Take a hike @ Furstenberg Nature Area

Tue, 08/09/2011 - 9:51pm by K.C.

Thursday, August 18 | 7:00-8:30 PM | All Ages

Join us for a nature walk through Furstenberg Nature Area with the City of Ann Arbor Natural Area Preservation staff. We’ll walk through prairie and woodlands viewing native plants and trees, and learning about the ecological restoration going on at this site. Mosquitos are likely to be abundant so bring along some protection.

Park in the lot off Fuller Road (across from Huron High School). We’ll meet near the restrooms.

6th Annual LEGO Contest Winners!

Fri, 08/05/2011 - 2:25pm by erin

If you missed this year's 6th Annual LEGO contest held at Weber's Inn last night you missed the highlight of some Ann Arborites' year! Breaking all previous records this year's contest was the biggest ever with 206 entries in 6 categories: Preschool, Grades K-2, Grades 3-5, Grades 6-8, Grades 9-12 and Adult. And about 600 people attended the awards ceremony last night too! Thanks to all of this year's participants and we look forward to seeing you next year. Sometime soon there will be photographs of every winner's LEGO project linked here and permanently found on our contest page. Without further ado, the winners (after the jump).

Preschool
1st Place: Adit Vuppala
Runner-Up: Ryan Grant
Honorable Mention: Ellie Finnegan
Best Motorized Project: Ronald Chen
Best Architectural/Engineering Project: Nakshatr Gupta
Coolest Robot: Geunbi Bae
Best Vehicle: Jack Van De Ryt
Most Creative: Sam Rietz
Most Sophisticated: Moses Strom
AADL LEGO Master Builder: Sanchia Gupta

Grades K-2
1st Place: Hudhaifah Rehman
Runner-Up: Nicholas Lukela
Honorable Mention: Elliot Varnum
Best Motorized Project: Gabe Johnson
Best Architectural/Engineering Project: Ansh Chauhan
Coolest Robot: Rhys Burman
Best Vehicle: Noah Shin
Most Creative: Lili Bucklin
Most Sophisticated: Heather Marano
AADL LEGO Master Builder: Hugh McCurren
Best Tethered Aircraft: Malcolm Wilson-Ahlstrom

Grades 3-5
1st Place: Cortland Toschlog-Green
Runner-Up: Alex Meints
Honorable Mention: Claire Pufahl
Best Motorized Project: Robby Duquette
Best Architectural/Engineering Project: Leah Fleming
Coolest Robot: Logan Stafford
Best Vehicle: Celeste Forester
Most Creative: Beatrix Dergis
Most Sophisticated: Colin Pufahl
AADL LEGO Master Builder: Andrew Yang

Grades 6-8
1st Place: Michael Mishler
Runner-Up: Casimir Mankowski
Honorable Mention: Noah Luntzlara
Best Motorized Project: Jack & Robby Haviland
Best Architectural/Engineering Project: Sarah Remillard
Coolest Robot: Olivia Popp
Best Vehicle: Mark Bruey
Most Creative: Matthew Remillard
Most Sophisticated: Justin Forester
AADL LEGO Master Builder: Aidan Brown-Danovi
Coolest Robbery: Max Cooley

Grades 9-12
1st Place: Logan Benton
Runner-Up: John Behrendt
Honorable Mention: Cameron McLaughlin
Best Motorized Project: Alexander Deatrick
Best Architectural/Engineering Project: Ian McKenny
Best Vehicle: Austin Merrick
Most Creative: Nick Lemerand
Most Sophisticated: Avery Feingold
AADL LEGO Master Builder: Andrew Lemerand

Adult
1st Place: LiLi
Runner-Up: Brenda Shih
Honorable Mention: Kevin & Jennifer Bruey
Best Architectural/Engineering Project: Virginia Falk
Coolest Robot: Jason Zao
Best Vehicle: Tresna Taylor
Most Creative: Amy Remillard
Most Sophisticated: Peter Alway
AADL LEGO Master Builder: Allen Ano

Family Camp-in at the Library!

