Alameda Free Library Event Alert June 2026
Published on May 27, 2026
Highlighting Special Programs at the Library
Summer Reading 2026: Kickoff Events and Other Programs
Summer Reading 2026 – Kickoff Events and Other Program Descriptions (in date order as they appear in the table above):
Summer Reading 2026 Kickoff Party: Join us to kick off Summer Reading at AFL with stories and crafts! Our Summer Reading 2026 theme is Plant a Seed, Read. 10:30am–11:00am Summer storytime; 11:00am–12:30pm Crafts for kids, teens, and grownups: Make and decorate your own cardboard container for seeds, or create a mini terrarium! All materials provided while supplies last.
Plant a Seed – Read!: Join us for an outdoor community art class steps away from the Bay Farm Island Library! This is the Bay Farm Island Library's first event of Summer Reading 2026 celebrating the theme of Plant A Seed - READ! Miss Stephanie of Petit Picassos will guide participants through a read-aloud story, planting, and creating garden-themed projects. Designed with family attendance in mind and with projects intended for ages four and up. This is a drop in event! We recommend arriving as early as you can since supplies are limited.
Puppet Art Theatre – The 3 Billy Goats Gruff: Kick off Summer Reading with a laugh! Summer Reading is for Everyone and so is this puppet show! Bring the whole family to the show AND sign up for summer reading. Leave no reader at home! No registration is required but come early as space is limited.
Books and Beats – Baby Rave: To celebrate this year's Summer Reading Program, we invite children and families to attend our first ever Baby Rave, featuring local DJ and community member Black Sunshine. We will be bumping beats appropriate for all ages, blowing bubbles, and making glow bracelets as we take time to relax, move together, and socialize as a community. We encourage attendees to dress to this year's Summer Reading Program theme; Plant a Seed, Read! We look forward to seeing how this year's theme speaks to you. There is no registration required; please drop in at any time during the event!
Teddy Bear Picnics: Let’s meet at the park for a picnic storytime! Bring a snack and a blanket, come early to play, then join Dawn under the trees and listen to stories while you eat.
Flashlight Fridays: Flashlight Fridays are back! Independent readers can sign up for a 30-minute session in one of our tents, complete with a “campfire”, flashlights, and a cozy pillow, where kids can read alone to the sound of crickets. Appointments begin at 2:00 p.m. Registration is required!
Nature’s Superheroes - Biomimicry Sparks Wild Adventures!: Join us for this drop-in program to discover how nature inspires amazing ideas in this fun, hands-on biomimicry program! Kids will explore how animals stay warm, protect themselves, and use special features like beaks to survive, then design and build their own creative solutions. Through simple experiments and building challenges, participants will think like engineers, get curious about the natural world, and learn how real-life inventions are inspired by nature.
Wylding Woods Interactive Puppet Show: Join us for a fabulous interactive puppet show, Barnaby and the Dragon’s Treasure! Barnaby the troll has stolen Agnor the dragon's treasure and needs to return it quickly. Audience members will be able to participate in the adventure and help Barnaby find a way to get the treasure back to the dragon. No registration required.
Astro Everywhere: Love astronomy? Want to learn more and take a virtual journey through the solar system? Check out sun spots (safely) through a telescope? Our presenter, Josh Roberts, will take audience members on a virtual tour of the galaxy and answer questions about space. He will bring telescopes through which audience members will be able to view the sun (safely) following a safety lecture. No registration required.
Summer Reading 2026: Arts and Crafts Programs
Summer Reading 2026 - Arts and Crafts Program Descriptions (in date order as they appear in the table above):
Stamp Making with Piscola Mami: Join us for a session where you can create your own personalized stamp and print it on a tote bag! Registration is required due to limited space (15 spots available). Spots will be filled on a first-come, first-served basis. This program is for teens in the 7th – 12th grade.
Summer Art Club: Summer Art Club is open to children ages 8-13 this summer at Bay Farm Island Library. We aim to create a supportive environment for creativity, fun, and collaboration! There are two opportunities for each craft offered this summer: Play with Clay and Decorate a Canvas Bag. Events will take place in Leydecker Park, steps away from the Bay Farm Island Library.
Sewing Workshop for Kids: Join us for a Sewing Workshop for Kids series this summer! Each week will feature a different project suited for beginners ages 8-14. These six workshops will cover the basics of hand sewing and provide plenty of practice while making fun projects for participants to take home. June workshops: Pride Rainbow (June 17th) and Narwhal Stuffy (June 24th). No experience is necessary. Registration is required, and a new sign-up is necessary for each session.
Color Me Mine @ the Library: Teens, get ready to get creative with Color Me Mine! Paint and personalize your own piece of pottery— make it bold, make it fun, make it yours. Registration is required due to limited space (16 spots available). Spots will be filled on a first come, first served basis. This program is for teens in the 7th – 12th grade.
Happy Little Painting: Follow along with your favorite TV artist and make a happy little painting! All supplies are provided and no experience is necessary. This event is for tweens ages 8-12 only.
Registration is required! We are offering two sessions and they are both exactly the same. Please register for only one.
LGBTQ Pride Month
LGBTQ Pride Month Descriptions (in date order as they appear in the table above):
Sewing Workshop for Kids – Pride Rainbow: Kids ages 8-14 are invited to sew their own Pride Rainbows! We will cover the basics of hand sewing while making a fun, Pride-themed project for participants to take home. No experience is necessary. Registration is required.
