Activity

Program for kids age 5-12. Celebrate Valentine’s Day by creating a small heart-shaped pillow, no sewing required! Participants will cut, tie, and stuff their pillows to take home as a sweet keepsake or gift for someone special. Essex Library programs are free and open to the public. Registration is required. Click here to register.

Program for kids ages 8-12. This month is all about Warrior Cats! Love Graphic Novels? Come be a part of Comic Crew! Each month kids can learn about a different comic book/graphic novel from our children’s collection and participate in special activities based on the book or series! Fans of the series and new graphic novel readers are welcome to attend! Essex Library programs are free and open to the public. Registration is required. Click here to register.

Program for kids ages 2-5. February is National Library Lover's Month, so let’s celebrate with a library-themed story time! Join us for themed stories, songs, rhymes, and crafts! We’ll learn early literacy concepts like colors, shapes, opposites, the ABCs and much more, to prepare our pre-school age children for kindergarten. Essex Library programs are free and open to the public. Registration is encouraged to ensure enough crafts are prepared. Click here to register.

Join a boy and his dog as they explore nature and take a stroll through the countryside, greeting all the signs of the coming season. In a series of conversations with everything from the melting brook to chirping birds, they say goodbye to winter and welcome spring. This February, we’ll read Goodbye Winter, Hello Spring by Kenard Pak. This book is an excellent tool for young learners to explore this unique time of year. After the story, participants will make drawings of the four seasons and join a special scavenger hunt. Young learners and their caregivers will explore the season changes with four tree colorings that will then be glued together to form a standing 3D tree. Once the craft is finished, children can spin their trees and experience each season.

Program for families with kids of all ages. Celebrate Take Your Child to the Library Day with us! Explore a fun sensory walk in the children’s room, get creative with open art activities in the program room, and enjoy a caricature artist from 1:00–2:00, and a face painter from 2:00-3:00 for a day full of family memories! Essex Library programs are free and open to the public. No registration, drop in!

Program for families with kids of all ages. Reading to a therapy dog has been proven to improve reading skills, self-esteem, and confidence in public speaking sessions. Kids are invited to sign up for a private 15-minute slot to read to and interact with local licensed therapy dog Louie the Labrador! Essex Library programs are free and open to the public. Registration is required. Click here to register for 5:15 time slot. Click here to register for 5:30 time slot. Click here to register for 5:45 time slot.

Program for kids age 5-12. Kids age 5-8 must have an adult participate alongside. It’s a half-day, spend it at the library! Join us for a sweet and cozy treat-making experience! Participants will learn how to make classic s’mores (no campfire required)! Roast marshmallows, layer them with chocolate and graham crackers, and enjoy your delicious creation. Essex Library programs are free and open to the public. Registration is required. Click here to register.

Experience the beauty and solitude of the lower Connecticut River during this wonderful time of year! It is so different than at any other time. There are no other vessels on the water, and with no leaves on the trees, wildlife viewing is easy and fun. Cruises will be Friday through Sunday, with two additional Wednesdays in March. Departures are between 9 a.m. and 2 p.m. As the river, lakes and ponds to our north freeze, eagles and others make their way to the lower CT River for their favorite food – FISH. Join us on this approximately 2 hour “on-the-water” cruise to search for eagles and other winter wildlife. In the past we have spotted up to a record 46 eagles, 3 types of grebes, foxes, 3 types of swans, 3 types of mergansers, many different gulls, loons, golden eagle, coyote, deer, many hawk species, 3 types of seals, and even a bobcat. We will have naturalists on board to narrate and make sure you don’t miss a thing. RiverQuest has a heated cabin, but we suggest that you dress in warm layers since the best views will be from the open decks. Don’t forget your camera and binoculars … […]

Program for kids ages 2-5. Celebrate friendship and love at our Valentine’s story time with books, songs, and activities for little ones! Join us for themed stories, songs, rhymes, and crafts! We’ll learn early literacy concepts like colors, shapes, opposites, the ABCs and much more, to prepare our pre-school age children for kindergarten. Essex Library programs are free and open to the public. Registration is encouraged to ensure enough crafts are prepared. Click here to register.

Stop by to create an origami heart to take home! Shop our one of a kind creations as well!

Program for kids ages 8-12. Join Children’s Librarian Miss Nicole and Teen Librarian Miss Jessica for a fun, behind-the-scenes look at life as a librarian. Across four exciting sessions from January to April, Junior Librarians will explore everything from keeping the library organized, and creating eye-catching displays, to planning programs and learning the skills real librarians use every day. Get ready to discover what it really takes to run a library and have fun doing it. Session 2, February 19, 4 PM: Books, Books, and More Books! How do librarians select books for the collection? How much can they spend? How do librarians decide when it is time for a book to retire? All of these questions, and more, will be answered! Session 3, March 26, 4 PM: Show Off the Shelves: Creating Eye-Catching Displays Session 4, April 30, 4 PM: Plan the Fun: Programs & Events! May 21, 4 PM: Junior Librarian Graduation & Celebration! Essex Library programs are free and open to the public. Registration is required. Click here to register.

Who doesn’t love learning about a priceless painting found in an attic? Or a sculpture sitting for decades in a public garden, only to be found out as an Italian treasure? After finding herself in the middle of her own art history discovery when she uncovered the provenance of a Rodin sculpture sitting in Madison, NJ’s town hall, Mallory Mortillaro learned just how many times this has happened before. Her lecture explores the stories of several different important and valuable works of art that have been rediscovered in unexpected places, reviewing how they came to be “lost and found”. All programs of the Essex Library are free and open to the public. Registration is required for this virtual program. Register HERE or by calling the library at 860767-1560. About Mallory Mortillaro Mallory Mortillaro serves as the Curator of Collections for the Hartley Dodge Foundation in Madison, NJ and is an art historian and educator. She has ten years of teaching experience, and has worked on various art research projects for museums and organizations in the New York metropolitan area. She has a bachelor’s degree in Art History and English from Drew University and is a graduate of the University’s Caspersen School of Graduate […]

Program for kids ages 2-5. Join us for a tooth-rific story time celebrating National Family Dental Health Day with fun stories, songs, smiles, special guest readers from Essex Dentist, and goodies to take home! Join us for themed stories, songs, rhymes, and crafts! We’ll learn early literacy concepts like colors, shapes, opposites, the ABCs and much more, to prepare our pre-school age children for kindergarten. Essex Library programs are free and open to the public. Registration is encouraged to ensure enough crafts are prepared. Click here to register.

Have we had enough snow this winter? Let’s make some of our own! Kids are invited to bring the magic indoors by conducting an experiment to make your very own fake snow that even feels cold! Essex Library programs are free and open to the public. Registration is required. Click here to register.