Rogers Park Library December Newsletter!
Winter is here! Despite being a busy month, we have a lot of great programs to share. Come keep warm at the branch with events like these! Happy Holidays to all.
Hello kind, supportive patrons! Christmas time is here! We cannot wait to share all kinds of amazing programs to look forward to in December. Check out our cool events here & pick up flyers at the information desk.
FEATURED EVENTS
TEEN TIME: NEURODIVERSE
Tuesdays, December 2nd, 9th,16th - 10:30am–11:30am
Neurodiverse teens (13 and up) from PACTT (Parents Allied with Children and Teachers for Tomorrow), hang out for teen time activities, like crafts, coloring and/or painting, games and Legos. More info here!
WEEGROOVE MUSIC CLASS
Thursday, December 4th - 3:00PM - 4:00PM
Join Ms. Elisa of WeeGroove for an opportunity for kids to dance, sing, play and explore using music. Come dance with us! More info available here. For ages 0 to 5 with caregivers.
KIN by Mail: A Postcard Workshop (w/Sophie Lucido Johnson)
Wednesday, December 3rd - 6:00PM - 7:30PM
Sometimes the people we love most aren’t the ones we see every day. This hands-on postcard-making and workshop is about reaching across the miles to say: “I’m thinking of you. I love you. I’m glad you’re in my life.” Join author and illustrator Sophie Lucido Johnson for a creative evening to celebrate the upcoming release of her new book, KIN: The Future of Family (Atria/Simon & Schuster, November 2025), which explores creative and meaningful ways we can build and sustain connection in our lives. More info/register here!
PRESCHOOL STORY TIME
Tuesdays, December 2nd, 16th, 30th - 10:30am–11:30am
Join Ms. Tara for an enchanting preschool story time adventure! Enjoy delightful songs, playful rhymes, captivating books, and invaluable early literacy tips. It's a blend of fun and learning for your little ones!
For kids 2 to 5 and their caregivers.
Improv for Anxiety with Second City!
Wednesday, December 17th - 6:00PM-7:30PM
Join The Second City’s Improv for Anxiety workshop to explore spontaneity and risk taking in safe environments that limit external pressures to foster a sense of safety and inclusion. Through improv games and exercises and teamwork students will learn to enhance effective communication skills, create connections and have fun. This innovative class uses ensemble-based improv to help people who experience social anxiety overcome fear and avoidance associated with work, school, and family life. More info here!
Children’s Programs
WEEGROOVE MUSIC CLASS
Thursday, December 4th - 3:00PM - 4:00PM
Join Ms. Elisa of WeeGroove for an opportunity for kids to dance, sing, play and explore using music. Come dance with us! More info available here. For ages 0 to 5 with caregivers.
Community Concert (w/Wendy & DB)
Tuesday, December 9th, 10:30am-11:00am
In these challenging times for families and children, Wendy and DB are excited to present mini concerts to celebrate love, family & community. For Kids 0 to 8 and their families! For more on this duo, go here!
CHRISTMAS ORIGAMI
(w/Robert Smith)
Saturday, December 13th & 20th - 2:00pm-3:00pm
Have a tree-mendously fun time creating festive Christmas-themed origami. Join Robert Smith to learn how to fold jolly ornaments for your tree. For more info and to register, go here!
PHONICS ARE FUN!
STORY TIME FOR BIG KIDS!
Saturday, December 6th - 11:00AM - 12:00PM
Make learning to read fun in this playful phonics-based program for children and caregivers focused on early reading skills and story time fun with Melissa Flores. Kids build confidence with letter names, letter sounds and simple word games, while caregivers learn easy ways to support reading at home. Melissa Flores is a Certified Dyslexia Practitioner and Founder of Roots in Reading and Writing. For kids ages 4 to 8 and their caregivers. More info / Register Here!
OPEN PLAY TIME
Friday, December 12th & 26th - 10:30am–11:30am
Drop in for open play featuring a mix of blocks, toys and other games for kids and their adults. For children 0 to 5 with their caregiver.
PRESCHOOL STORY TIME
Tuesday, December 2nd, 16th, 30th - 10:30am–11:30am
Join Ms. Tara for an enchanting preschool story time adventure! Enjoy delightful songs, playful rhymes, captivating books, and invaluable early literacy tips. It’s the perfect blend of fun and learning for your little ones! For kids 2 to 5 and their caregivers.
FAMILY FILM SCREENING:
THE GRINCH (2018)
Sunday, December 14th - 1:30pm–3:30pm
Join us for community cinema! The Grinch attempts to undermine the annual Christmas celebration at Whoville with the help of his loyal dog and reindeer. Disguised as Santa Claus he tries to steal all the presents, but his cover is threatened by an earnest young girl. For ages 6 & up!
Adult Programs
KIN by Mail: A Postcard Workshop (w/Sophie Lucido Johnson)
Wednesday, December 3rd - 6:00PM - 7:30PM
Sometimes the people we love most aren’t the ones we see every day. This hands-on postcard-making and workshop is about reaching across the miles to say: “I’m thinking of you. I love you. I’m glad you’re in my life.” Join author and illustrator Sophie Lucido Johnson for a creative evening to celebrate the upcoming release of her new book, KIN: The Future of Family (Atria/Simon & Schuster, November 2025), which explores creative and meaningful ways we can build and sustain connection in our lives. More info/register here!