Pride Festival: Pride is here and we couldn't be more excited! Join us for Bay Farm Island Library's first annual Pride Festival. We'll begin our festival with a Drag Storytime hosted by the Bay Area's own Jota Mercury (they/he), followed by face painting, crafts, fun, bubbles, and community resources. We hope you can celebrate Pride with all of us!
Online Author Talks
Online Author Talk Program Descriptions (in date order as they appear in the table above):
Mary Savig: Your Ticket to the Best State Fair Crafts with Smithsonian Curator Mary Savig. A Library Speakers Consortium and Smithsonian Institution Collaboration. Join us for a fascinating discussion with Smithsonian Curator Mary Savig on the history and significance of craft at state fairs—from blue-ribbon quilts to sculpted butter cows, and so much more! State Fairs: Growing American Craft features more than 100 photos of extraordinary and unconventional crafts from state and tribal fairs, including needlework, basketry, jewelry, ceramics, crop art, butter sculpture, and saddles. The catalog highlights personal stories and regional and cultural traditions, creating a vibrant portrait of American life. Come one, come all! State Fairs has a little something for everyone. Register and add questions for Mary Savig.
Matt Dinniman: Apocalyptic Mayhem, Lava-Spitting Llamas, and One Very Sassy Cat: Surviving the Universe’s Most Twisted RPG. Hold onto your heart-patterned boxers! Matt Dinniman, New York Times bestselling author of the wildly popular (and just plain wild) Dungeon Crawler Carl series, joins us to chat about his latest book, A Parade of Horribles. As chaos and mass panic spread outside the dungeon in the wake of Faction Wars, Carl and Donut find themselves on the tenth floor, where they’re forced to compete in a surprisingly normal set of tasks. Well, normal for the dungeon. Races. Get from point A to point B, and don’t come in last. After each race, they pick an upgrade for their vehicle and the track gets more challenging. It all seems a little too normal, a little too simple. Register and add questions for Matt Dinniman.
Ted Page: Nurturing Future Generations - Stories from the Heart of Grandfatherhood .Join us in virtual conversation with storyteller and popular blogger Ted Page as we chat about his book Good Grandpa: Stories from the Heart of Grandfatherhood. This heartfelt book highlights his journey to bring together the stories and wisdom of grandfathers from all walks of life—all with a mission to nurture the next great generation. When author Ted Page found out he was going to be a grandpa, he did a web search to learn more about the experience in store for him, but all he could find were references to the movie Bad Grandpa. He couldn’t help but wonder, “Where are the good ones?” Page started a blog, GoodGrandpa.com, and set out to talk with grandfathers across a diverse spectrum. Good Grandpa is inspiring, uplifting, evocative, and filled with genuine emotion. It is a recipe of hope for a divided America. Register and add questions for Ted Page.
Sana Javeri Kadri and Asha Loupy: Simple, Sustainable, and Powerfully Delicious Meals. Join us as we chat with Sana Javeri Kadri and Asha Loupy about The Diaspora Spice Co. Cookbook, which celebrates beautiful, simple, and seasonal cooking with 85 recipes adapted from India and Sri Lanka’s best family spice farms. Diaspora Spice Co. sources the most flavorful, fresh spices in the world from 150 regenerative farms across South Asia—from elders, indigenous communities, young changemakers, and brilliant multi-generational farming families across India and Sri Lanka who are leading the way in sustainable and climate change–resistant agriculture. Adapted for a global pantry, these recipes share the warmth of true South Asian home cooking at its truest and tastiest. Register and add questions for Sana Javeri Kadri and Asha Loupy.
Other Special Events
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Stafford Room and Parking Lot
|
|
Special Event Descriptions (in date order as they appear in the table above):
Study Hall – Spring 2026: Teens, are you hunting for a spot to study or work on final projects? The library has got your back! During Study Hall, we've got open seating, snacks to keep you fueled up, and even coloring pages to help you take a break and unwind. This program is for teens in the 7th-12th grade.
Speed Friending 35-45 Edition: Are you looking to make new friends? Join us for a fun interactive event, where you will meet new people and hopefully make new friends. Speed friending events will be hosted on the fourth Thursday of the month (every month) and will be separated by age range. This event will be for people who are between 35(ish) and 45(ish). First come, first seated. Bring along fast facts and interesting questions to dive deep into the handful of moments provided with each participant. Sheets of interesting questions and ideas will be available for participants. A fun activity will be availble after the sessions. Hope to see you there! Herbal Tea will be available.
Urban Cycling 101: This is a fun and informative presentation of videos, slides and discussion on avoiding most common bike crashes in traffic, bike laws, riding comfort, theft prevention and locking information. Bikes not required, classroom setting. Great for new and experienced vehicle drivers too! Presented by Bonnie of Easy Street Cycling. Ages 10 and up are welcome. All minors need a grown-up to stay with them during the session. Registration is required!
Bike Repair Clinic: Bring your bike and we will help you fix it! Registration required.
For more information about any of these programs, please contact the following:
All events are free and open to the public. Sponsored by Friends of the Alameda Free Library.
If you need accessibility accommodations to participate, or information translated or in other formats, please contact ada@alamedaca.gov at least seven (7) working days before the event.