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Career and Finance Help is a Click Away
You are probably aware of all of the great Career and Finance resources available to you on the Johnson County Library website. But, have you visited our YouTube channel? There you'll find our Career and Finance Video Series. We've procured field experts to produce an impressive 32 videos with topics as varied as:
... just to name a few!
JoCoHistory Blog Reveals History's Mysteries
Happy Throwback Thursday! Sure, you love to time-travel through local history at JoCoHistory, but how did a history lover like you not know about the JoCoHistory Blog?!
With such varied and interesting topics like:
- History of the Central Resource Library
- A Brief History of Metcalf South Shopping Center: An Interview With Brad Moore
- Farming in January? The History of Hotbeds
- Redlining
You'll come back again and again! Johnson County history will not remain a mystery to you!
Learning More About Ukraine
"What do you do when calamity strikes the world yet again? How do you handle the confusion of trying to unravel the news?" Our librarian Bet has one strategy: "As someone who works at a library, perhaps it’s not surprising that I turn to...the library. What book or film can I find that connects me to someone’s story so I can more clearly see and hear the events from those involved?"
Bet has created a rich list of recommendations for those who are looking to expand their knowledge of Ukraine and its people, culture and history. Her picks include fiction, nonfiction, DVDs and more! Explore Bet's recommendations »
Meet the Authors: B.J. and Henry Hollars
Library events help tell the Story of Your Life
How do we conjure our long-forgotten stories? And how can we recall those details from the past that we thought had vanished? There’s a technique for that. On Saturday, March 26, author B.J. Hollars will provide a series of generative writing prompts that will be sure to spur your memory, bring your past to the present and help you write your life’s story.
The virtual workshop, presented by the Library’s Local Writers group, is one of a three-part program series featuring Hollars, an award-winning author of several books and English professor at the University of Wisconsin – Eau Claire. His most recent book “Go West Young Man: A Father and Son Rediscover America on the Oregon Trail” is the story of an eye-opening 2,500-mile road trip with his six-year-old son, Henry.
Make Every Mile a Memory: A Reading and Presentation with B.J. and Henry Hollars on “Go West Young Man.”
Tuesday, March 22, 6:30 p.m.Travel Writing for Dummies: On Rattlesnakes, Wagon Ruts and Making the World Feel Like Home
Wednesday, March 23, 6:30 p.m.The Story of Your Life: Writing Your Forgotten Past Workshop
Saturday, March 26, 9 a.m.
Looking for more events along these lines? The Library loves writers just as much as readers! To support writers at every stage, from a casual hobby to a life’s calling, Johnson County Library has developed a suite of programs, resources and opportunities to develop your craft and grow your portfolio. If you are a writer, we want to meet you, read your work and celebrate you in the community. There is even a writing contest with a $200 honorarium!
Visit For Writers for more information about the Library’s writing programming and go to Events to register for upcoming events and workshops, including the B.J. Hollars events.
This Week at the Library
This week at the Library, you can join us at:
Library OnDemand – Available anytime you like.
Your doorway into live and archived programs. Arts & Culture, Career & Finance, Community Matters, Writers and more!
Make Every Mile A Memory: A Reading and Presentation with B.J. and Henry Hollars on Go West Young Man: A Father and Son Rediscover American on The Oregon Trail – Tuesday, March 22, 6:30-7:30 p.m.
When B.J. Hollars and his six-year-old son, Henry, began a 2,500-mile road trip retracing the Oregon Trail, their mission was to rediscover America, and Americans, along the way. While their adventure included the usual setbacks, their most compelling drama involved people, privilege and their attempt to find common ground in an all-too-fractured country. Join the father and son team for a reading and conversation on their reckoning with our nation’s founding, and their renewal of faith in America today.
Travel Writing for Dummies: On Rattlesnakes, Wagon Ruts and Making the World Feel Like Home with B.J. Hollars – Wednesday, March 23, 6:30-7:30
When it comes to telling true stories from the outside in, you must tread lightly, or be willing to pay the price. Join author B.J. Hollars for a craft talk on the behind-the-scenes lessons learned from his latest book, “Go West Young Man: A Father and Son Rediscover America on the Oregon Trail”. Learn from his missteps, mishaps and mistakes in the service of your own masterpiece.
