You think large print is for when you’re old?
Not when you talk to the folks we’ve polled
Large print type’s great for reading outside
It lowers the glare so you’re not glass-eyed

For readers who don’t like to read too much
You can read large type while you do thus and such
16 point font if you have to ask
Is ideal for those who multi-task

Michigan Tax Booklets containing the MI-1040, Instructions, Homestead Property Tax Credit, Michigan College Tuition & Fees Credit, Schedules 1, W, and Non-resident are now available at all library locations. The Michigan Home Heating Credit booklet is also available. Express stations linking directly to the IRS and Michigan Treasury tax forms are available and forms can be printed free of charge. We’ll be happy to assist you in locating and printing forms at all our public service desks too. To access forms, instructions, publications and tax info 24 hours-a-day from anywhere, visit the IRS and the Michigan Treasury web sites.

The number to call to schedule an appointment with Washtenaw County Asset Building Coalition is (734) 544-3053.

The Washtenaw County Asset Building Coalition provides free income tax filing assistance to low-income individuals. The purpose of this assistance is to raise awareness of income tax credits (especially the Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC)) for individuals and families who qualify.

The AADL as a member of the Washtenaw County Asset Building Coalition is one of four county-wide sites for free tax assistance for those qualified to receive an Earned Income Tax Credit. Appointments at the Downtown and Malletts Creek Library locations the following dates and times:

Friday, March 7: 10:30am-2:30pm Malletts Creek Program Room B
Friday, March 14: 10:30am-2:30pm Downtown aadlfreespace
Friday, March 21: 10:30am-2:30pm Malletts Creek Program Room B
Friday, April 4: 10:30am-2:30pm Malletts Creek Program Room B

The most requested federal tax forms and instructions are now available at all branches of the Ann Arbor District Library. Express stations linking directly to the IRS and Michigan Treasury tax forms are also available at all locations and forms may be printed free of charge. We’ll be happy to assist you in locating and printing forms at all our public service desks, too. To access forms, instructions, publications and tax info 24 hours-a-day from anywhere, visit the IRS and the Michigan Treasury web sites.

The AADL in a first-of-its-kind partnership with Greater Detroit Macy’s, the Library of Michigan Foundation, Detroit metro area libraries and the Cultural Alliance of Southeastern Michigan is pleased to announce the launch of “Museum Adventure Pass,” presented by Macy’s.

The program is a partnership between 162 metro area libraries and 25 local arts and cultural organizations, and provides Greater Detroit area library card holders free passes to local museums, cultural centers and historical sites. It is designed to enhance the learning experience for people of all ages through books and other library materials, while at the same time provide access to arts and cultural organizations.

Beginning October 25th, AADL library card holders can receive free admission for either 2 or 4 people to 25 of Southeast Michigan’s world-class arts and cultural institutions. Passes are limited to one at a time per card holder. A limited number of passes are available at any given time at each AADL location and they’re available on a first-come, first-served basis only.

For a full listing of participating institutions and for check-out guidelines, go online to www.detroitadventurepass.org, where you will also find a list of suggested readings, tapes and DVDs to complement your museum experience.

Dovetailing off Hispanic Heritage Month is Latino AIDS Awareness Day Monday October 15, 2007. To mark this day, the Washtenaw County Public Health department is providing free AIDS testing for adults or young people over 13 years old. While Latinos only make up about 14% of the U.S. population, they account for 19% of the AIDS cases in the U.S. since the start of the epidemic. In 2004, Latinos accounted for 20% of the new AIDS cases in the U.S. To read more about the impact of AIDS look for Aids in America by Susan Hunter.

Don’t let physical limitations prevent you from gardening. Make your garden grow using new methods. You have lots of options to consider such as window boxes, raised beds and vertical gardens. Check out our selection of books on accessible gardening including The Able Gardener, The Enabling Garden: Creating Barrier-free Gardens and Accessible Gardening For People With Physical Disabilities.

If you don’t have the ability or desire to create your own accessible garden, consider participating in the Discovery Garden, a part of Project Grow, where accessible gardens are available for use by seniors and wheelchair-bound gardeners.

Need help getting through to your teenagers? A mentor for your child may be just the answer. Mentors along with parents can provide support, answers and influence over kids. Consider reading A Fine Young Man: What Parents, Mentors, and Educators Can Do To Shape Adolescent Boys Into Exceptional Men by Michael Gurian for a better understanding of the mentoring process. If you are looking for a mentor or would like to become a mentor yourself, contact The Insite Project or the Washtenaw Youth Mentoring Coalition, an alliance of twenty mentoring and youth focused organizations.

Five different parenting classes are being offered in Ann Arbor and Ypsilanti this summer by the MSU Extension Family Consumer Science Programs. The Ann Arbor District Library and Ypsilanti District Library have large collections of books and DVDs on parenting, along with books to read and songs to sing to children, beginning before birth and for many years after.

We’re down, we’ve got the 411… and a MySpace page! Have you visited us there? View photos from recent events, leave us comments, and read our blog. Should inspiration strike you, you can even search the catalog from our profile. Best of all, you can be friends with the dopest library around. Sweet!

I’ve been trolling the Internet lately, doing research for a new AADL computer class (Ideas? Suggestions? Do share!), and there’s so much going on out there that’s cool, innovative, and fun, it’s enough to make me want to explode! Here’s the scoop on two projects that take advantage of web 2.0 technology.

Take, for instance, Podington Bear. Besides being perhaps the cutest name for a podcast, ever, Podington “makes songs with love and care, giving one to the world every Monday, Wednesday and Friday in 2007.” That’s 156 songs in a single year! Podington, not to be confused with Padington, also happens to sport an adorable bear logo that I couldn’t help ordering in t-shirt form.

Click "Read More" below for the scoop on Brotherhood 2.0!

Looking for a place to have a small meeting and can't afford to rent a room? Check out the aadlfreespace on the 3rd floor of the Downtown Library. It holds up to 32 people. You can reserve this room for meetings for free up to four times in a calendar year and make your reservations on line. Reservations must be made at least two weeks in advance. You will need an AADL library card to make the reservation. Date availability is shown as well on line. Can't get to a computer? Call 734-327-8323 to make your reservation.

In the spirit of the 1950s folk music revival, the AADL Library Songsters program brings folk musicians, storytellers and dancers into our public schools to teach these traditional arts to students. This year Banjo Betsy Beckerman taught fourth graders at Angell and Pattengill how to write Michigan history songs; Glen Morningstar Jr. brought "Dancing Through American History" to Burns Park, and Lee Knight showed storytelling to sixth graders at Slauson. At the end of each three-day residency, students came to the library to perform their creations for each other or parents. They had a good time learning history, and some go to hear live folk music at places like The Ark or Crazy Wisdom Tea Room. AADL has a excellent collection of folk music recordings, histories and songbooks.

This month Proyecto Avance: Latino Mentoring Association, or PALMA, will begin holding English language tutoring sessions at the Downtown Library. PALMA is the brainchild of Cristhian Espinoza, a Spanish professor at the University of Michigan’s Residential College. The organization pairs UM students with native Spanish speakers in the community who are interested in learning English. Participants range in age from infants and preschoolers to adults, and many attend as families.

While PALMA currently has a waiting list, the library has lots of materials for patrons looking to learn English, from DVDs and CDs to books written specifically for adult English learners.

Please join us in welcoming PALMA to the Ann Arbor District Library!