Category: Library News

The latest from the City Library

Summer Reading Programme

We are excited to bring to you our Summer Reading Programme again this Summer!

Where will you go with your reading this Summer?

Summer Reading Programme ages 4-10

This programme promotes the enjoyment of reading for tamariki aged 4 – 10 years over Summer for readers of all abilities. Our team will assist participating tamariki with their reading and encourage them to talk about what they have read when they come in for a book chat. We also provide assistance to parents and families in what services the library has to offer. Tamariki will earn rewards as they progress and if they complete four book chats they get to attend our finale event with their whānau. This year there are also optional virtual badges which will earn entries into our Choose Your Adventure mystery pack draws as well.

The Summer Reading Programme starts Monday 4 December and finishes with the finale on Thursday 25 January.

iRead (Intermediate) Reading Programme for children aged 11-13 years

Starts Tuesday 5 December and finishes with the finale on Wednesday 17 January. This programme allows tamariki to explore their reading through written book reviews with incentive books earned as they progress.

Language Book Chats

Book chats can be provided in other languages on both programmes if requested but will depend on volunteer availability. You can request to do this via the language link in the programme description when registering.

PLACES ARE LIMITED

Registrations open 9am Monday 27 November

Registrations are made via Beanstack. Beanstack is the library’s online platform for monitoring and encouraging reading.

If you already have a Beanstack account but have forgotten your sign in details please contact pncl@pncc.govt.nz and we can help you out. Doing this before registrations open will be your best option so you are all ready to go.

Once registered you will have a Summer Reading or iRead booklet to collect from the library you registered with.

For more information about our Summer Reading Programme please contact pncl@pncc.govt.nz or your local Community Library.

Fiero Code

Want to learn to code? Our NEW online resource Fiero Code teaches kids 8 -18 the coding skills to make websites, apps, programs, animations and video games through fun activities.

Complete Fiero Code workouts and missions to unlock gear to customise your own avatar.

Go to our Digital Resources page for more info.

Create an account, and start coding today!

Seed Library at Central

Some of the Community Libraries have led the way with this, and starting in early November, the Central Library will follow suit with a Seed Library!

More details to come, but briefly, a seed library is a collection of seeds that everyone can ‘borrow’ from.

The Seed Library is stocked by donations from the public, so borrowers are encouraged to ‘return’ seeds saved from the plants they grew from the seeds they borrowed – or other seeds surplus to their requirements. This means that the Seed Library stays stocked for everyone to enjoy!

Of course, you can still use the Seed Library even if unable to contribute seeds.

The Seed Library is for everyone! You don’t need to be a Palmerston North City Library member to borrow seeds.

Play Week 2023

The National Play Week runs from 6-12th of November and to celebrate there will be awesome play opportunities across Palmy. Play is crucial to the wellbeing of our tamariki and their whānau and with the theme of Play week this year ‘PLAY IS EVERYWHERE,’ we want our community to be able to get out and play daily across the city! 

During the week Palmerston North City Library have opportunities for whānau to rediscover some classic boardgames! There’s a focus on ‘play’ in the Central Library children’s programmes and on the Friday the sensory play station will be out! 

On Saturday hop over to the Palmy Play Festival- Taiopenga ā-Rēhia 2023. 11th November 2-4:30pm in Te Awe Awe Quad- Te Marae o Hine- The Square. 

Check out the What’s On page to find out all the cool things going on.

Matinee Mondays

There will be a series of screenings on Mondays at 10am, between now and Dec 4th on the Mezzanine Floor, provided via the wonderful Beamafilm service.

Beamafilm is a movie streaming platform for documentaries, and independent features. Stream content straight from your TV, computer or device – all you need is a library card!

Come along and you’ll see how you could use Beamafilm at home, or simply take a seat and enjoy a movie, with tea and coffee provided.

Let us know if there’s a specific film on Beamafilm you’d like to watch, and we’ll see if we can play it for you!

First Voice 2023

Once again the First Voice project has delivered a wonderful bundle of writing!

55 Palmerston North Intermediate Normal School students, from 27 non-English speaking backgrounds, produced a piece of writing in their mother tongue. This year, the theme was ‘Unique Nations’. With the assistance of mentors, the pieces were proofread. When the students returned to school, the results were published.

Amazing to see so many languages and scripts represented, from Tokelauan to Urdu, Swedish to Samoan.

You can peruse the finished article at Palmerston North City Library. It’s available as a physical version, and also online via Manawatū Heritage.

Congratulations to all the students involved – you’ve done an excellent job!

Mahuru Māori

As a continuation of our celebration of te reo Māori, here at the Palmerston North City Library we acknowledge Mahuru Māori. As well as our regular activities: 

Kōrero Kawhe

Manu Hāpai waiata group

Here are some more activities during Mahuru:

Rorerore Tōtiti – Sausage Sizzle

Kiriata reo Māori me te kānga pahū – Māori language movies and popcorn!

Learn more about Te Wiki and Mahuru:

Te Rangaihi Reo Māori | Māori Language Movement (reomaori.co.nz)

Mahuru – Me kite, Me Rongo, Me Kōrero (mahurumaori.com)

Te Taura Whiri i te Reo Māori

Versions Tuawhā update

Kia ora!

Submissions for this year’s Versions project have closed, and we’re working on editing and proofing, getting ready to publish later in the year. Warmest thanks to everyone who submitted some of their creative work.

In this, the fourth year, we’ve had more submissions than ever before – hooray!

If you want a fun creative project, keep your eye out for the announcement of next year’s Versions submissions. You can write a short story, flash fiction, a poem, a play, a song — we even had a visual arts submission this year!

This is a great way to become a published author – we give you a prompt, you write something, and we take care of all the rest. Then we have a book launch where you can come and celebrate being part of the project.

It’s fun, there’s no pressure, and it might just inspire you to create something else.

If you have any questions about Versions, email content@pncc.govt.nz

MAVtech Display of Cameras

Thanks to the wonderful people at MAVtech (the Museum of Audio and Visual Technology in Foxton), we have an amazing display of cool old video and cine camera technology in the Sound & Vision area on the Mezzanine Floor throughout most of September (4th – 22nd). Including clips on the projector screen sourced from Manawatū Heritage showing the kind of thing those cameras would have recorded.

The display will include actual cameras from days of yore, and information on each one, detailing the progression of cine camera technology through the years.

It’s a fun way to explore the long journey from the first consumer camera to the phone in your pocket!