Meet the Author: Julie Bogart – Thursday, March 24, 6-7 p.m.
Drawing on more than twenty years’ experience homeschooling and developing curricula, Julie Bogart offers practical tools to help children at every stage of development to grow in their ability to explore the world around them, examine how their loyalties and biases affect their beliefs, and generate fresh insight rather than simply recycling what they’ve been taught. Full of accessible stories and activities for children of all ages, Raising Critical Thinkers helps parents to nurture passionate learners with thoughtful minds and empathetic hearts. The first 50 registrants living in Johnson County will receive a copy of Julie's new book, Raising Critical Thinkers.
The Story of Your Life: Writing Your Forgotten Past Workshop with B.J. Hollars – Saturday, March 26, 9-11 a.m.
How do we conjure our long-forgotten stories? And how can we recall those details from the past that we thought had vanished? There’s hope! And technique, too! Join author B.J. Hollars for a series of generative writing prompts at a workshop sure to spur your memory, bring your past to the present and help you write your life’s story.
eResources for Students
Let's face it, if you're reading this, you're probably not a kiddo! But, you know the African proverb, “It takes a village to raise a child.” So, if you have children or you know any school age children, help us spread the word about our bounty of learning materials conveniently located online for easy access! Like what, you ask? How about:
eRESOURCES FOR STUDENTS OF ALL AGES
jocolibrary.org/HomeworkHelp
Biography (Gale In Context): Comprehensive biographies on the world’s most influential people with related content from periodicals and multimedia to provide context.
Brainfuse HelpNow: Live online tutoring daily 2-11 p.m. Professional tutors can guide you through academic subjects from kindergarten through AP and college level classes. Writing Lab to get feedback within one business day. SkillSurfer for study resources and test prep (AP, PSAT, SAT, ACT, ASVAB, GED and citizenship tests.) Send Question to get a response within one business day.
CultureGrams: Explore the culture, history and people of each U.S. state and country of the world. Encyclopedia Britannica: School, Library, Academic, Escolar and Moderna versions of the encyclopedia offer articles for students of all ages.
Funk & Wagnalls New World Encyclopedia: Online encyclopedia for students.
Khan Academy: Khan Academy provides a free world-class education for anyone everywhere on topics like math, science, history, economics, humanities, programming and test prep.
LearningExpress Library: Tutorials and quizzes for elementary to adult for a variety of subjects.
Lightbox: Nonfiction eBooks that integrate multimedia into each page.
TOPICsearch: Articles from a variety of national and international newspapers and magazines.
JUST FOR ELEMENTARY SCHOOL STUDENTS
jocolibrary.org/research/homework-help-kids
Kanopy Kids: Curated streaming video collection of children’s programming.
National Geographic Kids: Great for kids interested in science, space, animals, history, geography and fun. Enjoy the full magazine with all the illustrations online.
Primary Search: Articles from popular elementary school magazines.
JUST FOR MIDDLE & HIGH SCHOOL STUDENTS
jocolibrary.org/research/homework-help-teens
Middle Search Plus: Popular magazines for middle and junior high school students.
MAS Ultra – School Edition: Articles from popular magazines and journals for high school students.
Explora: Articles and multimedia covering a wide variety of subjects like biography, business, current events, health, history, literature, science and more. Easy to browse new topics or search for specific information.
NewsBank Hot Topics: Concise summaries of the month’s major news topics with links to relevant newspaper articles, blogs and more.
Primary Sources (Gale): Digital historical documents including books, manuscripts, letters, newspapers, photographs, maps and more ranging across topics of national and global relevance.
These resources will have kids running home from school to study!
This calls for a parade!
Happy St. Patrick's Day! A holiday that is absolutely parade-worthy! Unfortunately, if you like to time-travel through local history at JoCoHistory.org you won't find much about the history of the Irish in our county. Though, there is a wonderful short piece entitled An Irish Legacy that traces the immigration of the McCarthy family from County Cork, Ireland, to a house they built from native Kansas limestone northeast of Edgerton.
But if parades are what you really want, then JoCoHistory won't disappoint! You will find parade pictures of all sorts. You'll just have to put on green glasses and bring your own shamrocks.