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For this Spring into Storytime session we have chosen Clarence’s Big Secret written by Roy MacGregor and Christine MacGregor Cation and illustrated by Mathilde Cinq-Mars. As a young boy, Clarence didn’t go to school. Instead, he took over working in the farm after his father had an accident. He never learned to read until he was 100 years old. This book tells Clarence’s amazing true story. Celebrate Spring into Storytime with Dublin City Libraries. In April, we are choosing one story per day from the collection for you to enjoy. To find the story just log into Tumble Book Library and search for the title Clarence's Big Secret.  This book is suitable for ages 4-7.About TumbleBookCheck out details of TumbleBook Library and how to acces it on our website. Tumble Book Library is a curated database of over 1100 children’s e-books, and includes their unique animated, talking picture books, read-along chapter books, national geographic videos, non-fiction books, playlists, as well as books in Spanish and French.It's full of great stories to listen to with videos showing all of the wonderful illustrations. You can even follow the text as the story is being read to you.To learn more about how to use Tumblebooks please check out our how to video.  

For this Spring into Storytime session we have chosen 'The Biggest Job of All', written by Harriet Ziefert, illustrated by Lauren Browne. Lulu wants a really big, important job when she grows up but she has no idea what that could be. Join Lula as she considers lots of jobs from being a doctor to washing elephants.This April, we are choosing one story per day from the TumbleBook Library collection for you to enjoy. To find today's story just log into Tumble Book Library and search for the title.About TumbleBookCheck out details of TumbleBook Library and how to acces it on our website? TumbleBook Library is a curated database of over 1100 children’s e-books, and includes their unique animated, talking picture books, read-along chapter books, national geographic videos, non-fiction books, playlists, as well as books in Spanish and French.It's full of great stories to listen to with videos showing all of the wonderful illustrations. You can even follow the text as the story is being read to you.To learn more about how to use Tumblebooks please check out our how to video.

For our story book choice today, we introduce you to Bailey the dog. Enjoy this fun story as Bailey spends a day at school.  This April, we are choosing one story per day from the TumbleBook Library collection for you to enjoy. To find today's story just log into Tumble Book Library and search for the title.About TumbleBookCheck out details of TumbleBook Library and how to access it on our website. TumbleBook Library is a curated database of over 1100 children’s e-books, and includes their unique animated, talking picture books, read-along chapter books, national geographic videos, non-fiction books, playlists, as well as books in Spanish and French.It's full of great stories to listen to with videos showing all of the wonderful illustrations. You can even follow the text as the story is being read to you.To learn more about how to use Tumblebooks please check out our how to video. 

