Week Calendar

Beyond Birth: Baby's First Year is a free weekly postpartum support group for parents and their new babies.

Join us weekly for rhymes, songs, bounces, stories, and a little playtime. For caregivers and babies ages 0 - 18 months.

Toddlers and their caregivers can enjoy introductory stories, songs, music, and movement! For ages 18 months to 36 months.

Join Miss Jennifer for Preschool Storytime on Monday mornings at 10:15 a.m.  There will be stories, rhymes, music, and more.

This storytime is recommended for ages three to five, but all children are welcome to attend.

Join us for rhymes, songs, bounces, stories, and a little playtime. For caregivers and babies ages 0 - 18 months.

Children ages 0-5 and their caregivers can engage in open play, come and go activities at South. 

Babies and their caregivers can join Miss Jennifer on Tuesdays for rhymes, songs, bounces, and a story followed by a short playtime.

Babies, toddlers, and their caregivers can enjoy playtime with each other.

This program is recommended for children from birth to 24 months of age.

Listen to silly stories, meet adorable puppet friends and move to fun songs!  Join Miss Becky at Forest Avenue Library for Family Storytime at 10:00 A.M.!

Join us outside on the Forest Ave Library's lawn for Everystep's Healthy Start Program!  These educational events are for children and families and include experienced staff providing referrals to community resources, Information about health

Staff from the Evelyn K Davis Center for Working Families are ready to provide one-on-one job search and resume assistance to job seekers.

Join Miss Donna for this fun filled story time! Together we will enjoy stories, songs, and more, all selected to engage your active toddler. Ages 18 months to 3 years old.

Children ages 3 to 5 and their caregivers can join us Thursdays at 10:00 a.m. for a 30-minute storytime with stories, musical activities and take-home activities that prepare your child for school.

Learn how to use the Glowforge Plus Laser Engraver at Tech Central! This program takes the place of the 1 on 1 Glowforge tutorial, so you will be fully qualified to book and use the Glowforge on your own after this program.

Join us at the Central Library for a fun storytime featuring movement, music, and rhyming! The storytime will take place in the meeting room to allow for social distancing.

Preschoolers and their caregivers can enjoy stories, rhymes, music, and learn school readiness skills. Afterwards, we will enjoy free-play together.

Snippets: A Writers' Workshop for Shorter Works. Please email your submissions to Julia at jmdunt@dmpl.org if you would like them printed out.This group will read and discuss works out loud.

Drop by our children's area to build with LEGOs. Show a staff member your creation for a prize!

Spend the day at the library learning and practicing mindfulness techniques.

10 AM: Journaling to Heal© with Billie Wade

Skip the scramble for outlets at coffee bars and come to the library to connect with your fellow writers or to write individually! Feel free to stay all day or just stop by for a quick visit.

Tippi Toes is coming back to the library!

Our exciting, high energy dance classes are the perfect opportunity for kids to try something new while having a blast and burning some energy! Any child between the ages 2-10 can participate.

Aprenda a hacer recetas fáciles, nutritivas y baratas con una instructora de Iowa State University - Extension.  Durante esta clase de 8 semanas, aprenderá a:

Ahorrar dinero: comprar y gastar menos en sus alimentos.

The selection for November is Miss Benson's Beetle by Rachel Joyce.

The Des Moines Public Library is partnering with area organizations to connect people with community resources. Community advocates will provide information about community resources like meal sites and shelters.

This program will include a brief overview of where Mindfulness Meditation comes from and why we do it, followed by a 20 minute sitting practice with time for Q&A afterwards. Chair seating will be available.

The Des Moines Public Library is partnering with area organizations to connect people with community resources. Community advocates will provide information about community resources like meal sites and shelters.

This month we'll learn how to stay safe in cold weather and avoid frostbite and hypothermia. 

This program offers answers to questions about younger-onset Alzheimer's disease. Hear from those directly affected and learn how to ease the impact throughout the course of the disease.

Drop-in to North Side every Wednesday to enjoy a craft or STEM activity!

This week, create a design with perler beads and we will iron it for you to take home!

Join us for our monthly South Side Book Discussion!

Our November book is Lessons in Chemistry by Bonnie Garmus.

Are you looking for a great place to volunteer? Become a volunteen and help with library projects and programs.

Children will listen to a story and then create a masterpiece while exploring with art and STEM activities. Ages 3 to 8 years old, but younger and older siblings are welcome.

Tweens and teens ages 10-18 can join us after school on Tuesdays to enjoy activities on our meeting room.

This week, enjoy some games on the big screen with our Nintendo Switch!

Level up your gaming skills! Use our tablets and Nintendo Switch to play Among Us, Minecraft, Roblox, and more. Ages 8+.

Do you love animals? Then visit Central Library to practice reading with and learn about an ARL TheraPet! Engaging with animals is a great way to boost confidence and reduce anxiety around learning to read!

Come to South Side for an hour of sensory exploration! From cool textures to fun activities, kids can have a great time learning while doing what they do best: playing!

Create an adorable turtle using popsicle sticks and yarn.

Art in the Library is for children ages 6-12 and requires preregistration.  

The Franklin Library is located on DART Route #5.

Teens! Do you need volunteer hours? Students ages 12-18 may volunteer at the South Side Library for 1 hour performing various tasks during our South VolunTeens program! This is a great way to earn volunteer hours!

Don't be a fossil--come to the Central Library and celebrate Dino-vember with us! We'll have a Tyrannosau-rockin' good time with a variety of activities, crafts, and snacks that will have kids of all ages roaring with delight!

Are you a graphic novel fan? Join us for our EPIC Graphic Novel BOOK CLUB for ages 7-11. We will chat about the book: TBD and work on a fun activity or craft related to the book!

Join us for a fascinating evening with Tim Runde, Wastewater Training Specialist at Des Moines Metropolitan Wastewater Reclamation Authority.

Dungeons & Dragons is a role-playing game set in worlds of swords and sorcery where players use their imaginations to tell a story and create an adventure together.  We usually get together on the third Thursday of each month to play.&nbs

Teens, come to the Forest Avenue Library the second Monday of every month and check out our tech center. We will have iPads with Procreate, a green screen, 3-D pens, and more! Ages 12+. 

Join us for our evening Family Storytime at 6:30 p.m.! Kids and caregivers can join us for fun songs, stories and crafts. You can even wear your jammies!  All Ages Welcome!

Join Bridgett Robinson, Neighborhood Finance Corporation’s Diversity and Inclusion Mortgage Loan Originator and Outreach Coordinator, for this NFC program!

This month's book is The Banned Bookshop of Maggie Banks by Shauna Robinson.

Join the library and the Society for Financial Awareness to learn about planning for retirement. We'll cover:

Join the library and the Society for Financial Awareness to learn about planning for retirement. We'll cover:

Join us to create a simple glider out of materials that flies amazingly well! After observing its flight, they will be able to discuss why air resistance and drag make it possible for this design to glide and compete for the longest glide!