Birmingham Public Library Blog

By Caitlin Jackson and Heather McWilliams| Central Library Teen/Youth Department The Birmingham Public Library is kicking off its newly expanded youth engineering program, beginning September 30 at Titusville Branch Library. BPL's Engineer BHM STEM program will also be offered October 21 at Five Points West Regional Library and October 28 at the Central Library . These STEM programs are sponsored by Infosys Foundation USA’s 2021 Infy Maker Award . BPL received a $10,000 Infy Maker grant on June 23, 2021 . The award will allow BPL to focus on teaching electrical engineering, making and coding to students in Birmingham area school systems who are interest in science, technology, engineering and math-related fields.   BPL's Engineer BHM will cover basic skills related to engineering and 3D printing through creating 3D objects/puzzles with cardstock, said Caitlin Jackson, teen librarian at the Central Library. Participants will  learn basic concepts found in geometry and d...

   Are you ready for more than 40 virtual programs and 14 fun crafts that can be done from the comfort of home this summer? The Birmingham Public Library is here to help with the Summer Learning Program.  The 2021 Summer Learning programs will take place virtually on the Birmingham Public Library Facebook page. If you miss them live, you can watch them at a later date and time.  You can also find the link to 2021 BPL Summer Learning programs and crafts, plus download a printable list, by clicking here cobpl.org/SummerLearning You can participate and watch the programs by visiting www.Facebook.com/BirminghamPublicLibrary    There is no advanced registration required for BPL 2021 Summer Learning.  Just stop by any of our 18 library locations and pick up a “pledge to read” card. Featured are 22 youth programs, 7 programs for all ages, 6 adult programs and 5 programs for teens.  BPL is also hosting 14 virtual craft programs for patrons of all ages....

The Birmingham Public Library is hosting a fall girls computer coding camp in partnership with Holy Family Cristo Rey Catholic High School ,  thanks to a grant funded by NCWIT (National Center for Women & Information Technology) . Code 205: Intro to Game Design will be led by a team consisting of Katelyn Miller, Caitlin Jackson, and Mohsine Taarji. Caitlin Jackson, a BPL teen librarian, has worked closely with Taarji on past projects, such as Teen Engineers BHM, which included STEM education such as coding, soldering, and 3D printing. Taarji has worked with the library for about five years as an UAB Engineering student mentor and is currently working on his PhD. Teens Engineer BHM is a program BPL began that partners teens interested in engineering careers with mentors from the UAB School of Engineering.  The Birmingham Public Library hopes that Code 205 will serve as a novel program that inspires future sessions in the spring and beyond. When discussing the switch from...

Four Birmingham Public Library programs have been nominated for the 2019 Urban Libraries Council 2019 Innovations Awards.    The nominees are:  *  Teen Engineers BHM   (Education Birth -Teen Category)  *  BPL - A Citizen’s Experience (ACE) , a partnership with City of Birmingham (Civic & Community Engagement)  * Grow with Google Digital Skills Program  (Work Force Development)  * Bards & Brews  (Education-Adults) BPL's four nominees are among 260 of the  best public library programs in North America accepted as nominees in 10 categories for the 2019 Urban Libraries Council Innovations Awards out of thousands of entries across the country. The winners will be revealed during the Innovations Celebration at the  Urban Libraries Council forum October 16-18, 2019 in Salt Lake City, said Urban Library Council spokesman Curtis Rogers. BPL and the other nominees are all featured on the Urban Libraries Cou...

Teens can get STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Mathematics) experience with coding and robots after school at select Birmingham Public Library branches. The programs are led by college students with engineering and science backgrounds from The University of Alabama at Birmingham . This semester, two programs will be offered: Robotics and Arduino. The robotics class will include programming robots to sense colors like a traffic light. They will start, slow, or accelerate based off their sensors. In Arduino students get a crash course in coding and circuitry by programming Morse code messages with an LED light bulb. The following branches will be offering programs. The classes are free but space is limited; some branches require registration. Click the links below for detailed calendar information. Smithfield : September 12, 3:30–5:00 p.m. (Arduino) Southside : September 19, 4:00–5:00 p.m. (Arduino) East Lake : October 3, 3:15–5:00 p.m. (Robotics) Avondale : Octobe...