Thu, 08/04/2011 - 3:11pm by kidlit

Come to the Pittsfield Branch Library on Tuesday, August 9 from 7:00 to 8:00 p.m. for a Family Camp-in. We'll sit around the campfire, tell stories and sing songs. The music will be led by musician Sara Melton Keller. We'll also play a game and do some crafts. No campfire is complete without s'mores. We'll make some of those, too!

For some fun books about camping, click here.

Hot Youth DVDs

Wed, 08/03/2011 - 11:38am by calmesa

Have you been waiting to watch some of the newest youth DVD releases? Has your family been wanting to see Rio and other popular movies that were in theaters recently? Well, the AADL has some great new and popular youth DVDs! Stop in at the downtown youth department or at any of our branch locations to check out or put a hold on some of these awesome titles. Here are just a few of them:

Rango
Tangled
Gnomeo & Juliet
The Chronicles of Narnia. The Voyage of the Dawn Treader

It's almost LEGO Contest Time!

Tue, 08/02/2011 - 2:08pm by erin

Hopefully you have been working hard on your LEGO project for this week's upcoming 6th Annual LEGO Contest held at Weber's Inn this Thursday! If you haven't be sure to read the rules and guidelines and get cracking! Preschoolers all the way through Adults are invited to enter or come look at this always exciting contest. The doors will be open for the public to come take a look from 6:00-8:00 PM with the Award Ceremony to immediately follow at 8:00 PM. As always there will be gift cards to Target for the winners, special ribbons and LEGO trophies! Hope to see you there! Check out our video of some of last year's winners.

Paper Bag Gargoyles

Mon, 07/25/2011 - 10:34am by hillary dorwart

Friday July 29, 2011: 2:00 pm to 3:00 pm -- Traverwood Branch: Program Room

Ever seen a gargoyle looking down from a balcony of a tall building? We're giving you a chance to create your own gargoyle and give it a customized expression of your own. We'll have supplies, you come with the artistic vision.

Underground by Shane W. Evans

Fri, 07/22/2011 - 3:54pm by Tahira

The experience of slaves traveling along the Underground Railroad to freedom is told with few words in Underground by Shane W. Evans. The tension and joy of the journey are artfully crafted in this elegant picture book. Dark lined illustrations depict a child’s eye view of hiding in the night.

Pippin Puppets

Tue, 07/19/2011 - 4:50pm by StoryLaura

Chuckles and pirate treasure are in store when you join us for another Pippin Puppets extravaganza on Wednesday, July 27 at the Downtown Library at 1:00 pm. Cool off and chuckle at the zany characters created by the wild and wacky Rob Papineau!

Important Information You Need to Know NOW!

Mon, 07/11/2011 - 11:16am by Beth Manuel

Now that you have read our website front, back and sideways, you've GOT to get on the Brainfuse bandwagon! Check out the newest on-line learning options that are sure to enhance your study experience. The HelpNow 3.0 upgrade Study Suite offers study tools for an array of Standardized Tests. The interactive Flashbulb gives learners access to an extensive library of online flashcard sets in hundreds of subjects. Visit the Test Center for students to practice test themselves in core subjects. Plus there's still the Expert Help you can get from a live tutor from 2:00-11:00 EVERY day except posted holidays. Tutors are available for students from grade school to college. Please take a look at the demos on the Brainfuse website, scroll down & get acquainted with these awesome features!

Check Out Some of Our New Youth DVDs!

Sat, 07/09/2011 - 1:42pm by calmesa

Come take a peak at the some of the new and interesting Youth DVDs at the AADL! We are always getting fun and exciting movies for you and your family to check out. We have the new Sesame Street DVD, Sesame Street. Elmo's Travel Songs and Games, which would be great to watch with your kids before taking your summer vacation this year! We also have other Sesame Street DVDs like, Sesame Street. Elmo's Rainbow And Other Springtime Stories, Elmo's World. People In Your Neighborhood, Sesame Street. Silly Storytime , and Sesame Street. Bedtime With Elmo! Which one(s) will your family be checking out?