public speaking. She is a seasoned public speaker, mentor, educator, and Teen Services Specialist at the Oak Park Public Library. She has mastered engaging and connecting with her audience in an unforgettable way and is excited about helping you do the same.
VIRTUAL: Shake, Rattle and Read
VIRTUAL: Living History Project
The Living History Project (LHP) is an attempt at youth leadership development that seeks to provide a space to help cultivate social and critical thinking skills, develop research skills, and gain public speaking experience. A major component of this project is that its authentically youth led meaning that youth are given the opportunity to discuss issues pertinent to them and do further research as well as plan and organize community presentations.
Facilitated by long time social justice and human rights activist Billy Brooks, LHP’s program structure is fairly informal and flexible, capable of adjusting to a variety of settings. It is within this informal conversationalist structure that Mr. Brooks is able to further instill necessary leadership skills ranging from foundations to effective communication to critical thinking and public speaking. In effect what the LHP is prepared to offer students is:
Knowledge of effective communication and social skills
Further development of critical thinking skills
Research skills
Experience with direct project management
Experience with public speaking
Self advocacy strategies You can register with this link.
VIRTUAL: Anti-Racist Book Group: Ghosts in the Schoolyard
Introducing a new collaborative community event as part of our anti-racism journey: the Anti-Racist Book Group. Hosted in collaboration with the Austin Branch of the Chicago Public Library, monthly meetings will be virtual, and registration can be found on both libraries' online calendars. Please join us to discuss Ghosts in the Schoolyard by Eve L. Ewing.
REGISTER IN ZOOM NOW: After you register, you will receive a specific Zoom link to join the event.
Failing schools. Underprivileged schools. Just plain bad schools." That's how Eve L. Ewing opens Ghosts in the Schoolyard, describing Chicago Public Schools from the outside. The way politicians and pundits and parents of kids who attend other schools talk about them, with a mix of pity and contempt.
But Ewing knows Chicago Public Schools from the inside: as a student, then a teacher, and now a scholar who studies them. And that perspective has shown her that public schools are not buildings full of failures—they're an integral part of their neighborhoods, at the heart of their communities, storehouses of history and memory that bring people together.
- This discussion will be moderated by Oak Park Public Library librarian Margita Lidaka and Restorative Practices Coordinator Tatiana Swancy. Learn more about our library's Anti-Racism Resource Challenge.
- Copies of the title can be downloaded through Media on Demand/Libby and Hoopla. Need help getting started with Media on Demand, Libby, and Hoopla? Watch how-to videos at oppl.org/how-to-library »
- This event is being organized by Danielle Morales with Walk the Walk.
Want to hear more from the author? Don't miss our virtual Fireside Chat with Dr. Eve L. Ewing on March 1 at 6 pm. Register now »
VIRTUAL: English Language Conversation
VIRTUAL: Shake, Rattle and Read
VIRTUAL: Supported Storytime: Animal Circus
This class is designed for children with disabilities ages 3 and up, with caregiver support. Siblings welcome.
VIRTUAL: TechGirlz Workshop: You Can Be a Photographer: Photography For Marketing
In this workshop, students in grades 5-8 will learn how to put a new background on their photographs, as well as some other fun features and effects using free computer software (PIXLR) and a smartphone app called PhotoLayers.
They will discover the impact made by editing photos and how the techniques are used in marketing and advertising. Come edit yourself into a beautiful winter wonderland!
Please create a free PIXLR account prior to the workshop. We will provide stock photos to edit, but the student may have their own photos as well. Laptop, Mac, PC, or Chromebook with internet access required.
REGISTER IN ZOOM NOW: After you register, you will receive a specific Zoom link to join the event.
ABOUT TECHGIRLZ
TechGirlz provides workshops to girls, virtually, with the help of industry professionals and community leaders. TechGirlz’ mission is to inspire middle school girls to explore the possibilities of technology to empower their future careers; to develop a lifelong passion and confidence in their use of technology. Are you a teen ages 15-17 and want to volunteer with TechGirlz? Learn more »
Please join us for any and all virtual programs in this series:
VIRTUAL: Candidate Forum — Oak Park Public Library Trustee Candidates
Join us for the Candidate Forum for the Oak Park Public Library Trustee April 6 Municipal Election. This forum is hosted by the League of Women Voters of Oak Park & River Forest, in partnership with the Oak Park Public Library.
Candidates Sarah Glavin, Matt Fruth, Saria Lofton, Madhurima Chakraborty and, Peter Prokopowicz will start with opening statements, followed by questions for the candidates, and ending with closing statements. Questions can be submitted in advance of the forum at lwvoprf1924@gmail.com or by chat in Zoom during the forum.
REGISTER IN ZOOM NOW: After you register, you will receive a specific Zoom link to join the webinar.