Teens Engineer BHM, to be held at Inglenook Library September 19, is a partnership with UAB Engineering School.  Inglenook Branch Library is hosting several new programs during the month of September, including an afterschool tutoring next week, a teen engineers event, and a return of its popular appreciation program for women in the Inglenook community.  Here is a listing of programs taking place at Inglenook (for more information, call the library at 205-849-8739):  * Game Day Friday,   September 13, 3:30 p.m. - Come join a friendly competition with your peers.  * Full STREAM Ahead: Dissect & Repair Smart Devices, Tuesday, September 17, 3:30 p.m.  * Afterschool Tutoring with Makayla, Wednesday, September 18, 3:30 p.m. - Students in need of help with homework are invited to seek assistance from Miss Makayla.  * STREAM Activities with Teen Engineers, Thursday, September 19, 3:30 p.m.- Teen Engineers BHM is a partnership between ...

The Birmingham Public Library has been celebrating 2019 National Library Week, with more than 30 programs taking place across the city showcasing the valuable services we provide. The theme is Libraries = Strong Communities. Public libraries are more than just a place to check out books, DVDs, music, and do research. BPL offers free WiFi access, partners with organizations like The Dannon Project through its Social Workers @BPL program, offers public access to computers, hosts town hall and neighborhood meetings. BPL also offers innovative programs like Bards & Brews , a monthly spoken word poetry-craft beer event, and partners with the UAB School of Engineering to offer Teens Engineer BHM, which offered a Robotics Build & Battle at the Central Library April 6 thanks to a grant from the Community Foundation of Greater Birmingham.   At BPL, you can check out Ukuleles at Avondale Library , check out board games at Eastwood Library , take advantage ...

by John Paul Lawhead, Youth Department , Central Library Youth Department staff attending the 2018 City of Birmingham Marvelous  Harvest Festival in Linn Park It is often said that one of the greatest places to make investments is in the future. People are constantly searching for the “next big thing” that may add to their wealth or be able to immortalize their name through the ages. Here on the second floor of the Central Library, we search for the “next little thing or person” to visit us and make investments in their futures. We see each of our young patrons as priceless and do our best to provide a safe, educational environment that allows children and young adults to have a place to follow their dreams, or perhaps even discover a new pursuit. What activities, opportunities, and knowledge do the youth of BPL have a chance to acquire when visiting the second floor throughout the year? Teens Engineer BHM Robotics Build & Battle competition Each person who is...

The Central Library downtown will host the inaugural Teens Engineer BHM Robotics Build and Battle Competition   this Saturday, April 6 in the Central Library East Grand Reading Room. This fun, friendly competition will kick off at 8:30 a.m. and conclude at 5:00 p.m. The Robotics Build & Battle will feature 50 tech-savvy teens from high schools across the metro area, including Huffman in Birmingham, Oak Mountain in Shelby County, Hueytown and Fairfield. Teams, comprised of five students each, will design and build a robot to play against other teams in a game-based engineering challenge. Participation is open to current middle or high school students in grades 7 through 12. Each member of the winning team will receive a $50 gift card.  The event will kick off the Birmingham Public Library (BPL)’s observance of 2019 National Library Week, which begins Sunday and concludes Saturday, April 13. Teens Engineer BHM is a partnership between BPL and the University of ...

T he Birmingham Public Library’s 19 locations will host nearly 30 programs as part of the 2019 celebration of National Library Week from Sunday, April 7 through Saturday, April 13. The 2019 theme is “Libraries = Strong Communities.”  The American Library Association will kick off 2019 National Library Week on Monday, April 8, by releasing the 2019 State of America's Libraries Report.  Other highlights include  National Library Workers Day   on Tuesday, April 9,     National Bookmobile Da y    on Wednesday, April 10, and   Take Action for Libraries Day  on Thursday, April 11, a day to speak up for libraries and share your library story on social media via the hashtag #MyLibraryMyStory.  Here is a detailed listing of BPL's Library Week programs by participating locations alphabetically:  All 19 locations National Library Week Reading Challenge with Beanstack - Theme: Libraries = Stro...

Hey Birmingham area teens with a love for designing robots and computer programming—want to put your passion for engineering to work in a friendly competition and potentially win a $50 gift card at the same time? Then make plans now to participate in the Teens Engineer BHM Robotics Build and Battle Competition on Saturday and Sunday, April 6 and 7, 2019, at the Central Library East Grand Reading Room . A total of nine teams, comprised of five students each, will design and build a robot to play against other teams in a game-based engineering challenge. Participation is open to current middle or high school students in grades 7 through 12. Each member of the winning team will receive a $50 gift card. To register, call 205-226-3655 or email cenyou@bham.lib.al.us. Teens Engineer BHM is a  partnership between the Birmingham Public Library and the University of Alabama at Birmingham School of Engineering. The program is sponsored by the  Community Foundation of Greate...