Community Cinema Classics!
REMEMBER THE NIGHT (1940)
Tuesday, December 9th - 4:00PM–5:30PM
Join us for a screening of the classic film Remember the Night to celebrate the holidays on Tuesday, Dec 9 at 4pm! Lee Leander is a petty shoplifter on trial for swiping an expensive bracelet from a jewelry store. When her trial is postponed until after New Year’s, sympathetic Assistant District Attorney John Sargent bails her out of jail. Together, they find themselves falling in love when he invites her to his family’s home for the holidays where she discovers a love she’s always wanted.
NOTE: SPECIAL DAY/TIME!
MONTHLY SONG CLUB
Wednesday, December 10th - 6:00PM-7:30PM
One of our most popular programs! Each patron will be allowed to choose one song to share with others in a communal setting, then we each go around the room discussing it. We’ll have access to Spotify or YouTube so all you have to do is bring a song title. More info here!
Improv for Anxiety with Second City!
Wednesday, December 17th - 6:00PM-7:30PM
Join The Second City’s Improv for Anxiety workshop to explore spontaneity and risk taking in safe environments that limit external pressures to foster a sense of safety and inclusion. Through improv games and exercises and teamwork students will learn to enhance effective communication skills, create connections and have fun. This innovative class uses ensemble-based improv to help people who experience social anxiety overcome fear and avoidance associated with work, school, and family life. More info here!
Adult Book Discussion
FARHENHEIT 451
Monday, December 29th - 6:00pm-7:00pm
Join us for a discussion of the classic Ray Bradbury novel, Fahrenheit 451. Also be sure to join us for the final discussion of 2025 to decide what books to read in the new year! Fahrenheit 451 is a novel set in the (perhaps near) future when “firemen” burn books forbidden by a totalitarian “brave new world” regime. The hero, according to Mr. Bradbury, is “a book burner who suddenly discovers that books are flesh-and-blood ideas and cry out silently when put to the torch.” Today, when libraries and schools in this country and all over the world are still “burning” certain books, Fahrenheit 451 remains a brilliantly readable and suspenseful work of even greater impact and timeliness.
Books are available at the Rogers Park Branch Reference Desk.
RP MYSTERY BOOK GROUP: PERSUADER
Saturday, December 27th - 2pm-3pm
Join the Rogers Park Branch Mystery Group as we discuss Lee Child’s Persuader. Jack Reacher gets caught in the middle of an off-the-books FBI drug investigation when he spots an old nemesis--believed to be dead for ten years--alive and well in Boston and his attempts to tap into his old resources for help brings the federal agents to his door.
Books will be available at the Rogers Park Branch Reference Desk.
GRAPHIC NOVEL DISCUSSION
ARE YOU MY MOTHER? A Comic Drama
Monday, December 29th - 6:00pm-7:00pm
Join the Rogers Park Branch as we read and discuss Alison Bechdel’s Are You My Mother? Alison Bechdel’s Fun Home was a pop culture and literary phenomenon. Now, a second thrilling tale of filial sleuthery, this time about her mother: voracious reader, music lover, passionate actor. Also, a woman, unhappily married to a closeted gay man, whose artistic aspirations simmered under the surface of Bechdel’s childhood and who stopped touching or kissing her daughter good night, forever, when she was seven. Poignantly, hilariously, Bechdel embarks on a quest for answers concerning the mother-daughter gulf.
Books are available at the Rogers Park Branch Reference Desk.
Wednesday in Stitches
Wednesdays in December - 6:00pm-7:30pm
Love to knit, crochet, embroider, or enjoy another needlecraft? Join us for Wednesday in Stitches! Share your creations, pick up new skills from other crafters, and enjoy a supportive community. No experience necessary! Just bring your needles, yarn, let’s get stitching together!
Community Cinema Classics!
MEET ME IN ST. LOUIS (1944)
Monday, December 22nd - 5:30pm-7:45pm
Join us for a screening of the classic musical Meet Me in St. Louis to celebrate Christmas! Judy Garland and Margaret O’Brien star in this heartwarming tale of the emotional trauma the colorful members of an early 20th century St. Louis family experience when they learn their father has been transferred--and they will have to move to New York. Based on the short stories of Sally Benson. Judy Garland sings “Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas” and “The Trolly Song.”
Teen Programs
TEEN TIME!
Fridays, December 5th & 12th - 1:00pm-4:30pm
All teens! Come and hang out with us for some old school video gaming, silhouette vinyl cutting, 3D Printing, some photography demos, DIY crafting, embroidery, and jewelry making. For teens 13 to 19.
TEEN TIME: NEURODIVERSE
Tuesdays, December 2nd, 9th,16th - 10:30am–11:30am
Neurodiverse teens (13 and up) from PACTT (Parents Allied with Children and Teachers for Tomorrow), hang out for teen time activities, like crafts, coloring and/or painting, games and Legos. More info here!
Happy New Year! See you in January 2026 for a lot of exciting programs including this one that you definitely won’t want to miss: 40 Years 40 Films (feat. Nick Digilio)