The Chattanooga Public Library is continuing its efforts to keep both the public and its staff safe during the pandemic by offering online learning programs this fall. Since shutting its doors to the public in March 2020, the Library has delivered programs for all ages through Facebook and YouTube, as well as the new Make. Play. Read. Learn. (MPRL) web portal, mprl.chattlibrary.org.
The MPRL portal launched this year to provide reading and learning challenges during the Library’s summer learning program. Because of its success, the Library will continue using the portal to deliver programs virtually until in-person events resume.
Also continuing online are the Library’s early learning programs - Baby Bounce, Toddler Time and Preschool Story Time. New videos are posted Monday through Saturday on Facebook, with an additional Sunday program starting in September. Other programs that the community will find online this fall include weekly Zoom meetups for book lovers and fiber arts enthusiasts, monthly Zoom book clubs, weekly all-ages crafting videos, bi-monthly recording tutorials, podcasts and STEM-based tween and teen video activities on YouTube.
The Library’s Curbside Service will continue to be available at the Downtown, Northgate, Eastgate and South Chattanooga library branches for anyone who is looking to get physical books, DVDs and items from the Downtown Tool Library and Seed Exchange. Items can be reserved for pickup at chattlibrary.org, where people can also get a new card, renew existing cards, pay fines and download or stream digital materials.
A full events calendar can be found at chattlibrary.org/events, and anyone - even non-library cardholders - can sign up and participate in the MPRL fall program. MPRL 2020 is made possible by The Great Reading Adventure, an open source platform for library reading programs online, and the Spokane Public Library.