This period of temporary enforced downtime certainly presents us all with many grave challenges, but it also provides some exciting opportunities. If you, like me, have long intended but could never quite find the time to convert your precious personal and family memorabilia into stunning and unique family history albums, now is your big chance! Raise your dopamine levels and let your creative juices flow!  Learn the art and discover the joy of scrapbooking.You’ll find everything you need here in our one-stop-shop of online courses - all FREE and all available with your Dublin City library card.RBdigital eMagazinesWe have a fabulous selection of eMagazines for scrapbook hobbyists.Scrapbooking Memories:Without a doubt, the one-stop source of inspiration for scrapbookers with loads of innovative designs, step-by-step guides, fresh ideas and the latest scrapbooking techniques.You can also check out back issues of the following two titles:Scrapbooks Etc. Page Planner :This publication offers more than 130 sketches and finished layouts with inspirational tips and ideas for personalising your projects.ScrapBook Inspirations:Create perfect pages with the ultimate guide to scrapbooking.Register for RB Digital magazines. On your first visit, create a new account (inputting your Dublin City library membership card number) and complete registration. Select your library from the drop-down list ('Dublin City Libraries'). Email address required. Once registered you use your email address to login.PressReaderYou can also access digital magazines on PressReader, and here’s two that will be of interest to the scrapbooker.Papercraft  InspirationsCardmaking and PapercraftRegister for PressReader with your Dublin City Library membership card barcode number .Universal ClassAnd wait… there’s more!  Universal Class provides access to over 500+ online courses including scrapbook crafting courses:  one dedicated course and other related courses:Traditional Scrapbooking  101:In this comprehensive course, the beginner scrapbooker will learn how to start their scrapbooking hobby without being overwhelmed. Everything from choosing the right supplies to getting started to tips for journaling is included in easy-to-follow lessons, reflecting the wide variety of scrapbooking styles and themes popular today.Wedding Crafts and Projects:This wedding crafts course includes more inspiration, plus designs for paper crafts, floral crafts, favors, bridal party gifts, scrapbooking and more.Journaling and Memoir Writing:This is a comprehensive step-by-step guide that will demystify the process of finally putting your story on paper.You might also like to check out other related courses on Universal Class.Genealogy:In this course you can hone your research skills to uncover your family’s records and history for permanent preservation.Digital photography  101Digital photography with the iPhonePhotography 101 Beginner to IntermediateThese three photography courses will help you to upskill and to capture great family memories for your albums.Western CalligraphyYou will be able to use your new-found calligraphy skills to draw amazing letters on cards, stationary, bags, memory pages in your scrapbooks, photo albums covers, clothing, walls, wood, frames, lunch bags, and many other surfaces.Universal Class courses include tutorials, lessons, assignments, discussion boards, and feedback on work you’ve submitted. All the courses are completely online, self-paced, available 24/7, and you have 6 months to complete each one.Register for Universal Class using your Dublin City Library membership card barcode number.I really hope you find these resources useful and inspirational. Happy scrapbooking! 

A new website for parents called Help My Kid Learn was launched recently by the Minister for Education and Skills, Ruairí Quinn T.D. This simple website brings together relevant information for parents and the wider community to support children’s literacy and numeracy development.The purpose of the website is to provide fun activities that parents can do with their children to develop their literacy and numeracy skills. It includes general information, fun activities and useful tips.The website is part of a wider public information campaign going on at the moment led by the National Adult Literacy Agency (NALA) and carried out in conjunction with the TV series on RTE 1 on Mondays at 7.30pm called “The Family Project”.Help My Kid Learn is for parents, grandparents and carers of children aged 0 – 12 years and is searchable according to the age of the child. All a person has to do is enter their child’s age and they will be presented with a range of activities for helping children with talking, playing, reading, writing and counting.So call in to your local library and access the website on one of the many free Internet computers available (note: advanced computer booking may be required in some instances; you may want to check with your branch library in advance). It's also worth noting that many of our libraries have promotional displays where you may get further information.

A new version of Tell Me More Campus, the language learning program, has arrived here at the Open Learning Centre. This program, first introduced here in November 2008, teaches six languages through the medium of 19 interface languages. The six languages are: English, French, Spanish, Italian, German and Dutch. Included in the interface languages are: Portuguese, Slovak, Polish, Russian, Chinese and Korean as well as the major Western European languages. Students can work on their speaking, listening, reading, writing and grammar skills. This new version 10 includes 40 different types of activities to keep the student engaged and motivated. There's also a section with lessons based on Euronews videos. These contain activities based on a recent news item under the following headings; Politics, Economics, Science and Culture. There are also workshops which concentrate on a particular skill of your choice - you can choose from a range of 50 activities such as a dialogue or dubbing a film etc.A "My Statistics" section gives you a summary of work done in each language skill as well as a progress report showing completed activities and your success rate. An instructional video will help you get started and this can be repeated as many times as you want.We have 17 public computers here in the centre dedicated to Tell Me More. To avail of the program you need to be a library member and also register here in the Open Learning Centre. If you commit to long-term study of a language, we can give you a licence to use the program virtually. This lasts for a year.Tell Me More also allows access to a free 7-day trial to give you a taster of the program. Just create your online temporary account and work for a week on the language of your choice. You can even do a placement test in your chosen language to ascertain your starting level. If you like what you see, come into us here in the Central Library, Ilac Centre and sign up!